Author Archives: Ravensong

May 15, 2015–Alaska Quarterly Review Spring/Summer Launch Party

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AQR – an Alaska institution for 33 years – is set to launch its most provocative issue ever. Fiction, non-fiction and poetry by writers from Alaska and beyond, plus the extraordinary special feature: “Gaza: The Land Behind the Fence” – an essay and photographs by Eman Mohammed, the first female photojournalist in Gaza. Ms. Mohammed’s photos will be shown with musical accompaniment by Sharman Piper, principal oboist for the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra. Featured Alaskan poets Gary Holthaus and Susanna Mishler will also read from their latest works. This is a literary event not to be missed. Admission is free, with a suggested donation of $20.

When: May 15, 2015 – 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Location Name: BP Energy Center
Ages: All Ages
Phone Number: 907-227-9584
Event URL: https://www.facebook.com/events/789095884530836/

April 6, 2015–Alaska Sampler 2015

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Contact: Deb Vanasse / Running Fox Books                 IMMEDIATE RELEASE
info@runningfoxbooks.com
(907) 388-9303

READ AND THEY’LL COME

ALASKA SAMPLER 2015

As cuts to the state’s film subsidy program threaten the booming reality TV industry, what will be the next big draw to Alaska?

Books, of course. At least that’s what the editors at the Running Fox authors’ co-op are counting on.

Following the success of last year’s Alaska Sampler, a free e-book anthology, Running Fox is at it again, with a new volume of the Sampler plus a new website that aims to change the way readers connect with Alaska-inspired books.

“In their reviews, readers of last year’s Sampler spoke of how they read specifically to prepare for their Alaska vacations, and they urged us to issue a fresh volume each year. How could we refuse?” says Deb Vanasse, co-editor of the Sampler and founder of Running Fox Books.

In what lead editor David Marusek deems a “literary labor of love,” the Alaska Sampler 2015 features fiction, memoir, crime writing, and humor.  Among the dozen featured authors are new favorites alongside the well-recognized, including Heather Lende (If You Lived Here, I’d Know Your Name), C.B. Bernard (Chasing Alaska), Rich Chiappone (Opening Days), and Gerri Brightwell (Cold Country).

Aiming to move beyond the either-or thinking about e-books and print books, the Sampler relies on a unique partnership with brick-and-mortar bookshops in Homer, Palmer, Skagway, and Ketchikan.

Readers can download the Alaska Sampler 2015 for free, Alaska’s only curated online bookshop, featuring the Passage Picker, Book Your Trip (Literally), and Author Confessions.

April 8, 2015–Last Shots of Civil War Fired off Alaska’s Coast–by Liz Ruskin

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Long After Civil War’s End, Rebel Raiders Fought On in Bering Sea By Liz Ruskin, APRN | April 8, 2015

One hundred and fifty years ago, on April 9, General Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox, Va. Textbooks typically say this event signaled the end of the Civil War. But a few historians make the case that the last shots of the war were actually fired from a Confederate ship off Alaska’s coast, in the Bering Sea.

Read the article.

May 7, 2015–MtViewPost.com, the hyperlocal news website about Mountain View–Kirsten Swann

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Kirsten Swann is a freelance journalist who loves finding new ways to tell old stories; especially the ones here in Alaska. An Anchorage resident since grade school, she studied journalism at Michigan’s Hillsdale College and contributed to various local newspapers before returning home and covering municipal matters for the Anchorage Daily Planet, an online news startup, in 2009. She subsequently worked as a broadcast reporter then web editor for KTVA 11 News, and her writing is currently published in both Alaska Business Monthly and the Anchorage Press.

Her passion lies in MtViewPost.com, the hyperlocal news website she began publishing in spring 2014. It features writing about the people and places that make up Mountain View, where she’s lived with her husband and two dogs for more than a year now. She enjoys hearing the neighborhood’s stories and sharing them with the rest of the world, and she’s especially excited about the fusion of traditional journalism and digital innovation.

Kirsten Swan

Kirsten Swann

April 2, 2015–Finding Bethany–Glen Klinkhart

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In my long list of accomplishments, the first and foremost role in my life is to be the best father I can possibly be to my son. He is a wonderful gift in my life and he has helped me to understand what it truly means to be a dad. He has been an inspiration and a motivating force in my life ever since his was born. There are very few things in my life of which I am completely certain of, and at the top of the list is my unwavering love for him.

