Outer Coast College

Short description: Private liberal arts college in development in Sitka, Alaska

Outer Coast College

Type| Private
Established| 2015
Location|

Sitka

Alaska

United States

[ ⚑ ] : 57°03′05″N 135°19′18″W﻿ / ﻿57.05135°N 135.32159°W﻿ / 57.05135; -135.32159
Campus| Suburban
Website| outercoast.org

Outer Coast College is a small, private, liberal arts college in development in Sitka, Alaska. It is currently in the accreditation process with the plan to open a two-year undergraduate program in the fall of 2024.[1]

Outer Coast will admit a freshman class of about 20 students in 2024 and a similar number the following year, for a total student body of 40.[2]

## History

After Sheldon Jackson College closed in 2007, the title to the campus was transferred to the Sitka Fine Arts Camp in February 2011.[3] In the summer of 2014, Alaska state representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins began deliberating with alumni, teachers and students of Deep Springs College about the possibility of founding a new college on the historic campus in partnership with the Fine Arts Camp.[4] Full-time work to create Outer Coast began in September 2015.[5]

In October 2017, the Outer Coast team committed to launching the Outer Coast Summer Seminar in the summer of 2018.[5] The inaugural seminar was held from July to August, drawing in rising high school juniors and seniors from Alaska and the continental United States to participate in rigorous college-level courses as well as numerous service projects.[6]

Since 2020, Outer Coast has run three iterations of the Outer Coast Year, a nine-month intensive for high school graduates from across Alaska, the Lower 48, and the globe. In addition, it has offered six intensive, college-level academic summer programs — or Summer Seminars — for high school students.

Admissions at Outer Coast are need blind and run on a sliding-scale, means-based cost of attendance model. [7]

## Philosophy

Outer Coast is modeled on Deep Springs' "three pillars" of academics, labor and self-governance. In academics, students enroll in a rotating series of seminars across disciplines as well as a core Indigenous Studies course, which features Tlingit language learning.[8] In self governance, students are actively involved in the governance and operations of the institution through Student Body ("SB") meetings and smaller committees vested with particular responsibilities and decision-making authority. At Outer Coast, the labor pillar is reinterpreted as the service pillar. Students develop service projects with community organizations in Sitka.[4] Outer Coast places a strong emphasis on the incorporation of Tlingit and other Native Alaskan perspectives in both the selection of its student body and curriculum.[9]

## References

1. ↑ "F.A.Q.". Outer Coast. http://outercoast.org/faq.html.
2. ↑ "Outer Coast to admit first freshman class in '24". Outer Coast. https://www.kcaw.org/2022/11/01/outer-coast-to-admit-first-freshman-class-in-24/.
3. ↑ "Arts program to take over Sheldon Jackson College". Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). 2011-01-28. https://www.pcusa.org/news/2011/1/28/arts-program-take-over-sheldon-jackson-college/.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Outer Coast College seeks to replicate Deep Springs success". https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/12/11/outer-coast-college-seeks-replicate-deep-springs-success.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "About". Outer Coast. http://outercoast.org/about.html.
6. ↑ "Rethinking the college experience in Sitka". 2018-04-11. https://www.juneauempire.com/life/rethinking-the-college-experience-in-sitka/.
7. ↑ "Cost & Affordability". 2020-04-07. https://outercoast.org/admissions-overview/cost-affordability/.
8. ↑ "How 'Out There' is Progressive Education?". https://harvardpolitics.com/outer-coast/.
9. ↑ "Decolonizing the Outer Coast Classroom". http://sitkasentinel.com/7/2012-05-10-22-08-10/local-news/15096-decolonizing-the-outer-coast-classroom?tmpl=component&print=1&page=.

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