Staff Development Fund

Staff Alliance offers Spring 2026 semester fee support

The UA Staff Alliance is pleased to once again offer a class fee scholarship for UA classes taken by staff that directly support their career or professional development. The scholarship, good for the 2026 Spring Semester, is for up to $250 per employee. **This scholarship will only be applied to tuition fees in your student account. This will NOT apply to bookstore or parking fees.

There are limited funds available. After the application period closes, if there are more applicants than funds available, recipients will be randomly selected from all eligible applications.

UAF Thursday, January 22, 2026
UAS Thursday, January 22, 2026
UAA Thursday January 22, 2026

ELIGIBILITY:

Must be a UA STAFF member.
Temporary part time employees, grad students, and student employees are NOT eligible
Tuition Fee support is exactly that - fee support for taking classes at UA. The goal is to help you advance in your professional career.
Recreational/Personal/Self Care classes are only allowed if they are used as an elective within a degree program. **Must submit an unofficial transcript with RECR class registration.**

TO APPLY:

Application period: November 17, 2025 - January 5, 2026

Submit a fee scholarship request here by: January 5, 2026
a Tuition Waiver is no longer necessary.

Thank you to President Pitney and the UA Board of Regents for providing these funds and supporting professional development for staff.

For questions please email Staff Alliance Fund Committee,

ua-sa-staffdevelopmentfund@alaska.edu .

Staff Alliance offers Professional Development support

Staff Alliance is offering support for staff professional development activities that directly support their professional development in FY26. Examples include but not limited to: Professional certifications, attending or presenting at a conference, professional society memberships, online or in-person trainings, webinars. (Please note, this is not applicable to UA class fees.)

This support is good for any activities occurring within the next 12 months, and is for up to $500 per employee, while the funds last.

Requirements:

Must be a “fully benefited” STAFF member. Temporary part time employees, grad students, and student employees are NOT eligible.

Selection: The Staff Development Fund Committee will review applications once per quarter (see review dates below). They will score the applications and award the top applications until funds are exhausted for that quarter.

Application Link

Application review dates have changed to align with the FY Quarters:

Q1: August 1 –September 30 = Review 1st week of October (shorter quarter due to FY rollover)

Q2: October 1–December 31 = Review 2nd week of January (due to holidays)

Q3: January 1–March 31 = Review first week of April

Q4: April 1–June 30 = Review first week of July

**Personal reimbursements are to be avoided at all possible costs. Please work with a ProCard holder or your fiscal technicians to make the purchase through UA Procurement approved avenues. Travel related expenses are required to be submitted through Concur. Please work with your travel department if you have questions. Spending guidance will be included in your award letter. **

Thank you to President Pitney and the UA Board of Regents for providing these funds and supporting professional development for staff.

For questions please email the Staff Alliance Fund Committee,

ua-sa-staffdevelopmentfund@alaska.edu

FAQ's

The application period has closed, how do I know if I've been awarded funding?

Applicants will receive a .pdf via email for their use during the procurement process. If you’ve not received a .pdf from DocuSign then your application did not meet the scoring criteria for funding.

I didn’t use my award when I said I would in my application - Can I use it now?

Yes - if you delayed using your award but you are now able to attend/complete the thing you said you’d do, your award can be rolled over to be used within 18 months.

The award came after I paid out of pocket - now what?

You can receive a reimbursement for the amount awarded.

Travel reimbursements go through Concur with the confirmation letter attached to the Expense Report.

Direct Reimbursements can be submitted through this form:
Staff Development Reimbursement Form

Can I apply again during the next round?

Yes! You can apply every round, and are encouraged to do so, as long as your application meets the criteria. You may not be awarded every time you apply for support, due to the number of applications received and the scores received. Note that awards from Staff Development Funds are available until they are completely expended. As long as the Staff Development Fund is renewed the following year, staff has an opportunity to apply for support.

How long do I have to use the award?

You have 18 months from the date of the letter. If you are not able to use it within that time the funding will be released for someone else’s use.

I can’t use the funds after all, what do I do with it?

Please email UA-SA-StaffDevelopmentFund@alaska.edu and we’ll happily redistribute the funding.

My plans changed, can I use the funding for something else instead?

Maybe, please email UA-SA-StaffDevelopmentFund@alaska.edu to see if the revised use meets the application criteria.