Legislature(2019 - 2020)DAVIS 106
04/22/2020 01:00 PM House EDUCATION
Note: the audio ![]()
and video ![]()
recordings are distinct records and are obtained from different sources. As such there may be key differences between the two. The audio recordings are captured by our records offices as the official record of the meeting and will have more accurate timestamps. Use the icons to switch between them.
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation: Virtual Learning Contract | |
| Presentation: the Current Status of Local School Boards and Their Communities. | |
| Presentation: Education Budget, Instruction & Staffing | |
| Presentation: Ua Covid-19 Update: Impact & Response | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
JOINT MEETING
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
April 22, 2020
1:00 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
Representative Harriet Drummond, Co-Chair
Representative Andi Story, Co-Chair
Representative Grier Hopkins
Representative Chris Tuck
Representative DeLena Johnson
Representative Mike Prax (via teleconference)
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
Senator Gary Stevens, Chair
Senator Shelley Hughes, Vice Chair
Senator John Coghill
Senator Mia Costello
Senator Tom Begich
MEMBERS ABSENT
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
Representative Tiffany Zulkosky
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
All members present
OTHER LEGISLATORS PRESENT
Representative Dan Ortiz (via teleconference)
Representative Bryce Edgmon (via teleconference)
Senator Cathy Giessel
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
PRESENTATION: VIRTUAL LEARNING CONTRACT
- HEARD
PRESENTATION: THE CURRENT STATUS OF LOCAL SCHOOL BOARDS AND
THEIR COMMUNITIES.
- HEARD
PRESENTATION: EDUCATION BUDGET, INSTRUCTION & STAFFING
- HEARD
PRESENTATION: UA COVID-19 UPDATE: IMPACT & RESPONSE
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
MICHAEL JOHNSON, Commissioner
Department of Education & Early Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-offered a PowerPoint presentation on the
Virtual Learning Contract.
LACEY SANDERS, Director
Division of Administrative Services
Department of Education & Early Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-offered a PowerPoint presentation on the
Virtual Learning Contract.
NORM WOOTEN, Executive Director
Association of Alaska School Boards
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered a PowerPoint presentation on the
Current Status of Local School Boards and Their Communities.
LISA S. PARADY, PhD, Executive Director
Alaska Council of School Administrators
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-offered a PowerPoint presentation on
Education Budget, Instruction, and Staffing.
KAREN GABORIK, PhD, Superintendent
Fairbanks North Star Borough School District
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified during the PowerPoint
presentation on Education Budget, Instruction, and Staffing.
DANIEL WALKER, Superintendent
Lower Kuskokwim School District
Bethel, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified during the PowerPoint
presentation on Education Budget, Instruction, and Staffing.
DEENA BISHOP, PhD, Superintendent
Anchorage School District
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-offered a PowerPoint presentation on
Education Budget, Instruction, and Staffing.
JIM JOHNSEN, PhD, President
University of Alaska
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered a PowerPoint presentation on UA
COVID-19 Update: Impact and Response.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:00:20 PM
CHAIR GARY STEVENS called the joint meeting of the House and
Senate Education Standing Committees to order at 1:00 p.m.
Representatives Drummond, Story, Hopkins, Johnson, and Tuck and
Senators Stevens, Begich, Coghill, Costello, and Hughes were
present at the call to order. Representative Prax (via
teleconference) arrived as the meeting was in progress.
Representatives Ortiz and Edgmon and Senator Giessel were also
present.
CHAIR STEVENS thanked Co-Chairs Drummond and Story of the House
Education Standing Committee for agreeing to a joint meeting, as
both the House and Senate Education Standing Committees were
pursuing the same thing, and he said that he thinks it is
appropriate that they all get together to ask any questions and
learn what is going on. He said that he has talked with a lot
of people within the University of Alaska (UA) system and
Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade (K-12) levels, and he
expressed pride in what they are doing in coming to grips with
COVID-19 and figuring out how to continue educating Alaska's
children and adults.
^PRESENTATION: Virtual Learning Contract
PRESENTATION: Virtual Learning Contract
1:03:02 PM
CHAIR STEVENS announced that the first order of business would
be a PowerPoint presentation on [the Virtual Learning Contract].
CHAIR STEVENS related that the presentation was an update from
the Department of Education & Early Development (DEED) regarding
the issue of COVID-19.
1:04:25 PM
MICHAEL JOHNSON, Commissioner, Department of Education & Early
Development, co-offered a PowerPoint presentation on the Virtual
Learning Contract [hardcopy included in the committee packet].
He stated that it had been just over a month since he last
updated the House Education Standing Committee on March 20, on
the statewide effort to ensure student learning continues during
the COVID-19 crisis. He said that in the month since then a lot
has happened, and he is grateful to provide both committees in
the joint hearing with an update.
1:05:44 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, referencing slide 2 of the PowerPoint
presentation, stated that he would be focusing his comments on
two main areas: the efforts to support distant delivery
education through the Alaska Statewide Virtual School (AKSVS)
and the federal education funding through the Coronavirus Aid,
Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. He added that the
Administrative Services Director, Lacey Sanders, would help talk
about the federal education funding aspect of the presentation.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, referencing slide 3, stated that it had
been 38 calendar days since Governor Mike Dunleavy announced on
March 16, the start of non-student contact days, for districts
to dedicate in-service days to fully organizing education plans
for remote delivered schooling, should the need arise. He said
that schools across Alaska have done an outstanding job of
shifting almost overnight from traditional school-based
instruction to home-based and delivered learning environments.
He remarked that for many Alaska teachers, this shift has
involved countless hours of preparation for a very different
kind of teaching and learning landscape, and he commended them
for taking this leap quickly and ensuring ample opportunities
for learning to continue during these unprecedented times. He
said that he is sure the committee has heard, and would hear
more, about the amazing creativity that has been taking place in
the system.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that on April 9, [2020], Governor
Dunleavy extended the statewide school closure period from May 1
to the end of "the 2019 school year." He said that despite the
need to extend school building closures, student learning was
continuing for each school district's individual plan, to
provide distance-delivered educational services to students. He
said that he wanted to recognize that this was a difficult
decision, and it ends the school year with students physically
separated from their teachers. He stated that incident command
is continually considering how this would look going forward and
the possibility of having small groups, or individual students
reconvene and meet with their teachers before they head into the
summer months. He said that the department has asked districts
to submit a summary report once this is all over, no later than
45 days after the declaration of public health disaster
emergency is lifted. He added that the summary reports would
provide everyone with valuable documentation of the educational
services that are still being delivered during the school
closure, which he expressed would give an opportunity for
celebration because of the creativity and hard work that is
happening.
1:08:59 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, referencing slide 4, stated that DEED's
goal from the beginning has been to support Alaska's families,
teachers, and schools by providing as many quality distance-
delivered resources as quickly as possible, to ensure student
learning continues through the crisis. He said that these low-
cost resources are available at AKlearns.org, a website created
in response to COVID-19, which includes "no-tech, low-tech, and
high-tech support." He stated that in addition to the online
clearinghouse, DEED has also partnered with Apple Inc. to
purchase 500 preloaded iPads to send to as many students as
possible, in the primary grades especially, who may not have
Internet or access to a teacher in their communities. He
pointed out that some communities no longer have teachers in
them for various reasons related to transportation and other
issues associated with the current situation. He thanked the
Anchorage School District, which has been supporting the iPad
project, as it will be processing the iPads and putting a note
in the box for students. He said that DEED is working with
superintendents on how the iPads will be distributed. He stated
that the Alaska Superintendents Association (ASA) has supported
the project by collecting data from superintendents on students
in Kindergarten, First, and Second Grades who do not have
connectivity in their communities and could use these resources.
