Issues
Career Technology Education (CTE)
The mission of the Anchorage School District is to prepare every student for success in life. To be successful, every student needs to graduate high school with a plan that leads to a career! Every high school graduate must be academically prepared to enter college, but college is only one of many paths that may lead to careers. There are lots of great career options and we need to help students see the connection between school and employment opportunities. Many job opportunities in the construction, medical and engineering career fields do not require a college degree and offer great pay in Alaska!
This April, voters will have the opportunity to approve a bond devote solely to expanding CTE. It will expand CTE in middle and high schools. I am proud of my role in promoting more CTE in schools. I was an outspoken Board Member during the past three years on expanding CTE. It keeps kids in school, helps them learn, and gives them the opportunity for a great future!
Graduation Rates
During the past three years, the graduation rate has increased from 63.02% to 69.69%. ASD employees are doing a better job of identifying students are risk and providing assistance. This significant improvement but doesn’t tell the whole story. Less that 13% of the students who do not graduate in four years actually drop out. Approximately 18% of the students are continuing in school to obtain their diploma or completed high school with a certificate of achievement.
This progress is impressive, but we must do better. We must help every student to graduate from high school, college and career ready. The cost of drop outs in our community and the country is massive. Drop outs are more likely to be in jail at some point in their life and will earn a fraction of high school graduates.
To continue to improve graduation rates, we must expand CTE and provide more intervention at early grades.
Dropout rates
During the past three years, dropout rate has declined from 5.1 to 3.59 percent. That means a lot more kids are in school and a lot less are on the streets vulnerable and getting in trouble with the law.
It is not easy to keep kids in school when they can drop out at 16. If a student doesn’t see the benefit of obtaining a high school diploma, isn’t motivate to do the work in class, and doesn’t feel welcomed in school they are at great risk of dropping out. CTE, graduation coaches and career guides are making a difference, and we have the hard numbers to see the improvement. But the most important factor is always the great ASD staff and their commitment to keeping students in school!
Accountability in the Classroom
The Anchorage School District does not know how much each student is advancing academically every year. As a consequence, we can’t say certainly how well what is and is not working right in classrooms. But that is changing!
A Board directive I proposed and was approved unanimously by the Board will require the District to measure academic improvement for every child, every year. The United States lags in education but we excel at giving high grades. Parents need to know how well they child is advancing with confidence. Teachers need to have factual data to measure their success. And the School Board needs this information to determine what they can do to improve educational outcomes.
Summer School
Elementary
It is critical that we help students who are academically behind as early as possible. Last year, 400 students not on academic level in elementary school did not have the opportunity to attend summer school. Elementary students who attended summer school had a 19 percent increase in academic scores!
This year, the Administration proposed cutting elementary summer school due to budget cuts. I disagreed, arguing that we must help students become academically proficient at the earliest possible time. Administration and the entire Board agreed, and rather than cut elementary summer school it will now be open to ALL students not on academic level!
High School
Summer School in high school is a great success story. Thirty five percent of high school students, many very successful students, are taking summer school. Some students need extra credit to graduate on time, but most just want the extra credit so they will have the opportunity to take other electives. Expansion of summer school for high school students was advanced by the School Board before I was elected, and I have continued to support its expansion. The Board is achieving this without any additional funding from the State or local taxes.
Controlling Cost
Tax dollars should be treated with great respect. Every federal, state and local dollar spent on education belongs to the citizens and it is the Board obligation to spend it wisely.
One area of concern is administration costs. Administration is jokingly referred to as a necessary evil, but it is necessary to the success of any organization. However, since it doesn’t provide educational services directly, controlling how much is spent on administration is important.
During the past three years every School Board budget has reduced the percentage spent on administration. But that is only a start. As Chair of the Board Audit Committee, I am committed to conducting management reviews to identify areas for improvement and to cut costs.
The first management review was purchasing. An outstanding review was conducted by an external team of experts. The administrative processes involved were identified as outdated and very expensive. New policies will automate 80 percent of all purchases, cut staffing and cost, and improve controls.
We are just starting. Management reviews are being planned for several departments and will be expanded even more in the future. The Board is unanimous in our belief that our responsibility for governance requires more that simply approving budgets presented for our approval.
ASD Employees
I believe the public is fortunate to have all the talented teachers we have in Anchorage. I am very concerned that recruitment and retention of teaching and support staff will become a very serious problem in the near future.
Anchorage is benefitting from states with serious economy problems. Our ability to recruit and retain excellent teachers is due in part to reductions in education jobs in the lower 48. Anchorage has been successful in filling all teacher positions, including very difficult to recruit positions in special education. But as a HR professional, I believe the lack of a defined benefit retirement system will result in recruitment and retention problems in the future. Our retirement system is not competitive with school districts outside of Alaska. I voted with all other School Board Members to recommend that the Legislators re-establish a defined benefit retirement system.
