The Ketchikan School Board on Wednesday approved combining its three elementary schools by grade level. The restructuring plan consolidates Kindergarten through third grade at the two outlying schools, Point Higgins Elementary School and Fawn Mountain Elementary. Students who live north of Whitecliff Avenue would attend Point Higgins, and students living south of Whitecliff would attend Fawn Mountain. All fourth through sixth graders would attend Houghtaling Elementary School.
The grade-level restructuring plan is estimated to save the Ketchikan School District about $1.3 million a year, helping cover a budget deficit of about $1.7 million. The School Board approved the plan 5-1, with school board member Ali Ginter the sole no vote. Member Katherine Tatsuda was excused absent.
The vote came after the board heard from parents like Elysia Aldrich, whose husband serves at the local Coast Guard base.
She said they had worked hard to extend their family’s time in Ketchikan, so that her two sons could finish out high school. But they’re now reconsidering the decision to stay.
“For one of our boys, astronomy and aviation classes were taken away,” Aldrich said. “For the other, Robotics Club and most recently, the auto shop class. For both of our sons, Spanish 2.”
Cutting electives has been part of the school district’s response to flat funding from the state and declining enrollment. The proposal passed Wednesday was crafted as a way to help cover projected budget deficits while preserving as many remaining programs as possible.
Aldrich said the worsening education situation is compromising Ketchikan’s reputation as a Coast Guard-friendly city.
“For the best interests of our sons, we are honestly currently looking at positions outside of Ketchikan,” Aldrich said. “It’s a hard pill for us to swallow, when we were looking forward to our extended time here. For our sons, our six years here would be the longest they have ever lived anywhere. Ketchikan is home.”
Recent cuts for older students was one reason School Board member Jordan Tabb said he is supporting the restructuring plan. Tabb said he has middle and high school-aged kids, and is concerned about the additional cuts necessary if they didn’t approve the change.
“While I think we’re right to look at how challenging primary education may be for some families under a specialization model, the trade off of not trying to make some savings and changes in how we use those primary schools — the other side is the impact that it has on our secondary kids,” Tabb said.
Tabb also said that there has long been a concern that the two outlying elementary schools are underutilized and the in-city schools are over-utilized. The new plan will help even out class sizes, according to the district.
The vote came as a surprise to some in the community. During an interview with KRBD on Tuesday, board president Michelle O’Brien said she expected “no action” on the proposal this week, because the board needed more time to hear from residents. After the vote passed, she apologized for having caused any confusion.
“That was my gut feeling, my personal gut feeling, because obviously I can’t go and poll the board,” O’Brien said. “A motion had to be made to enter into any sort of discussion whatsoever regarding that item. Someone made the motion, someone seconded it, we called for a vote. So if I inadvertently upset anyone in the community, I do personally apologize.”
During the same meeting, the board also considered a plan to close one of the elementary schools, Point Higgins. They voted unanimously against it, saying it would only be considered under the worst-case scenario that the state doesn’t approve any new funding. Legislators are currently debating education funding, but School Board member Tom Heutte brought a reassuring update from Sen. Bert Stedman, who co-chairs the powerful Senate Finance Committee.
“He recommended that we make our plans based on a $680 increase in the BSA,” Heutte said. “I asked him, ‘So I can go back to my district and say this, right?’ And he said, ‘Yes, say that.’”
The Base Student Allocation, or BSA, is the per-student formula the state uses to fund education. A $680 increase would be equivalent to the amount schools received last year.
At the end of the meeting, board member Keenan Sanderson expressed hope that the restructuring may not have to happen if the state approves House Bill 69, which would provide a substantial increase to the funding formula over the next three years.
“In a better world, this is certainly something that I would not want to do,” Sanderson said. “I’m hopeful that House Bill 69 will pass, and potentially we’ll be able to avoid going this route. But this is currently where we’re at.”