1:10:51 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY asked Commissioner Johnson whether he had
estimated how many districts and students do not have, or have
very poor, access to the Internet.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that [the answer to] the question
was slightly complicated. He said he saw a map recently showing
districts that would benefit from the Broadband Assistance Grant
(BAG) or "BAG 25," [the 25 referring to megabits per second
(Mbps)]. He indicated that the map also showed which
communities with fewer than 25 Mbps would benefit. He said the
answer to the question of who has no connectivity is not a
straight yes or no, because some communities have connectivity
but not necessarily in the homes. He said that some districts
have sent data showing which students have connectivity in their
homes, but DEED has not required districts to send in that data.
The work is ongoing, and hopefully this summer the data can be
collected and reported. He stated that DEED is advocating for
any future packages that come from the federal government to
include money to expand connectivity for students in every
community in Alaska.
1:12:33 PM
CHAIR STEVENS remarked that his understanding was that though
many villages might not have connectivity in the homes, students
could still connect at schools or outside of schools in cars.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that this was his understanding as
well. He said that he had a call from one provider about some
innovations that may be taking place, in which a tower could
potentially be placed on a school or facility to broadcast Wi-Fi
around a community. He added that he was not sure whether this
has happened in any communities yet, but he knows some solutions
like that are being considered.
1:13:16 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND, referencing the BAG 25 legislation that was
passed, stated that she was not certain whether the governor had
signed the legislation yet, but said that she thinks it was
passed in time to meet the deadlines for grant applications.
She asked Commissioner Johnson whether he was aware of districts
having made their grant applications for that service.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that the governor did sign the
bill, and DEED had sent the application to every superintendent
just that morning. He said that ASA has been gracious to host
calls with superintendents to remind them that applications are
out there. He added that DEED has been working on updating the
regulations to correlate with the new statute that increases
[the broadband requirement for schools from 10 Mbps to 25 Mbps
of download speed, with help in funding from BAG].
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND, referencing students using Wi-Fi from the
schools outside of the building or in cars, remarked that this
could not possibly be an effective way to work, especially in
inclement weather. She commented that she has seen photos and
videos of students on decks outside of schools, soaking up the
bandwidth outside of the building, and she expressed that she
hopes districts are looking at better ways to get connectivity
to students.
1:15:13 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS remarked that his understanding was that
the Florida Virtual Schools' contract is available to parents on
an individual level where they can sign in, and this is not
being run through school districts. He asked Commissioner
Johnson whether this was correct.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that in some cases families can
access it individually, and in other cases districts or schools
are using it. He said that he would be talking much more about
the Florida Virtual School in just a moment.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked whether there was a time frame for
when BAG 25 might be implemented.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that the bill was signed, the
applications were distributed, and the window closes on May 1,
for the BAG grant applications to be submitted.
1:16:23 PM
CHAIR STEVENS noted that Representative Ortiz and Speaker Edgmon
had joined the committee meeting online.
1:16:33 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON referenced slide 5 of the PowerPoint
presentation, which shows that many, if not all, in the
education community are pulling together in putting online
resources together, especially for education leaders. He stated
that DEED has drawn collective wisdom and resources from
schools, districts, and states from around the country. He
related that there are staff who have been reviewing dozens of
websites and resources in search of solutions that may be
helpful in Alaska; this is happening in other associations as
well. He said DEED is working with partners to provide content
and resources; the Alaska Staff Development Network has been
hosting meetings; and the Alaska Council of School
Administrators (ACSA), the National Education Association -
Alaska (NEA-Alaska), and the Association of Alaska School Boards
(AASB) have websites addressing COVID-19.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that the leadership website is full
of content and attempts to provide up-to-date information. He
expressed that while it does not know what restarting and
reentering school in the fall will look like, DEED is committed
to gathering and providing as many resources for leaders as they
focus on ending the school year and the decisions that will be
need to be made next school year.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, referencing slide 6, stated that the
distant delivery through AKSVS is part of an effort to provide
quality options online. He expressed that he shares the
convictions of the committee members, as Co-Chair Story had
stated, that all levels of governance in Alaska that affect
children should be worked on closely together, and he apologized
that his effort to provide instructional content to students,
teachers, and families through the partnership with the Florida
Department of Education communicated anything other than that.
He said that providing as many high-quality content options as
quickly as possible should not have prevented him from
demonstrating the appropriate preparation and communication, and
he apologized for putting the committee in the position that
they were receiving questions about this. He stated that since
the announcement of the virtual school, he has been having a lot
of online meetings and phone calls with groups, associations,
and individuals to apologize for unintentionally surprising them
and to answer questions and ensure that people know there was no
deliberate intent not to collaborate or communicate with
superintendents and school boards. He said that he considers
the announcement of the virtual courses as another option for
families, teachers, and schools to use as needed at the local
level.
1:20:19 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, referencing slide 7, stated that there
were several elements that the committee had asked him to
address. He said that DEED entered into a standard contract for
goods and professional services with the Florida Virtual School
on March 25, 2020; this was a one-time contract not to exceed
$525,000. It was executed following standard procurement
policies and procedures, but it is a government-to-government
contract and not a single source. He explained that the
contract was entered under the authority of a government-to-
government agreement, because it addresses public schools.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that the contract has three phases,
first of which is to meet the immediate need of content for
students, teachers, and families who are unable to attend school
because of the pandemic. He said that the next phase is to
provide training for 54 teachers, theoretically one for each
district, online, and the goal is to transition this summer from
instruction being provided by or in cooperation with the Florida
Virtual School to instruction given by Alaska teachers. He
stated that the transition includes being able to use over 190
courses and content from the platform with the Florida Virtual
School that teachers in Alaska can use, which is happening
already in the state in at least one district. He remarked that
Alaska teachers can customize and modify this content in any
manner, as needed. He stated that the goal of the contract is
to ensure student learning continues through this crisis. He
emphasized DEED's commitment to supporting teachers and families
with as many quality-content options as possible.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that the Florida Virtual School was
chosen because it is a public agency, public school, and
government entity. The Florida Virtual School is a statewide
model funded by the Florida State Legislature, and it has been
around for almost 20 years, providing course training and
expertise in online blended programs for districts and states.
He explained that when the coronavirus hit, DEED wanted to act
quickly to provide additional learning opportunities, and the
department felt comfortable working with the Florida Virtual
School, as it had already been looked at and used in Alaska, and
it is a not-for-profit entity, is governed by a board, and is a
public school. He stated that Florida Virtual School has helped
to design and implement programs in other states, including
Alabama, Hawaii, Illinois, Montana, New Hampshire, and several
others. Prior to the launch, a couple of districts in Alaska
were using the Florida Virtual School for content this year, and
the content can support public school teachers.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that the program is funded through
existing funds, which were originally allocated to support
state-level efforts for education. He explained that DEED
receives several federal awards each year, and each award has an
allowable amount that can be used for state-level administrative
costs. He said that the department has seven federal awards
that contribute to the consolidated administration, and each
award crosses multiple fiscal years. He stated that one portion
of funding that was expended for the virtual school was
consolidated administration, and the other remaining federal
funds used to support it were discretionary funds that could
have been used for state-level activities that may have been
diverted because of the contract, such as in-person meetings and
other types of travel. He commented that enrolling in a subject
through the virtual school is free; it does not include any cost
to a family or school district. Furthermore, enrolling will not
change a student's enrollment status in his/her local school or
state funding received by that district, which he said is a
significant point he should have been careful to communicate
more clearly from the very beginning.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that he has received questions
regarding families wanting to enroll in home-school programs
that already exist, but funding for those programs was decided
last fall. He said that the virtual school content can be used
for free, even by home-school programs for existing or new
students, without any cost to the district allotment.