Local Taxes
As a School Board Member, I can state that I will never increase your local property taxes! If I wanted to have the ability to make that decision, I would run for the Assembly or Mayor. The School Board does not decide local taxes or State funding.
As a taxpayer, I have seen my taxes go up substantially in the past ten years too. But since I only joined the School Board Member three years ago, I wasn’t on the Board when the Assembly increased spending from 2000 to 2008.
Since I joined the Board in 2008, local tax contributions have not seen the kind of increases in the past. In 2009, there was an increase of 3.4 percent for schools. In 2010, the Assembly provided a small increase, but required ASD to return all the additional money back to the Municipality! This year, the Assembly has said it will approve a 1.6 percent increase but it will require the School District to give all but .7 percent back to the Municipality. Bottom line, tax increases during the last years that went to the schools totaled 4.1 percent, or an average of 1.37 percent per year.
The Board’s job is to carefully spend what the Assembly, Mayor, Legislator and Governor approve for the School District to spend. When we are given increases less than the rate of inflation, we can still direct money to get maximize the benefit of every public dollar. However, limited resources will eventually limit options such as summer schools and sports.
However, I am disappointed with the State contributions. The State is obligated to fund education as its top priority under our Constitution. It is unreasonable for the Legislature to threaten to limit it contribution unless local taxpayers are forced to contribute the maximum allowed under the law. And failure of the Legislature to forward fund education impacts the ability of every school district to effectively plan for the next year.
At one joint meeting of the Assembly, Mayor, and School Board, a lawsuit was proposed to allow the court to determine the funding obligation of the State. That is an option I would support because I am convinced it would dramatically reduce local proper taxes and improve education at the same time.
Bonds
I support all three Bonds.
All three bonds will total approximately $70 million. Since the last school bonds have been approved, the School District has paid off $150 million of old school bonds. The State has approved all bonds for either 60 or 70 percent reimbursement.
Bond # 1
The current Service High Bond is much lower cost than the Service High Bond proposed three years ago, and this will complete badly needed renovations. This bond includes more space for expansion of Career Technology Education for students. I believe the students and community in the Service and South High School area also deserve an auditorium. I was disappointed when my opponent criticized this bond at the Anchorage Assembly.
Bond # 2
Career Technology Education Bond is a bond that I championed on the Anchorage School Board. For three years I have pushed the Administration to expand CTE at all the major high schools. This bond, resulting from one of the directives I proposed and the Board unanimously approved, will expand career technology in middle and high schools. It will reduce dropouts, increase graduation rates, and help many students pursue successful careers after high schools.
Bond # 3
The bond for building life extensions and design work is not ideal. Ideally, the State would fund its portion of major renovations for schools in its annual Student Base Allocation or as a separate appropriation. However, the State wants this funded by bonds and if we do they will pay 60 to 70 percent of the debt. If we don’t bond for these renovations, local taxpayers would pay all the cost. At one Board Meeting, I compared this to using a credit card. I don’t like using a credit card, but I would be foolish not to use a credit card when I only have to pay thirty to forty percent of what I charge! This bond also is connected to expanding CTE! If approved, it will provide the funding to plan a CTE center at West/Romig. If you want to see another CTE bond on the ballot next year, we will need this bond approved.
Classroom Sizes
This year, the Board increased classroom size by a vote of 4 to 3. I voted against this increase.
There is nothing more important than the teacher in education. As the classroom size increase, the time spent with each student is reduced. Some students require more time than the teacher has to give because of classroom size, and all students are impacted. I know one positive connection with an adult, often a relative or teacher, motivates a potential drop out to remain in school.
I also believe in acknowledging that some studies have questioned the importance of minor increases in classroom sizes. I am concerned that some of those studies appear to be politically motivated, but not all. However, an incremental increase in school size multiple many times is not a minor increase.
The simple solution when the budget needs to be cut is to raise classroom size. However, that does not make it the right place to cut. I believe we must make every effort to cut outside the classroom. Increasing classroom size by cutting teachers should be last option.
Role of the Board
I believe the Board should challenge the District to set and achieve high goals, acknowledge the staff for successes and assume responsibility when it falls short.
When I joined the Board, a majority stated their job was to support the Administration. Today, all School Board Members accept that their job is to direct the Administration on its goals.
I am proud that the culture of the Board is to listen to the public in making decisions, solicit and consider carefully input from all staff in addition to top Administration management team, and to reconsider decisions when additional information is provided.
I am also proud that the current Board has been active in attending training opportunities, school related events, and public ceremonies.