Office of the Chancellor

UAA Interim Chancellor Cheryl Siemers
Cheryl Siemers, Ph.D., serves as the interim chancellor for the University of ľ¹ÏÖ±²¥ Anchorage, bringing more than two decades of higher education leadership, instruction and community engagement.
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Prior to this role, Siemers served as the director at Kenai Peninsula College (KPC), providing strategic oversight of the Kenai River Campus, Kachemak Bay Campus and the Resurrection Bay Extension Site. Her leadership at KPC focused on student success, enrollment growth and advancing UAA’s mission across the Kenai Peninsula.
Siemers began her career with UAA in 2002 as adjunct faculty at KPC, transitioning to a full-time position in 2006 in the Department of English. She holds a B.A. in English from Cedarville University, a master’s in English from UAA and a Ph.D. in rhetoric and linguistics from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Throughout her career, Siemers has championed equity in education, believing meeting students where they are is crucial in helping them create their own educational pathways. She played a key role in launching the Smart Start initiatives, which supports underprepared students into college-level courses, helping to expand it online, making it more accessible. Additionally, Siemers developed and enhanced dual-credit and Middle College opportunities in collaboration with statewide partners, helping to bridge the gap between high school and higher education and increasing student workforce development opportunities.
A longtime ľ¹ÏÖ±²¥n, Siemers is deeply committed to the communities she serves. Throughout her career, her work has emphasized community engagement and partnerships, multidisciplinary service learning and place-based education, reflecting her belief that education is transformative in the classroom and beyond.
UAA 2027
The UAA 2027 Strategic Plan sets forth who we are as a University and is our framework for student success. It clarifies our mission of life transformation through education. Additionally, UAA 2027 establishes the values that shape our behaviors, decisions, and resource allocations, guiding our efforts to continuous improvement. All of UAA's planning efforts align with UAA 2027. The elements of UAA 2027 cascade throughout the academic and administrative units to align our efforts around the core competencies and maximize our shared contribution to student success.
Big Ideas
Have an idea that you would like the chancellor to review and consider? Ideas can be anything from a new service on campus, process improvement, new research or innovation. All ideas are welcome.