Plans for a student-led rally protesting education cuts started Wednesday with a few text messages and phone calls. Word quickly traveled via social media posts and conversations in school hallways, students said.
Thursday afternoon, roughly 200 high school students walked out of their classes about 30 minutes before the final bell rang. They marched through downtown Anchorage, carrying signs reading "Don't fool with our public schools," "We won't give up" and "You've gone too far."
"We're hoping to make a splash that can be heard all the way down in Juneau," said Charlie Lowell, a 16-year-old West High student who organized the rally after the state Senate passed a budget that cut 4 percent from the per-pupil student funding formula.
Margaret Clark, an 18-year-old West High student, said the rally gave students a voice since most of them have yet to turn 18 and cannot vote. She said she doesn't feel that legislators are prioritizing education and investing in the state's youth.
"We're the ones that are going to be paying their Social Security," Clark said. "And they're screwing us over."
Jonathan Williams plays basketball at West High. The 15-year-old freshman said he joined the rally because he doesn't want to see school sports defunded and outsourced to private organizations. The Anchorage School District presented that as an option in a list of possible budget cuts for next school year.
"Basketball is my way out of Alaska," Williams said. He said the sport motivates him to get good grades so he can get into a Division 1 college.
The students stopped their march in front of the controversial Anchorage Legislative Information Office. There, they chanted: "Stop the cuts."