Mission
The Vice President for Academics, Students & Research, directs a division of services including Academic Affairs, Research, Workforce Programs, Student Success, and Distance Education. The Vice President works with the UA campuses on academic and research initiatives and collaborations to promote research in Alaska. The University of Alaska is committed to working closely with all federal and state agencies and private enterprise to further develop collaboration and new exposures for future growth in all areas of science and technology.
Dr. Brian Smentkowski
Vice President and Chief Academic Officer
(907) 450-8019
bpsmentkowski@alaska.edu
System-level Coordination
ACEC facilitates inter-university coordination and communication to meet the goals
of UA's Schools of Education
Common Calendar 2018 - 2022
The Faculty Alliance Common Calendar Committee has developed a common calendar, coordinating
start dates and breaks throughout the system, and are further developing coordinated
course starting time alignment to facilitate cross-university instruction.
Information on Accreditation
All three universities, UAA, UAF, and UAS, and their respective Community Colleges
are fully accredited. In addition to institutional accreditation from the Northwest
Commission on Colleges and Universities, UA has more than 60 program/specialized accreditations
across the system.
Did You Know UAF is a national finalist to lead U.S. critical minerals innovation?
November 11, 2025
Did you know the University of Alaska powers a growing grant writing network?
October 15, 2025
Did you know UAF just released a feature documentary celebrating 100 years of Nanooks hockey?
September 30, 2025
Did you know T3 Alaska is bringing maritime career pathways to 10 coastal communities this year?
September 10, 2025
UAS natural sciences building given second name to honor Tlingit heritage
November 21, 2025
The University of Alaska Southeast's Anderson Building now has a second name: G̱athéeni Tʼaaḵ Hít. The name, given by X̱'unei Lance Twitchell, Ph.D., a UAS professor of Alaska Native languages, means "house beside sockeye stream," for the salmon that return each summer to nearby Auke Creek.
Staff Alliance offers Spring 2026 semester fee support
November 21, 2025
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
Notice: UA salaries are public data
November 21, 2025
This is a semi-annual notification that certain information about your employment with the University of Alaska is subject to the Alaska Public Records Act and will be released when public records requests are made.
University of Alaska Regents celebrate UA's continuing excellence, approve FY27 budget requests
November 07, 2025
Regents, President Pitney praise university's community support efforts for Typhoon Halong, U.S.-Russia summit; finalize budget requests focused on recruitment, retention, graduation.
Enhancing Our Defense: Introducing Phishing Simulations and a New Reporting Tool
November 21, 2025
To combat the recent surge in sophisticated phishing attacks targeting our community, OIT is stepping up our security awareness program.
UA Google Workspace: Time to tidy up your storage
November 07, 2025
As previously shared, Google is changing how storage works for education accounts, and the University of Alaska is preparing for those changes.
Delayed access to employee timesheets due to BSS9 work
October 17, 2025
In support of the University's ongoing transition to Banner Self Service 9 (BSS9), employees will have delayed access to their R23 and R24 timesheets.
Important Changes to Your Duo Security at UA
October 17, 2025
To protect your University of Alaska (UA) account and university services from increasing security threats, UA is improving its Duo Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) system.