In 1971 the University of Alaska established a "rural education center" in Kotzebue. By 1978, the University of Alaska, Board of Regents had established Chukchi Community College, which operated until 1987, when the newly named Chukchi Campus became a branch of the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF).

Based in the community of Kotzebue, Chukchi Campus serves eleven communities amid more than 36,000 square miles of spectacular mountain and tundra wilderness known as the Northwest Arctic Borough. No modern road system connects the villages to each other or to the outside world. The Northwest Arctic Borough population is 7,300, of which over 82% are Iñupiaq. The pursuit of a traditional way of life and subsisting off of the land are the driving forces behind most of the residents. At the same time, western higher education and the UAF are becoming increasingly crucial to the region's future. Residents recognize the need of an appropriate balance between the increasing presence of western institutions and preserving Iñupiat traditions.