Those of us in the lower forty-eight states tend to think of Alaska as an unremitting wasteland of frigid temperatures, ice, and snow. But in reality, because of its immense size and its position at the edge of the Arctic, Alaska has a remarkably varied and complex climate.

Replete with striking photos, maps, and charts, The Climate of Alaska presents a detailed picture of what to expect in this state of climate extremes. From the 40-below temperatures of the Interior to the twenty-four hours of daylight in a northern summer, Alaska’s climate presents challenges to its inhabitants on a daily basis. Readers will find   accessible descriptions of temperature, humidity, precipitation, and climate change that will enrich a visit to the state and provide insight on the living conditions of this fascinating place.

Educators, scholars, and community activists recognize that immersion education is a key means to restoring Indigenous and other heritage languages. But language maintenance and revitalization involve many complex issues, foremost may be the lack of local professional development opportunities for potential language teachers.

In Alaska, the Second Language Acquisition Teacher Education (SLATE) project was designed to enable Indigenous communities and schools to improve the quality of native-language and English-language instruction and assessment by focusing on the elimination of barriers that have historically hindered degree completion for Indigenous and rural teachers. The Guided Research Collaborative (GRC) model, was employed to support the development of communities of practice through near-peer mentoring and mutual scaffolding. Through this important new model, teachers of both the heritage language, in this case Central Yup’ik, and English were able to situate their professional development into a larger global context based on current notions of multilingualism.

In Communities of Practice contributors show how the SLATE program was developed and implemented, providing an important model for improving second-language instruction and assessment. Through an in-depth analysis of the program, contributors show how this project can be successfully adapted in other communities via its commitment to local control in language programming and a model based on community-driven research.

Communities of Practice demonstrates how an initial cohort of Yup’ik- and English-language teachers collaborated to negotiate and ultimately completed the SLATE program. In so doing, these educators enhanced the program and their own effectiveness as teachers through a greater understanding of language learning. It is these understandings that will ultimately allow heritage- and English-language teachers to work together to foster their students’ success in any language.

 

The crookedest street in Fairbanks, an Alaskan sourdough once said, is rightly named for town founder E. T. Barnette. Crooked Past, Terrence Cole's lively history of Fairbanks examines one of Alaska's most notorious con men. Barnette, a footloose fortune hunter who had served time in an Oregon penitentiary, came north during the Klondike gold rush of 1897-1898. He struck it rich after founding the city of Fairbanks in the early 1900s. Yet less than ten years later he was run out of the territory and allegedly disappeared in Mexico, becoming the most hated man in the town he founded and fled.

Crooked Road tells the tale of how the Alaska Highway was built during World War II. David Remley chronicles how Americans and Canadians mapped and built the highway under the 1942 authorization of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who ordered its construction for the joint defense of the United States and Canada. Crooked Road draws upon archival images and oral histories from those who lived in the prior unpaved wilderness and those who regularly drive on the highway today, and ultimately offers a fascinating historical account of the expansion of the American landscape.