Adelyn Baxter

More than 400 students received academic certificates and degrees from the University of Alaska Southeast on Sunday.

Speaking before the family and friends gathered in the UAS Recreation Center, Chancellor Rick Caulfield spoke about the unique features of Southeast students.

“Many of whom are nontraditional students, raising a family, working a job or two,” he said. “The average age is 29. Two-thirds of our graduates and our students are female. More than 30 percent of them are taking classes online — some are taking them completely online. And many are in Southeast Alaska but many others are across the entire state.”

Husband and wife Vladimir and Morgan Cruz are perfect examples of the type of nontraditional students UAS caters to. They both graduated Sunday as their two young daughters watched.

Morgan earned a master’s degree in social work and public health, while Vladimir earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting.

How would they describe raising a family while working and earning simultaneous degrees?

“Hard, very hard,” Vladimir Cruz replied.

“We had each other’s support, though, and family support. Which was good,” Morgan Cruz said.

Vladimir took fewer classes when Morgan was pregnant to support the family.

“It took me like five years, because of the time off we took for the kids and family matters and stuff,” he said.

But they did it. The Cruz’s said they’re looking forward to some time off.

“We don’t know what we’re going to do with each other now,” Vladimir joked.

Many 2018 graduates may feel anxious facing an uncertain economy. U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski tried to offer some comfort during her commencement address.

She told graduates worrying about the state’s economic recession and high unemployment rate to take heart.

“If you want to get something done, if you want to push the edges and make things happen, ask an Alaskan to do it,” Murkowski said. “We are innovators, we are problem solvers, we are creative, and it didn’t just begin with this generation here or those living here and now. It began tens of thousands of years ago.”

The university also awarded two honorary degrees.

Former Juneau Mayor and Alaska Attorney General Bruce Botelho received an honorary Doctorate of Laws. Áakʼw Kwáan elder and cultural advocate and educator Marie Olson received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters.

Juneau Arts and Humanities Council Executive Director Nancy DeCherney received a meritorious service award.

The Juneau School District announced its choice for the next principal of Riverbend Elementary School on Thursday.

Scott Nelson of Palmer will take over the role in August before the new school year.

He comes from the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District where he is a middle school reading instructor.

Nelson was previously a principal of Iditarod Elementary School in Wasilla for seven years.

He was an elementary principal in Wisconsin for five years before that and has experience teaching third, fourth and fifth grades.

A panel of Riverbend staff, district administrators and parents interviewed candidates at the school on Tuesday.

Nelson will succeed Riverbend principal Michelle Byer, who is retiring. Riverbend has about 300 students from preschool through fifth grade.

Hoonah City Schools holds a celebration of Tlingit culture near the end of every school year.

The ḵu.éex’, or potlatch, celebrates the town’s Tlingit culture and heritage. Nearly the entire community of about 745 year-round residents is invited to see the youngest generation carry forward their ancestors’ traditions.

Students from preschool up to 12th grade sing, dance, recite speeches and perform skits — all in Tlingit. The ḵu.éex’ has been a tradition in the school for 28 years.

“Ḵu.éex’ is literally ‘to invite somebody,’ so there are many different types of ḵu.éex’, whether it be for memorials or naming ceremonies, or weddings or festive times of the year,” Lgéikʼi (click to listen) Heather Powell said.

Powell teaches Tlingit language in Hoonah City Schools and is the director of the Haa Kusteeyí Áyá program. A graduation requirement now for all ninth and 10th-grade students is to take the language.

“There’s many different reasons why they have ḵu.éex’, and this for us is one to teach our children a little bit about the ceremony of reciprocity and what it means to be of a certain clan, what it means to be the child of that clan, how precious our grandchildren are,” Powell said. “It’s an important thing for them to learn.”

Senior and member of the Eagle moiety Treston Lafferty gave a welcome speech (click to listen) to begin the event. The Eagles and Ravens take turns hosting each year — this year was the Eagle’s turn.

Next, students wearing traditional Tlingit regalia — some of it passed down through several generations — paraded in accompanied by drums.

More than 80 percent of Hoonah’s 120 students are Tlingit, but everyone takes part in the festivities.

“This was my third ḵu.éex’, and each time it’s equally as moving for me,” Superintendent Ralph Watkins said. “I think for me, as an African-American, more so.”

Ralph Watkins took over as superintendent of Hoonah City Schools this school year.

He saw his first ḵu.éex’ during a visit before he was hired as principal.

