Category: News

Wasilla, Alaska – The Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) has released a new report focusing on health and human services workforce development. Among the report’s findings are that Mat-Su jobs in the health and human services sector grew 4.7 percent annually over the last 10 years, increasing from 2,692 jobs to more than 4,000 jobs. More growth is expected as Mat-Su’s population continues to explode; the Borough has 104,166 residents today and it is estimated to increase to 167,500 people by 2045.

“Workforce development has become an increasingly important part of the Mat-Su Health Foundation’s work,” said MSHF CEO Elizabeth Ripley. “As we looked to the future, we asked ourselves, who will care for us? Will there be enough trained professionals to meet our future health care needs? We brought partners together to help answer those questions, and this report and plan are the result of that collaboration.”

Health and human services is already the largest employment sector in Mat-Su making up 17.5 percent of total employment. In the next 10 years, the majority of new Mat-Su job openings will be for nurses (150 jobs), behavioral health workers (98 jobs), and paraprofessionals including medical assistants, home health aides, dental assistant, personal care aides, childcare works, and administrative staff (378 jobs).

The report was produced by the McDowell Group following an extensive engagement and planning process that included key stakeholders in health and social services workforce development in Mat-Su. The project’s steering committee included representatives of Mat-Su Regional Medical Center, Mat-Su College, University of Alaska Anchorage, the Mat-Su Borough School District, Alaska Native tribes, the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, the Mat-Su Borough, and health and human services employers.

These partners and others will work together to accomplish four goals identified through the planning process to ensure that Mat-Su has the health and human services workforce it needs:

• Improve strategic communications and feedback within and between partners.
• Enhance educational attainment and competencies for Mat-Su residents.
• Enable current and future employment readiness to anticipate and meet employment and education needs.
• Improve Mat-Su’s reputation for employment, learning, and quality of life.

The entire report titled “The Mat-Su Workforce Development Assessment and Plan” is available on the foundation’s website at www.healthymatsu.org.

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About MSHF: Mat-Su Health Foundation is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center.In this capacity, the foundation actively participates in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protects the community’s interest in this important health care asset through board oversight.The MSHF invests its assets into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in the Mat-Su. More information is available at www.healthymatsu.org/.

Wasilla, Alaska – The Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) is offering Target Wellness earthquake recovery grants to assist qualified Mat-Su nonprofits affected by the November 30 earthquake. These special grants will receive expedited handling, and the maximum amount will be increased to $50,000 from the normal $15,000 threshold for Target Wellness grants. Applications are accepted online at www.healthymatsu.org.

“Much of our work at the Mat-Su Health Foundation focuses on resilience. Since the devastating earthquake that shook us to the core last Friday, we’ve witnessed resilience in action. There has been a powerful community-wide commitment to coming together and helping each other through the crisis,” said MSHF Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Ripley. “We’re proud of how the community is handling this crisis and grateful to be able to help our nonprofit partners recover quickly so that they can continue offering vital services.”

The first grant under this program was awarded this week, with $50,000 going to United Way of Mat-Su. Nonprofit organizations with questions about Target Wellness earthquake recovery grants may contact Senior Program Officer Jim Beck at (907) 373-2811 or jbeck@www.healthymatsu.org.

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About MSHF: Mat-Su Health Foundation is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center.In this capacity, the foundation actively participates in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protects the community’s interest in this important health care asset through board oversight.The MSHF invests its assets into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in the Mat-Su. More information is available at www.healthymatsu.org/.

Wasilla, Alaska – The Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) has hired Colleen Andrews and Bailey Larousse to support the work of its R.O.C.K. Mat-Su (Raising Our Children with Kindness) collaborative project. Andrews is the organization’s social connections coordinator, and Larousse serves as youth leadership coordinator. They join a team that is working to promote family resilience and reduce child maltreatment in Mat-Su.

