By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
University of Alaska Southeast will receive $2.3 million in federal funds to support its Sitka-based mariculture workforce development program, UAS announced this week.
UAS was one of 21 award winners – selected through the $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge – that were announced September 2 by President Biden. The Regional Challenge program also provided $49 million for the Southeast Conference and the Alaska Mariculture Cluster.
“We’re excited about this,” UAS Sitka campus director Paul Kraft said today. “It’s going to help us build upon infrastructure we have right now. We really think it’ll be a game changer for the university and our efforts to develop and expand the workforce in the region.”
He said the grant will allow for additional faculty to be hired, curriculum development and additional infrastructure for the Applied Fisheries program.
Joel Markis, associate professor and program director of the Applied Fisheries program, commented: “We are excited that this opportunity will allow us to expand our existing mariculture program and enhance the ways we teach people about this healthy and sustainable industry, one that is so well suited for southeast Alaska and our little coastal fishing community.”
The Applied Fisheries program at UAS has been offering courses in aquaculture for more than a decade, and specific courses focused on mariculture for the last five.
The UAS Applied Fisheries program is based on the UAS-Sitka campus and is focused on training students for jobs in fisheries management, aquaculture, mariculture and science diving, UAS said in the news release.
The university plans to use the grant to “grow the mariculture-specific elements of its fisheries programing,” the release said. New faculty positions include a mariculture-specific faculty position to further develop and teach mariculture curriculum; a marketing and recruitment specialist to promote courses and programming, and a mariculture technician, dedicated to taking care of the various kelp, shellfish, and other invertebrate species to be cultivated.
The grant will enable the university to purchase a climate-controlled growth chamber that facilitates spawning of various algal and kelp species, as well as the development of a commercial kitchen to test, develop and refine mariculture products for human consumption, UAS said.
Angela Bowers, assistant professor in the Applied Fisheries program, said the federal funds will help UAS “create a program that truly meets the needs of the mariculture industry and those interested in becoming a part of it.
“It is going to allow us to offer students a better learning experience with facilities that offer opportunities for hands-on learning with more species and farm types, as well as research opportunities for our students and visiting scientists and educators,” Bowers said. “It will enable us to provide scholarships for tuition, travel to visit farms in other areas, meet industry professionals and allow for more cross pollination with other farmers, mariculture educators, rural communities and researchers around the state.”
The goal of the program, Bowers said, is to be able to offer an education that can be completed anywhere, “either hands on in Sitka or at home online.” The program is designed to provide students with skills in Alaska mariculture, small boats and coldwater survival, pathology and more, she said.
“It’s a really exciting time and we are so grateful to be a part of this and look forward to training tomorrow’s farmers and the workforce that they will need,” Bowers said.
UAS said the university and the Applied Fisheries Program “remain committed to the Fisheries and Mariculture industry and are excited to further serve this industry in providing a skilled and trained workforce and promoting research, education, and collaboration across the industry and Alaska as a whole.”
Faculty members in the Applied Fisheries program here include Markis, Bowers and Dr. Lauren Wild, assistant professor.
Some 144 students are enrolled in the applied fisheries program classes based on the UAS-Sitka campus, Wild said. Students from around the state and the U.S. take academic courses as well as workforce development training courses, both in person or online.
Classes include Alaska salmon culture I and II, fish pathology, introduction to mariculture, fisheries management techniques, fisheries of Alaska, fish biology, intro to oceanography, small vessel operator and outboard motor maintenance, cold water survival, fisheries policy practicum, fisheries technology internships and SCUBA classes. Semester-long intensives include Alaska aquaculture semester, and Alaska dive semester.
