“The morale of the young teachers, a lot of them that are single wage earners just getting started, are so low,” said Fairbanks teacher Thomas Kennedy. “They’re the lowest that I’ve seen in all my years of teaching.” Teachers from around the state spoke in favor of a funding increase, saying it would help reduce turnover.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy has proposed keeping the base student allocation at $5,960 next year. The Alaska Association of School Boards is calling for an increase of at least $860.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s proposed budget did not include an increase to the base student allocation, though he acknowledged "inflationary issues that need to be addressed." The base student allocation, the amount of money per student school districts get from the state, hasn't increased substantially since 2017.
The Ford-Corkscrew fire burning north of Long Lake in Stevens County has grown to nearly 11,000 acres. New evacuations were ordered Monday night in an area