Going to college is expensive. The prices for tuition have been on the rise, which is often another major expense on top of record inflation. Those issues can be exacerbated for seasonal workers, too.
But there’s some hope – the University of Alaska Anchorage as well as Kodiak College and Kenai Peninsula College have all recently been approved for CAMP, or College Assistance Migrant Programs, grants through the U.S. Department of Education. Both the campuses in Kodiak and the Kenai Peninsula are affiliated with UAA.
Jacelyn Keys is the director of Kodiak College. She said to her knowledge, no one in Alaska has applied for this kind of funding before.
“I couldn’t figure out why, given fisheries and mariculture and subsistence and commercial fishing, like all of those elements just really seemed to scream CAMP grant,” Keys told KMXT.
Now the college will receive nearly $4 million in federal funds over the next five years to serve workers who travel to Kodiak for seasonal employment.
CAMP grants in the Lower 48 usually benefit people who have seasonal jobs in industries like agriculture. But the way it’s being applied in Alaska is geared to serve seasonal workers in fisheries.
That means cannery workers, fishermen, or their kids who come to Alaska just for a short time can qualify as long as they’re a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. Undocumented students like dreamers however, do not qualify for the federal funds.
Alaska has the sixth largest population of migrant students in the U.S., according to census data.
Keys said funds can also be used for more than just tuition and books too.
“It has dedicated advising and tutoring and mentor programs, it can provide laptops and WiFi hubs for students, if students need dental or vision or assistance with housing – this can help if they need help with childcare so they can come to classes,” the director said.
She said that’s unique for federal grants and that this can help lower barriers to higher education.
The CAMP grant only applies for the first year of college though, students will have to rely on other supports to finish degrees or certifications afterwards. One option is that the grant includes funds for alumni to become paid mentors to other migrant students.
The campus will also hire a CAMP director and an advisor to help 25 students she already anticipates will enroll in the program. That’s just a starting number though. She said she wants to work with the high school’s Migrant Education Program and to work with the community to find even more people.
“I don’t really have a ‘build it and they will come’ mentality about education,” Keys said. “I think it’s build the relationship, earn their trust, and that is how people end up through these doors.”
The grant isn’t just a one-off either – Keys said Kodiak College can apply again after the first one ends so long as the campus continues to have migrant students.
“People talk a lot in Kodiak about grants going away and then services going away, and so this is one of those grants that can stay with us and continue to serve students,” Keys said.
UAA classes begin statewide on August 26.
