Posted by Robert Woolsey, KCAW | Apr 26, 2021
Out of the budget for 2021-2022: Funding for Community Schools. The School Board reallocated the Community Schools reserve account to fund the Blatchley swimming pool next year. Blatchley will still see a “cut back” version of Community Schools, with buildings (mainly Blatchley) opened and closed by district staff. (KCAW file photo)
The Sitka School Board has passed a budget for schools next year, balanced by dipping deeper into savings than usual.
The decision to tap savings was recommended by Sitka’s interim superintendent last Wednesday (4-21-21), who also offered a stern warning that the same play wouldn’t be available in future years.
Carbon reduction cash is tiny next to coal subsidy
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April 22, 2021 â 12.05am
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The Prime Ministerâs pledge to spend $500 million on carbon reduction schemes over an unspecified period contrasts with the billions of dollars every year in subsidies to the coal industry (âPM promises $500m hydrogen, carbon fundâ, April 21).
Adding insult to injury, nearly half the new expenditure is for unfeasible carbon capture schemes. To compensate for Australiaâs direct CO2 emissions we would need to capture and store more than 400 million tonnes every year. There must be better ways to reduce atmospheric CO2 than this farcical concept.
Posted by Robert Woolsey, KCAW | Apr 15, 2021
Sitka Community Schools has scaled back during the pandemic, but it previously has had a large menu of activities not just for kids. “Is it community, or is it schools?” interim superintendent John Holst asked the school board.
The budget for the Community Schools program in Sitka will likely be zeroed out next year, while the school district and city decide who’s financially responsible for the afterschool activities program.
The Sitka School Board on Wednesday night (4-14-21) heard a presentation from the administration that recommended reallocating the Community Schools budget to the swimming pool.
School Board reports funding miscommunication to Assembly
Posted by Katherine Rose | Mar 8, 2021
A comparison Superintendent John Holst reviewed with assembly members at Thursday’s meeting. The left shows how the assembly funded schools last year (FY21). On the right is the funding package approved by the Assembly in February. And in the center is what the School District intended to request, an increase of around $500,000.
Editor’s note: This script was amended from the version originally broadcast to include more context around the general fund budget and clarify where money to cover the projected $1.9 Million dollar deficit may come from, including a $1.5 Million surplus from last fiscal year.
New superintendent negotiates three-year contract
Posted by Katherine Rose | Mar 8, 2021
The Sitka School District has locked its new superintendent into a three-year contract. In late February, the Sitka School Board met with Frank Hauser to negotiate behind closed doors. According to a district press release, they finalized the contract with a $140,000 starting salary.
Hauser is the principal of Service High School in Anchorage, and he brings 23 years of education experience to the job. In February, he was chosen from three finalists to lead Sitka’s schools, replacing interim Superintendent John Holst. When the Sitka School Board met on Wednesday (3-3-21), Hauser joined via Zoom to discuss his background and educational philosophy.