1:26:08 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON reiterated that the timeline for the
virtual program was an initial response to the pandemic to
provide immediate resources for families and teachers. As an
example, he said that there could be a family with multiple
students that might want an extra science or history activity
and could use these resources that would also work with a public
school teacher. He provided another example, in that a teacher
teaching multiple grades and working with district leadership
could use this content to provide multiple subjects to multiple
grade levels of students. He stated that looking ahead to the
next year, it is unknown what it will look like; everyone is
hoping that things will return to normal, but the contract looks
forward by building the capacity in state for Alaska teachers to
deliver virtual online content.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that the next topic on slide 7 was
communications, and he reiterated that there was no deliberate
intent to not collaborate with superintendents, school boards,
or educators. He said that he has been meeting with various
educational leadership associations each week and has
continually expressed the commitment to provide as many high
quality, distance-delivered resources as possible. He stated
that DEED considered the announcement as just another option
that may be needed by families and schools, and nothing about
the virtual courses are mandatory. He commented that he has had
some positive calls with other leaders around the state.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON stated that as of yesterday, over 420
courses were being used or accessed by students across several
districts at varying degrees and levels. He reiterated that
there is no cost, the program is optional, no one needs to
change enrollment, and there is no expectation that a district
will use the program, but it is there for those that need it.
He said that courses offered are aligned with Alaska's content
standards. Florida Virtual School follows the same data
security and privacy protocols required of all other schools
under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA),
because it is a public school, and, as mentioned in phase two,
there will be a shift to all of the content being taught by
Alaska teachers.
1:29:21 PM
CHAIR STEVENS noted that Representative Prax had joined the
Committee online.
1:29:45 PM
SENATOR BEGICH asked when the contract would expire.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that it expires in February 2021.
In response to a follow up question, he stated that it is fully
funded until that time.
SENATOR BEGICH remarked that he has seen the positive comments
made by former Commissioner Hanley in the Anchorage Daily News,
about the usefulness of the program, and he asked whether it was
Commissioner Johnson's intent to not have a second contract.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that it would not be a contract
like the one that currently exists. He said that he does not
know what next year is going to look like, and he said that the
courses and the platform might be something that people want to
continue to access, as some districts continue to do currently.
He emphasized that if the crisis continues and there are a lot
of people who would like to have the platform continue to be
provided, so that it would not be an expense to districts, then
it could be continued in a way similar to textbook purchases, in
which content is provided to districts. He reiterated that DEED
would not be entering into a contract like the one from this
year.
SENATOR BEGICH asked how many people currently were using the
virtual school.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that there are 420 courses being
taken by over 140 students, as of a day or two ago.
1:31:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked what would happen to districts or
students utilizing these programs during the second semester
when [the programs] stop in February 2021.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that the contract ends in February
2021, but the content and the platform can be used through May
2021, which essentially will be the end of the school year.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked whether this platform would be
taught all next school year, first and second semester, by
Alaska teachers who are trained this summer.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered yes, that is the intent.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked who would be paying these teachers
during the summer for them to take the professional development
courses through the state and through these programs.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that DEED has had conversations
with the Alaska Education Association, which will have
conversations with districts. He said it may be at a district's
discretion and, depending on some of the COVID-19 money that
DEED gets, it may be able to pay a stipend for teachers to
participate in the training. He stated that some of the
training could start as soon as May of this year if teachers are
ready.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked how the courses were being
acclimated and included into options for students now, in terms
of Alaska's standards and grades for districts. He asked
whether this was simply an enrichment program that was costing
$500,000 for 140 students "in places where they only have
accessible Internet access and devices."
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that that is not how he would
characterize it. He said that for some students it may be
enrichment, which is part of a well-rounded program; for some
students it may be something that is needed for graduation; and
for other students it may be something that is used to round out
their program as they are provided other instruction. He
remarked that districts are adopting a variety of grading and
credit strategies around the state and will be making those
determinations.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked what this would mean for a district
that is not including this in its grading policy for this year,
or for graduation, and he asked how this would help a student,
outside of critical enrichment, in his/her educational
progression and ability to graduate this year or use those
credits on his/her transcripts. He asked whether this would be
"district-by-district."
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that no one is required to take a
course, and if a family elects to take a course, then an attempt
at building communication with that district is made to let it
know that a family has expressed interest. He said that these
districts will work with a family to determine whether and how
to grant credit. He expressed that the challenge currently is
that students were suddenly turned out, and each district is
making decisions to try and provide options and opportunities
for them, and some districts are choosing different methods. He
said that he thinks Representative Hopkins' ending statement
that it is up to the districts is accurate.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS stated that he understands very well that
Commissioner Johnson was apologizing for the miscommunication
with the districts and said that he understands how it can be
difficult with how fast things are moving in the world
currently. He commented that this was something that could have
been helped by getting out ahead and working with the districts.
1:36:58 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY remarked that she appreciates Commissioner
Johnson recognizing the error of not reaching out to the
stakeholders in making a contract. She stated that there was
information in the committee packet from a stakeholder about the
concerns regarding the Florida Virtual School, noting that some
of its success rates do not include certain demographics in
comparison. She said that she thinks one of the things
stakeholders can do when they know something is being pursued is
to find and share information. She said that she thinks that
everyone wants to work together well and noted that there are
several correspondent schools doing distance learning, and the
amount of the contract, $500,000, she said she thinks districts
could use to improve their offerings in distance learning. She
remarked that she did not know when planning started for the
contract, but she expressed concern. She asked what the
limitations were that were seen in Alaska schools being able to
offer the content, and she asked how things would move forward,
based on that information.
1:38:40 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that he appreciates the council
that included the information, and he said, "Point taken." He
said that this was not to address any deficiency in Alaska. He
said his team was having daily meetings with educators around
the state and hearing about how overwhelming it is to
immediately switch to all the students not being in school. He
noted that these are extraordinary times, and he said he was
"trying to spread a table with as many options for school
districts, for teachers, for families to be able to choose from
to meet the needs of students, and their teachers, in a really
extraordinary time."
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON reiterated that it was not at all designed
to address a deficiency. He said he thinks the teachers in the
state are working hard, and some have been able to make the
transition very easily based on training, content, or resources
their districts had, while other teachers have had more of a
challenge based on experience, how many years they have been
teaching, or what else has happened in their districts. He
commented that this was just one of many options being put on
the table, including the iPads and other content online. He
said that some families are choosing other options online that
are either for profit, nonprofit, or private. He apologized if
it was communicated in any way that this was a deficiency being
addressed, and he said that moving forward he was having many
conversations with people, and many teachers had expressed
interest in receiving training. He said that DEED was being
careful to reach out and work with education partners to ensure
that it is truly fulfilling the intent to build a capacity in
the state to respond to statewide or regional closures that may
happen in the future.
CO-CHAIR STORY remarked that Commissioner Johnson had said that
phase two of this project was ideally to have one teacher
trained from each of the 54 school districts. She asked for
further explanation on the topic.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that theoretically, with 54
districts, it would be great to have at least one teacher in
each district trained, but it is known that some districts may
not have the capacity or may have a lot of turnover; therefore,
it may not work out to have one teacher for every district. He
indicated that those teachers using [AKSVS] are busy dealing
with the transition that has happened. He expressed that next
school year everyone is hoping that they get to go back to
school, but if there is still a statewide closure, then the
added capacity, platform, and over 190 courses could be used and
adapted as a way to respond. He said there is also the
possibility that there could be individual community or regional
closures. He said conversations have been held with education
leaders regarding the possibility of time being spent this
summer to form a response team that could go in to support
individual communities or regions that may have closures due to
COVID-19. He indicated this team could be comprised of teachers
from around the state, who could help teachers who have gone
through the training make the necessary transition. He
reiterated that he hopes this does not happen and he is not
predicting it, but he wants to be responsible and prepared for
what might happen.
