UAA Records - Historical Note
The development of UAA can be traced to the public demand for a full, four year, higher education institution in Anchorage. College level classes were first offered in Anchorage by the University of Alaska (UA) at Fort Richardson and at Elmendorf Air Force Base in 1949. A more formal higher education institutional structure was created with the establishment of Anchorage Community College (ACC) in 1954. Twelve years later (July 1, 1966), the Anchorage Regional Center (ARC) was established by the legislature in part to fulfil the need for a four year college education in Anchorage. The ARC was to coordinate university upper and lower division courses and programs in the Anchorage area (ACC, classes on the military bases, and other UA programs). Two years later, the Southcentral Regional Center (SRC) was created to operate and coordinate lower, upper division, and graduate programs in the broader south central portion of Alaska - including ACC; the UAA Anchorage Senior College (ASC); community colleges in Kenai, Kodiak, and Matanuska-Susitna; and learning centers. The chief executive officer of the ARC and the SRC was the Provost who supervised the schools in the area and acted as liaison with the statewide administration.
The ASC of the University of Alaska, Anchorage was established by the University of Alaska Board of Regents (BOR) in 1970 to administer the upper division and graduate programs leading to baccalaureate and masters degrees in the Anchorage area. The offices were located in buildings on the newly constructed ACC campus on Providence Drive near Lake Otis Parkway. Later, the UAA/ASC was housed in the Consortium Library (which served UAA and Alaska Methodist University) when construction of that facility was completed in 1973. The first campus facility for the ASC, the current CAS building, was completed in 1974. UAA achieved full accreditation from the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges in1974.
In 1970, the Anchorage Higher Education Consortium was established by UAA, ACC, and Alaska Methodist University (AMU). It sought to expand educational offerings to Anchorage area residents by more efficiently utilizing facilities, staff, and funds. The units maintained their separate identities but allowed for cross registration, a limited number of joint courses, and the planning for a consortium library.
In the early 1970s, the University of Alaska, Anchorage, was composed of ACC and ASC. The relationship between the institutions was modified in the late 1970s when ACC and UAA became separate entities. This division continued until the budget crises in the mid 1980s, during which the UA system budget was reduced by about one-third. That calamity led to an administrative reorganization including the elimination of ACC and CCREE (Community Colleges, Rural Education and Extension), as well as a reduction or elimination of the administrative offices of other community colleges. The result was a reorganized University of Alaska Anchorage that took over many of the past programs of the eliminated units.