In a state as resource-rich as Alaska, our inability to provide for education is an embarrassment.

I know a teacher, and I know what a teacher does.

I remember the expectations many of us Alaskans had when the Permanent Fund became a reality: Alaska would have the finest schools in the nation. What happened?

Alaska is one of the richest states in America. Where is the education endowment we expected would come years ago? In Alaska, funding education should never be an issue. How embarrassing is it that so many Alaska teachers would be asking for better conditions? Politicians have been quoted over the years: "We're doing this for the future of our children and grandchildren." This is great, but it appears we have placed our children and grandchildren of today on the back burner. Let there be no doubt: Our Alaska teachers are professionals, and they should be afforded the same recognition, compensation and system involvement as other professionals.

If you know what a teacher does, please bear with me. If you don't know or are not sure, please let me help you along. More than 95 percent of the teachers I know are doing what they do because they want to be a part of the education and growth of our children, and they have wanted to be a teacher since childhood.

[Hundreds of teachers rally as contract battle continues]

Most teachers' work days start earlier and end later than required. This is necessary for them to try and do the best job they can given the steady increase in class size, the increasing number of students for whom English is a second language, as well as students with special needs.

What really gets to me is the amount of their own money they spend to make lessons work. Many teachers spend hundreds of dollars per month so they can do what they were hired to do — teach our kids the best they know how. And they do know how. With four to six years of college and continued, required training throughout their career, these are the professionals most of us rely on in everything we do. How much more burden will we place on society if our education system continues to lack the funding it needs to work for all our children?

[Small Alaska school district remains alone in offering performance bonuses to teachers]

Have you noticed the number of teachers each year — which seems to me to be increasing — who retire earlier than they want to or quit teaching altogether? Could this be the growing frustrations experienced in trying to do their job?

Maybe our community needs to really start listening to the people we hire to educate our kids. Pick a teacher, any teacher — I'm sure you know one. Ask them how they would spend education funds. Ask them what works and what doesn't, especially the money, time and effort we spend in testing. Talk to them about education and really listen to what they have to say. If we don't find the means to boost morale within the system, we will be facing additional problems as well as losing many of our best teachers each year.

These problems are real and need to be dealt with now. How do we do this? First, let's agree that educating our children is not the responsibility of the school board or the district alone. It is a community responsibility.

We've got money. Lots of it. What we don't have is the will to commit a small portion of our wealth on continued funding for education. If it's going to happen, this resolve will have to come from the community — Alaskans who understand the importance of a good education. Given our current problems, we need to rectify this situation now. Are the means there to make this happen? Of course. Can we make it happen soon? If we have the will.

Alaska has a great economic future and our schools hold the key to Alaska involvement in our economy. As a community, we have an uncommon number of successful individuals and businesses in the private sector. As a community, we should be able to set something up that would allow these Alaskans to sponsor a school. This would be a partnership with a singular school. These supporters can assist with funding equipment, activities, and maybe even some new ideas:
– We could set up an expense account for each of our teachers like the legislators have, so they don't have to spend their own money to do their jobs.
– Individuals and businesses could sponsor sports. Maybe not all the programs, but we could reinstate the popular ones that were cut. All a company would have to do is talk to the coaches and find out what we need.
– Schools could participate in an ongoing, as-needed request for assistance. The school requests help, the sponsor agrees and provides funding. For instance, perhaps the library needs new and replacement books and software proven to help kids learn. How about more computers, after-school activities or funding a school newsletter?
It is a long list of needs and wants, and each school will be a bit different.

We can't keep going the way we have been. This fish doesn't swim. Consider the time and effort expended, the anxieties and unknowns, the political arguments, the lack of progress and the inability to begin a planning process every year. What about all the teachers and other district employees who worry each year if they will have a job in the fall? What kind of job security is this? It's time to bring the teachers into the equation, and recognize them for what they are: professional Alaskans with a very important job.

Dave Choquette is a retired fisherman and has served as a part-time substitute teacher for more than six years.

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