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Working in the Heart of the Alaskan Bush: An Interview with Pat Baser
Written by Laura Kuhn

A seed is planted

When Pat Baser was a child in Kansas, a close friend of hers named Wendy moved to Alaska. "I remember clear as a bell the day Wendy made that announcement at school," Pat said. When she told her mother, they searched for a world atlas to find Alaska. While looking at the map, Pat thought, "I want to go there some day."

Schooling and career paths

Her dream of traveling to Alaska followed Pat into her adulthood. Pat completed her undergraduate work at Kansas University and moved to Iowa to pursue a master's degree in education. She later accepted a position as an itinerant speech-language pathologist for the public schools in the northern corner of Iowa near the Minnesota border. For five years Pat provided low-incidence special education services to children and some adults.

Pat returned to Topeka, Kansas and worked as a SLP for a state mental health hospital. After six years there, the Mental Health Reform Act went into effect. Pat explained, "Mental health hospitals were being closed and replaced with community-based services. I knew I had to move some place else to find work. I thought to myself, this is my time to consider Alaska."

One phone call

Pat decided to take a risk and call the State Department of Education in Juneau about job openings. When she told them that she was a speech pathologist, she was asked to fax her resume immediately. "I've never known anyone to be that excited about my resume, ever. It was amazing," Pat said. After faxing her resume from a local grocery store, she received three phone calls that same afternoon. Three different school districts encouraged her to apply.

The dream begins

That summer Pat and her two sons left Kansas behind and headed on a plane for Bethel. They arrived at a remote town of 5,200 in southwestern Alaska. Nestled on the north bank of the Kuskokwim River, they found Bethel surrounded by the Yukon Delta Natural Wildlife Refuge.

Pat said her parents did not believe she would go through with the move. She admitted that when the plane landed at the town's small airport, she wondered if she had made the right decision.

Yet on first glimpse, Alaska offered a unique lens on the world. "When we arrived in August the sun was up for almost 24 hours. I can hardly describe the number of colors you can see in the sunrises and sunsets," Pat said.

Spectacular skies and scenery were always close at hand. "One morning during the winter, Steven, my youngest boy, and I were walking into town. It was very dark and the stars were out. You could see from horizon to horizon all the way around you. Steven said to me, 'It's like living in one of those shaky things.'"

Traveling to clients by plane

Pat began working for the school district in Bethel. She and another speech-language pathologist provided services to ten villages. They shared a caseload of over 100 students aged 0-21. The furthest village away was Kwigilinonk, which took an hour to get to by plane.

On an average day when the weather was cooperative, Pat would leave by 7:30 a.m. to go to the airport. "If you're smart, you always pack pilot bread, a small container of peanut butter, a sleeping bag, and whatever else you might need to keep yourself going for a couple of days."

At the airport Pat waited for a pilot to call her name. She always made arrangements ahead of time. She would find out which pilot had a mail delivery or pick-up in a particular village, so she could tag along. When getting the call, Pat grabbed her backpack and climbed into the four-seat plane. "Sometimes you would work it out so that the pilot would drop you off at the landing strip, deliver the mail, then come back to pick you up and take you to the next village," she explained.

Once Pat reached a village, she walked to the school to meet some of her clients. The majority of people she served were Yup'ik, natives who live in the western coastal region of Alaska. At the school she conducted monthly evaluations and provided direct therapy. She also wrote treatment plans that could be carried out by special education teachers or other providers for the next 30 days until her return.

"I did have some children who clearly needed the services of an SLP. They could not even make minimal progress with someone who wasn't certified. I would visit those children at their homes two or three times a week," Pat said.

The first time Pat traveled to Kwigilinonk the weather deteriorated. Heavy snowstorms left her stranded in town. According to her, "the weather dictated everything." On that day no one was going anywhere. "I had to sleep in the school building on the floor." The airport was closed for three days. However, some of the men from the village were leaving to look for firewood with their dogs. Pat was able to return to Bethel by way of dog sled. "It was phenomenal!" Plowed in the winter, the Kuskokwim River provided the road for her journey home.

Learning about Yup'ik culture

Pat's most rewarding experiences occurred when she was serving Yup'ik children in their homes. In the beginning, she worked hard establishing a relationship with the family. This takes time--sometimes several visits before being accepted. She found she had the most success when she was quiet and observant, and asked politely if she could come inside.

"You can't just rush into a home and do your therapy. Instead you stay for a cup of tea and talk about things that really matter to the child and the family. They also want to learn about you and your family. If you are hesitant in sharing information about yourself, they will be hesitant in allowing you into their lives."

Pat continued, "You have to be able to demonstrate sincerity and commitment. If you can do that bit by bit, you can become part of everything and participate in important events like sharing food. One of the greatest honors is to be invited to share stories with family members. Sharing stories is a significant part of Yup'ik culture."

The need for services

In Alaska the incidence of children with special education needs is 20 to 25 percent higher than in other parts of the country. Pat saw many children who had head injuries caused by accidents involving four-wheelers. She also worked with children who were born with disabilities. Microcephaly and fetal alcohol syndrome were two conditions she saw that impacted children's cognitive abilities.

"At times it was definitely overwhelming with the large number of children and the intensity of the need," Pat added.

A different attitude

According to Pat, Yup'ik culture views children with disabilities from a unique perspective. Parents, along with the village as a whole, accept difference in individuals and view difference as what makes that person special. In Yup'ik culture, all children are loved for who they are. "The families love their children. They accept the handicap as part of the whole person."

Subsequently, when contacted by specialists from outside the community, families often are resistant. They feel their children are fine and don't need to change. "You have to mellow out and look at the issues from the perspective of the village and not from the perspective of how good your IEP is going to look," Pat said.

Serving families with respect

Pat has made some discoveries on how to serve Yup'ik families sensitively and effectively. She has listened and studied Yup'ik culture. "Respect for another person's culture is paramount," she insisted. "You can't serve a family out of context. The context is not always the school building. The real context is the family and the community."

When using tests, Pat took into account the fact that many of the children know nothing of the world outside their villages, except for what they see on television. Also many of them have a quiet demeanor, making test administration a longer process. She spends whatever time is necessary and often involves the whole family. "A child's issues are not seen as separate from the family's issues," she said.

Pat is very careful which tests she uses and attempts to reduce bias as much as possible. One test she views as helpful is Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language (CASL). "I have found CASL to be my most successful and nonthreatening measure. When I give a subtest, I do not come across as if I am trying to find the weaknesses. I use it to discover a child's present level of performance."

City life

Later Pat moved to Fairbanks and accepted a job with the school district. She also works with the Tanana Chiefs Corporation that refers Athabascan children in need of services to her.

Pat now sees clients in an office in Fairbanks--a space she's designed to be welcoming and comfortable. Before initial meetings, Pat calls the clients' families and introduces herself on the phone. She believes it's vital to establish these connections.

Pat continues to love Alaska and it's people. "It's a place where you can turn your head in one direction and see the moon going down. Turn around and there on a parallel plane you can see the sun coming up. It's absolutely astounding! When you're 52 like I am and still have the passion and fire for your profession . . . when you love the families and the people you work with and for . . . hey, I think that's wonderful!"

So, what are Pat's plans for the future? "As soon as my youngest boy graduates from high school, I'll put aside my town work, become a village person, and travel by airplane again. I can't wait."