The big news last week was that the Anchorage School District (ASD) administration continued to dribble information about budget recommendations to the school board and public. During a Tuesday work session, it became clear that upper grade language immersion programs are the next item on the chopping block.
The administration recommended stopping three immersion programs after 5th grade: Chinese, French and Yup’ik. The rest would end after 8th grade.
“Would we exit students from school at the end of sixth grade with a sixth grade language level in english?” Brandon Locke, director for ASD’s immersion programs, said during the work session. “They don’t have the skills to be successful.”
Immersion programs provide many cognitive and cultural benefits to students beyond just learning another language. They can aid in critical thinking, multi-tasking, accelerated math skills, and memory. Benefits can be seen across all demographics, and studies show that economically diverse children make the biggest gains when in language immersion programs. Proficiency in another language can open up employment opportunities for graduates of immersion programs and bring economic benefits to communities.
Ending immersion in 5th grade gives students just over half the hours needed for language fluency and retention.
ASD administration also announced plans to move the IGNITE program for gifted students online and repurpose vacated school buildings for charter schools.
These cuts might seem like a necessary evil in the face of a $68 million deficit, but the savings they bring are so minor compared to the massive fiscal issue ASD is facing. These cuts will have a massive impact on Anchorage’s children and families, but do extremely little to address the budget shortfall, which needs to be addressed by investment from Alaskans rather than gutting our education system.
Constitutionally, the State of Alaska is required to provide a public education for all students. It remains to be seen if they can fulfill that constitutional duty when funding has fallen 15% behind inflation over the last five years. In the past, advocacy groups and school districts have won lawsuits and settlements with the state for inadequacies in fulfilling this obligation.
Other Happenings
- During a Health Policy Committee meeting on Wednesday, the Mobile Crisis Team (MCT) was again a topic of discussion. No resolution was reached, but Municipal Manager Amy Demboski indicated that the Mayor’s office was open to leaving MCT in the Anchorage Fire Department. Demboski advocated for increased data collection and greater coordination between MCT and the Mobile Intervention Team, which is currently located within the Anchorage Police Department.
A uniformed and armed officer currently responds with the Mobile Intervention Team in mental health crisis situations involving higher risk of harm to responders. Assembly member Meg Zaletel is continuing to work on a proposal to bring to the administration for next year’s municipal budget.
- Body cameras for the Anchorage Police Department are moving another small step forward, with the mayor’s office informing the Assembly during a Public Safety Committee work session that an RFP had been issued for purchase of the cameras, but body-cam policy was delayed six to nine months while undergoing arbitration. You can read about that here.
- On Sunday, the Anchorage Baptist Temple hosted a highly partisan voter rally, featuring Republican candidates for office speaking in front of screens that displayed messages such as “rank the red.” That story is here.
- Coming up this week we have elections and a regular Assembly meeting. On the schedule for the upcoming Assembly meeting is a memorandum allowing the Golden Lion Hotel to be used as a rooming house and the second set of budget hearings. The budget approval vote is likely to be delayed as several budget items are still being discussed, including MCT.
