Engineering Alaska’s future through philanthropy
Frank Paskvan receives a pressure gauge as a gift from Brian Ellingson at the UAF Community and Technical College's Process Technology Facility off Van Horn Road.
Frank Paskvan ’85 could have applied to any college. He chose to attend the University of Alaska Fairbanks because of its connections to his family and community.
He also found his calling through UAF. As a high school student in Fairbanks, Paskvan was inspired by visiting UAF professors who asked if he liked solving problems and wanted to travel the world while getting paid to do it.
“It all sounded good to me,” Paskvan said.
Paskvan completed his bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering in 1985 and was hired full-time by Arco right out of college. Since then, he’s spent more than 35 years in the oil patch.
In those years, Paskvan has also helped students find their own career paths, guiding those who may be future engineers to UAF and donating to support scholarships.
“UAF is a great school and a wonderful option for anyone seeking higher education,” he said. “Their engineering, finance and science graduates are on par with the best universities on planet Earth.”
Recently, Paskvan has worked to provide millions of dollars worth of equipment and support for the specialized process technology program at UAF’s Community and Technical College. Consulting with Associate Professor Brian Ellingson, he facilitated donations of training equipment and scholarships through his employer, BP.
Brian Ellingson demonstrates testing equipment for Frank Paskvan, students and guests at the UAF Community and Technical College's Process Technology Facility. The equipment gives students hands-on experience.
“We had spare or out-of-service equipment,” Paskvan said. “Much of it was perfect for students — true industrial processes and hardware, and at a small enough scale to fit into the classrooms and workshops. It’s pretty surprising actually, to see all that in hindsight. It was really fun at the time, too.”
An example of Paskvan’s enthusiasm for helping students is the donation of a full-scale wellhead and tree from Prudhoe Bay to the CTC Process Technology Facility, located off Van Horn Road in the Fairbanks Pipeline Training Center. The fully functional wellhead gives students hands-on experience with actual equipment.
“Standing in the Signers’ Hall parking lot one spring, Frank and I discussed things we could do to enhance the student experience in the process technology program,” Ellingson said. “We talked about upstream oil and gas and decided that students should get hands-on experience with actual well equipment.”
After that conversation with Ellingson, Paskvan arranged for the wellhead to be delivered in about a week, including time to paint it UAF blue and gold.
Paskvan believes in the future of Alaska and understands the balance between wanting renewable energy and our dependence on petroleum. He has faith in the future generation of engineers to navigate the landscape.
“Today’s engineers and scientists are needed to solve these challenges,” he said. “The Arctic is growing in global importance, and UAF will play a major role in shaping this future.”
Ellingson said Paskvan demonstrates the best qualities of our incredible UAF alumni.
“His guidance, expertise and support have been invaluable to our process technology program and its students,” he said.