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UA Board of Regents approves resolution of appreciation for UAF Chancellor Dan White

September 19, 2025

At the September 5 full board meeting in Juneau, the University of Alaska Board of Regents approved a resolution of appreciation for former UAF Chancellor Dan White. White retired from his role as Chancellor in July. Below is the resolution in full.

WHEREAS, after more than 30 years of dedicated and distinctive service to the University of Alaska, including serving eight years as UAF Chancellor starting in 2017, Daniel M. White has retired from his position as chancellor, leaving an enduring legacy of academic leadership, research and teaching excellence; and

WHEREAS, White plans to maintain affiliation with UA through his role as faculty of Civil Engineering at the College of Engineering and Mines at UAF after a well-earned leave of absence; and 

WHEREAS, White has a bachelor’s degree in physics from Colorado College, a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Washington University, and a doctorate in civil engineering from the University of Notre Dame; and

WHEREAS, White started work at UAF with a temporary teaching role in 1993, and later as a full time faculty teaching classes from 1995 to 2005 in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, primarily in environmental engineering, water resources and general engineering requirements; and upon his move to full time administration in 2006 was leading more than $10 million in research for federal and state agencies, and large and small corporations, including authoring more than 57 scholarly publications on engineering and education; and

WHEREAS, White held numerous academic leadership positions prior to becoming chancellor, including director of the Institute of Northern Engineering, UAF associate vice chancellor for research and head of the Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization, interim vice chancellor for research, and Ģ��tv����� system vice president for academic affairs and research; and

WHEREAS, in Fall 2012, White founded and, through 2015, served as president of the non-profit Nanook Innovation Corporation, which manages all intellectual property commercialization on behalf of UAF, and which also is the majority shareholder of the for-profit Nanook Tech Ventures, established to take equity for university IP-based start-up companies; and

WHEREAS, during his time as UAF chancellor, White dealt with many pressures and challenges, such as statewide funding cuts in 2019, then shifting to entirely online classes during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, doing so with an openness and accessibility through Town Halls and regular updates, which helped the UAF community understand the risks and reasons behind the threats and responses; and

WHEREAS, under White’s leadership, UAF doubled its external research funding to more than $200 million annually, and set in motion a concerted push toward achieving R1 research status, further cementing UAF's role as a global leader in Arctic science; and

WHEREAS, UAF turned around lowering enrollment trends under White’s leadership; modernizing student support, creating renewable scholarship programs like the Nanook Pledge and Nanook Commitment, and transforming campus spaces to better meet the needs of today’s students — including the long-awaited Student Success Center on the top floor of the Rasmuson Library; and more than 10,000 students earned degrees during his chancellorship; and 

WHEREAS, Chancellor White was a dedicated supporter of Alaska’s Indigenous Peoples and traditions, advancing the vision of an Indigenous Studies college and center, reciting land acknowledgements and offering greetings in multiple Alaska Native languages; and

WHEREAS, Chancellor White guided major capital projects under his tenure, including the Combined Heat and Power Plant, renovations of student housing, Constitution Hall, and UAF athletics facilities; and 

WHEREAS, White regularly championed athletics, overseeing six national championships and making frequent on-ice and on-court appearances, while wearing distinctive blue and gold colors from his custom shoes to his ever-present baseball cap; and 

WHEREAS, White maintained a fun and engaging persona, creating interactive trivia sessions, competitions - such as how fast can you put on a survival suit - tossing out scarves and other UAF swag, even bringing the entire commencement crowd to its feet to participate in “the wave” adding fun and interactivity to many public engagements; and

WHEREAS, White has a long history of service, with representation and numerous leadership positions on a variety of boards including: Great Northwest Athletic Conference, Fairbanks Economic Development Corporation, Alaska Sea Life Center, Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce, Rotary International, UA Foundation, Monroe Foundation, American Water Works Association, National Science Foundation Committee of Visitors, Alaska State Committee on Research and others; and

WHEREAS, White and his wife Ann Marie - who also recently retired - have more time now to engage in their favorite non-work activities, including playing bluegrass music and continuing to support Nanook athletics; 

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Regents of the University of Alaska officially recognizes and thanks Daniel White for his dedicated service to the University of Alaska, its employees, students, and partners, and commend him for his efforts; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this resolution be appropriately engrossed and conveyed to Daniel White with a copy incorporated into the official minutes of the September 2025 meeting of the Board of Regents.

former UAF Chancellor Dan White