Jan. 9, 2008

FAIRBANKS, AK - Forrest Karr, Director of Athletics and Campus Recreation at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, is pleased to announce the founding of the Nanook Hall of Fame. Established in order to honor and preserve the memory of the men and women who have brought honor and distinction to UAF through their outstanding contributions in both intercollegiate athletics and community involvement, the Hall of Fame will begin accepting nominations for their inaugural class of 2008 immediately, with inductees to be honored in a ceremony this fall.

"The Hall of Fame is a tangible way of recognizing people that have contributed to the growth and success of Nanook Athletics," said Karr. "But more importantly, the selection process is an enjoyable way of learning about and preserving an important aspect of the institution's history."

All former UAF student-athletes and teams are eligible for nomination five years following their last competition. Other nominees, including, but not limited to, coaches, athletic administrators, athletic staff, and boosters, may be nominated at any time.

A committee of Fairbanks community members, alumni, and university officials met with Karr to draft the guidelines and criteria for the Nanook Hall of Fame: inductee qualifications, selection committee procedures, nominating process and induction timeline.

In addition, the group decided the first three classes of inductees will be considered the Charter Group in the Nanook Hall of Fame. The number of Charter Group inductees will be limited to no more than six individuals annually, with the number of non-athletes restricted to two persons. Once the third and final class of the Charter Group has been inducted in 2010, the number of annual inductees will be limited to a maximum of four individuals annually, with just one non-athlete able to be selected for induction.

"I want to thank the committee members that helped develop the Nanook Hall of Fame Guidelines," said Karr. "Their time and effort will be appreciated by many nominees and visitors in the future."

To review the qualifications of this year's pool of nominees, an inaugural Hall of Fame selection committee was hand-picked by Karr, Jake Poole (UAF Vice Chancellor for Advancement and Community Engagement), and Joe Hayes (UAF Alumni Association Director). The search committee, composed of six UAF athletics alumni and Karr's three appointees, consists of: Linda (Dahl) Gordon, mixed rifle; Greg Milles, men's ice hockey; Jenny (Lin) Benson, women's basketball/former coach; Darryl Lewis, men's basketball; Mallory (Bergstrom) Larranaga, women's volleyball; Andre Layral, swimming; Mike Kelliher, CPA with Walsh, Kelliher and Sharp and Past Chair of the BP Top of the World Classic community organizing committee; Bob Eley, Sports Editor for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner; and John Estle, Owner of SportAlaska, Race Director for the Nordic Ski Club of Fairbanks and a former Nanook ski coach.

The deadline to submit nominations for the Class of 2008 is March 31, 2008.

Printable nomination forms and more information about the Nanook Hall of Fame may be found online at http://alaskananooks.cstv.com/ot/alaf-halloffame.html.