Students at the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program will be offered more opportunities to work for federal jobs following a collaboration that they have formed with U.S. Department of the Interior.
This arrangement will make it easier to apply for the procedures in the application process for Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program students. The program was established in the early 1990s with a single university student and has since grown to include 3000 students as young as fifth grade.
Beth Spangler, a senior director for the program stated that she’s been working towards this agreement since joining the organization 14 years ago.
“I feel elated for my students since it’s a fantastic chance,” she said. “Our Alaska Native and rural students must be an integral part of the workforce in the communities they reside in. It’s an incredible possibility for our students and I’m really eager for their future.”
Spangler became a part of the project following a few years of in the Federal government to increase diversity in federal positions within the state.
The agreement, signed earlier this month, contains an “direct hire authority” which implies that ANSEP students, upon working at the state’s university for a specified amount of hours and earning their degree, may be employed without competition in Department of Interior jobs for two years. Noncompetitive hires don’t have to compete against the general population to get a job.
The program has collaborated together with Interior Department to place students on internships and full-time work in both the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement. The new partnership could make these opportunities available to more students.
The positions are mostly located in Alaska, Spangler said, however, they can be found anyplace within the United States. ANSEP has students working in Washington, D.C., working for the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation as well as located in Washington state working for Boeing as well as within Rhode Island and Texas. She said she’s the most enthusiastic about the possibilities for local opportunities since it’s crucial that Alaska Native students be able to work with federal agencies that work “in the backyards of their communities.”
“It’s going be beneficial for the community but good for resources beneficial to Alaska,” she said. “Our students are academically educated such as a master’s or Bachelor’s in Natural Resources, or whatever position they hold however, they also have local expertise. They’re able to understand far more extensive.”
The deal is in effect immediately, however Spangler stated that in the real world, it’s likely to begin to take off next year because of agencies making hires for fall next summer.
The story was originally published in Alaska Beacon and is republished here with permission.