1:43:33 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY asked whether any other of the 54 districts have
stepped forward to have the training from the virtual school,
whether there were any other department funds available to help
develop AKSVS programs, and how DEED was getting feedback
currently from educators, administrators, and parents on how
this is working.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that in terms of feedback, as he
had said before, he has been soliciting in-person feedback
through meetings, conversations, and e-mails on the website. He
said that there has been some positive feedback, as well as some
concern about the contract and this option for students. He
stated that the department has received federal money, including
administrative money, and that will be an ongoing reality. He
stated that DEED has not allocated or planned any specific
expenditures out of that money coming forward, but he has had
conversations on whether some should be set aside as an
emergency response fund, in case of regional or community
issues. He said that DEED had not yet sent out an official
solicitation for training. He remarked that conversations have
taken place on how to possibly do this well, and some individual
teachers have e-mailed and inquired about it as well.
CO-CHAIR STORY asked Commissioner Johnson how he has seen this
impacting the resources for the other 31 correspondence programs
and how the impacts to them would be tracked.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that he was not sure he completely
understood the question. Nevertheless, he related that there is
a superintendent, who has received numerous inquiries from
families wanting to enroll students in a homeschool program, to
get support during this transition, but "those districts don't
have the money to provide that allotment." He said, "They can
use this content and provide that if they need to, with no cost.
So, this does not take anybody's enrollment; it doesn't take any
student away from a correspondence program; it provides free
content that a correspondence program can use with their
students if they so choose."
1:47:52 PM
SENATOR HUGHES remarked that she noticed the contract was signed
a week or so after the schools announced closures, and she
commended all the districts, because she said she knows they
were scrambling trying to figure out how to meet needs. She
said that in the first couple of weeks, she heard from several
families in different districts, friends, and people
communicating how things were going. She remarked that she
understands that most of the districts probably want to make
sure that their high schoolers stay on track for graduation.
She stated that she heard from families around the states that
things were running smoothly for the high schoolers, but for the
other grades it was a little bit "hit or miss" initially.
SENATOR HUGHES stated that when she heard about the contract,
she initially thought it was a good thing, but was surprised to
hear the education community pushing back. She said that she
understands some of this was from the lack of communication, to
which the commissioner had humbly admitted, and which she said
she appreciates. She said that she recommended families check
out the Khan Academy Kids application, which has reading and
math programs that her granddaughter was using as a supplement
to what the Anchorage School District was providing.
SENATOR HUGHES mentioned SB 79, which she sponsored. She said
she and Representative Drummond had held approximately half a
dozen joint meetings exploring the possibility of setting up a
virtual education statewide platform that would connect
districts. She indicated that although there had been
bipartisan and bicameral support for that proposed legislation,
it was blocked. She said that educators were not "jumping up
and down" to help. She suggested that she would put out a call
to the education community, and she indicated that Commissioner
[Johnson] had worked with her on SB 79. She mentioned an
occasion when children were unable to be in their classrooms as
a result of an earthquake, and she offered her understanding
that the Anchorage School District was discussing the
possibility of having days every school year in which classes
would go virtual so that students and teachers would be
accustomed to it, so that if there were a need they could switch
to that mode. She asked Commissioner Johnson whether he thought
the state should consider such a plan for the purpose of
readiness.
SENATOR HUGHES also asked Commissioner Johnson how well this
program was being communicated to families, as there are only
140 students currently using it. She remarked that it has been
left to the districts to offer it to families, and she asked
whether there was any way to get out the word, other than
putting it on the website for families to see. She said that
even though the families might be using resources through the
classroom teachers for their students, a lot of the parents are
working from home, and if there were additional options for more
hours of work for students, then the parents might use it.
1:53:17 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, regarding whether this is something that
Alaska should move forward in the future, said he is still
reflecting and learning on the first rollout before he has
conversations about what may come next. He expressed that he is
certainly apologetic for not doing a better job of showing this
as an option for families. He stated that virtual courses are
an option and opportunity used, probably, in most districts in
the state. He said that he is going to spend more time figuring
out how he could have rolled this out better and would then be
happy to have conversations with the legislature on the next
step. He remarked that in terms of communication, it is on
DEED's website and remains there still, but after the reaction
to it, DEED has decided to let other sources do some of the
communication. He said that unfortunately, the lack of
communication at the beginning and the negative things that came
out probably scared some people away, but he said that he thinks
districts and others are starting to see it as an option. He
said that there are other parts of the contract, and there are
140 students and "400 and something" courses being utilized
currently, but those numbers are expected to grow.
1:55:58 PM
SENATOR COSTELLO said that she has children in high school and
middle school. She asked how, as a parent, when her children's
teachers design lesson plans for core courses, is she supposed
to know whether they are from the Florida Virtual School. She
asked whether she was hearing correctly that this was something
for individual families that want to leave the public school and
go through the virtual school. She expressed that she did not
quite understand the mechanics of the virtual school.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that this would in no way take
students away from their local schools; they would not unenroll
and then enroll in a virtual school. He loosely compared the
virtual school to Khan Academy and said that there are students
in classrooms where teachers use Khan Academy as part of the
content. He expressed that he thinks a parent would know
whether a teacher was using a virtual school as part of the
curriculum, and he said that the Anchorage School District used
content from the Florida Virtual School even before this
happened. He said that DEED put this out for people to use, as
it works in a local setting, so families could access it. He
said that there is a brief survey on the website that asks a
series of questions to determine what district the people are
in, whether they intend to use it for enrichment, whether it is
a teacher using it with students, and other things. He said
that DEED will continue to improve efforts to explain the
mechanics so that people understand how the virtual school works
and know that it is not taking enrollment away from local
schools.
1:59:07 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS remarked that Bob Boyle's recommendation,
which DEED had said it was using for contracting with the
virtual schools, had estimated that $500,000 would provide 450
semester hours to students. He asked whether the $525,000
would be limited in the same way, where available semester hours
for students would run out.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that this contract is not part of
the work Bob Boyle did with DEED. He stated that because he was
recently retired from a district that had a virtual school, he
did some research for DEED on virtual schools, as it was a topic
that had recently come up at the legislature. He said he had
wanted some background and information, and Bob Boyle had
provided it. He remarked that he did not have the report in
front of him that Bob Boyle had provided with the exact number
of hours. He stated that when the transition is made to Alaska
teachers teaching the content next school year, there are over
190 courses available, in which up to 300 students can enroll at
a full-time equivalent. He said that he is not certain how that
correlates to the number Representative Hopkins gave, but this
is what the contract look likes currently.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked whether the 190 different courses
available were incorporated into Alaska standards and would be
applicable for statewide recognition towards a student's
graduation.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON replied that this is up to local districts
to decide whether they will use the content, in the same way
that they choose to use textbooks or other curriculums to count
as part of their programs. He said that these courses taught by
Alaska teachers are fully adaptable in whatever way classroom
teachers want to adapt them to meet state, local, and cultural
standards.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS posed a hypothetical situation in which a
student enrolls in a course on his/her own, not through a
district, then drops a class and is charged an exorbitant
cancelation fee. He asked whether, based on the way that the
Florida Virtual School program is currently structured, the
cancelation fee would be covered by DEED or by [the student's]
district, or whether the family would have to cover the fee.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that the immediate courses
provided in response to COVID-19 are provided at no cost for the
course, the proctoring of an exam, or dropping a course.
2:02:53 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND commented that earlier in response to a
question from Representative Story, Commissioner Johnson
mentioned that capacity was being added for dozens of courses
that can be accessed or adapted. She asked how that works and
when it would occur. She asked whether the 420 or more courses
being accessed were representative of 420 students, 420
classrooms of a certain number of students each, or 120 students
accessing 3 or 4 classes each.
