Published Mar 20, 2024 by Alex Johnson

Big news from the Patty Center today as the hockey team’s captain, Jonny Sorenson, has signed his first professional contract with the Iowa Heartlanders in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL).

Sorenson spent the past two seasons with the nooks playing in 77 games with 18 goals and 25 assists for a total 43 points.

The previous three were with the University of Minnesota where he played in 100 games with 15 goals, and 7 assists for a total 22 points.

Sorenson did spend a season in Fairbanks before college with his lone junior season as an Ice Dog in which he played in 60 games with 17 goals scored and 39 assists for a total 56 points.

Published Mar 20, 2024 by alaskabusiness

A $1.9 million federal grant allows UAF to expand suicide prevention research by partnering with the Alaska National Guard and US Coast Guard.

UAF’s Military Health and Readiness Consortium (MiHRC) researches ways to improve protection against suicide while supporting an installation’s ability to execute its missions. The consortium is part of UAF’s Center for Alaska Native Health Research (CANHR) within the Institute of Arctic Biology.

Consortium researchers have already noted an increase in suicide prevention skills and knowledge in the US Army’s 11th Airborne Division, with brigades based at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage.

“Our inaugural research with the 11th Airborne Division draws on both CANHR’s successful collaboration approach with Alaska Native communities and purposeful leadership studies by the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research,” says Liz Mangini, a program director with MiHRC. “This unique and innovative approach focuses on a partnership between military leadership and the university to collaborate on developing tools to positively affect the quality of life and mental health of the soldiers.”

Published Mar 20, 2024 by Randy Griffith rgriffith@tribdem.com

Robert C. Hampshire, U.S. deputy assistant transportation secretary for research and technology, was in Johnstown Thursday to announce a $2 million Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation Grant to launch the drone project.

The grant will fund installation of radar units and sensors across the county that will allow drone pilots to operate the unmanned aircraft while they are out of the operators’ sight.

“This is something we’ve been working on for two or three years,” Nulton said Tuesday at the Johnstown-Cambria County Airport Authority meeting.

“It is initially for emergency services,” he continued. “We hope to develop a test site working with the University of Alaska.”

Last year’s Aerium Summit demonstrated the interest in aviation and drones, with hundreds participating at the John Murtha Johnstown- Cambria County Airport. The event highlighted cooperation between colleges, high schools and industry to showcase aviation opportunities and education.

Published Mar 19, 2024 by Kyle Ivacic

UAA’s student government, known as the Union of Students University of Alaska Anchorage, or USUAA, recently took a trip to Juneau to advocate for the needs of the university. They were joined by other student governments from across the UA system for a week of university advocacy. They focused on issues such as deferred maintenance, campus security, student mental health support, athletics and staff compensation.

In an interview with TNL, USUAA President Helena Ballard and Senator Joe Pavia-Jones explained what they and their fellow USUAA members accomplished on the trip to the state capital. Pavia-Jones said the issue on which they had the most success was “probably security.” 

“A lot of legislators didn’t know, like, how bad it was, the security. So when we told our own personal stories about it, it kind of helped them realize, like, ‘oh they need more funding for this,’” Ballard said.

On security needs across the UA system, Pavia-Jones said, “Talking with other campuses, we kind of realized how much of a bigger thing [the issue is]. It’s not like one campus is [less secure] than the other. It’s just, like, pretty much every campus.”

Pavia-Jones said that the security “workforce is stretched thin” and that there is “a lack of staff.” 

Ballard said that the Mat-Su campus uses one of the Anchorage campus officers to provide limited security during the day. 

“And then at night they don’t have anything — and that’s when most of the crimes happen,” she said. “So we’re just trying to get them to have more security, and not just for four hours a day.”