Fort Wainwright Officer Chosen as UAF Chancellor
Photo Credit: UAF
The University of Alaska Board of Regents selected US Army Colonel Russell “Russ” Vander Lugt as the next UAF Chancellor. The Fairbanks campus has been led by Michael Sfraga, former US Ambassador-at-Large for Arctic Affairs, since last July, upon the retirement of Dan White after eight years. Sfraga and Vander Lugt both received PhDs from UAF, Sfraga in Northern Studies and Vander Lugt in Arctic and Northern History.
Vander Lugt currently serves as Commander of the 11th Airborne Division’s Arctic Aviation Command at Fort Wainwright. He previously served as director of strategy, plans, and programs for Alaskan Command. He has academic experience as assistant professor of history at the US Military Academy at West Point and as department chair at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Arizona.
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June 2026
“Col. Vander Lugt’s experience in academia, the military, and the Arctic reflects the unique position that UAF holds in our state, and we are pleased that he’s willing to serve as the next chancellor of America’s Arctic University,” notes Interim UA President Michelle Rizk, who participated in the selection with UA President Emeritus Pat Pitney and UA President-designee Matt Cooper, along with the Board of Regents.
Vander Lugt earned a bachelor’s degree in music and historical theology from Wheaton College in Illinois. He holds master’s degrees in management science from Embry-Riddle and Arctic and Northern studies from UAF, in addition to his PhD. He is also a Goodpaster Scholar, having completed a ten-year advanced strategic planning and policy program created by the Army initiative to develop strategic thinkers and senior leaders with advanced degrees.
“I’m humbled to be selected to lead the University of Alaska Fairbanks during this pivotal time, and I thank Presidents Pitney, Cooper, and Rizk, the search committee, and the UAF community for their trust and confidence,” says Vander Lugt. “I’m committed to building on the strong foundation Chancellors Sfraga and White have established, and working closely with university leadership and governance to support and advance UAF’s mission.”
Vander Lugt will begin transitioning and onboarding over the summer and will be on campus beginning August 19 to welcome students, staff, and faculty back to UAF for the start of the academic year. His official first day as UAF Chancellor is September 8. His base salary will be $309,000, which the university says is in line with previous UAF chancellors and with the chancellors at UAA and UAS, and is commensurate with the salary expected for a chancellor of a top-tier research university.
