Great Alaska Schools

The trend is clear

Alaska drops to 47th in the nation in overall child well-being, new report says Alaska’s ranking dropped seven places, with the steepest decline in education, where the state ranked 49th out of 50 states.

Lawmakers advanced $29 million to offset school districts’ rising energy costs next year, and a plan for the state to cover the bulk of districts energy costs statewide starting in 2028
BY:
CORINNE SMITH
-
MAY 21, 2026

Great Alaska Schools is hosting an end of school/end of session gathering as a time to come together to celebrate the work we’ve done and reflect on the challenges we have faced. Whether you’ve been in the trenches or cheering us on from the sidelines, we invite you to come together for this community gathering.

Monday May 18, 7 - 8 pm
Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89794309396
RSVP on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BSb1VQ7Mv/

What to expect:
-Reflect on education advocacy highlights from this session
-Share your local challenges in hopes for next year
-Learn about last chance, legislative action opportunities
-A look ahead for Great Alaska Schools future plans and how to join

This Wednesday in Anchorage- Teacher Tales is sure to be a great night!

We are so excited about this year’s storytellers we decided to give you a little sneak peek…

What a lineup! Each will be more thoroughly introduced in the coming days, but for now, grab your tickets because this show is starting to fill up, and it’s going to be one for the books!

Action alert! Email testimony to [email protected] by tomorrow, Tuesday, 4/21 at 1:30pm on SJR 29

SJR 29 asks the public to vote in November to amend the constitution to create an Education Fund.

House Finance has a lot of power in getting education funding passed (or not). They need to hear from us!

Suggested message: Thank you for taking our school funding crisis seriously! I support the creation of a dedicated fund for education. But setting up a new account is not the same as putting money in it. Our schools also need a meaningful increase to education funding NOW and in future years to catch up – and keep up – with inflation.y:

Call (844) 586-9085 and ask for the House Finance Committee’s SJR 29 hearing.

Or Email testimony to [email protected]

Today is the deadline to turn in your ballot for the Anchorage Municipal Election!

Local elections make a big impact on our local community – your vote matters!
How to submit your ballot: You have until 8:00pm today, April 7, to vote!
Option 1) Vote in person at an Anchorage Vote Center, open 7am - 8pm today
Option 2) Or Turn in your ballot at one of the many secure drop boxes around town by 8pm
Class sizes are on the ballot: Voters have a unique opportunity this year to provide $11.8 million in local funding directly to schools to retain 80 teachers and avoid big increases in class size. Without this levy, elementary classes will average 31 students and middle and high school will go up to 36.
Prop 9 (the Education Levy) will:

Provide Anchorage schools $11.8 million for the next school year
-Retain over 80 teaching positions
-Minimize class size increases
Please make sure your friends and neighbors understand what the levy is, and please remind your people to turn in their ballot today!

Note: It is too late to mail your ballot, UNLESS you go to a USPS retail counter and ask a postal official to manually postmark your envelope today.

Cast your vote by tomorrow, Tuesday, April 7 by 8pm! Local elections make a big impact on our local community!

How to submit your ballot: Tuesday, April 7 is the last day to turn in ballots to one of the many secure drop boxes around town. You can also vote in person at a vote center through 8pm on Election Day, Tuesday, April 7th.

Voters have a unique opportunity this year to provide $11.8 million in local funding directly to schools to retain 80 teachers and avoid big increases in class size. Without this levy, elementary classes will average 31 students and middle and high school will go up to 36.

Prop 9 (the Education Levy) will:

-Provide Anchorage schools $11.8 million for the next school year
-Retain over 80 teaching positions
-Minimize class size increases

(If you plan to mail your ballot, please note that USPS POSTMARK RULES HAVE CHANGED! Postmarks are now applied when mail is processed. If you are mailing your ballot close to Election Day, take your ballot to a USPS retail counter and ask a postal official to postmark your envelope).

Please make sure your friends and neighbors understand what the levy is when they vote.

By Adam Hays, Steph Johnson and Patrick Lovelace

As business owners, we look at Anchorage through the lens of long-term viability. We invest in our storefronts, our fleets and our employees because we believe in this city’s future. But lately, that future is looking increasingly fragile.

For seven years, we’ve watched a slow-motion crisis in our schools that is now hitting our bottom lines. When neighborhood schools like Fire Lake or Lake Otis close, property values shift and local commerce patterns break. When class sizes balloon and programs like IGNITE are axed, the families we employ start looking for the exit. We aren’t just losing students; we are losing our current workforce and failing to develop our future one.

To stabilize our economy and our community, we believe Anchorage must pursue a two-track solution: a state funding inflation adjustment and local support for Proposition 9.

The math is simple: You cannot run a 2026 business on a 2017 budget. Between skyrocketing costs for utilities, insurance and labor, “flat funding” is, in reality, a massive budget cut.

Recent data reveals a startling trend: Alaska ranks last among all 50 states in cumulative spending growth per pupil relative to inflation. While the rest of the country adjusted to a 35% inflation rate, Alaska limped along at just 14%. We are starving our competitive edge.

Fortunately, many of our legislators in Juneau see the crisis we are facing and are taking action. The House Education Committee has introduced House Bill 374 to adjust the Base Student Allocation, or BSA, to restore some of the investment lost to inflation. The Senate Education Committee has introduced Senate Bill 277 to modestly increase the BSA and introduce a suite of policy reforms and funding measures designed to build consensus and make targeted investments. We are grateful for this leadership.

More at https://www.adn.com/opinions/2026/04/04/opinion-the-business-case-for-backing-an-inflation-adjustment-and-passing-prop-9/

Voters have a unique opportunity this year to provide $11.8 million in local funding directly to schools to retain 80 teachers and avoid big increases in class size. Without this levy, elementary classes will average 31 students and middle and high school will go up to 36.

Prop 9 (the Education Levy) will:

Provide Anchorage schools $11.8 million for the next school year
-Retain over 80 teaching positions
-Minimize class size increases
How to submit your ballot: Tuesday, April 7 is the last day to turn in ballots to one of the many secure drop boxes around town. You can also vote in person at a vote center through 8pm on Election Day, Tuesday, April 7th.

(If you plan to mail your ballot, please note that USPS POSTMARK RULES HAVE CHANGED! Postmarks are now applied when mail is processed. If you are mailing your ballot close to Election Day, take your ballot to a USPS retail counter and ask a postal official to postmark your envelope).
Please make sure your friends and neighbors understand what the levy is when they vote.