2:03:53 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, referencing the adaptation element, stated
that Alaska teachers take the Florida Virtual School content or
other textbooks, then implement the curriculum and adapt it as
needed for their classes or students. He said that the 420
courses are being accessed by over 140 students. He related
that this is just the immediate response to end-of-year content
as part of the sudden closure of schools; it is not necessarily
what enrollment numbers will look like next fall when courses
are delivered by Alaska teachers.
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND remarked that she was looking at several pages
of quotations in the contract and noticed a column for quantity
and the sales price with a discount. She asked for an
explanation regarding quantity.
2:05:44 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that the quantity was the estimate
given as to the number of courses DEED thought might be accessed
by students.
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND asked whether, if 20 students accessed
"Algebra I Global School Sem 2" instead of 50, there would be a
reduction in the sales price, and how it would work if more
students access than estimated.
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON answered that adjustments are made as
things move forward based on actual course requests and needs.
2:06:42 PM
CHAIR STEVENS stated that he would like to move on to the
funding aspect of the department's presentation, particularly
the CARES Act and how those funds are affecting DEED and the
districts.
2:07:03 PM
COMMISSIONER JOHNSON commented that he would like to make an
initial comment and then turn it over to Lacy Sanders. He
thanked his staff, who spent a lot of time "unpacking" the CARES
Act as it was a bill that was passed very quickly on March 27.
He said that the Act includes $30.75 billion in emergency
education funding for states.
2:07:55 PM
LACEY SANDERS, Director, Division of Administrative Services,
Department of Education & Early Development, continued DEED's
PowerPoint presentation on the Virtual Learning Contract as it
relates to the issue of COVID-19. Referencing slide 9, she
stated that she would walk through the emergency education
funding that was allocated through the CARES Act and is often
referred to as the Education Stabilization Fund. She said the
fund is divided into three pots, the first of which could be
referred to as the Governor's Emergency Relief Fund. She
explained that the Governor's Emergency Education Relief (GEER)
funds are administered by the governor, and Alaska's allocation
was set at $6.5 million. She said that these funds are
available for obligations through September 30, 2020, and the
governor must award the funds within one year of receipt or the
funds are reverted to the U.S. Department of Education for
reallocation to other states. She stated that these funds can
be used for three things: emergency support to local education
agencies that the state education agency deems most
significantly impacted by the coronavirus; emergency support to
institutes of higher education the governor determines are most
significantly impacted by the coronavirus; and support to any
institute of higher education, local education agency, or
education-related entity within the state that the governor
deems essential for carrying out educational services.
MS. SANDERS stated that the second pot of funds in the Education
Stabilization Fund is the Higher Education Emergency Relief
Fund. She explained that the CARES Act provided several
different methods for distributing roughly $14 billion in funds
to institutions of higher education; the most significant
portion of that funding allocation provides $12.56 billion that
will be distributed to institutions using a formula based on
student enrollment. She said that she would defer to the
University of Alaska to share additional details in its
presentation later in the meeting.
MS. SANDERS stated that DEED's presentation today on funding is
focused on the third pot of funding, which is known as the
Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSERF).
She said that this third pot of funds is what the commissioner
referenced heading to DEED as the state education agency, also
referred to as the SEA by the federal government. She explained
that this funding will be distributed to school districts, which
are commonly referred to as local education agencies, and will
support elementary and secondary education.
2:11:19 PM
CHAIR STEVENS asked whether the $14 billion or $12.56 billion in
funds could go towards both state institutions and private
institutions.
MS. SANDERS replied that it is her understanding that the funds
could go to both state and private, but she said she would defer
to the university to correct her later in its presentation if
she had misspoken.
2:12:01 PM
MS. SANDERS, referencing slide 10 of the PowerPoint
presentation, stated that she wanted to make the committee
members aware of additional education related funding in the
CARES Act. She said that there are several pots of money, most
notably the items listed on slide 10. She pointed out that
there is $3.5 billion for the Child Care Development Block
Grant, which is to provide childcare assistance to healthcare
providers, first responders, sanitation workers, and other
essential workers in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She
stated that this money will be allocated through the Alaska
Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS). She said that
there is $750 million in the bill for grants to local agencies
providing Head Start services that support children's growth and
development. She explained that this money will be allocated
directly to the Head Start Alaska providers. She said that
there is $8.8 billion for child nutrition programs, which
includes the national school lunch program, the school breakfast
program, the summer food service program, the child and adult
care feeding program, the school milk program, and others. She
explained that this funding will be allocated through DEED.
MS. SANDERS stated that there is $15.5 billion of additional
funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
(SNAP), which will be allocated through DHSS. She said that
there is $100 million targeted for school funding for safe
schools and the citizenship education initiative through the
School Emergency Response to Violence (SERV) Project, which
provides education-related services, including counseling and
referrals for mental health services, to local education
agencies. That money will be distributed through the local
education agencies. She noted that the CARES Act also provides
federal student loan relief, which is an automatic suspension of
principal and interest payments on federally held student loans
through September 30, 2020; borrowers are not required to take
any action in order to participate in this automatic suspension.
2:14:28 PM
MS. SANDERS, referencing slide 11, remarked that she would be
"diving" into ESSERF. She stated that approximately $13.5
billion was allocated for elementary and secondary education
formula grants; the State of Alaska's allocation is estimated to
be $38.4 million. She noted that DEED had not yet received an
official application from the U.S. Department of Education on
this funding; therefore, the $38.4 million is just an estimate.
She said that the funding will be distributed from the federal
U.S. Department of Education to DEED and then on to local
education agencies. She stated that allocations to state
education agencies are based on the proportion of Title 1, part
A funds each state received in the most recent fiscal year. She
said that state education agencies may reserve up to 10 percent
for grants and statewide emergency needs, including up to 0.5
percent for administration; these funds may be spent on
emergency needs, as determined by the state education agency, to
address issues responding to the coronavirus. She said that the
state education agencies may also spend the funds directly or
through grants and contracts. State education agencies must
allocate 90 percent for local education agencies, and the funds
must be awarded within one year of receipt. She noted that DEED
posted on its website, and shared with superintendents, an
estimated allocation for the $38.4 million [hard copy included
in the committee packet].
2:16:41 PM
CHAIR STEVENS asked for clarification on the money that goes to
DEED, 10 percent going for grants and 0.5 percent for
administration, and he asked what purpose "the other 9.5
percent" is used.
MS. SANDERS replied that that funding is an allowable amount
that the federal guideline allows DEED, or the state education
agency, to grant or contract out for other needs or emergency-
related costs associated with the coronavirus.
2:17:39 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND said she thought she had heard Ms. Sanders say
that one half of one percent is allowed to be retained for
administrative costs. She asked for clarification as to who was
allowed to retain that amount, DEED, or the school districts.
MS. SANDERS answered that the half of a percent for
administration could be retained by DEED for administrative
costs. She added that school districts have maximum flexibility
in their ability to spend the funds received through the Title I
allocation, on the needs that they identify, and she said she
would talk about allowable uses momentarily.
2:18:32 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND remarked that she had the draft estimate for
the CARES Act funding, as it is distributed among Alaska school
districts, and the first column was for the EESRF funds, which
total approximately $34,567,000. She said that the second
column is the GEER fund, totaling $3.7 million, for a total
CARES Act funds to education of $38.3 million. She expressed
that she understands this is a draft and the numbers are
somewhat flexible, and she asked Ms. Sanders to explain the
governor's emergency education relief fund column, as she could
see it goes to some school districts, but not all of them.
MS. SANDERS answered that she absolutely could explain that and
asked to have everyone turn to the document so she could walk
through it and answer any questions in order to clearly
articulate what the estimated document outlines.
