2023 UAF Legacy Lecture (Honoring Distinguished Alumni)

Mary F. Ehrlander was raised in Fairbanks and graduated from Lathrop High School. She completed a B.A. in Political Science and an M.A. in Northern Studies at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Mary continued her education at the University of Virginia, earning a second master’s degree and a Ph.D. in Government. In 2001 she was hired as assistant director of Northern Studies and assistant professor of History at UAF. She retired in 2020 and is Professor Emeritus of History and Arctic & Northern Studies at UAF. Mary is the author of numerous publications, including the books Walter Harper, Alaska Native Son, and Equal Educational Opportunity: Brown’s Elusive Mandate. She, along with Hild Peters, currently have a book in press: Hospital and Haven: The Life and Work of Grafton and Clara Burke in Northern Alaska (University of Nebraska Press, Fall 2023). She received the Emil Usibelli Distinguished Teaching Award (2016) and the Alaskana Award for her book Walter Harper: Alaska Native Son (2017).