Iḷisaġvik College

About Iḷisaġvik College

Iḷisaġvik College is a direct outgrowth of the Native American self-determination movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. With the formation of a home-rule government called the North Slope Borough in 1972, the Iñupiat people took their first steps towards regaining control of their lives and destinies. In 1986, the North Slope Borough created the North Slope Higher Education Center, a cooperative effort between the North Slope Borough and the University of Alaska Fairbanks. In 1995, the North Slope Borough established by ordinance the Iḷisaġvik College College Corporation, an independent, public, non-profit corporation with full power for governance of the college vested in the Board of Trustees. Iḷisaġvik College is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCUU) and is authorized by the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education to operate in the state of Alaska. In 2005, it also became the first and only federally recognized tribal college in Alaska. Iḷisaġvik College College is a two-year tribal college, and is the only institution of higher learning on the North Slope. The college was recently granted candidacy status at the baccalaureate level for Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) beginning Fall 2017.

Iḷisaġvik College College is located in Barrow, Alaska, which resides in the North Slope Borough (NSB). The North Slope Borough is the northernmost region in Alaska, and comprises 89,000 square miles, which is nearly 15% of Alaska's landmass and is the approximate size of Michigan. Iḷisaġvik College College serves the region by providing certificates and associate degrees, workforce training, continuing education classes, and adult basic education classes (GED). By helping to strengthen the language and traditions of the Iñupiat, Iḷisaġvik College fulfills its role as a distinctly indigenous institution that aims to enhance the local culture, while helping its students gain a foothold in the economy of the 21st century.