Education

All Alaska education news stories including child care, K-12 schools, university and policy.

am an speaks into a microphone

Gov. Dunleavy proposes funding boost for Alaska public defenders

Dunleavy's budget amendments also include funding for positions to help address a backlog in applications for food stamp benefits.
two kids hold signs that call for more education funding

Alaska school officials say one-time funding boost leaves budgets unpredictable

School district leaders and many legislators were hopeful that the state's base student allocation to schools would increase significantly this year.

Anchorage schools to allow flexibility in distancing policy following new CDC guidelines

District officials say the current mitigation strategies are working as intended.
A sign reads "Welcome to UAS" at the University of Alaska Southeast’s Juneau campus.

UAS sees increase in first-year students, career and technical education enrollment

Enrollment is down across the University of Alaska system. But at the Southeast campus, enrollment is actually up for first-year students and students enrolled in career and technical programs. Listen now
A sign says Anchorage School District.

Anchorage school employee arrested after police say he assaulted a student

Police say the paraprofessional “put his hands” on a Baxter Elementary student following a disagreement on the playground.
a Yup'ik spelling bee contestant

Native language spelling bee inspires students to learn 

The Yup’ik spelling bee, held in Anchorage, is still going strong and now incorporates Inupiaq — two Alaska Native languages in a fight for survival.
a courthouse

Both sides of Alaska homeschool case want programs in place, disagree over how it should happen

The judge in the correspondence school case, Adolf Zeman, will decide how long it will be before his ruling takes effect.
A crosswalk attendant holds a stop sign and greets a student and parent as they cross

Former Abbott Loop elementary students and staff find a new home at Kasuun

The Anchorage School District welcomed students back to school Thursday. For the 268 students who attended Abbott Loop Elementary, it was a day of transition.
A man in red speaks in a crowd of people wearing red, waiving yellow signs.

Mat-Su educators vote to strike

Teachers would not go on strike until the fall, if an agreement is not reached over the summer.
school hours

Petersburg secondary schools locking front doors during school hours

The change was made in response to threats by students against the facilities, but a school administrator says he would have eventually done so anyway.
lawmakers

Disagreements between Alaska House Republicans stalled education work for 3 weeks

The House Education Committee didn't meet for three weeks starting Feb. 14, denying Gov. Mike Dunleavy a channel of support for his ideas.
Houston High School ribbon cutting

New Houston High School building opens over 4 years after 2018 quake

The 7.1-magnitude quake damaged roads, houses, and other infrastructure, and did irreparable damage to Houston Middle School.
A man speaks at a podium during a school board meeting.

Mat-Su school board will vote on policies requiring parent permission for sex ed, pronoun changes

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District Board is preparing to vote Wednesday on a pair of policies that would affect transgender students. 
A line of elementary children line up and walk down the hallway out to recess in the winter

Anchorage School District outlines plans for return to school buildings

The youngest children will return first, in mid-October. Middle school children will return in November and high school students will return in early 2021
Young students sit behind desks in an elementary school classroom.

Alaska lawmakers look to increase school funding in upcoming legislative session

State funding to school districts has, essentially, not changed since 2017. At the same time, the cost of pretty much everything has gone up.
A student sitting on the shoulders of another student holding up a sign in protest.

Alaska students stage statewide walkout to protest education funding veto

Students protested Gov. Dunleavy’s veto of an education funding bill and the Legislature's failure to override the veto.
a Southeast tribal values poster

Judge rules traditional tribal values can stay in Ketchikan schools

After a two-day trial, a Ketchikan Superior Court judge ruled that a list of 14 traditional tribal values can keep their place in Ketchikan schools.
Anchorage School District Superintendent Deena Bishop at Huffman Elementary School on Monday, Nov. 2, 2020.

Anchorage School District, University of Alaska recommend masking for school year

The superintendent will present the recommendation to the school board and the board will vote on whether to implement the policy.
a COVID test

Free COVID tests headed to nation’s schools

The initiative will make available millions of tests for school districts as they enter the winter months when COVID activity is expected to peak.
Aparna Palmer

Aparna Palmer named new University of Alaska Southeast chancellor

Palmer is vice president of Front Range Community College in Colorado. She also previously worked at Colorado Mesa University.