2:20:04 PM
CHAIR STEVENS commented that the document she is referring to is
on BASIS, and it is from DEED, titled, Draft - Estimated CARES
ACT Funding for Alaska School Districts [hard copy included in
the committee packet.]
MS. SANDERS stated that the first column shows the estimated
ESSERF allocation. She reiterated that the State of Alaska's
total allocation is $38.4 million; after removing the 10 percent
that state education agencies may reserve, the remaining amount
is $34,567,200. She said that DEED used the Title I allocation,
as required by the federal guidance, to allocate money to the
school districts. She stated that this is what is seen in the
first column.
MS. SANDERS stated that out of the GEER fund, the governor has
allowed $3.7 million to be distributed to 35 school districts,
to ensure that all districts receive funding equal to or greater
than the allocation of the $30 million one-time funding that
would have been allocated through the foundation formula. She
explained that if a school district was not eligible for a Title
I distribution, under a $30 million allocation through the
foundation formula, then it would have received $23,096. She
said, "The governor is allocating $3.7 million to these 35
schools so that they receive an amount equal to or greater than
the allocation under the $30 million." Ms. Sanders stated that
the third column totals the amount that school districts would
receive between the two pots of money.
2:22:31 PM
SENATOR BEGICH remarked that Ms. Sanders had pointed out that
the governor had communicated his intent to replace the "$30
million one-time money." He added, "But during that testimony -
you know, we had quite a bit of it this year - districts
identified that they used a lot of the $30 million one-time
funding from the past year, which ... the vetoed $30 million was
supposed to hold harmless, to offset reduced class sizes, retain
teachers, purchase and update their curricula - things like
that." He asked whether what the governor is doing would
effectively "do that," or whether the money was really supposed
to be used for the additional burden that falls on districts to
address the COVID-19 related expenditures, as opposed to
offsetting the activities. He asked whether this was "just
digging a deeper hole."
MS. SANDERS replied that the school districts have the ability
to use the funding at their discretion, and while it is
understood that the one-time foundation formula would have been
in addition to the foundation formula that would normally be
received, they are now receiving approximately $38 million to
address not only current needs, but increased needs due to
coronavirus impacts as well.
SENATOR BEGICH remarked that essentially the answer that he had
just heard was, "No," and that it is not providing very much at
all for districts to deal with COVID-19, if they choose to hold
themselves harmless on the cut imposed last week through the
veto process. He commented that he thinks this is what Ms.
Sanders said, and said he understands that it is basically a
forced "Sophie's choice" on the districts as to how they will
address COVID-19 or the veto. He expressed that he appreciated
Ms. Sanders candor in letting the committee know that.
2:25:27 PM
CHAIR STEVENS asked Ms. Sanders how quickly these funds would
get out to the districts.
2:25:35 PM
MS. SANDERS replied that it is DEED's understanding that the
application for the funds related to ESSERF will be distributed
either tomorrow [4/23/20,] or Friday [4/24/20]. She said DEED
will apply for the funds and, once the application is submitted
and the funds are received, it will wait for legislative
approval to disburse that money to school districts. She stated
that the GEER fund application and guidance had already been
received from the U.S. Department of Education, and as soon as
the governor provides a detailed plan on that funding, DEED can
submit on the governor's behalf to receive the funding.
CHAIR STEVENS asked Ms. Sanders to clarify the legislative
approval she had mentioned, and he asked whether that means
through the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee.
2:26:44 PM
MS. SANDERS answered that Chair Stevens might be aware that
yesterday the Office of Management and Budget and the governor
submitted a Revised Program Legislative (RPL) packet to the
Legislative Budget and Audit Committee. She said that the RPL
packet included an RPL for DEED to receive additional federal
authority to receive those federal funds and disperse them to
school districts.
2:27:21 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND asked whether these funds would be available
to school districts starting that week and would be available
for obligation through September 2021, through the beginning of
school the next fiscal year. She said that she assumes the
districts could start spending the money now, but the suggestion
is that they will spread the expenditures over the course of the
next year, starting in July. She asked whether, if this is
intended to replace the $30 million that was vetoed by the
governor, she can assume that the administration believes that
the cost of the impact of COVID-19 issues on the school
districts is only $8 million above that $30 million that was
vetoed by the governor. She remarked that she is having trouble
understanding the justification of the size of these grants and
when they are supposed to be expended.
2:28:45 PM
MS. SANDERS emphasized that DEED had not received an official
application or guidance from the U.S. Department of Education.
She said there is rumor at the federal agency level, meaning
other entities outside of the U.S. Department of Education, that
the expenditures associated with the funding will be backdated
as early as March 13, 2020; however, she reiterated that DEED
has not received official guidance, and until it does it would
not want to advise anyone to make expenditures based on
receiving this money. She stated that the allocation of the
funding for ESSERF is based on federal guidance, and she said
that she does not want to speak on behalf of the governor or the
administration other than to say that DEED's guidance has been
to determine what the allocation methodology for the school
districts was. She said DEED looked at the allocation
methodology for the $30 million outside of the foundation
formula and wanted to ensure that school districts were
receiving funding at least equal to the amount under that
allocation. She reiterated that she would not feel comfortable
speaking on behalf of the governor or the administration
regarding whether this is backfilling $30 million.
2:30:49 PM
CHAIR STEVENS remarked that he thinks [the committee]
understands.
2:30:55 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND commented that the first column that is
allocated by Title I, Part A formula, only shows three districts
that appear to not have any Title I eligibility: the Aleutian
Region, Pelican, and Skagway. She asked whether this was
correct.
2:31:22 PM
MS. SANDERS confirmed that was correct.
2:31:28 PM
CHAIR STEVENS commented that the meeting was going on longer
than he had hoped, but that these were all important questions.
He said that he would like to get through the rest of the
slides.
2:31:47 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY expressed concerned about the cuts to districts
and noted that it looked like the school districts that received
more money up towards the $38 million have more Title I students
and are getting more money from that. She asked whether this
money would also allow the local municipalities to contribute to
districts, as typically money is run through the formula and
local municipalities can increase their contributions.
2:32:41 PM
MS. SANDERS answered that the federal funding Title I allocation
is not a match-able fund; therefore, communities cannot
contribute a match towards federal funding.
2:33:15 PM
MS. SANDERS, returning attention to the PowerPoint, referenced
slide 12 and stated that some of the items on the slide had been
discussed previously. She reiterated that the allocation for
Alaska was $38.4 million; the allocations are based on the
proportion of Title I, Part A funds that each state received in
the most recent fiscal year; it is anticipated that funding and
allocation will be available on April 24, 2020, or April 25,
2020; and the state education agencies must award funds within
one year of receipt.
2:34:00 PM
CHAIR STEVENS noted that Senator Giessel had joined the meeting.
2:34:07 PM
MS. SANDERS, referencing slide 13, stated that it had been
briefly discussed in an earlier slide that the state education
agencies may reserve 10 percent for grants and statewide
emergency needs, which also includes half of a percent for
administrative costs; these funds may be spent on emergency
needs as determined by the state education agency to address
issues in responding to the coronavirus. She said that the
state can use these funds directly through grants or contracts.
2:34:57 PM
MS. SANDERS referencing slide 14, titled "Local Level Spending
Options." She stated that this slide was intended to answer the
question of how districts can use these funds. She said that
any activity authorized under the federal Acts were noted on the
slide, many of which will help in response to COVID-19,
including preparedness and response efforts, sanitation,
professional development, distance learning, and others. She
said that she wants to remind people that this funding is very
flexible to respond to emerging needs.
2:35:52 PM
SENATOR BEGICH asked Ms. Sanders for clarification on a topic
from slide 10, relating to a childcare development block grant.
