Iḷisaġvik College to develop a satellite campus on St. Paul Island

Iḷisaġvik College announced in August plans to create a satellite campus on St. Paul Island to continue providing tribal education across Alaska.

Iḷisaġvik College President Justina Wilhelm and Tribal President of the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island John Wayne Melovidov signed an agreement on July 27 to collaborate in creating the new campus, according to the Iḷisaġvik College press release.

“We’re thrilled to deepen our partnership with the Aleut Community,” said Wilhelm in a prepared statement. “Iḷisaġvik College’s vision is to build strong communities through education and training. This partnership is a testament to that commitment and our dedication to enhancing state-wide tribal education to Alaska Native communities.”

“The goal is to strengthen the support and programming and extend what is offered,” Wilhelm added in an email.

Iḷisaġvik College provides post-secondary academic, career and technical education while highlighting Iñupiat culture. In turn, St. Paul Island is home to an educational facility, the Bering Sea Campus, that offers a mix of K-12 and after-school programming and post-secondary support. The Bering Sea Research Center, an on-site research facility, is also a part of the extended Bering Sea Campus.

Iḷisaġvik has partnered with the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island Tribal Government since 2018, and the collaboration allowed for workforce training and courses in the community, according to the college press release. In 2022, the college signed an agreement with the St. Paul Island government to increase educational opportunities on the island, and a year later, to promote dual credit opportunities for local high school students, the press release stated.

“This partnership grew from its original roots based in tribal values that are symmetrically aligned,” Melovidov said in a statement. “As a person who had the fortune to attend a Tribal College, I feel that attending a tribal institution provides the greatest framework for success and support for tribal students. Iḷisaġvik College embodies foundational tribal values which are relatable, familiar and meaningful.”

“We are looking forward to strengthening and growing our partnership through this agreement,” Melovidov said.

While the plan is for Iḷisaġvik to keep its main “home” campus in Utqiaġvik, the partnership with St. Paul Island helps provide — and expand — educational services at St. Paul’s Bering Sea campus, Wilhelm said.

For example, the Bering Sea Campus instructors developed a Unangam Tunuu language curriculum. With the partnership, “the goal would be for Iḷisaġvik to help facilitate the creation of a Certificate I, II, and an Associate of Arts degree, modeled after our flagship Associate of Arts degree in Iñupiaq Studies,” Wilhelm said.

All full-time Iḷisaġvik College faculty members are based in Utqiaġvik, but students from all over Alaska, including St. Paul Island, are able to attend most classes either fully online in an asynchronous manner or through video conferencing, Wilhelm said.

The designation of a satellite campus would be officially granted through the college’s accrediting body, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, Wilhelm said. College officials estimated the process to take at least between 18 and 24 months.

“Iḷisaġvik College and the North Slope region have been leaders in supporting Native education throughout Alaska. Supporting post-secondary education on St. Paul Island is perfectly aligned with our vision of building strong communities through education and training,” she said. “As Alaska’s only Tribal College, we also value working and supporting other Tribal partners and Alaska Native communities that can relate to our Iñupiaq values, beliefs, and ways of learning.”