Here’s an immediate solution to Anchorage School District’s money woes: Instead of cutting Ignite and closing schools, ASD can use the $26 million that the state gave it for bond debt reimbursement instead of spending it on an Inlet View Elementary replacement. The school can be remodeled for a fraction of the cost and the money used to do good for the entire school district. The rebuild was voted down in 2022, but ASD quietly put $26 million for an Inlet View rebuild in the capital budget and included even more money — $22 million for Inlet View — in the 2024 bond.
Our state legislators and governor probably remember that they gave ASD $100 million for bond debt reimbursement and noticed that ASD is squirreling away $26 million of it, not reducing class size or keeping athletics or art or Ignite or other programs parents want. They probably noticed that ASD is spending this money on a new school that voters rejected.
Maybe if ASD acted more transparently, the state might increase the Base Student Allocation, and more people would support ASD’s bonds.
That $26 million in bond debt reimbursement that ASD is sitting on could cut down a big chunk of the current $100 million deficit rather than go to a once-rejected school rebuild.
Also, on Nov. 21, 2023, in an ASD work session, ASD told the Anchorage School Board that ASD would save $26 million by remodeling Inlet View school rather than rebuilding it. Subsequently, Dave Donley on the School Board has suggested a number of ways that ASD could save money and not cut programs and worsen learning outcomes. Perhaps ASD could revisit his suggestions rather than encouraging hundreds of parents to testify to keep their favorite programs. We went through this last year when ASD proposed closing neighborhood schools. I recommend that the ASD administration stand up to one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Anchorage and just remodel the school and save $26 million, apply it to the entire district, and benefit all of our children.
— Deborah L. Hansen
Anchorage
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