He said that a lot of testimony had been heard on a "directly
unrelated" issue of the potential impact on childcare from the
current crisis, and he asked for more clarity on the governor's
approach to childcare and on whether it was the intent of the
governor, the administration, or DEED to maintain the current
pre-Kindergarten (pre-K) programs with any of these resources.
He remarked that there were also $4.3 million in pre-K grants
that were vetoed.
MS. SANDERS answered that the $3.5 billion for childcare
development block grants are funds administered by DHSS, and
DEED is not involved in those conversations. She recommended
follow-up with that department to see how it is administering
those funds. She stated that there is $11.5 million remaining
in the existing budget for pre-K and early learning programs,
which consist of $6.5 million for Head Start, $3.2 million for
pre-K grants, $500,000 for parents and teachers, and $300,000
for Best Beginnings. She reminded the committee that GEER funds
currently have had only $3.7 identified through the allocation
methodology, which leaves some funds available for the governor
to determine how to utilize at his discretion. Additionally,
DEED can retain 10 percent of the funding that is allocated for
ESSERF, and the determination on how that will be used has not
yet been made. She remarked that there may be other
opportunities, but she does not have a firm answer as to what
they will be.
SENATOR BEGICH remarked that this was an encouraging response
from Ms. Sanders, and he said he would be in touch with the
department and the Office of the Governor regarding the extra
resources and how they might best be allocated.
2:39:25 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY remarked that she had two questions relating to
items that were vetoed in the DEED budget: the elimination of
the additional authority for the consortium library and support
for the online libraries. She asked Ms. Sanders whether she
knew of any possible funding for those two items.
2:39:51 PM
MS. SANDERS replied that she could speak to the vetoed amounts
regarding the partial veto for online libraries, and she said
$33,000 is retained in the budget to work with libraries,
archives, and museums to utilize subscriptions for online video
conferencing and to provide equipment, as necessary. She asked
Co-Chair Story to repeat the second question for her.
CO-CHAIR STORY responded that the question pertained to the
$635,000 for the consortium of library support.
MS. SANDERS stated that the state's current fiscal picture is
not looking very great right now, as she said the committee is
aware. She said that the governor chose to veto that funding
and not expand the library operations for that program. She
said she realizes that the term "operating funds" or "increase
in operating program" has confused some people. She remarked
that when looking at the State of Alaska's budget for the
libraries, archives, and museums, an addition of $600,000 would
expand current operations. She expressed that given Alaska's
current fiscal challenge, the governor chose to veto that
funding.
CO-CHAIR STORY expressed that she would appreciate more
information on that topic be provided to the committee. She
emphasized the importance of the interlibrary loan, a state-of-
the-art program allowing for borrowing from any library or
university in Alaska.
2:42:19 PM
CHAIR STEVENS offered his understanding that Ms. Sanders was
saying that the reduction was for something that was to be
expanded beyond the current system, not for the interlibrary
loan system that has been in place for quite some time.
2:42:37 PM
MS. SANDERS said DEED could provide additional information to
the committee, as Co-Chair Story had requested. She clarified
her understanding was that the library being discussed was
previously located and funded within the University of Alaska's
budget, and due to reductions there was a proposal that would
move the program into the libraries, archives, and museums,
which is what she meant by expanding the libraries, archives,
and museums operations. She stated that the decision the
governor made was to veto the expansion of that program within
the libraries, archives, and museums. She offered her
understanding that there is some funding allocated currently in
the university's budget for maintaining that, but she said she
would have to defer to the university to speak to what is
included in its budget.
CHAIR STEVENS said he would ask the university about the status
of that program.
2:44:13 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND remarked that the interlibrary loan program is
being utilized more than ever now that the libraries have been
shut down to entry by the public, and she remarked that it makes
absolutely no sense to her to cut that funding, because she is
sure [libraries] are having to dig deep to mail books to patrons
instead of allowing patrons to come in and pick them up. She
remarked that there needs to be more discussion on the topic.
CHAIR STEVENS remarked that if Ms. Sanders could get back to the
committee with any additional information it would be
appreciated.
2:45:00 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS asked for confirmation of his
understanding that DEED had said that the $30 million-plus
coming in from the COVID-19 and CARES Act funds could not
replace the $30 million that was vetoed out of the budget, and
because that is money no longer coming from the state, it limits
the amount that a municipality can give as a local match to a
school district. Referencing slide 14 of the PowerPoint
presentation, he asked for further confirmation that the CARES
Act limits a lot of the funds to specific purposes and could not
replace "the $30 million lost that would impact electives,
courses, support staff numbers, class size impacts - things like
that." Those impacts will still be realized by school districts
while the CARES Act funds go to specific things as listed on the
slide.
2:46:08 PM
MS. SANDERS answered that she wants to be clear to the best of
her ability that these are not replacement funds of the $30
million; this is an allocation of federal funds through the
CARES Act to school districts. She reiterated that school
districts have a significant amount of flexibility in the use of
these funds, including addressing some of the multiple items
just listed by Representative Hopkins. She said that
Representative Hopkins is correct in that federal funds cannot
be matched and so local contribution amounts will not be
increased given the federal allocation, but she said that given
the state's current fiscal situation, the governor chose to veto
the $30 million and now money is being allocated through the
CARES Act, which was the point of the presentation before the
committee that day.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS remarked that he would be interested in
finding out "what exactly these funds are able to be replaced
for, " and added that "that might be specific to the school
districts." He mentioned the layoffs of teachers and support
staff and [the loss of] class types, and electives, and he said
that unless "the et cetera down at the bottom of slide 4" allows
for the replacement of jobs, activities, sports, and things like
that which were cut from next year in the budgets, the impacts
would be realized due to the governor's veto.
MS. SANDERS reiterated that DEED was still awaiting specific
federal guidance from the U.S. Department of Education on all
the exact uses and allowability for this funding. She said that
once it has that, then DEED can provide school districts with
the resources and ability to help answer any questions that they
have on allowable use of the funds.
REPRESENTATIVE HOPKINS remarked that it makes sense and the
state is still waiting on a lot of direction from the federal
government.
^PRESENTATION: The Current Status of Local School Boards and
Their Communities.
PRESENTATION: The Current Status of Local School Boards and
Their Communities.
2:49:17 PM
CHAIR STEVENS announced that the next order of business would be
a presentation on the Current Status of Local School Boards and
Their Communities.
2:49:43 PM
NORM WOOTEN, Executive Director, Association of Alaska School
Boards, offered a PowerPoint presentation on the current status
of local school boards and their communities. Referencing slide
2 of the PowerPoint presentation, he stated that when schools
first shut down the first question the Association of Alaska
School Boards (AASB) received from school boards across the
state was how they would be able to have school board meetings.
He said AASB put together a webinar for school boards to be able
to digitally have remote school board meetings, thus allowing
the public access to comply with the Alaska Open Meetings Act,
while complying with social distancing. He said that the model
policy under Board Bylaw 9320 makes allowances to be able to do
so and then archive on the AASB website. He commented
anecdotally on a webinar with the National School Boards
Association in which remote meetings were discussed and he had
spoken about Alaska's model, which was then shared with states
across the entire country. He expressed that AASB was pleased
to be able to teach school districts in many other states how to
accomplish remote meetings.
2:51:37 PM
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 3, stated that AASB has had
multiple calls from school districts across the state asking for
help as they wade through a new era of online meetings to
provide resources to students and ensure student learning
continues. He credited his team at AASB for doing amazing work
under an increasing workload.
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 4, stated that he had made some
screenshots of online resources from the AASB's digital
newsletter, which previously went out once a month but is being
put out every week now because of the quickly changing
landscape. He said these were some of the webinars related to
the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing and closing schools.
He said that school districts can access this resource on their
own time, and he said that the webinars have had more
participants than ever before, because school board members are
taking advantage of the resources AASB is providing them.
