Senior Vice Provost Renee Carter-Chapman retires from UAA
August 14, 2020
Dear UAA Community,
Today (Aug. 14) is Senior Vice Provost Renee Carter-Chapman's last official day at the university, as she retires following more than four decades of service. Given the enormous body of Renee's many outstanding contributions to UAA — through all its permutations — my task in recognizing and thanking her is daunting.
Renee grew up in Michigan but came to Anchorage in the early 1970s as a college student and earned her B.A. in anthropology at UAA. She returned to Michigan to complete her M.A. in cultural anthropology then made her way back to Alaska.
In 1978, she started her academic career at Anchorage Community College and was instrumental during the formation of today's UAA. During this time, her quiet and steadfast leadership brought people together to create the beginnings of what we know now as the University of Alaska Anchorage.
Renee was an early champion and guiding force behind many of UAA’s most innovative and successful programs, including the Center for Advancing Faculty Excellence (CAFE), Center for Community Engagement & Learning (CCEL) and University Honors College. She led the university’s first coordinated student success and retention strategies, and she has always placed student success at the top of her priorities.
She was ahead of her time in focusing on student success metrics — a practice that has become embedded in UAA culture, much to our benefit. Her background as a faculty member, her experience working with the community college, her leadership of programs from continuing and outdoor education to women’s studies, honors programs and workforce development, gave her a more comprehensive view of the university than most administrators.
I want to thank Renee for her exceptional and creative leadership. Her ability to listen and gather talented, dedicated individuals together to reach consensus on how to solve problems and support efforts to achieve goals has served UAA and its home communities well. Although Renee does not like the spotlight, I am grateful for this opportunity to highlight her deep and lasting impact on the University of Alaska Anchorage.
Please join me in wishing Renee all the best in retirement!
Sincerely,
Cathy Sandeen