Andrews contributes to R.O.C.K.’s vision to increase social connections among Mat-Su residents by enhancing access to information and referrals for events, programs, classes, clubs and other community resources. She is responsible for identifying, inventorying and promoting a robust and updated database of local social and recreational activities. The database is housed within Connect Mat-Su, a new community resource center network recently established by the Mat-Su Health Foundation. Andrews has previously held positions in corporate compliance, human resources and administration. She earned an associate’s degree in business management from Everest University.

Larousse is an AmeriCorps member assigned to and funded by the Mat-Su Health Foundation and serves as youth leadership council coordinator for R.O.C.K. Mat-Su. She is responsible for creating a youth leadership council and managing training, enrichment, and outreach for council members. She also works to enhance collaborations with other non-profits and coalitions surrounding youth voice and issues. Larousse graduated from Mat-Su Central School in 2018 and is attending University of Alaska Anchorage. She is a firefighter for Butte Fire Department and also serves the community by volunteering as a ski coach, teaching wilderness first aid and helping with school events and suicide prevention.

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About MSHF: Mat-Su Health Foundation is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center.In this capacity, the foundation actively participates in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protect the community’s interest in this important health care asset through board oversight.The MSHF invests its assets into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in the Mat-Su. More information is available at www.healthymatsu.org/.

Wasilla, Alaska – R.O.C.K. Mat-Su (Raising Our Children with Kindness) has been awarded a $1 million grant by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF) to further R.O.C.K.’s work promoting family resiliency and reducing child maltreatment.

“The funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation will support several specific R.O.C.K. Mat-Su strategies, including increasing access to behavioral health services for families enrolled in the Palmer Families with Infants and Toddlers Court (FIT Court), developing a youth leadership council, and creating a multi-tiered approach to addressing racial inequities and multigenerational trauma,” said Desiré Shepler, director, R.O.C.K. Mat-Su.

“R.O.C.K. Mat-Su has distinguished itself in its focus on protecting children in ways that are culturally relevant for the Mat-Su community and character – a place-based strategy that is critical to improving the health of Alaska Native communities,” said Lola Adedokun, program director for child well-being at DDCF. “We are proud to support R.O.C.K. Mat-Su as it continues to meet the unique needs of families and children in the Mat-Su Borough, build upon the strengths that already exist there, and offer a tangible, hopeful path forward.”

R.O.C.K. Mat-Su is a collaborative of community members joining together to promote family resilience and reduce child maltreatment. It was developed as a cross-sector partnership of Mat-Su agencies, and the Mat-Su Health Foundation provides ongoing staff support to the collaborative. R.O.C.K. Mat-Su works to build social supports, eliminate silos, and influence systems that affect children and families throughout the borough, all in support of achieving the goal of ending child abuse in Mat-Su. R.O.C.K. Mat-Su strives to achieve its goals through the development of prevention strategies that run the gamut of impacting all families to targeting families with more specific experiences and challenges.

The mission of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation is to improve the quality of people’s lives through grants supporting the performing arts, environmental conservation, medical research, and child well-being, and through the cultural and environmental legacy of Doris Duke’s properties. The foundation’s Child Well-being Program aims to promote children’s healthy development and protect them from abuse and neglect. To learn more about the program, visit www.ddcf.org.

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About MSHF: Mat-Su Health Foundation is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center.In this capacity, the MSHF board members and representatives actively participate in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protect the community’s interest in this important healthcare asset through board oversight.The MSHF invests its share of Mat-Su Regional’s profits into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in Mat-Su. More information is available online at www.healthymatsu.org/.

Wasilla, Alaska – The Riley Institute at Furman University has selected Amy Gorn, Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) program officer, to participate in the White-Riley-Peterson (WRP) Policy Fellowship. A partnership with the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the WRP Fellowship is a ten-month, national program designed to equip graduates with a real-world understanding of policy-making for afterschool and expanded learning.

