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Kevin moved to Fairbanks, Alaska, from Taiwan when he was 15 years old. He attended West Valley High School and ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø (UAF). He graduated in 2007 with a B.B.A. in General Business. While pursuing an undergraduate degree at UAF, he also worked as an academic tutor in the subject of Mathematics and Business Administration with UAF’s Student Support Services. Kevin enjoys meeting new people and learning new languages. He took two years of Japanese class and was a participant at UAF’s Japanese Club assisting in organizing club activities and events, and helping Japanese exchanged students getting used to the great (and wild!) Alaskan life on and off campus. After graduation, Kevin moved down to Seattle, Washington to explore what other states could offer in life experience. He returned to UAF in 2014 for a graduate program and earned his MBA in Capital Markets in 2015.

In Kevin’s professional life, he is a long-tenured public servant in the pension plan and financial services industry. Since 2022, he held the Senior Pension Investment Advisor role with NYC Mayor’s Office of Pensions and Investments assisting with management, planning, and administration of NYC’s pension plans. Prior to NYC, he was a State Investment Officer/Portfolio Manager covering Global Equity with Alaska Retirement Management Board for seven years. In addition, he gained his public service experience from Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, Seattle City Employees’ Retirement System, and Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation.

As a two-time graduate and former student employee of UAF, Kevin values the importance and function of the UAF Alumni Association Board. In addition, he believes the unique experiences he gained at UAF and his diverse professional background can provide value-add to the Board. It is with enthusiasm that he shares his interest in running for Seat 8, At-Large position.

The family of Robert Seitz arrived in Alaska in the 1920’s and Robert attended school in Fairbanks, Anchorage and Homer and attended first grade and his senior year in Fairbanks.  He graduated high school in 1959 and enrolled at the University of Alaska that fall as a student in Electrical Engineering.  He was in ROTC and on the University Ski Team.  There were only 800 students at the university at that time.  It was easy to get to know most of the professors and the students.

At the end of his freshman year he still did not know what an Electrical Engineer did and with a lack of jobs that summer he joined the US Navy in an Electrical/Electronics program.  He became an electronic technician during his tour in the US Navy, and was very certain that he wanted to continue in the Electrical Engineering program at the University of Alaska.  Robert reenrolled at the end of his enlistment in 1964.  He completed his course work in 1968 and graduated.   He has told people over the years that he received a better education that he would have received at any other school including the likes of MIT.  The instructors were the professors in all classes and not graduate student TA’s.  His professors ranged from the first group of engineers in the US to track Sputnik, to the professor who started the Arctic Engineering program, and a chemist who was on the Manhattan project.

After graduating Robert attended graduate school outside Alaska and returned in 1971 and went to work at the Institute of Marine Science as an Oceanographic Instrument Engineer.  He worked for the Institute until 1978 when became a consultant and began working in oil and gas projects in Prudhoe Bay.   He remains active as a Professional Electrical Engineer and with the IEEE (the electrical engineering professional organization).  He has maintained interaction with the UAF engineering department over the years and has attended the Alumni annual gathering during Golden Days in recent years.

With my long duration in Alaska, and in the Alaska workforce and with my close ties to many parts of the University I believe I can help the UAFAA pursue and achieve the many parts of its Mission Statement.

My UAF alumnus journey began in July 1970 when I drove from Southern California to Fairbanks to attend UAF and swim collegiately for the Nanooks. Balancing academics, swim training, darkness and cold was at times a challenge. Yet something transformative happened, as I found a community of teammates, dorm friends, classmates, and numerous dedicated UAF professors, advisors and Alumni who provided me with encouragement and support. These relationships inspired me to believe in my capabilities, work hard and become a leader. The sense of belonging and connectedness I felt as an undergraduate was paramount in keeping me on the right track toward my future goals. The UAF experience instilled in me the value of civic engagement. I take pride in the fact that my wife and daughter experienced something similar as UAF alumni.

As an alumnus of UAF, a source of pride is my recognition as a 3 time All-American swimmer for the Nanooks and being inducted into the Nanook Hall of Fame in 2016. Giving back to the sport and youth of Fairbanks, I enjoyed a 15 year swim coaching career (age group, high school and master’s swimming) and have served as a volunteer swimming official at all levels, including Nanook women’s swimming for the past 20 years.

I completed my BA in K-12 Education in 1974, and my M.Ed in Public School Administration in 1981. While many of my teammates left UAF to work in pipeline related jobs, I chose instead to live and build my career in Fairbanks, start a family, and become a part of the community. My 26 year career in public education included roles as a teacher, swim coach, aquatic coordinator, athletic director, middle school assistant principal and principal.

Professionally I served 10 years on the BOD of the Alaska Association of Secondary School Principals (AASSP) and 3 years on the BOD of the Alaska Council of School Administrators (ACSA), serving as President of both membership organizations. Following retirement, I worked 6 1/2 years for the Association of Alaska School Boards (AASB) as a trainer and served as AASSP’s Executive Director for 4 years. For 32 years I’ve been a proud member of Rotary International, serving in numerous club and district leadership roles, including Rotary District Governor for Alaska in 2019-2020.

