Iisaġvik College opens 2026 summer camps, including dog mushing camp

Families in Utqiagvik had a tightly focused summer option for students who want more than a week of idle time: Iisaġvik College opened applications for its 2026 camps, including a dog mushing program for local high school-age students that paired culture, animal care and practical training in one of the North Slope’s most distinctive skills.

The Dog Mushing Camp was set aside for Utqiagvik residents only and ran from Sunday, May 30, to Saturday, June 6, 2026. Alex Dattilo was listed as coordinator. The one-week day camp had room for 8 to 15 participants and taught students how to care for Alaskan huskies, including feeding, training and basic first aid. Iisaġvik said the camps were free for attendees and, in most cases, travel was paid for students outside Utqiagvik.

The college’s summer lineup was broader than dog mushing. High school overnight camps were open to campers from all over Alaska, middle school overnight camps were limited to Utqiagvik, and day camps were open only to Utqiagvik residents. Iisaġvik said the programs were meant to let students experience campus life, make new friends, explore career fields and be immersed in Iñupiaq culture, a mix that turns summer programming into a pathway rather than just a break from school.

That approach fits the college’s larger identity in the North Slope. Iisaġvik says it is Alaska’s only tribal college and offers tuition waivers for Alaska Natives, American Indians, Elders and all North Slope Borough residents. Its mission statement says it is “unapologetically Iñupiaq” and aims to strengthen language and traditions while preparing students for the workforce, on the land, in the home and in daily life.

The college’s own history shows that summer camps have long been part of that work. Its 2024-2025 annual report said Iisaġvik hosted its first pre-college summer camps in 2001, and quoted founder Edna MacLean: “There has always been a need and desire for establishing a center where the Iñupiaq knowledge and traditions may flourish.” Iisaġvik also planned a separate two-week summer program for incoming freshmen and transfer students in Utqiagvik, with refreshers in math, English and science, plus bonfires, movie nights and town activities with classmates.

For a region where Utqiagvik serves as the economic, transportation and administrative center of the North Slope Borough, the camps carried a larger weight than recreation alone. The American Indian Higher Education Consortium says tribal colleges often provide technical job training, affordable postsecondary education and economic support in remote regions, a description that matched Iisaġvik’s summer push and its role in local workforce development.