Category: Workforce Development

Women in Construction Week – March 6

WIC Week™, or Women in Construction Week™, celebrates and promotes the role of women in the construction industry. The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) held the first WIC Week in 1998 and it has grown and expanded each year since. This year’s theme, ‘Keys to the Future’, celebrates the strength and knowledge of women and the vital role they play in shaping the future of the construction industry.

Alaska Safety Alliance (ASA) is excited to join the NAWIC Alaska Chapter to support a series of events for WIC Week! The NAWIC Alaska Chapters holds WIC Week events each year.  The 2024 events include OSHA a Kick-Off mixer at the Peanut Farm, OSHA 10-Hour Safety Training, a Get Hired event, and much more.  

Construction firms of all sizes and types are encouraged to participate in WIC Week and show their support for their women employees. Contact the Alaska Safety Alliance or NAWIC Alaska Chapter to volunteer or get more information about all upcoming events.

The planning committee is seeking sponsors, volunteers, and attendees for a variety of events all week long! Please help us spread the word and contact naomi@alaskasafetyalliance.org for more information.

Source: Alaska Safety Alliance.

Maritime Career Exploration for Alaskan High School Students

If you’re unable to scan the QR code, click HERE to learn more about the opportunity.

Source: Alaska Safety Alliance.

UAF Secures $14.9M to Mentor Teachers New to Alaska

ASMP teacher mentor Hal Neace is surrounded by early-career teacher Brett Stevens’ fifth grade class in Utqiagvik. Photo courtesy of Brett Stevens.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks secured a $14.9-million grant from the U.S. Department of Education and Innovation Research to expand its Alaska Statewide Mentor Project (ASMP). The program will expand from serving only first – and second-year teachers to mentoring all teachers new to the state, including experienced educators from other countries.

“Teacher recruitment and retention are especially challenging in remote communities. Teacher recruitment and retention are especially challenging in remote communities.” – Sue McIntosh, ASMP Program Manager

McIntosh explains it’s important for teachers new to Alaska — whether rural or urban, experienced or new to the profession — to understand their students’ communities, cultures and history. They also need to know how to navigate the practical realities of life in a remote place — how to get food delivered, for instance, or access to medical care.

Visit UAF News and Information to read the full article.

Source: Kristin Summerlin, UAF News ad Information.

Alaska Economic Trends (December 2023)

This photo of a giant kelp is by Flickr user John Turnbull. Giant kelp is one of the varieties of kelp farmed in Alaska. License.

Sara Whitney of the Alaska Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development highlights Alaska’s growing aquaculture industry. Alaska has more coastline that the lower 48 combined, but only in June of this year, the state was deemed as a federal aquaculture opportunity area. This opportunity allows the state to support multiple commercial aquatic farming operations, like kelp. Although the salmon hatchery industry came first, seaweed is a newcomer with many uses, and the industry is expanding.

The December edition also highlights Alaska community changes from pre- to post-pandemic. The monthly high-level overview of Alaska’s economy closes this month’s publication.

Read the full edition here.

Trends is a nonpartisan, data-driven magazine that covers a variety of economic topics in Alaska.

Source: Alaska Department of Labor & Workforce Development, Research & Analysis

ASMP Celebrates 20 Years of Mentoring Alaska Teachers

Photo courtesy of ASMP. ASMP’s 2023-2024 mentor group, with Sue McIntosh, program director, (second from right, back row) and Glenda Findlay, K-12 outreach director at UAF’s School of Education, (third row, left).

The Alaska Statewide Mentor Project (ASMP) recently marked its 20th year of mentoring first- and second-year teachers in schools all over Alaska.

Operating under the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ School of Education, ASMP offers individualized support to new teachers and develops a teaching workforce that is responsive to the diverse student population, addressing unique academic needs.

Leaders from all tiers of K-12 education gathered on October 12 to celebrate the anniversary and share stories.

LEARN MORE about ASMP’s history and response to meeting a vital state priority — Alaska needs more teachers.

Source: UAF news and information.