As a lifetime member of UAFAA, I actively attend alumni events and contribute financially to UAF. I am committed to supporting initiatives outlined in the UAFAA strategic plan. I have particular interest in exploring strategies for engaging UAF Alumni as mentors to current UAF students and young professionals who will be future alumni or business leaders wherever they live. I believe collaboration between UAFAA BOD and local organizations such as the Chamber of Commerce, area Rotary clubs and the local Young Professionals group can enhance mentorship opportunities, leading to future UAFAA membership growth.

As a UAFAA board member, I pledge to serve collaboratively to implement our strategic goals while actively supporting the Executive Director and staff. My extensive educational background, proven leadership skills and experiences serving professional and non-profit boards, should be viewed as beneficial to the UAFAA. These skills include team building, group facilitation, focused conversations, visioning, strategic planning, project management, event planning and implementation.

Long before Google, Rhonda Widener wrote a request for information from the University of Alaska Fairbanks as part of a 5th grade project. The kind response she received from the UAF Office of Admissions set her Alaska adventure in motion. She moved to Alaska  in 1997 and graduated from UAF with a BA in Arctic and Northern Studies in '01. The events of September 11, 2001 created an unexpected career opportunity to work in the field of national security. Rhonda served as a Special Agent with multiple Federal agencies. Most of her federal career was spent assigned to Alaska with frequent long term duty assignments to overseas missions and the west coast. She received multiple outstanding civilian service awards throughout her federal career. In late 2020, she was hired by the University of Alaska and is now the UA Facility Security Officer, managing industrial security compliance to support classified federal research at UA.

Rhonda was a student assistant in the UAF Alumni Association back in the day and has continued on as a volunteer and consultant in multiple capacities. She served as vice president for the UAFAA Fairbanks Chapter and served one term on the UAFAA BOD from 2013 to 2016. Rhonda was reelected to the UAF BOD in 2022 and has served as BOD President since 2024. She is interested in continuing service on the BOD to be part of moving the UAFAA into our next 100 years. Rhonda has chaired multiple committees to include the Governance Committee, Centennial Committee and countless event committees such as reunion, gala and other fundraising projects. Rhonda believes that the UAFAA connects the past, present and future with the values and mission of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. If elected, she will bring experience and a renewed sense of purpose to help connect our alumni. 

Jim is a retired volcanologist and is currently living in Blacksburg, Virginia. While living outside of Alaska he has continued to maintain contacts with fellow alumni through social media. Previously he had lived in Fairbanks for 30 years.

He started at UAF in 1984 and graduated with two degrees, a BS in Electrical Engineering and a MS in Geophysics. His career took him to Virginia, to Florida, and back to Fairbanks where he worked with the US Geological Survey as a Seismologist in the Alaska Volcano Observatory for 20 years before retiring in 2020.

He has served on the UAFAA board of directors 2007-2016, first as the Fairbanks Chapter president and then two elected terms. While on the board, he was elected as board president for two years and treasurer for another two. He served on various committees including the awards and nominations committee all nine years. After he left the board, Jim continued to be involved in UAFAA activities. From flipping burgers at the Fair booth to attending student events (The UAFAA sponsored parents' social at Rev It Up and Grad Bash).

Jim served the community with a decade of service on the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Road Service Area, as a member of the KUAC community advisory committee and on the board of the Alaska Goldpanners. He served in leadership roles on all three.

The University has always been a focal point for me. In addition to my office being on campus, I have found other reasons to visit the University from the cultural activities and the occasional pint at the Pub. I enjoyed the time I spent on the board of directors and want to continue to contribute to the success of our Alumni Association.

Mischa Ellanna is a lifelong Alaskan who was born in Anchorage and lived in Nome and Juneau before moving to Fairbanks as a pre-teenager. He spent his childhood and teenage years as a competitive swimmer. Mischa graduated from West Valley High School and went to school on the East Coast for a year. As a child of a university professor, he was quite familiar with UAF, then enrolled, and graduated with a B.S. In his senior years at UAF, he worked in the paleomagnetism lab. Mischa brings over 20 years of experience in land management as a geologist for an Alaskan regional native corporation. His career began with mineral exploration, where he pursued economic ore deposits across Alaska. Currently, Mischa serves on the Alaska Geospatial Council Executive Board, the Geologic Mapping Advisory Board, and as Chairman of the Schimdt Charitable Trust.

Mischa is a longtime member of the Society of Economic Geologists, where his expertise spans geology, geochemistry, geophysics, and geographic information systems. His role involves overseeing the management and stewardship of three million acres, addressing land law, cadastral analysis, subsurface assessments, and obtaining construction aggregate materials.

Mischa is an Alaska Native, proud father of three adult children, and is passionate about promoting education for all Alaskans.