Communication with Parents/Guardians
To contact us in an emergency, parents/guardians may call the BELL: Alaska On-Site Director. At certain times during the program, students and/or staff may experience lapses in cell phone service. Staff will be checking the program phone often to return missed phone calls or text messages as soon as they are able. For safety, BELL staff will have access to a satellite phone that they can use for outgoing calls in areas without regular cell phone service.
At the beginning of the program, staff will send out an email to confirm that all students have arrived safely in Anchorage and have started to build community together at BELL.
At the end of the program, after students have passed through the security gates at the Anchorage airport (or have met with their parents/guardians at the airport), the program staff will send out another email to confirm that students have started their journeys home.
Please note that these emails will be sent out to the parent/guardian email address that we have on file. If you have an alternative email address that you would like included in this list, please contact the On-Site Director to share an additional email address.
Safety and Supervision
You will have clear guidelines regarding where you can go alone or with a peer. Staff are available for support and assistance 24 hours a day. Despite many students being experienced and competent travelers, the BELL staff expects all students to stay with the group at all times and provide notice if you need to separate from the group for any reason.
Cell Phone Policy
Each year, the BELL staff revisits the cell phone policy to ensure that it aligns with best practices in both safety and community engagement. The main goal of the BELL cell phone policy is to allow you to stay tuned into each other, the program and your natural surroundings. You may experience a lot of benefits from letting go of the frequent connection to technology, as it often helps BELL students adjust to a new environment more quickly and form a stronger community. While some spaces or parts of the day at BELL will be entirely cell phone free, you will still have opportunities to keep in touch with friends and family at home who you lean on for support. You will learn about the BELL cell phone policy during on-site program orientation.
Swimming During BELL
BELL: Alaska does not allow any swimming, however you will be spending a lot of time near bodies of water. You should feel comfortable on a boat and near bodies of water. For example, you will not be permitted to swim while staying at the Peterson Bay Field Station, but will be brought to the Field Station on a 30 minute boat ride.
Community Living
You are encouraged to come to BELL with an open mind to meeting new people with diverse and varied perspectives. Each student admitted to BELL brings with them their own experiences and the cohort comes together to create a fascinating community.
At BELL, each student also contributes to day to day community life by assisting with tasks like keeping the living and learning spaces clean and taking on leadership roles among the group. BELL Staff will expect you to step up as leaders, take good care of your physical spaces, take good care of yourself and respect others.
Photos
You are encouraged to upload photos to a shared Google folder once the program begins. You will gain access to this folder closer to the program start date.
Housing
For most of the program, you will be sleeping in dorm spaces where you will be housed with other BELL students. Our dorm host will be the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA). You will have access to community or shared private bathrooms with private showers.
For three nights at the end of the program, you will stay at the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies (CACS) Peterson Bay Field Station, where you will sleep in yurts without running water or electricity. However, there is a permanent lodge visible and in walking distance of the yurts with electricity, running water, composting toilets and a group space. The lodge is also where you will work with staff to cook your own meals during your stay at CACS (no previous cooking experience needed). This facility does not have showers and the living quarters are small, so you will be encouraged to pack light.
Personal Health and Medical Emergencies
The BELL: Alaska program is a physically taxing program involving significant exertion in the outdoors. For your safety and comfort during the program, we expect you to fully disclose any and all pre-existing medical conditions on required medical forms.
In a medical emergency, you will be transported to a nearby hospital. All of our activities take place within 2 hours of a hospital. For minor medical issues, we have a well-equipped first aid kit and staff trained in First Aid.
Prescription Medications
You are responsible for safely storing and taking your own prescription medication. If you are not accustomed to managing your own medication, you should work with your parents/guardians to determine the best approach to do so during the program. All students who are taking prescription medications should bring their prescribed medication in its original container and a copy of their prescription (which can be an electronic copy). Having a copy of the original prescription will enable us to replace medication if needed. Students with life-saving asthma and anaphylaxis medications (e.g., inhalers, epi-pens) must keep them on their person at all times. If your medication requires refrigeration, we will provide access to a refrigerator for the duration of the program.
