ASD intends to release list of schools that may close or merge

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – The Anchorage School District is expected to release a list of recommended schools being considered for closure, consolidation or conversion on Friday.

It’s part of what the district calls “ASD intervention,” a program that district officials started researching in April.

“When I use the term ‘resizing,’ I am specifically referring to the process of consolidating school buildings or repurposing school buildings,” ASD Superintendent Jarrett Bryant said during a work session in April.

The district experienced a financial crisis for several years in a row, including Budget deficit of $48 million in 2022 and $98 million budget deficit in December last year.

The district permanently closed Abbott Loop Elementary School last May.

“It’s kind of destroying the community,” Lois Salontay, an Anchorage resident with a grandson who attended Abbott Loop, told Alaska’s News Source last year. “It’s very difficult for this to happen.”

The district explained the need to close schools due to population decline, cost of aging institutions and educational services.

“I recognize that schools are the heart of our communities and that conversations about reducing our footprint are incredibly emotional and difficult for our families. However, our long-term enrollment and financial outlook are also deeply concerning, and I believe it is necessary to continue this conversation,” Bryant. says a letter this month.

Over the past decade, ASD reported losing approximately 6,450 students. It turns out Recruitment drop by 13%. The district cites a decline in Anchorage’s birth rate that has led to declining enrollment in the district.

“This figure is expected to continue to increase in the near future,” said Kersten Johnson, ASD assistant superintendent of schools, during School board meeting earlier this month. “This will obviously impact our enrollment in primary and pre-primary schools, and therefore our enrollment in high schools and secondary schools in the future.”

The area also noted on the Internet that “outward migration of Anchorage residents is constant in many areas of Alaska. Alaska has lost more longshoremen than it has gained every year since 2013, according to state data.”

However, families of the affected students took to social media to challenge the district’s enrollment decline. Several people noted that the decline in enrollment is due to people leaving the county.

“Is the population declining? More like looking for other alternatives to ASD,” Krista Rector wrote in a comment on the ASD Facebook page.

Additionally, the county reported that the average age of its facilities is 37 years, while other county facilities are over 50 years old. The county estimates it faces $1 billion in maintenance delays.

Since the spring, the district has been releasing surveys to better understand how the community feels about sizing. According to Jim Anderson, the district’s chief operating officer, an initial study to optimize ASD found that 71% of survey participants supported closing or merging schools.

“However, as was the case a couple of years ago when we looked at school consolidation, the majority of responses do not support closing the special program, and many do not support closing their district school,” Anderson said in May.

Some of these special programs included immersion programs and the IGNITE program for gifted individuals. All of these programs have been potential targets of rifts in past years as the district has undergone budget cuts.

“I truly believe that educating all students means all students, including those who have educational challenges,” Sarah Rasmussen, an ASD parent, said back in February when IGNITE faced cuts.

The district said it plans to take a closer look at the proposed list and decision-making process at next Monday’s school board meeting.