Alaska Schools Face Cuts Despite Funding Boost: What’s Next?

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Alaska’s public schools are facing a deepening financial crisis, with districts across the state grappling with significant budget deficits despite a recent legislative effort to increase per-student funding. The Anchorage School District is currently facing a $90 million shortfall for the upcoming fiscal year, while the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District is dealing with a $23 million deficit, and the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District estimates an $8.5 million gap. Juneau schools are also facing a deficit exceeding $5 million.

The financial strain comes after lawmakers last year successfully increased the state’s Base Student Allocation (BSA) – a key component of the state’s public school funding formula – twice overriding a veto from Gov. Mike Dunleavy to cement an increase from $5,960 to $6,660 per student. However, districts report that this increase has been insufficient to address long-standing underfunding and declining enrollment.

Senate Education Committee Chair Löki Tobin described the funding increase as “woefully insufficient.”

The Anchorage School District is proposing cuts that could affect school sports, special education services, and programs like IGNITE and summer school. Superintendent Dr. Jharrett Bryanntt warned that the district is having to “rightsize its footprint” to navigate the financial challenges. Dozens of administrative positions will not be funded after this school year, according to Bryanntt.

House Education Committee Co-Chair Rep. Rebecca Himschoot emphasized that education remains a top priority for the bipartisan majority coalition in the Alaska House. However, she acknowledged the political realities and budgetary constraints that limit the scope of potential solutions. “Education remains one of our No. 1 priorities, so we’re not backing away from it in the House Majority coalition, in any way at all,” Himschoot said. “Now the political reality of what’s possible is a different story. So whatever is possible — we’re committed to doing — and the limitation is what is actually possible.”

The situation is compounded by what Himschoot described as “advocacy fatigue,” with Alaskans potentially weary of repeated requests for increased school funding. Last year’s BSA increase, while welcomed, amounted to less than half the amount districts had requested in 2024.

Alaska’s public school enrollment has been steadily declining in recent years. The state has 125,317 public school students this year, down from 126,284 in 2024, 127,931 in 2023, and 128,088 in 2022.

Despite legislative efforts, the state’s overall spending on K-12 education has remained relatively unchanged, increasing only slightly from $1.29 billion in the 2023 fiscal year to $1.33 billion in the current fiscal year – a roughly 3% increase that falls short of the rate of inflation.

Gov. Dunleavy’s budget draft introduced in December does not include any new funding for education, even as it proposes spending increases for other executive branch departments. Himschoot expressed concern over this disparity, stating, “Everything that our state government does requires increases every year, and yet we’re not providing those increases to education.”

Challenges vary across the state. Urban districts like Anchorage are facing cuts to enrichment programs and increased class sizes, while rural districts are struggling to maintain school buildings and attract qualified teachers. In Aniak, crews are working to shore up the roof of the school building, and districts are grappling with the rising costs of H-1B visas for foreign teachers.

Lawmakers are considering several potential solutions, including tying the BSA to an inflation metric, providing dedicated funding for specific programs like reading coaches and vocational instructors, and increasing state funding for school maintenance, and repair. Rep. Andi Story has introduced a bill that would allow districts to average attendance numbers over three years, potentially providing greater funding stability.

However, Himschoot cautioned that securing significant new funding will be difficult. “I don’t see $70 million low-hanging fruit anywhere in the state right now,” she said, referring to the potential impact of Story’s bill. “To me, it’s reasonable,” she added, “To some of my colleagues, it’s not reasonable at all.”

Tobin emphasized the Senate’s commitment to investing in public schools and infrastructure, stating, “We’re going to use every opportunity and everything available to us to invest in the best and most important resource our state has, which is our children.”