Sam is originally from Washington State, growing up outside of Seattle. After a family trip north to Alaska, he knew the 49th state was a place he wanted to live someday. Sam stayed in the Pacific Northwest to earn his undergraduate degree in history, but after graduation jumped at the opportunity to attend UAF for graduate school. He joined the Admissions team in 2022, and could not be more excited to be working for UAF. 

Sam attended UAF from 2017-2020, graduating with his M.A. in Arctic and Northern Studies. While at UAF Sam connected with students and their families as a history teaching assistant, worked at the Patty Ice Rink where he became an expert Zamboni driver (cool, right?!) and got to travel to Arctic Finland. After a brief hiatus in the “Lower 48” to be near family, he is ecstatic to be back in Interior Alaska, and a part of the close-knit community at UAF. 

Outside of work Sam enjoys hiking, camping, fly fishing, reading and relaxing with his cats, Pia and Lily. 

Jessica grew up in the Southwest region of Alaska alongside the Yukon River. She is Koyukon Athabascan and was raised on her family’s homestead. Jessica’s parents raised her with strong traditional and cultural values. They also made sure to raise her to be bi-cultural so that she could succeed in either a rural or urban setting. Up until she reached high school, she commuted 12 miles to the village of Nulato, AK for school. She then moved to Fairbanks, AK to continue her educational journey.

Education has been very important to Jessica her entire life. Her favorite person growing up (her grandmother, Edith Nicholas) was a teacher. Jessica grew up loving to learn and especially loved reading and writing thanks to her grandmother. Then as she got older, she started developing a love for the sciences. Jessica began to find that science is tied into everything her family was teaching her in their subsistence lifestyle. Her mother would have her make the brine for their salmon strips, which involves chemistry. She watched her father, uncles and brothers build a fish wheel, which requires math. There were nuisance beavers always trying to dam up the creek where her family got their water supply, which opened their eyes to the Biology of Giardia lamblia (“beaver fever”). It seemed that she was finding connections to science more often than not in her subsistence upbringing; thus, Jessica chose the STEM field for her postsecondary education.

All throughout her years in college, Jessica has enjoyed making connections with others and motivating fellow students to never give up on their higher education. She is delighted to be able to help prospective students find their way at UAF.

Ray was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska and is a first-generation Filipino-American. She knew that she wanted to stay in-state for college, but she also wanted to move out of the city that she grew up in to learn how to be more independent. At first, she sought out a career in Nursing and was a Pre-Nursing Qualifications certificate student, but after an eye-opening microbiology unit, she decided to pursue a degree in Biology. She started working at the Office of Admissions during her sophomore year as a Student Ambassador where she was able to participate in many different activities around campus and foster her passion for working with incoming and prospective students. 

After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Biology (concentration in Biomedical Sciences) in 2021, Ray moved to Fairbanks where she works as an Admissions Counselor. She hopes to continue working with students and sharing her positive experiences of the place she now calls home. 

Outside of work, Ray loves knitting and often holds knitting workshops to teach others the craft, playing different board and card games, facetiming with her grandparents in the Philippines, and watching an array of different shows and movies with her roommate. In the summer she can be found napping in a hammock on campus, and in the winter she’s usually out Northern Lights hunting with good company.

Rachel Krahn was born in Thief River Falls, Minnesota but has lived all over thanks to being a military dependent. Her family was stationed at Fort Wainwright, Alaska when she was young. She began her college studies at Austin Peay State University and graduated with an A.A. in Liberal Arts. Her time in Alaska left her with such great memories that when her father retired from the Army and moved to Alaska, she decided to move up from Nashville, Tennessee to get her bachelor’s degree at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA). 

While at UAA, she worked for Disability Support Services, the Writing and Communication Centers and as a research assistant on an Oral History of Intellectual and Developmental Disability Care in Alaska project. She discovered how much she enjoyed working with students and decided that she would like to continue to do so. Rachel graduated in 2020 with a B.A. in International Studies and History. 

After earning her degree, Rachel then moved back to Fairbanks and worked as an English Language tutor and with After School Programs with the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District before joining the University of Alaska Fairbanks Office of Admissions team. Rachel is excited to work closely with all students and their families during the admissions process. Outside of UAF, Rachel enjoys reading, grabbing coffee, watching movies and spending time with friends and family, including her cat, Contessa.

Palmer joined the admissions team in 2017, bringing over thirty years of admissions experience with him. He loves helping students by connecting them to resources that help them achieve their goals. Palmer is based outside of Portland to better serve UAF's prospective students in Oregon and Washington.

Some of Palmer's favorite things are traveling, Words with Friends, Survivor, Diet Pepsi, podcasts about Disney World, collecting interesting quotes and —last but not least — going on Daddy-Daughter Dates with his two 12-year-olds.

He is a past president of the Pacific Northwest Association for College Admission Counseling and was MVP of his high school's junior varsity basketball team when he was in 9th grade.

Anna was born and raised in Juneau, Alaska. As an undergraduate student, she took advantage of an international student exchange program to spend a year in Lille, France where she spent a lot of time with a modern dance troupe. Upon her return in 2005, she arrived in Fairbanks as a transfer student and promptly fell in love with the people, personality and campus of UAF.

Anna graduated from UAF in 2009 with a B.A. in Theater and History. She has worked at UAF since 2012, and she is very excited to work with prospective students to help them achieve their educational goals.

Outside of UAF, Anna enjoys working on her small farm with her husband and children. Her family currently lives in an off-grid farmhouse, raising chickens, goats, bees and pigs. She loves coffee with a deep passion and at last count had six separate devices for making coffee in her home.

Kristy is Koyukon Athabascan, originally from the village of Nulato where she grew up living a traditional and cultural lifestyle. The village of Nulato is located along the banks of the Yukon River approximately 350 air miles southwest of Fairbanks. 

Kristy is a University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) alumni who graduated with a BA in Rural Development in 2000 and has also earned her Master’s of Public Administration degree from the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) in 2021.  

Kristy has worked at UAF in various positions since 2004 and has years of administrative and organizational experience. The most rewarding part of her job has been helping and supporting students throughout the years. As the Associate Director of Admissions, Kristy brings significant knowledge and understanding of rural Alaska and the surrounding areas.

Kristy enjoys hiking, picking berries and taking Alaskan adventures.