Dear Alaska Education Allies,

This is a big week for us to press the case that Alaskans care about our schools! There are two important opportunities to make your voice heard.  

We worked hard to win a funding increase for schools last year – but it didn’t make up for years of inflation.

GOOD NEWS: Last week, the House Education Committee introduced HB 374, raising the Base Student Allocation (BSA) by $630. This increase will help save schools from closure, keep high-quality teachers in our classrooms, and help Alaska build opportunity rather than dismantle and destroy.

A BSA increase benefits charter schools, homeschools, and neighborhood schools statewide.

TAKE ACTION!

1) Testify on HB 374 to the House Education Committee (Capitol Rm. 106)

• WHEN: Wednesday March 11, 5 pm

• Core message: I support HB 374! We need to adjust the BSA this year and every year so our schools, our students, and our state can thrive.

• If you can’t make it, email your testimony to House.Education@akleg.gov

2) Testify on the FY 2027 operating budget to the House Finance Committee (Capitol Rm. 519)

• WHEN: Wednesday-Friday, March 11-13 as follows:

• Wednesday 1:30-3:30pm: Juneau, Sitka, Petersburg, Delta Junction, Dillingham, Glennallen, Valdez, Wrangell, Homer, Ketchikan, Kodiak, Seward, Tok, Offnets (Remote)

• Wednesday 4:30-6pm: Offnets (Remote)

• Thursday 1:30-3:30pm: Fairbanks, Kenai, Bethel, Cordova, Kotzebue, Nome, Utquigvik, Offnets (Remote)

• Friday 1:30 pm (sign up by 3pm): Anchorage, Mat-Su, Offnets (Remote)

• Core message: Please prioritize education in the budget! Invest in a significant funding increase so our schools, our students, and our state can thrive.

• If you can’t make it, email your testimony to House.Finance@akleg.gov

HOW? For both of these opportunities, you can testify at your Legislative Information Office (LIO), in person at the Capitol, or call in:

• From Juneau – (907) 586-9085

• From Anchorage – (907) 563-9085

• From all other locations – (844) 586-9085

Tips for testifying:

• Limit your testimony to 2 minutes.

• Say your name and community, and thank the committee for taking your testimony.

• Clearly state what you want lawmakers to do.

• Share why you value our schools! Speak from the heart.

• See our Resources and Tips for Testifying.

• Suggested Talking Points at the bottom of this email.

Amplify your impact!

• Share this email with three friends. And if you’re not on our email list, sign up for our action alerts. (We do not sell, rent, or share our list and you can unsubscribe any time.)

• Join other Great Alaska Schools members to strategize and plan local actions. Email hello@greatakschools.org for upcoming meeting times.

Thank you for your advocacy – EVERY VOICE MATTERS!

Great Alaska Schools coordinating team

• Rachel, Megan, Tara, Emily, Sarah, Tamara, Rebecca, Colleen, Cheryl, Caroline, Roz’lyn, Rachael, Jacque and others

P.S. While we hate to share bad news, this op-ed by Ben Walker and Catherine Walker is a must-read and a clarion call: We were honored as Alaska Teachers of the Year. Now we can no longer stay (Anchorage Daily News).

Suggested talking points

• Invest for success. Funding matters! Alaska’s test scores, participation in postsecondary training and education, and teacher retention were significantly higher when our schools were better funded.

• Strong schools keep working families in Alaska – impoverished schools drive outmigration and economic decline.

• Business and labor leaders support investment in education – because a strong economy requires a trained and educated workforce.

• Public schools serve ALL kids. Many families rely on and love neighborhood schools - and our neighborhood schools are required to serve all kids regardless of their needs.

• Education is an obligation. Alaska’s constitution requires the Legislature provide for a system of public schools open to all children, defined by the courts to require “adequate funding so as to accord to schools the ability to provide instruction in the standards.”

• Education funding falls behind inflation every year that we don’t raise the BSA. Since 2011, per-student funding has risen 17% while inflation has risen 45%.

  • Last year’s $700 BSA increase amounted to only $20 more than the prior year, thanks to the wacky way we fund education. That’s why many districts are still hurting.

    • The Anchorage School District is looking for ways to cut its school budget by $88 million.

    • The Mat-Su Borough School District is considering cutting 55 positions.

    • In Fairbanks, high school class sizes are up to 40 due to cuts and consolidations.

• Families are leaving the state, and doctors, nurses, and military families are turning down positions in Alaska because of our long-term failure to invest in education. Our nonresident workforce is at a record high as people choose not to raise their families here.

