For over ninety years, the Assemblies of God has had a ministry presence in the State of Alaska. However, a severe shortage of prepared ministry leaders for the Alaskan context remains. This shortage is especially acute in the remote areas—small towns and villages predominantly Alaska Native in population.

This project provides a solution to this problem by presenting a theological extension education model to develop ministry leaders in their own cultural setting. It utilizes both an academic program and a practical component that upon completion will educationally qualify students for ordination with the Assemblies of God.

In an effort to raise awareness of the problem of the shortage of ministry leaders for Alaska and propose a culturally relevant AIC implementation of theological extension in Alaska, this project model was presented in a seminar format to the faculty and administrative staff of American Indian College in Phoenix, Arizona. The seminar addressed some of the hardships of pursuing ministry in Alaska, including the harshness of the climate, isolation, transportation problems, and cultural challenges.

Presentation of the seminar increased awareness and concern for the problem among the AIC faculty and administrative staff. The college is currently developing ministry leaders in the Native American community and has in place many of the components needed to establish an extension education program. They are amenable to the possibility of implementing this model, which could be very effective in meeting the ministry need in Alaska.