University Of Alaska Anchorage: NSS Welcomes New Assistant Director

Press release from the University of Alaska Anchorage:

July 7, 2021

Native Student Services (NSS) is thrilled to announce that Valerie Svancara has accepted
the Assistant Director role for NSS. Valerie (she/her) is of Settler-Colonizer heritage
(mostly Czech and German) and grew up in what is now Colorado on the land of the Arapahoe,
Cheyenne, and Ute peoples. With a background in social services and higher education,
Val first came to UAA as an Admissions Counselor primarily focused on working with
students across rural Alaska and transitioned to being a First-Year Advisor, where
she has worked closely with Native Student Services. In Fall 2019, she graduated with
a Master of Education in Teaching and Learning from UAA, which culminated with a Participatory
Action/Indigenous Methodologies research project focused on university transition
and retention experiences of Alaska Native students. It would not have been possible
without the project’s co-researcher, Barbara Sikvayugak, and every student involved
who shared their stories, and she remains deeply appreciative to them. Val often says
that it is the stories that students have shared with her throughout her time at UAA
that continue to shape her work in advocating for students and pushing UAA to be more
equitable and culturally responsive.

Val began her role effective July 4, 2021. In addition to the continued development
of student support services, Val will be working to build the data management systems
for NSS, the Native Early Transition (NET) Program, and the Cultural Identity Project
(CIP) as it settles into its new home in NSS (effective Fall 2021). Please help us
in congratulating Val on her new role!

This press release was produced by the University of Alaska Anchorage. The views expressed here are the author’s own.