Illness
You should inform program staff as soon as you are not feeling well, and will be asked to self-administer a COVID test and/or take your temperature, among other actions. If you are ill, you will need to be separated from others in the program to lower the possibility of any illness spreading and it is possible you may be asked to make plans to depart the program. University information specific to COVID-19 can be found here. Please note that pre-college policies and protocols may not align exactly with the University’s, and there may be additional or different protocols implemented by a partner lodging site, field trip or local airport and are dependent on public health guidelines at the time of the program.
BELL Action Plans
With support from instructors and peers at BELL, you will create an Action Plan to apply your new leadership knowledge to an issue in your home community. Creating an Action Plan is an opportunity for you to reflect critically on what you’ve learned and to delve deeper into issues that you find particularly compelling. There are many types of Action Plans, but what is most important is that you identify a project that: addresses a need, interests you and seems feasible given your personal circumstances. While you do not need to prepare anything prior to arriving at BELL, you may want to think about some issues related to your community and come to BELL with some ideas for Action Plan topics. At BELL, you will participate in Action Plan workshops that guide you through a step by step approach to developing your project. See examples of Action Plans from previous years here.
Itinerary
You will receive a detailed schedule upon arrival. You must attend all days of the program in order to qualify for the Course Performance Report. In addition to three meals per day, some free time and transportation to and from site visits, this schedule provides an idea of what the program will entail. Please note: this schedule is subject to change.
Day 1 - Arrival Day
Lodging: University of Alaska, Anchorage (UAA)
- Group transportation to UAA; BELL Orientation; catch up on sleep
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Day 2
Lodging: UAA
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Day 3
Lodging: UAA
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Day 4
Lodging: UAA
- Alaska Native Heritage Center visit and tour; evening lesson
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Day 5
Lodging: UAA
- Lessons and activities at UAA; Introduction to Action Plan
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Day 6
Lodging: UAA
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Day 7
Lodging: UAA
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Day 8
Lodging: UAA
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Day 9
Lodging: UAA
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Day 10
Lodging: Peterson Bay Field Station (PBFS)
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Day 11
Lodging: PBFS
- Tidepooling; data debrief; science lessons with PBFS staff
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Day 12
Lodging: PBFS
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Day 13
Lodging: UAA
- PBFS content wrap up, pack to leave field station, travel to Homer by boat, travel to Anchorage
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Day 14 - Departure Day
- Last group breakfast and goodbyes; group transportation to the airport at 10 a.m.
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Curfew
Our days are busy, requiring a lot of your energy and attention throughout the day. You are required to check in with residential staff every evening at 10 p.m. AKST and remain on your floor until 6 a.m. AKST the following morning. The residential staff will place a call to the parents/guardians of any student who is late for curfew. Local authorities will be informed after an appropriate interval of time if a student has not checked in, and a protocol will be initiated to ensure the safety of the student.
Adhering to the curfew policy is your responsibility. While residential staff will take reasonable measures to ensure that you adhere to the curfew, once you have been verified as being within the residence halls or yurts at the designated time, you will be in violation of policies should you choose to leave your residence hall or yurt area. If we become aware of a curfew violation, you will be referred to our student conduct process. Repeated and/or serious violations of the curfew could result in dismissal from the program.=
For more details, please read the Residential Policies on our website.
Due to the proximity to the Arctic Circle, it will be light until around midnight with only 2 to 3 hours of darkness before dawn. You may choose to bring a sleeping mask to create a darker environment if you have trouble sleeping in light.
This is an example of a typical day at BELL
Breakfast |
8 a.m. to 9 a.m. |
Morning Field Trip or Lesson |
9 a.m. to Noon (12 p.m.) |
Lunch/Free Time |
Noon (12 p.m.) to 1 p.m. |
Solo Time |
1 p.m. to 2 p.m. |
Afternoon Site Visit, Lab or Lesson |
2 p.m. to 5 p.m. |
Dinner |
6 p.m. to 7 p.m. |
Evening Activities |
7 p.m to 9 p.m. |
Free Time |
9 p.m. to 10 p.m. |
Curfew |
10 p.m. |