Alaskan student blazes new trail at Carolina
First-year student Amanda Edgar focused on law and government back home but looks forward to new interests and warmer weather.
Through her various acts of public service, Amanda Edgar has spent much of her time in high school raising awareness for her community. An Alaskan and incoming first-year student at Carolina, Edgar plans to bring more attention to the state she calls home.
“Alaskans are a very tight-knit community, which is really cool,” Edgar said. “But I don’t want to limit myself. I want to experience other parts of the world.”
Edgar was born in Spain, and she and her family moved to Florida when she was 5. A year later, the family embarked on a 13-day road trip to their new residence in Wasilla, Alaska, about 43 miles outside Anchorage, Alaska.
Edgar’s father, a Navy veteran who now works as an attorney, instilled in her a strong sense of public service from an early age. She soon developed an interest in international law and the welfare of her community.
This interest led her to take an opportunity as a youth attorney with the Mat-Su Youth Court, a nonprofit based in Anchorage, Alaska, that caters to first-time juvenile offenders. In this role, Edgar took on a variety of cases and advocated for young people to grow and get a second chance.
“Some kids here just grow up in bad environments,” Edgar said. “It was really rewarding to be able to help them and help my community in some way.”
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During her junior year, Edgar had the opportunity to study abroad in Germany through the Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange. There, she learned about the ins and outs of Germany’s government while taking advantage of a chance to experience cities much larger than her hometown of 9,000 people.
That desire to branch out is what led Edgar to Carolina. When visiting her older sister at Vanderbilt University, the duo stopped in Chapel Hill on a road trip together.
It was practically love at first sight. She’s excited to start her journey at Carolina while sharing a piece of home with her new classmates.
Edgar (center) interned with Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska (left) this past summer. (Submitted photo)
“In a lot of ways, I think Alaska is overlooked,” Edgar said. “I don’t know if a lot of students at Carolina know much about it, so I’m really excited to bring a different perspective to campus.”
With her new beginnings, she also wants to explore different career paths.
In June, Edgar interned in the office of U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Edgar says the experience was incredible as it demonstrated how critical it is for Alaskans to have strong representation in Washington, D.C.
Not only is Carolina a change of setting for Edgar, but it’s also a chance to discover new interests beyond law and government. She plans to major in health policy and management but explore what else Carolina has to offer.
“I’m excited to just step into a new culture and have a new home,” she said.
There is one thing the Alaskan is most looking forward to, though.
“I’m excited to live somewhere warm,” Edgar said. “Yeah, I’ve been pretty cold for most of my life.”