“Our schools are doing good things. We do need to do things better. But, you know, starving them to death doesn’t do that for us.” -Sen. Mike Cronk (R-Tok), August 2025 (Alaska Beacon)

Dear Public Education Ally,

We are more than a month into the legislative session, and it’s time to speak up for schools!

Around the state, many districts are facing devastating shortfalls and making wrenching decisions to close schools, cut programs, and lay off staff. These decisions harm our students and tear at the fabric of our communities.

Our voice made a critical difference last year, but the modest increase did not make up for 15 years of under-investment in our schools. Since 2011, state education funding has fallen behind inflation by 30%. The squeeze has become a chokehold, and our schools are at a breaking point.  

TAKE ACTION!

>>> Testify to the Senate Finance Committee THIS THURSDAY, 2/26, AND FRIDAY, 2/27! The committee is taking public testimony on the budget - urge them to increase investment in our schools! See our Tips for Testifying and details at the bottom of this email.

>>> Join Great Alaska Schools for a Zoom workshop Monday, March 2, 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. to learn about what’s happening with education funding and how to level-up your engagement. Register here.

Thank you for your continued advocacy! Together, we are a powerhouse.

In solidarity for schools,

- The Great Alaska Schools coordinating team
We are parents and community members from across the state who believe education is a foundation of a thriving future for Alaska

P.S. If you’ll be in Juneau for your kid’s activity or anything else, visiting the Capitol is a great way to make your voice heard! Juneau volunteers are happy to help - email us at hello@greatakschools.org

P.P.S. One last request - Please help us amplify our impact by sharing this email with three friends. And if you are not on our email list, please sign up for our action alerts. (We do not sell, rent, or share our list and you can unsubscribe any time.)

Information for testifying on the budget:

The Senate Finance Committee is taking public testimony on the FY 2027 operating and capital budget bills and FY 2026 supplemental budget on Thursday, February 26 and Friday, February 27 as follows:

• Thursday 9 a.m (sign-up by 10:15).: Juneau, Southeast, Kodiak, Prince William Sound, Offnets (Remote)

• Thursday 1:30 p.m. (sign-up by 2:45): Nome, Utqiagvik, Unalaska, Dillingham, Offnets (Remote)

• Friday 9 a.m (sign-up by 9:45).: Fairbanks, Interior, Copper River Valley, Offnets (Remote)

• Friday 1:30 p.m. (sign-up by 2:45): Anchorage, Mat-Su, Kenai, Offnets (Remote)

Testify from your Legislative Information Office (LIO), in person at the Capitol (Rm. 532), or by phone:

• From Juneau – (907) 586-9085

• From Anchorage – (907) 563-9085

• From all other locations – (844) 586-9085

Urge the committee to prioritize a meaningful increase to education funding this year. Share why you value our schools! Testimony is limited to 2 minutes per person. See our Tips for Testifying.

**If you can’t make it (or if you can’t say it all in 2 minutes), email your testimony to Senate.Finance.Committee@akleg.gov.

Dear education advocate,

The Alaska Legislature gavels in on January 20, 2026 for the second session of the 34th Legislature. While we celebrate the historic override of Gov. Dunleavy’s education funding vetoes last year, we are also painfully aware that our schools continue to struggle with insufficient resources. WE HAVE WORK TO DO!

Please join us 7-8pm Wednesday January 21 on Zoom. You will come away with:

• An overview of education funding (or Why A $700 Increase Is Actually A $20 Increase)

• Update on Alaska’s legislative landscape

• Inspiration and connection with others who care

• Specific ways YOU can make a difference!

Register here to join us, and please share with your networks!

Last year was proof that when we rise up together to demand the state provide for our schools, WE GET RESULTS. Every voice matters!

Together for education,

- Great Alaska Schools leadership team - Alaskans from across the state who love our kids, our schools, and our state

Dear friends of Alaska schools,

We are gearing up for next year’s legislative session and we are more energized than ever to fight for our schools. We are motivated by two big facts:

1. TOGETHER, WE ARE POWERFUL. Our collective voices helped push Alaska legislators to override Gov. Dunleavy’s education funding vetoes – the first time in four decades legislators have overridden a sitting governor’s budget veto. Every one of us who wrote an email, testified, called, visited a legislator, attended a town hall, rallied, marched, or signed a petition made a difference.

2. THERE IS MORE WORK TO DO. The override vote increased education funding by just $20 per student over the prior year. This isn’t even enough to keep up with cost increases. We must keep fighting for our schools.

Our strength lies in the power of our collective voices. There are nearly 6,000 people on our email list. We will need every one of us and more to keep up the momentum for our schools and make up for years of underfunding.

TAKE ACTION:

As we prepare for the legislative session, we want to be sure we are communicating with you in the most strategic and effective ways.

