Spring 2008: UAA celebrates Alaska's 50th anniversary with Student Constitutional Convention

The University of Alaska Anchorage will host the Student Constitutional Convention: "Once in a Decade" on Friday, April 11 and Saturday, April 12 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Alaska's statehood. For two days, more than 70 student delegates will come together to discuss the developments of Alaska's past and the possibilities of the future. Bringing together UAA students, community experts and constitutional scholars, the convention will give students the opportunity to discuss the numerous accomplishments of early leaders in our state and to consider whether, 50 years later, our constitution needs revising.

The Student Constitutional Convention is designed to encourage all Alaskans to consider the history of the Alaska constitution, and both the accomplishments and failures of a half-a-century of state government. As Alaska grows and changes, it is essential that our state's future leaders have an in-depth understanding of Alaska's history, and the necessary tools to guide our state to a successful path to the future.

Guided by experts and scholars, student delegates will consider six topics: political rights and immunities; constitutionalizing public services; structural changes to governmental offices and institutions; financial controls; election process controls; and constitutional processes.

The convention will consist of three plenary sessions with two breakout sessions for refinement of potential resolutions. At the final plenary session on Saturday, April 12 delegates will pass resolutions proposing amendments to the Alaska Constitution, or recommendations for ordinances pertinent thereto. These recommendations, along with a summary of the convention, will be printed and widely distributed to Governor Sarah Palin, University of Alaska (UA) President Mark Hamilton and members of the UA Board of Regents, members of the Alaska Legislature, the Alaska Supreme Court and select Alaska civic leaders. The recommendations will also be posted online at www.uaa.alaska.edu/history for general reference.

Chancellor Fran Ulmer will address the student delegates on Friday, April 11 at noon in Rasmuson Hall, Room 117. The public is invited to attend the lunch for a charge of $25 per person. Attendance at the plenary sessions on Friday (South Cafeteria) and Saturday (Rasmuson Hall) begin at 8:45 a.m., and are free and open to the public.

Faculty and staff from the UAA's History and Political Science departments, the Justice Center, and the 49th State Fellows Program of the UAA Honors College, are working together to coordinate the Student Constitutional Convention. The convention is generously supported by a "We the People" grant from the Alaska Humanities Forum and ConocoPhillips.

For more information contact Stephen Haycox, UAA History Department, at (907) 786-1776 or afswh1@uaa.alaska.edu.