He knew Hoonah was a special place after that.

“I know absolutely nothing about my African history, nothing,” he said. “I’m almost jealous. The fact that I can be a part of preserving something that I couldn’t do for my own culture is important to me.”

This year’s ḵu.éex’ honored special guests visiting from outside Hoonah.

Elder Ruth Demmert speaks fluent Tlingit and taught for many years in Kake.

“This is my second time that I’ve been here for their ḵu.éex’ and you know it’s wonderful because they sang the song ‘You Are My Sunshine’ translated into Tlingit, and that was done for my mother,” Demmert said.

Second- and third-graders sang Demmert’s version of the song (click to listen).

Many in the Tlingit community view Demmert as a cultural treasure. Very few fluent speakers remain.

She continues to act as a resource for Powell and her colleagues who have led the language program in Hoonah for years.

“We’re very fortunate at Hoonah City Schools, and I’m going to say this because the aunties won’t, but we have our Auntie Carol Williams has been working in Hoonah City Schools for 43 years, and we also have Daphne Wright — Duffy Wright, Ḵ’ashǤé — whose been working in Hoonah City Schools for 33 years,” Powell said. “Combined with that, 76 years of keeping opportunities for the door to be open for Tlingit language, culture, song and dance to exist within the school district. We’re very, very blessed within this community.”

At the end of the celebration, community members joined students in a song that some of the students wrote last year.

The lyrics speak to the Tlingit tradition of reciprocity and respect for all things.

“The world is balanced,” they sang (click to listen) in Tlingit. “We will live right/ what was given to us/ we will give to them.”

Kaanák Ruth Demmert’s translated lyrics for “You Are My Sunshine”:

Ax Gagaanix isitee
Ch’a tleinax xaa iyatee
Ax toowu ilik’ei xaa
Tleil kooshk’eiyi
Tleil yisaku ge
Waa ixsaxanee
Daa ch’a tlakw
Ax Gagaanix eenasti.

Tliyaat ge xaanaa
Ch’u axakeedi
Ax jooni toox’
Ax jigei wa.e
Kei xat wusgeedi
Aax ee kawdihaa
Tle ee itde
KaxwdiGaax.

In today’s newscast:

• In an effort to increase safety, several Juneau alleyways may be getting stop signs,
• and the U.S. Army reports a soldier assigned to an Alaska post has died in Afghanistan.

The Native Youth Olympics wrapped in Anchorage on Saturday, with Juneau athletes setting new personal records and placing in one event.

It’s the first team from Juneau to compete at the statewide competition in almost 30 years.

Juneau sent 10 athletes. The games celebrate Alaska Native culture, but middle and high school students from all backgrounds compete.

Coach Kyle Worl said he was extremely happy with the team’s debut.

“People were really excited to see a new team from Juneau, especially since Juneau is the capital and it’s one of the larger cities,” Worl said. “It’s kind of surprising we haven’t had a team there in so long.”

Juneau-Douglas High School senior Derrick Roberts took third place in the Eskimo stick pull. The event simulates pulling a harpooned seal up out of the ice during a hunt. Two competitors sit across from each other on a mat and try to wrestle a stick from their opponent’s grasp.

Worl won the Healthy Coach Award, voted on by other coaches and officials in recognition of his efforts in reestablishing Juneau’s team.

“Everybody knew Juneau’s presence at the event and how kind of monumental it was to have a new team that hasn’t showed up for 27 years,” Worl said.

Worl is a seasoned athlete who competes in traditional games internationally at the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics and the Arctic Winter Games. He said he’ll now be training for WEIO, which takes place in Fairbanks in July. Some of the seniors from his team may even join him.

“I usually do my own training but this is really nice that I have people to train with now that they’re experienced athletes,” he said. 

Worl began recruiting students from Juneau for the team last fall. They practiced weekly and held tryouts for the official team in March. He said students are already excited to continue practice over the summer.

“They’re already talking about scheduling their own practice, because they know that NYO season is done, but they had so much fun they’re trying to figure out how they can keep practicing,” Worl said.

The team held fundraisers and received contributions from a variety of community organizations that helped pay for their trip to Anchorage. Trickster Company designed the team shirts.

Worl said regular practices will pick up again next fall. He hopes to send an even bigger team next year.

In this newscast:

• A dog was killed by a wolf on a Juneau hiking trail Monday morning,
• and Juneau sent a team to the Native Youth Olympics competition in Anchorage last week.