Summer 2024 Aurora

Read about the annual gathering to salute Alaska Native cultures held on campus since 1974, a former student-athlete learning the value of giving back, a final kiln firing capping a professor’s 30-year career, and much more in the summer 2024 Aurora.

Week's events: Jack Wilbur, vascular surgery, wildlife interactions, bagpipes

University of Alaska Fairbanks Summer Sessions and Lifelong Learning is hosting more than 40 free lectures, concerts and events this summer. Here's what's happening during the week of June 10-16.

Sliced ripe strawberries are arranged on a round drying rack.

Online class to cover food preservation techniques

Learn how to get the most out of the food you have grown, harvested or bought during a free one-hour overview of food preservation methods. The class, available statewide via Zoom, will be held from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on June 25. Register for the food preservation class at bit.ly/FoodPreservation2024.

Construction begins on new ski trail

A large area between the Patty Center and the Butrovich Building will be closed between June 10 and July 15 as crews begin construction on a new ski trail for NCAA-sanctioned cross-country skiing events. The closed area includes the SRC commuter trail, the Himalaya Trail, Beluga Field and the sledding hill. In March, Usibelli Coal Mine announced a $300,000 gift to the project, with will build 1.5-kilometer and 2.5-kilometer courses. The trails will be open to the public when they are not being used for practices and races. Learn more on by viewing the UCM Ski Trails promotional video.

Frankie Dillon displays a chum salmon caught in the Big Fish River, near Aklavik, Northwest Territories in 2023.

Warming Arctic expanding salmon range via 'open gates'

New research has connected warming ocean temperatures to higher Pacific salmon abundance in the Canadian Arctic, an indicator that climate change is creating new corridors for the fish to expand their range. Learn more about the study.

What's happening

Wood Center booths; student club meetings (ongoing)

Deadlines and reminders

Facilities Services customer satisfaction survey
Fall 2024 OLLI course proposal deadline (June 14)
Withdraw deadline - First six-week session (June 14)
Deadline to apply for admission for fall semester without late application fee (undergraduate students) (June 15)
New for fall 2024: UAF Bookstore Bundle
Orientation, graduation fees to be combined (Fall 2024)
Student health, counseling center summer hours

Two snowmachines, one pulling a wooden box sledge, sit on an expanse of snow-covered sea ice, some of which is jumbled into pressure ridges.

Did sea ice help populate the Americas?

A team of scientists has proposed winter sea ice as a possible ephemeral highway through and around Alaska and into the New World. Learn more on the proposal.

New research shows flood risk for several Alaska communities

Coastal Alaska communities from the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta northward will see more of their buildings exposed to flooding by 2100 if they continue developing at the same location, according to new research. Read what the research reveals for coastal communities.

New pages and navigation options in UAOnline this June

Throughout 2024 and 2025, UAOnline will be updated with a new look and feel. Among the first changes that users will notice starting in late June will be to the main menu and site navigation, as well as the addition of some new pages, including the new My Profile dashboard. The upgrade is mobile-friendly, and has a more modern, intuitive and accessible interface. Learn more on the new changes.

About Cornerstone

The Cornerstone student newsletter is produced by University Relations and emailed weekly to all students. You can submit news items here. If you are no longer a student, please contact us at UAF-Cornerstone@alaska.edu.