Author writer I never set out to be a writer. I never attended  a writing class, nor have I ever harbored any deep desire to write the next great American novel. For many years my writing was, in fact, standard, boring, law enforcement reports such as, “I exited my police vehicle and made visual and verbal contact with the driver of the 2005 Ford Explorer.” I know, extremely riveting stuff.  It wasn’t until I realized the need to help parents in the police department’s Cybercrime Unit about ways to keep their kids safe on the Internet that I decided to write my first book on Internet child safety. It was only later, after prompting from friends, family, and people touched by terrible tragedies, did I decide to take a crack at writing my own true crime memoir. My four year journey included writing, rewriting, editing, and working hard to create something worthy of myself, my family, and the many victims of crime. Ultimately I am proud of my book, “Finding Bethany“, and I hope readers will experience the story as being something less about solving murders and more about the journey of discovering the connections we have with our past, our present, with each other.

Glen is also a CEO, detective, designer, and friend. Find out more about Glen at his website.

 

Glen Klinkart

Glen Klinkhart

Sunshine Week is March 15-21, 2015

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NFPW encourages its members to participate in Sunshine Week 

Sunshine Week

Sunshine Week

Sunshine Week was launched in 2005. It’s an annual initiative to promote open government and push back against excessive official secrecy. We encourage our memebrs to start thinking about what they can do.

During the week, journalists are encouraged to do their part to highlight the importance of openness through stories, editorials, columns, cartoons, or graphics. There are also roles for civic groups, educators, elected officials and private citizens.

Log on to the official Sunshine Week website for more information.

March 15 – 21, 2015

Join the annual nationwide celebration of access to public information and what it means for you and your community.

Thetus Smith Presented 2014 Spark Plug Award

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At the Jan. 2015 lunch meeting, Diane Walters, immediate past-president of APC, presented Thetus Smith with the 2014 Spark Plug Award. Thetus has been maintaining APC’s mailing lists and compiling and sending the Email Express for many years. She learned and converted to a new database manager last year. Thetus takes reservations for the APC luncheons, working closely with the restaurant, and helped with the garage sale. She comes faithfully to board meetings, even though she is a retired member and no longer a voting member of the board. Thetus is someone who works tirelessly behind the scenes, but is one of the most important people in making the APC organization and meetings successful.

Thetus Smith receives 2014 Spark Plus award from Diane Walters

Thetus Smith (r), eMail Express Editor, receives 2014 Spark Plus award from Diane Walters, Immediate Past President

 

March 5, 2015–Atwood Journalism Chair

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Mark Trahant is an independent journalist. He serves as the 20th Atwood Chair of Journalism at the University of Alaska Anchorage. The position brings nationally known journalists to teach courses and speak to students, journalists and the public in Alaska.

He is also writing a book on austerity, a project he started after winning a Rockefeller Foundation residency to the Bellagio Center on Lake Como, Italy. He blogs about austerity on a regular basis on his web page, trahantreports.com, and on Facebook.

Trahant reports and comments on events and trends via Twitter and other social media. Every day for nearly six years, Trahant has written a 140-character rhyme based on a daily news story (@newsrimes4lines). He’s been a reporter for PBS’ Frontline series. The Frontline piece, “The Silence,” was about sexual abuse by priests in a Alaska native village. He also has been editor-in-residence at the University of Idaho in the spring of 2011 and again in 2012. He taught courses on social media, the American West and editorial writing.

In 2009 and 2010 Trahant was a Kaiser Media Fellow writing about health care reform focused on programs the government already operates, such as the Indian Health Service.

Trahant also recently completed The Last Great Battle of the Indian Wars, the story about the legacy of Sen. Henry M. Jackson. “Scoop” Jackson and Forrest J. Gerard. Trahant is the former editor of the editorial page for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer where he chaired the daily editorial board, directed a staff of writers, editors and a cartoonist.

Trahant is a member of Idaho’s Shoshone-Bannock Tribe and former president of the Native American Journalists Association.

Mark Trahant, Atwood Journalism Chair

Mark Trahant, Atwood Journalism Chair

University of Alaska Anchorage Mat-Su College seeks adjunct instructors in communications

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The University of Alaska Anchorage Mat-Su College is seeking adjunct instructors in communications for the Fall 2015 and Spring 2016 semesters. We are specifically looking for instructors to teach the following UAA courses:

COMM 111: Fundamentals of Oral Communication
COMM 235: Small Group Communication
COMM 237: Interpersonal Communication
COMM 241: Public Speaking

To review qualifications and apply, please go to https://www.uakjobs.com. Select advanced search and search by the job posting number: 0068697. You may also search by job location, choosing Palmer from the drop-down menu.

If you have questions about this teaching opportunity or experience difficulty finding the posting, please contact the Mat-Su College Office of Academic Affairs at 907-746-9339.