In October, Gorn will travel to Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, to begin the program. As part of the fellowship, she will develop and implement a state-level policy project in partnership with Alaska Afterschool Network and the national Afterschool Alliance. Including Gorn, 16 individuals have been selected to become WRP Fellows this year. The number of WRP Fellows nationwide has grown to 106 in 49 states since the initiative launched in 2012.

In her role at the Mat-Su Health Foundation, Gorn manages the Healthy Families area of focus and is responsible for working with the MSHF program team to design and implement strategic initiatives to advance the foundation’s goals and vision. Her previous work experience includes serving as a community wellness coordinator for Rural Alaska Community Action Programs, Inc.; working in public radio in Sitka and Nome; and working as a juvenile justice officer for the state of Alaska. She earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and communication from College of Saint Benedict/St. John’s University.

“It is so important for young people to have access to high-quality academic enrichment opportunities during afterschool hours and in the summer – and we need policy leaders who can make that happen.The White-Riley-Peterson Policy Fellowship is leading the way in developing afterschool advocates, future policymakers and advisors across the country.I’m so proud to welcome 16 more leaders to this outstanding program,” said former U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley.

The WRP Policy Fellowship is named for Riley and for William S. White, chairman and CEO of the C.S. Mott Foundation, and Dr. Terry Peterson, national board chair of Afterschool Alliance and senior fellow at the Riley Institute and the College of Charleston.

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About the Mat-Su Health Foundation

Mat-Su Health Foundation is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center.In this capacity, the MSHF board members and representatives actively participate in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protect the community’s interest in this important healthcare asset through board oversight.The MSHF invests its share of Mat-Su Regional’s profits into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in Mat-Su. More information is available at www.healthymatsu.org.

About the Riley Institute at Furman University

Furman University’s Richard W. Riley Institute broadens student and community perspectives about issues critical to South Carolina’s progress. It builds and engages present and future leaders, creates and shares data-supported information about the state’s core challenges, and links the leadership body to sustainable solutions. It is committed to nonpartisanship in all it does and to a rhetoric-free, facts-based approach to change.More information is available at riley.furman.edu

About the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation

The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, established in 1926 in Flint, Michigan, by an automotive pioneer, is a private philanthropy committed to supporting projects that promote a just, equitable and sustainable society. It supports nonprofit programs throughout the United States and, on a limited geographic basis, internationally. Grantmaking is focused in four programs: Civil Society, Education, Environment and Flint Area. In addition to Flint, offices are located in metropolitan Detroit, Johannesburg and London. With year-end assets of approximately $3 billion in 2017, the Foundation made 375 grants totaling more than $122 million. More information is available at mott.org.

Wasilla, Alaska – The Mat-Su Health Foundation Board of Directors recently approved 10 grants totaling $1,890,616 to support a variety of programs and services benefiting Mat-Su residents.

“The grants announced today will positively impact health across generations, from our youth to the older Alaskans who contribute so much to the community,” said Mat-Su Health Foundation Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Ripley. “These awards also recognize the vast geography of the Mat-Su, with awards in more rural areas such as Talkeetna and Chickaloon as well as in the core areas of Wasilla and Palmer.”

• Behavioral Health in Schools: $250,000 to support 10 Mat-Su schools in offering on-site behavioral health services.

• CCS Early Learning: $175,000 to make repairs to the foundation of CCS Learning’s Wasilla administration building.

• Four A’s: $160,000 over two years to allow the organization to deploy a mobile unit providing syringe-exchange services in Mat-Su twice weekly as a harm reduction measure.

• Knik Tribal Council: $100,000 to modernize its information technology infrastructure with new computers, a new operating system, licenses, and backup equipment to improve the broad array of services delivered to tribal members.

• Statewide Independent Living Council (SILC): $200,000 to launch a pilot project to determine whether interventions including home assessments, installation of appropriate “smart home” technology, and the use of telehealth services can enhance the safety and independence of aging Mat-Su residents while also reducing Medicaid costs.

