Alethia lived in Dillingham from preschool through age 16. During her junior year of high school, she studied abroad in Peru, but her time there was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When shutdowns began, she returned to Alaska, where her parents had recently relocated to Anchorage. They encouraged her to enroll in APU’s Early Honors program to complete her high school education.

Alethia is set to graduate in Spring 2025 with a Bachelor of Arts in Creative and Professional Writing. She will also earn APU’s first-ever minor in Indigenous Studies.

Making Qaspeqs with Barb

When asked about her favorite experiences on campus, Alethia immediately mentions the time she spent making qaspeqs with Barbara Amos, APU’s Alaska Native and Rural Student Services Coordinator. She also values the approachability and support of her professors. She also really loves grabbing a matcha latte from the café and walking around University Lake with friends, family, and dogs.

Bergen

During the 2023–2024 academic year, Alethia studied abroad at the University of Bergen in Norway. While there, she made close friends and especially enjoyed the charm of small cafés and the convenience of reliable public transportation. She clearly misses these this living back in Anchorage now – a city lacking in public transportation and a sense of local community.

While in Norway, Alethia took a diverse range of courses, including Scandinavian literature, History of China, Mandarin, and Indigenous Peoples of the Arctic. She remarks how supportive Alaska Pacific University professors are for all students in that they grade liberally and are generous with their time. Norwegian professors did not grade the same!

“I am going to be an elder one day and I am not going to know very much and that really scares me.”

Those who know Alethia recognize the steady, caring presence she brings into any room. Alethia’s Yup’ik name is “Maurlucuaq,” which in English translates to “little grandma”. This name reflects the way she looks after those around her with quiet strength and compassion.

Alethia’s kindness and empathy are paired with a strong sense of purpose. Her work and goals are deeply rooted in giving back to her People and preserving her culture. Already a leader, caregiver, educator, and knowledge bearer, Alethia carries these roles both on APU’s campus and within the communities of Dillingham, and the broader Yup’ik and Alaska Native communities. Students and professors alike who have shared a classroom with Alethia know just how much they’ve learned from her presence and perspective.

Graduate School

Alethia has been accepted into the Master’s in Fine Arts program at Alaska Pacific University. She plans on beginning her studies at APU where she will continue to write her autoethnography and eventually publish it in both English and Yup’ik. She plans to spend much of her graduate school time living and studying in Scotland.