Andrea Longpre Macht, M.S.W. ‘99

Hello! This is Andrea Longpre (now Longpre Macht), a 1999 graduate! Although that was just a few years ago, it seems like a lifetime.

imageI have been here in Nome, Alaska since September of 2000. This is in the Northwest region of Alaska, 126 miles from Russia and only accessible by air, a 1-hour flight from Anchorage (unless of course you use a dogsled because afterall this is the finish line for the Iditarod dog race in March).

This area is inhabited by 85 percent people of Inupiat, Siberian Y'upik and Y'upik Eskimo descent. Nome has approximately 3,500 people - with 15 Native villages in the surrounding area bringing the total population of this Norton Sound region to 8,500. Again, these villages are reachable only by bush plane, except for one that we can reach during the summer months.

Getting to Alaska
The process for obtaining my current job and location was a complicated and exciting one that I'd like to share with you. Also, I invite you to share it with students and alumni. The UNE financial aid office informed me about a loan repayment program with the Indian Health Service (IHS). During the summer of 1999, I contacted the IHS recruiters and inquired about this program.

The federal government designates areas in the United States that receive funding from the Indian Health Service, providing these areas with a number from 1 to 100 based on need (i.e., 100 percent is the greatest need and guaranteed loan repayment). At that time, Barrow, Alaska was Number 100 (check out a map - it's on the top of the world!). That was too remote for me, so I tele-interviewed with the agencies ranked 95-98 which were all in Alaska. The corporations all offered travel and shipping as part of the employment package. At the point of acceptance, I contacted the IHS and completed my loan repayment application. They offer $20,000/year and ask for a two-year contract, with extension possibilities.

Challenges and Blessings
I can't sugar coat the challenges of living this far from home in such a remote area of the Arctic. However, I will say that with each struggle, there have been countless blessings, professional growth, and opportunities that I never imagined.

I am the fetal alcohol spectrum disorder coordinator for the Norton Sound Region of Alaska. This position came out of a grant (thanks to the grant writing I learned at UNE!!!!) based on a needs assessment done when I first arrived. There was a HUGE need for services for individuals and families affected by prenatal alcohol exposure (the affected birth rate is approx. 50 percent). The alcoholism rate here is four times the national average, and the suicide rate is the highest in the nation.

There are weekly traumas and losses that constantly astound me, although I have become habituated to some degree. I am the grant and program manager responsible for the assessment, diagnosis and service intervention related to FASD. If you are not familiar with this devastating disability, please check out the website or another similar site. I did not understand this disability and now cannot picture life without taking its existence into account.

A Typical Day
Let's see ... my typical day is like this: Work hours are the same as the corporate world, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. This is pretty ironic since culturally, the village communities live by the sun and nature staying up very late at night and rising late in the morning. Also, our amount of light is very different here. As I write this in December, the sun rises around 11 a.m. and sets around 4 p.m. The sun hardly rises over the buildings so sunrise IS sunset. In the summers, we have 24 hours of light. It is very interesting that we, as the Caucasian and educated minority folks, adhere to the corporate world instead of the culture we live in. I'm still struggling with that one.

I grew up in Lovell, Maine (700 people) so the smallness of the community is familiar. We get some pretty crazy arctic weather, though. We are above the tree line and therefore have no trees - just tundra for miles and miles. We get snow, but it usually blows out to sea, or drifts against buildings.

The wind kicks up this time of the year and can be dangerous. For instance, it's been minus 10 for about a week - last Friday, the wind picked up and brought the temperature to 35 below zero. It's typical to have minus 50-degree weather with the wind. In this case, we keep all of our skin covered when we go outside and otherwise pray that the buildings will stay put (haha). I should say that because of permafrost, there are no cellars/basements here - all buildings are directly on frames that get adjusted from the frost heaves that typically shift them all around.

Prevention, Education and Treatment
My job is one of prevention, education and treatment. Since I focus on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (a disability caused by prenatal alcohol exposure), I support and advocate for pregnant women who are drinking to try to get them into alcohol treatment. I also work with families, schools, clinicians and multiple agencies to educate them about the secondary disabilities that occur from FASD.

Sometimes, I travel to one of the villages to provide this there as well. Consequently, I provide behavioral consultations/interventions/strategies for working with people who are affected. So any typical day, I may get a call from the Maternal Child Health Department requesting that I speak with a newly pregnant mom-to-be who drinks alcohol. I meet with a clinician/doctor/teacher to brainstorm with them about a particular client who was exposed and is having behavioral or cognitive difficulties. I write an article for the local paper (check out Nome Nugget), do a public service announcement on one of our two (!) volunteer radio stations, or design an information flyer to distribute. I also coordinate the FASD diagnostic team. FASD is a medical diagnosis that must be diagnosed by a minimum of four professionals - these are an physician, psychologist, occupational therapist and speech and language specialist. These are the areas that the individuals typically have deficits in. It's a pretty big process, but boy are the families and providers glad to know that the reason the child is having such a hard time is because they have a permanent brain disability not that they're just "bad kids.”

I also volunteer on a few committees: Regional Wellness Committee, Community Justice Working Committee and Breakfast Club (we're trying to get funding to get a school breakfast program - hungry kids!). Additionally, I'm active with the AK NASW. The Rural Alaska Social Work committee has been trying to unify and get our voices heard more because there are countless issues that we deal with in the "bush" that urban social workers do not deal with.

Working with Incredible People
I work with a lot of incredible people from all over the "Lower 48" or the "Outside" as Alaskans refer to the rest of the states. There are more than 20 social workers here in Nome and in the regions - mostly working with families to address many needs. I should explain that the native tribes here are federally recognized. This means that as a tribe, they have the responsibility to care for their children and families.

The voice of the tribe is stronger than the Alaska State voice. For instance, the Indian Child Welfare Act is the governing force here. This law was enacted to preserve native families. So, if a native child is removed from the home because of neglect or abuse (remember, we have four times the alcoholism rate here!) then the child MUST be connected with another native family. It is untypical to have a Caucasian family adopt a native child. Therefore, there are many, many of us social workers trying to preserve families and promote health and well-being.

Professionally, I have had opportunities and responsibilities I never imagined and from which I feel that I've grown incredibly. The remoteness of the region and the incredulous survival that the indigenous people have endured touches the soul - it's powerful work!

I wanted to share some of my story with prospective and current students and alumni and to give you some indicator of how UNE graduates are doing here in "the real world.” I am thankful for the time, energy, humor, and expertise that the faculty at the School of Social Work provided me. A large part of my work is now in educating people, and I can hear each of their voices as I pass on my knowledge.

May 2003 be filled with peace, success, and good health for each of you and your families!

Please feel free to contact me directly: Andrea Longpre Macht at hominome@yahoo.com.    
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