1. Please update your address and volunteer interests here. Your physical address enables us to match you to your legislative district and alert you to strategic opportunities for action. If you’re interested in leveling-up your engagement, you can indicate that on the form as well.

2. Please share this email with five friends. The more people who speak up for our schools, the more powerful we are. Learn about Great Alaska Schools at greatakschools.org.

Note: We do not rent, share, sell or lend our list, and we work hard to ensure our communications are helpful. You can unsubscribe at any time and we welcome feedback.

Thank you for being a part of this movement. We truly believe strong public schools offer opportunity to all - they are a bedrock of our communities and our economy, and the smartest investment we can make in Alaska’s future.

- Great Alaska Schools Leadership Team

We are a statewide group of volunteers who love our schools, our state, and all of Alaska’s kids!

P.S. Check out this NPR story highlighting the impacts of state neglect on our schools: Alaska owns dozens of crumbling schools. It wants underfunded districts to take them on

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Dear Alaska Education Supporters,

WE DID IT! On August 2, legislators gaveled into a special session and overrode Gov. Dunleavy’s veto of $51 million for Alaska schools in a bipartisan vote of 45-14. The vote marked the first successful budget override of a sitting governor in almost 40 years - and it is a sign that Alaskans have had enough of the attacks on our schools.

TAKE ACTION: Thank your legislators if they voted to override (see list below) - positive reinforcement is important!

• Find their email and phone number here.

• Consider sending a handwritten thank you card.

“Thank you for standing by your vote and overriding the Governor’s education funding veto. Please keep fighting for our schools!”

Unsure who your legislators are? Go to akleg.gov and scroll down to “Who Represents Me?”

Our Advocacy Made A Difference

“I heard from many, many, many (of my constituents) that said, ‘stay on the right track.’”  

-Rep. Justin Ruffridge (R-Soldotna)

We showed up at town halls, rallies, and in the halls of the Capitol. We sent more than 500 emails to legislators in the days before the vote. We wrote, we called, we texted, we stood up for Alaska’s students and WE WERE HEARD.

In this Alaska Beacon story, Reporter James Brooks asked all ten minority Republicans who voted to override the Governor’s veto about their vote - every one of whose vote was critical. Here is a sampling of their responses:

• Rep. Julie Coulombe (R-Anchorage, House District 11): “For me and my district, class sizes are a big problem. … Why would I cut the funding when I’m trying to get my class sizes down?”

• Sen. Mike Cronk (R-Tok, Senate District R): “Our schools are doing good things. We do need to do things better. But, you know, starving them to death doesn’t do that for us.”

• Rep. Justin Ruffridge (R-Soldotna, House District 7): “I think we really had to move away from this idea of one-time funding, which I think is really an irresponsible way of funding schools, and get back to stability.”

• Sen. Robert Yundt (R-Wasilla, Senate District N): “This is only 0.3% more than was put into education last year.”

Indeed, the funding legislators restored is only a $20 per-student increase over last year - not enough to make up for a single year of inflation, much less almost ten years of virtually no inflation adjustments for education.  

The tide has turned. Legislators understand that we are not ok with starving our education system - and we will hold them accountable.

Together, we will continue to fight for the funding and support our schools need. Please thank your legislators if they stood by their override vote, and share this email with your friends and neighbors who care about Alaska’s future. We have work to do, and the bigger our network, the more powerful our voices are!

With appreciation,

Great Alaska Schools leadership circle

P.S. Really helpful reporting from the Alaska Beacon: In veto override, some Alaska Republicans say they saw an opportunity for education compromise

YEAS (voted for the override = for school funding)

Senators: Bjorkman, Claman, Cronk, Dunbar, Giessel, Gray-Jackson, Hoffman, Kaufman, Kawasaki, Kiehl, Merrick, Olson, Stedman, Stevens, Tobin, Wielechowski, Yundt  

Representatives: Burke, Bynum, Carrick, Coulombe, Dibert, Edgmon, Eischeid, Elam, Fields, Foster, Galvin, Gray, Hall, Hannan, Himschoot, Holland, Jimmie, Josephson, Kopp, Mears, Mina, Nelson, Ruffridge, Saddler, Schrage, Stapp, Story, Stutes                                                              

NAYS (voted against the override = against increasing the BSA)

Senators: Hughes, Myers                                                                                                          

Representatives: Allard, Costello, Johnson, McCabe, Moore, Prax, Rauscher, Schwanke, Tilton, Tomaszewski, Underwood, Vance                                                                                                      

TOTAL: YEAS: 45   NAYS: 14   EXCUSED: 1   ABSENT: 0

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