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 the University of Alaska is a central figure in Alaska's emerging mariculture industry?
December 16, 2025
Did you know UA Scholars are sharing their success stories in a new video series?
November 25, 2025
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
UA Disability Services "All Access" training session videos available
January 22, 2026
UA Disability Services will return with new "All Access, All the Time" staff and faculty support series programming in fall 2026. In the meantime, several popular training session recordings are now available for faculty and staff.
Federal Lobbying Disclosure Act: reporting reminder for UA employees
January 22, 2026
UA faculty and staff who engaged in federal lobbying must report activities and expenses under the Federal Lobbying Disclosure Act by Friday, Jan. 26.
Expense report submission changes for student travelers
January 22, 2026
Based on stakeholder feedback, UA is implementing an enhancement to our expense process: allowing delegates to submit expense reports on behalf of students when appropriate.
New planetarium at UAF set to open in spring 2026
January 22, 2026
A new planetarium at the University of Alaska Fairbanks is expected to open to the public in spring 2026, expanding science education and outreach opportunities in Interior Alaska.
January 23, 2026
Zoom Hub - an interface to simplify access to and management of your Zoom assets - is being included and enabled by default on the Zoom Workplace app for all new and existing Zoom accounts.
Online labor redistributions coming soon
January 22, 2026
We are happy to announce that online Labor Redistributions through UAOnline will be coming soon. Here is a sneak peek.
UAF Nanook Technology Services to offer UA Zoom and Kaltura Mediaspace training
January 09, 2026
At the beginning of the Spring 2026 semester, UAF Nanook Technology Services (NTS) Collaboration and Learning Spaces (CLS) will offer UA Zoom and Kaltura MediaSpace Trainings to anyone within the University of Alaska system.
Zoom AI Companion in the Workplace App available soon
January 09, 2026
Zoom AI Companion panel in the Workplace App will become available for all UA Zoom users on Jan 11th, as an opt-in feature.