Diane Erickson, Ed.D.
Associate Professor and Director
Office of Academic Affairs
University of Alaska Anchorage | Mat-Su College
907-746-9324
http://matsu.alaska.edu/
Opportunities Start Here!

UAA Campus Bookstore Events Feb. 16 – 26, 2015

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1. Monday, February 16 from 5:30 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Mouhcine Guettabi presents “Health Disparities and Urban & Regional Economics.”

Mouhcine Guettabi  teaches in the UAA  Economics Dept. and is on faculty with ISER.  At this event  he examines the interconnections between health disparities and economics.  Mouhcine Guettabi received a Ph.D. in Economics from Oklahoma State University. He has been with UAA since 2012.

2. Tuesday, February 17 from 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Heather Brook Adams presents “Secrets, Sex, Shame, and Blame: What Hidden Stories of 1960s Women Can Teach Us.”

Heather Brook Adams explores the recent history of unwed pregnancy in the United States and the rhetoric of shame and rhetorical silences that are part of this gendered history.  Her talk focuses on the stories of the women themselves and the rhetorical implications of this history.

Heather Brook Adams teaches in the UAA English Dept. She earned a Ph.D. in English from Penn State University and holds Master’s degrees from the Bread Loaf School of English (Middlebury College) and the University of Maryland, College Park.

3. Thursday, February 19 from 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Margritt Engel and Karen Willmore present “G.W. Steller’s Trek Through the Wilds of Siberia.”

After translating the highly acclaimed book, Steller’s History of Kamchatka;  Collected Information Concerning the History of Kamchatka, Its Peoples, Their Manners, Names, Lifestyles, and Various Customary Practices,  Margritt Engel and Karen Willmore are working together again on newly found diaries of naturalist and explorer Georg Wilhelm Steller.

Margritt Engel translated Journal of a Voyage with Bering, 1741-1742, George Wilhelm Steller with O.W. Frost in 1988. She is Professor Emerita in the Department of Languages at UAA.

4. Monday, February 23 from 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
 Writing about Climate Change

Philosopher and writer Kathleen Dean Moore, singer/song writer Libby Roderick, human rights attorney Robin Bronen, and journalist Yereth Rosen come together to discuss the challenges in writing about climate change and global responsibility. This event is sponsored with 49 Writers, UAA Office of Sustainability, and UAA English Department.

5. Tuesday,  February 24 from 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m.
Philippe Amstislavski presents “Climate Change Impacts on Access to Health Care.”

Philippe Amstislavski is Associate Professor of Public Health (Dept. of Health Sciences) at UAA. His research focus is on the interactions between natural and social systems, particularly between climate change and community adaptation and resilience in the Circumpolar North. Philippe Amstislavski received his Ph.D. in  the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, CUNY, a M.E.M. in the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, and a Masters in Environmental Design, Sustainable Materials Development from School of Architecture, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

6. Wednesday, February 25 from 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Jifeng Peng presents “Renewable Energy Systems: Wind Energy.”

What does research tell us about wind energy? Come and find out at this informative event with Dr. Jifeng Peng.
Jifeng Peng is Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at UAA. He has a Ph.D. in Bioengineering, California Institute of Technology; an M.S. Mechanical Engineering, Stony Brook University, NY; and a B.S. Mechanical Engineering, University of Science & Technology of China, China.

7. Thursday, February 26 from 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Dr. Lyn Freeman and Dr. Rebecca White present “Pain & Neuroplasticity, Part 2.”

At  this event, Dr. Freeman and Dr. White will explain from the medical and psychological/behavioral perspectives why and how the brain ‘learns’ to experience pain when this no longer serves a survival purpose. A new treatment approach, based on the principles of neuroplasticity, will be explained. Approaches that ‘compete’ with pain signals will be described. Guest speakers are Lyn Freeman, Ph.D., BCLPC, Mind Matters Research, LLC, Alaska Institute of Surgical & Medical Specialties, and Rebecca White, M.D., Arctic Skye Family Medicine.

All UAA Campus Bookstore events are informal, free and open to the public. Free parking for bookstore events is in the West Campus Central Lot (behind Rasmuson Hall), the Sports Lot and the Sports NW Lot.  For more information call Rachel Epstein at 786-4782 or email repstein2@uaa.alaska.edu. Or see http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/bookstore/events.

Note:  UAA Campus Bookstore podcasts are posted in iTunes or iTunes U — just search UAA or UAA Campus Bookstore. Or see http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/bookstore/events/podcasts.cfm.

Rachel Epstein
Special Events Coordinator
UAA Campus Bookstore
2905 Providence Drive
Anchorage, Alaska  99508
(907) 786-4782