• Sunshine Transit: $170,000 as a start-up grant for Sunshine Transit, which was recently formed after Sunshine Community Health discontinued its transportation services.

• Valley Residential Services: $100,000 towards installation of an elevator in the Century Plaza building to make the second floor accessible for clients, customers and visitors.

• Valley Transit: $277,125 to ensure that the organization receives matching funds from the State of Alaska for sustained operations.

• Veterans Wall of Honor Relocation Project: $312,113 to support moving panels and monuments from the wall’s current site to an enhanced permanent site provided by the City of Wasilla.

• Wasilla Area Seniors (WASI): $146,378 to fund a Fall Prevention Program for Mat-Su’s older residents, enabling them to live in an independent, healthy and safe home environment.

The Mat-Su Health Foundation has several grant programs available; some accept applications year-round, while others have specific opening and closing dates. Complete information can be found online at www.healthymatsu.org.

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About MSHF: Mat-Su Health Foundation is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center.In this capacity, the MSHF board members and representatives actively participate in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protect the community’s interest in this important healthcare asset through board oversight.The MSHF invests its share of Mat-Su Regional’s profits into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in Mat-Su. More information is available online at www.healthymatsu.org/.

Wasilla, Alaska — Local residents Jonathan Walker and Sara Yancey have joined the Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) Board of Directors.

Walker is lead pastor at Church On the Rock, which has multiple sites in the Mat-Su. He has served the church since 2014.He previously co-founded Church On the Rock Homer. Walker has spent the bulk of his adult life living and working in Alaska and brings to the MSHF board skills in leadership development and nonprofit organizational vison and strategy. He has studied at Northeastern State University, Alaska Bible Institute and Louisiana Baptist University.

Yancey is a public health nurse at Mat-Su Public Health Center focusing on preventative care in order to help people improve their quality of life. Previously she was employed in nursing positions with the Anchorage Correctional Center, Mat-Su Regional Medical Center and Alaska Native Medical Center. She earned a bachelor of science degree in nursing from University of Alaska Anchorage. She has lived in the Mat-Su since 2006 and in Alaska since 1999.

Service on Mat-Su Health Foundation Board of Directors is on a volunteer basis, and applicants apply through a process that includes a written application and interview. Board members serve an initial three-year term, and each term may be renewed for two additional three-year terms.

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About Mat-Su Health Foundation: Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center.In this capacity, the MSHF board members and representatives actively participate in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protect the community’s interest in this important healthcare institution through board oversight.The MSHF invests its assets into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in Mat-Su.More information is available at www.healthymatsu.org/ .

Wasilla, Alaska –The Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) recently awarded 128 academic scholarships totaling $721,400 to Mat-Su students pursuing college degrees in health and wellness. In addition, the foundation awarded 23 vocational scholarships totaling $48,636 to residents pursuing health-related training and certificate programs. Together, the academic and vocational scholarship programs awarded $770,036 – almost double the $389,227 awarded the previous year.

“Workforce development is the key driver of our scholarship program,” said MSHF Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Ripley. “Of the 25 occupations expected to grow the most in Alaska, 18 are related to health care. As Mat-Su grows, so does our need for a highly trained and educated health care workforce, and this scholarship program can help fill that need with local residents.”

The Mat-Su Health Foundation offers scholarships in two categories: academic scholarships for students pursuing college degrees with health or wellness majors, and vocational scholarships to assist students with the cost of training and certifications for jobs in health and wellness fields. Scholarships are awarded based on how well each applicant meets MSHF’s eligibility criteria, which includes financial need, demonstrated interest in health care, and selection of a career choice that matches the workforce needs of the Mat-Su. MSHF academic scholarships are awarded one time annually, while vocational scholarships are awarded throughout the year.

New in 2017 is the Mat-Su Scholars Award, which is not based on financial need, but instead is awarded based on the applicant’s career goal, an essay, and an interview. Mat-Su Scholars awards are for $10,000 each and were awarded to students who meet specific criteria: