Alumni Spotlight: The Cason Family

Jackie Cason, English professor, M.A.T. Teaching '01
Drew Cason, B.A. Philosophy '13, B.S. Environment and Society '13
Wiley Cason, B.A. Philosophy '14

Enough Casons have gone through UAA to field their own volleyball team. Team captain would be Jackie Cason-English professor, coordinator of the composition program and 2001 graduate, with a master's in teaching. Her oldest son Drew graduated in 2013 with dual degrees-a B.A. in philosophy and a B.S. in environment and society. A year later, second son Wiley earned a philosophy degree with a focus in applied ethics. The Cason kids grew up in Anchorage just around the corner from their uncle (a civil engineering graduate), aunt (currently enrolled in UAA's nursing school) and cousin Sam, who's working through the WWAMI program. It's a tightknit crew. Cousin Michelle went against the family and enrolled at UAF.

Jackie, Drew and Wiley Cason reconvened on UAA's campus to talk about their shared Seawolf connection, even though Drew was four time zones away (he's currently a policy analyst in Washington, D.C. and member of the D.C. area alumni chapter). Family ties transcended the Skype connection though, and the conference room suddenly felt like stepping inside their living room. Both sons are successful and motivated, yet grateful and sincere. Jackie is quick to tack on accomplishments or spur an anecdote to share her son's stories.

Reflecting on the past few years, she admits to not seeing them much in their student days, despite her attempts to lure them to her office with a steady stash of free food. One year, though, Drew's schedule forced him into his mother's classroom for a semester of public science writing. "It's a required class and she was the only one who could teach it," Drew lamented.

Hometown U

Jackie sees UAA as a kingpin within the close community of Anchorage, and knew her sons' experience on campus could extend to the rest of the city. "I was thinking about the long game," she said about encouraging her sons to attend their hometown university "I actually hoped at some point they'd come back to Alaska and settle here and live.

"There are a lot of bridges between the community and the campus," she continued. "What I love about UAA in this community is we have a place where there are probably two degrees of separation. You can talk to someone and you can always find someone that you know in common."

Likewise, she sees all those connections as advantages for students who stay in Anchorage. "I think both Drew and Wiley benefited a great deal in high school from having a lot of mentors. There are a lot of leaders in the community who care about young people and involve them... Both had internships in the state that I think were really valuable and they met a lot of people.

"We have a unique blend of civic engagement and formal schooling here in this community that might not be the same in other places."

Of course, like any mother, she knows her children will be successful wherever they end up. But she's happy that for those key years it was in Anchorage. "It might be replicated in other places [Outside], but then they might get networked down there and be less likely to come back. So that's what my motives were," she said with a smile.

"Without a doubt," Drew said, seconding his mother's observations. "I feel I did have a lot opportunities to connect and do things both inside UAA and in the community. I think Alaska has a lot of opportunities to do different things without necessarily having a whole lot of qualifications. Just so long as you're friendly and know somebody you can get in."

The Cason brothers both have college careers that speak to that networking potential. Dr. Lilian Alessa contacted Drew to work with UAA's Resilience and Adaptive Management Group and even secured him an EPSCoR grant, a federal program that funds research in underrepresented research states. Drew earned a stint at the University of Chicago analyzing communication in water management (and even co-authored a journal article published in June). "I feel like those types of research positions probably aren't as open to undergraduate students [elsewhere]," Drew said. "Stuff like that is a unique benefit to living in Anchorage."

Wiley, likewise, enjoyed his share of fortuitous hometown connections. He took a semester away from UAA to manage the successful state senate campaign of Hollis French. This plum position came his way after a UAA recommendation; "The candidate was close friends with the philosophy department chair John Mouracade," he explained."I don't think you get those kind of opportunities other places." Wiley has continued his campaign career after graduation and is currently the communications director on Forrest Dunbar's congressional campaign.

Additionally, Wiley appreciated the broad cross-section on campus. "UAA caters to a lot of students from a lot of backgrounds who are seeking a lot of different things," he said. "You're going to get a much more uniform college community in some other places than you'd get at UAA, and I think a lot of people view that negatively. I think that's actually a benefit to the learning environment, interacting with people who are coming back to get a degree as well as people who are in the classic college-age range."

The mix of students worked well with Jackie's expectations as well. "One of the things I would be concerned about in any campus environment is that classes offer peers who are stimulating and interested in learning," she said, "and I think you guys have had some strong peer sets."

Around the world in 80 debates

Like teenagers everywhere, a lot of Anchorage students share the same idea of "getting stuck" after high school. But Drew, Wiley and many of their classmates found the right fit at their hometown university.

Debate is one program that truly opened doors-and stamped passports-for both brothers. Anchorage residents may recognize Drew and Wiley as heavy-hitters on the local debate circuit. Drew faced the visiting Stanford team at a public debate on campus in 2012. Wiley competed against Harvard at Bear's Tooth Theatre Pub the following year and has been debating at Rotary functions and community events since graduating in May.

"I think a lot of people want to leave the state so that they have opportunities to be somewhere else than Alaska," Jackie said. "But I think they've had plenty of opportunities." For example, Drew debated the Irish national champions in Anchorage and, collectively, the brothers have competed in or judged competitions in Thailand, Turkey, the Philippines, China and Australia. After Drew's partner came down with poorly timed tonsillitis, Wiley stepped in to join his brother at the World University Debating Championships in Botswana in 2011. The travel streak continued after graduation, with Drew now located in D.C. and Wiley set to teach English in Thailand beginning this fall.

Now that two brothers are out in the world with degrees in hand, Jackie and her husband have a few years to relax before the process starts again. Youngest brother Everett is starting eighth grade in the fall and, although he may have no idea where he's headed in five years, some folks have a few ideas.