Former Governor Bill Walker on left side wearing a blue polo, Paola Banchero standing to his right. Photos by Matthew Schmitz.
[Disclosure: TNL Reporter Matthew Schmitz and TNL Faculty Advisor Paola Banchero were invited participants on the tour for Bill Walker]
One of this year’s gubernatorial candidates, former Alaska Governor Bill Walker, and his running mate, Heidi Drygas, came to UAA on June 1 to get a tour of UAA and meet students and deans from the various colleges within the university.
According to an email from Professor Maria Williams, she was contacted by the Walker campaign requesting a tour for the candidates. She reached out to UAA Director of Government Relations Westen Eiler to help coordinate the walk.
Walker showed up around 11 a.m. Drygas’ flight had been delayed so she did not join until later.
Williams wrote that the Walker campaign wanted to know more about the various colleges at UAA. During the tour, Walker and Drygas talked with university leaders about their ideas about the university.
Walker expressed his support for the university and spoke about the people the university has brought to the state. He said that he would like to see the university system be on more stable financial ground and not be subjected to uncertainty resulting from political change.
Starting in Rasmussen Hall, Williams led the tour through various buildings around campus: Industry and Engineering, Health Sciences, Allied Health Sciences and the Beatrice G. McDonald Hall.
At each stop, the former governor and his running mate were introduced to the deans and associate deans of the colleges associated with each building.
For the College of Business and Public Policy, Dean John Nofsinger and Associate Dean Terry Nelson spoke about the college’s upcoming A.I. lab and stock-ticker marque that will be installed in the building.
In the Industry and Engineering Building, Dean Kenrick Mock showed Walker a live feed on a monitor on the first floor of the building of data from motion sensors embedded in the building, which were able to register motion from someone jumping up and down near the sensor.
In the building they also met with student workers for Summer Engineering Academics.
Drygas joined the group as it was heading across the Parish Bridge into the Health Sciences Building.
Associate Dean Kendra Sticka took the candidates through some of the classrooms in the Health Sciences Building where medical students can simulate working on both dummies and live medical actors pretending to be patients.
In one room, observers can control patient vitals in a mock procedure from a control room to give real time feedback on actions taken by the students.
In the Beatrice McDonald Hall, Walker and Drygas were introduced to some faculty in the archeology department. Dean Jenny McNulty and Journalism and Public Communication Professor Banchero ended the tour talking about the various lines of work students from the College of Arts and Sciences going into and how UAA students impact the state.
USUAA Vice President Shanone Tejada and Faculty Alliance Chair Professor Gokhan Karahan also joined the tour.
Williams wrote in her email that the Walker campaign had gone on a similar tour of UAF a month earlier and that Eiler would be reaching out to all gubernatorial candidates, representatives and senators about providing tours of UAA.
The primary for the governor’s race will be held on Aug. 16 and the general election Nov. 8.
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