Opinion: Alaska’s schools are being hollowed out by policy choices, not inevitability

The recent Anchorage Daily News editorial urging us to face a smaller school system misses the real crisis: Our schools are being hollowed out by policy choices at the state level, not inevitability.

Take school nursing. Because of chronic underfunding at the state level, the Anchorage School District is shifting to an untested, unclear regional nursing model. That budget adjustment saves dollars by reducing daily, onsite care — exactly the care chronically ill and vulnerable students rely on to attend school, learn and stay safe. This is not prudent shrinking; it is forcing our students and staff to pay the price for budget shortfalls driven by state inaction.

[Related opinion: Anchorage schools are shrinking. It’s time to face it.]

In elementary schools, art and music are being cut in half. Children will have music in the fall and art in the spring, rotating instructors across semesters. These subjects are not seasonal fluff for young minds. They build creativity, executive function, cultural literacy and social-emotional skills that drive engagement and long-term success. Treating them as short-term elective subjects sends a clear message: We no longer value the full education kids need.

Class sizes tell the same story. A kindergartner who joined a class of 20 in 2015 now shares a room with 27 peers. High school freshman classes built for 30 are packed with 37. Averages hide these extremes — specialized small classes mask overcrowding in general education. At 40 students, a teacher becomes a manager of bodies and behavior rather than an educator of minds.

We are not shrinking responsibly. We are cutting the supports that keep children connected to school and learning. Over the last two decades, state funding for education has fallen in real terms, and student outcomes have followed. When investments decline, programs that prevent disengagement — art, athletics, nurses, counselors — are the first on the chopping block. The result is predictable: higher youth disconnection, lower preparedness for work and fewer pathways to stable careers.

Retention and recruitment problems compound the damage. Without a stable retirement system and competitive benefits, experienced educators leave. Anchorage spends millions each year on short-term fixes — substitutes, recruitment bonuses and temporary staffing — that would be better spent in classrooms and on services that actually improve outcomes.

If the goal is a smaller, more efficient system, be honest about the trade-offs. But don’t dress cuts as inevitability when they are policy choices. The “we spend more for worse outcomes” claim ignores Alaska’s higher cost of doing business and the erosion of per-pupil investment over time. It also ignores the real human cost: a student kept home because a school nurse isn’t available, a child who loses daily music and with it a source of identity, a teacher burning out in an overcrowded room.

Alaskans can choose a different path: restore adequate per-pupil funding that reflects our geography and costs; protect essential services like full-time nurses, art and music; and secure retirement stability so teachers stay. Waiting for a “better” fiscal moment is a decision to lose a child’s year of learning forever. This requires all of us to pay attention to which of our state representatives and state senators are supporting education funding and retirement fixes, and which are offering hollow alternatives and empty assurances.

I hope you will join me in remembering in November when we have the opportunity to chart a better course for our kids.

Christi Sitz has taught elementary and special education in Anchorage schools for 27 years. She is a mom of four Anchorage School District graduates and currently serves as president of the Anchorage Education Association.

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