2020 UAF Commencement Page

FAIRBANKS – The University of Alaska Fairbanks held its 98th commencement ceremony over the weekend, honoring the Class of 2020 on Saturday, May 23. Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, the ceremony was held virtually on Facebook Live. Overall, the university recognized over 1,300 graduates for their successes, including 25 Alaska Nanook student-athletes.

Alaska's 25 graduates all competed throughout the 2019-20 season, while 10 former Alaska Nanooks completed their degrees throughout the past year and were recognized on Saturday, as well. Of Alaska's 25 student-athletes, 10 were female and 15 were male.

Seven of Alaska's 10 varsity sports teams were represented on Saturday, led by men's ice hockey, who had 12 graduates.

The commencement ceremony was highlighted by seven student-athletes graduating with honors. Ice hockey junior Max Newton and women's basketball seniors Brittany Richards and Kylie Wallace earned magna cum laude honors (3.75-3.8 GPA), while Mica Chen (volleyball), Zach Hatch (men's basketball), James LaDouce (ice hockey) and Anton Martinsson (ice hockey) graduated cum laude (3.5-3.74 GPA).

Additionally, five Alaska student-athletes completed their bachelor's degree requirements before their four years of playing eligibility was up, including swimming junior Rachel Beal, rifle sophomore Morgan Erickson, and hockey juniors Steven Jandric, Max Newton and Justin Young.

Furthermore, women's cross country running redshirt-senior Alex Bergholtz was the lone Alaska Nanook to earn a master's degree in secondary education.

The full list of Alaska's 25 student-athletes who graduated on Saturday are listed below by UAF school:

College of Engineering and Mines
Tristan Thompson (ice hockey) – B.S. Petroleum Engineering

College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences
Kim Wong (volleyball) – B.S. Quantitative Aquatic Ecology – Interdisciplinary Studies

College of Liberal Arts
Rachel Beal (swimming) – B.A. Psychology
Mica Chen (volleyball) – B.A. Multicultural Education: Interdisciplinary Studies, cum laude
Morgan Erickson (rifle) – B.A. Justice
Amy Gentry (rifle) – B.A. Psychology
James LaDouce (ice hockey) – B.A. Justice, cum laude
Jalon McCullough (men's basketball) – B.A. Communication
Kylie Wallace (women's basketball) – B.A. Social Work, magna cum laude

College of Natural Science and Mathematics
Grace Nelson (rifle) – B.S. Natural Resources Management

School of Education
Alex Bergholtz (women's cross country) – M.Ed. Education: Secondary Education, Gr. Cert. Secondary Education: Initial Teacher Certification Program

School of Management
Tyler Cline (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration: Sport Management
Zach Hatch (men's basketball) – B.B.A. Business Administration: Sport Management, cum laude
Kylar Hope (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration: Finance
Steven Jandric (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration
Colton Leiter (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration: Sport Management
Kyle Marino (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration: General Business
Anton Martinsson (ice hockey) – B.B.A Business Administration: Finance, cum laude
Max Newton (ice hockey) – B.B.A Business Administration: Sport Management, magna cum laude
Brittany Richards (women's basketball) – B.B.A Business Administration: Sport Management, magna cum laude
Sabrina Ungaro (women's basketball) – B.B.A Business Administration: General Business
Tatum Upchurch (volleyball) – B.S.E.M Homeland Security and Emergency Management: Emergency Management
Troy Van Tetering (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration: Finance
Jack Weiss (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration: Sport Management
Justin Young (ice hockey) – B.B.A. Business Administration

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks, follow @AlaskaNanooks on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks page on Facebook.