2:53:11 PM
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 5 of the PowerPoint presentation,
stated that AASB advertised that it is open for business to
school districts and is picking up workshops and learning more
about how to deliver them and maintain interest, which he said
can be more difficult when you cannot read body language and
look people in the eye. He said that the districts are
responding to AASB, and he pointed out several different
examples of workshops that AASB has put out for school
districts.
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 6, stated that as Commissioner
Johnson had mentioned, a lot of resources are available on the
AASB website and the weekly commentary it puts out. He pointed
out that the slide shows an example of Brigham Young University
(BYU) contacting AASB to say it was providing a free online high
school curriculum, which is another resource for school
districts at no cost to them. Referencing slide 7, he stated
that another resource AASB put out is for wellness, safety, and
social and emotional learning. He said that there has been an
amazing outreach from partners across the state and the nation,
and AASB has been putting them on its site so that school boards
are not overwhelmed and can access the resources. Referencing
slide 8, he stated that AASB has been putting coronavirus
information and resources on its website and has been monitoring
the daily press releases from the governor, the Center for
Disease Control (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), and
others, to provide a single place that school districts can go
to get information.
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 9, stated that an interesting
section in the commentary AASB put out is labeled "District
Dispatches," which is a brief report of things that school
districts are doing across Alaska. He said AASB asks a question
of school districts each week; this week it asked how the school
districts are supporting students at home and what have been
some successes and challenges. There has been great response
from school districts, school board members, and school staff,
which AASB has been posting. He pointed out an example of some
things the Anchorage School District is doing, and the
encouragement given to other districts.
2:56:43 PM
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 10, pointed out some things that
keep school board members up at night. He said there is concern
about limited and affordable bandwidth in rural and urban
districts. He explained that many students across the state
only have a smartphone as a digital device, and it is difficult
to access courses and do the work needed on those devices. He
said that he is happy DEED is looking into this and AASB is
looking into other solutions as well. He said distance learning
is a concern, as mentioned earlier by Commissioner Johnson, and
he said he has heard from school board members that they are
concerned about distance learning and would prefer distance
learning to be from Alaskans, for Alaskans. He said there are
concerns about planning for the 2021 school year, as no one
knows what is going to happen but would like to make plans as
far in advance as possible.
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 11, stated that school board
members are worried about transportation. There has been
trouble getting staff back into villages with the suspension of
service by RavnAir Alaska, which really took school districts by
surprise. He said school districts and other air carriers are
scrambling to get staff, move students around, and get freight.
The decreased service of the Alaska Marine Highway System has
really affected school districts in Southeast Alaska,
Southcentral Alaska, and the Aleutian Chain. Mr. Wooten
remarked that there are concerns from school boards about
financial support for the extra COVID-19 expenses, food service,
instructional materials, Internet fees, and quarantining staff.
He relayed that across the state budgets have "gone out the
window." The budget that was put in place at the beginning of
the school year is of no effect anymore, and districts are
making changes on the fly.
MR. WOOTEN said the school board members also want to create an
emergency plan that would include the possibility of a statewide
pandemic. He stated that even though districts had a lot of
plans in place, this caught everybody by surprise.
Nevertheless, the districts have been able to do amazing things.
He said DEED has been a great help to the districts, but the
state just needs a plan that has some protocols in place. He
stated that school boards are worried about assistance for
counseling, mental health, and social and emotional learning for
students, staff, and community members. He expressed that this
pandemic has really affected people and will be something that
will never go away from their memories, and school boards will
need to provide services to these people.
3:01:03 PM
MR. WOOTEN, referencing slide 12, stated that school board
members are worried about summer programs; they want to ensure
increased student achievement, do not want the students to go
off track, and do not want to lose ground with them. He said
they would certainly appreciate assistance in being able to
offer a universal summer school for students across the state.
He relayed that nearly all districts are subsidizing the food
service provided now with district funds, and this will only get
worse as the summer goes along. He stated that Alaska's
significant Title I student population is the main user of food
services, and districts are concerned about being able to ensure
students don't go hungry, whether or not they are in school.
3:02:23 PM
CHAIR STEVENS commented that he appreciated Mr. Wooten's
presentation. He said the committee is certainly well aware of
the crucial role that the school boards play in education in
Alaska and understands to some extent, though not as much as Mr.
Wooten, some of the problems being faced. He expressed hope
that the CARES Act funds would get to the districts as quickly
as possible.
3:02:52 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND remarked that AASB has always been there for
school boards and she appreciates its services. She stated that
there has been little time to look at the draft document the
department gave on the distribution of the CARES Act funding,
and she emphasized her concern that school districts have
already set their budgets for the fiscal year that begins in
July and those budgets will be $30 million leaner due to the
governor's veto. She said that it sounds to her that the
approximately $38 million dollars is supposed to be replacing
the $30 million, and the $8 million above and beyond that is
supposed to take care of all the COVID-19 expenses. She stated
that without consulting with a single chief financial officer,
she has a distinct feeling that the $8 million is not enough to
cover the expenses that were outlined in the last three slides
by Mr. Wooten, including bandwidth, digital devices,
transportation issues, the extra food services, instructional
materials, and so forth. She asked Mr. Wooten what his
thoughts were on that fiscal issue, then noted that it is a
somewhat unfair question, and suggested that if he did not have
that document, he should obtain it.
3:04:40 PM
MR. WOOTEN answered that the districts are very reluctant to
spend money until they have it in their bank accounts. He said
that what they are accessing now are their general funds and
reserves. He said he seriously doubts that the $8 million will
be nearly enough money, but he did not want to speak for the
chief financial officers and superintendents across the state.
He stated that he was quite surprised that the CARES Act funds
are being used to supplant rather than supplement. He said this
might be a step away from the direction of Co-Chair Drummond,
but he hoped it expressed the nervousness that AASB has.
3:05:48 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY asked whether her understanding was correct that
the $38 million from the CARES ACT fund is already appropriated
to all the districts through the Title I formula, and, as an
example, that Anchorage will now have $4 million more because it
has more Title I students. She expressed her understanding is
that DEED was trying to use the GEER funds to fill in for the
other school districts that would not receive more Title I money
to fill in the $3.7 million, which would total $38 million.
MR. WOOTEN replied that his understanding was that that is the
case, and the $38 million has been appropriated to the districts
already. He said that it sounds like a lot of money, but the
way the districts are currently spending money, it is going to
dry up quickly.
^PRESENTATION: Education Budget, Instruction & Staffing
PRESENTATION: Education Budget, Instruction & Staffing
3:07:00 PM
CHAIR STEVENS announced that the next order of business would be
a presentation on Education Budget, Instruction, and Staffing.
3:07:15 PM
LISA S. PARADY, PhD, Executive Director, Alaska Council of
School Administrators, co-offered a PowerPoint presentation on
Education Budget, Instruction, and Staffing. She stated that
she wanted to join Chair Stevens in his opening comments in
commending the incredible job of Alaska's K-12 public educators
in responding to COVID-19. Referencing slide 2 of the
PowerPoint presentation [hard copy included in the committee
packet], she stated that the Alaska Council of School
Administrators (ACSA) provides leadership and advocacy for
Alaska's public education, and as a private nonprofit
established nearly 50 years ago, ACSA was created to serve as an
umbrella for the Alaska Superintendents Association (ASA), the
Alaska Association of Secondary School Principals (AASSP), the
Alaska Association of Elementary School Principals (AAESP), the
Alaska Association of School Business Officials (ALASBO), and
the Alaska Staff Development Network (ASDN). She said that
these organizations have been working collaboratively and
tirelessly through COVID-19 to serve Alaska students.
DR. PARADY, referencing slide 3, stated that ACSA appreciates
that DEED has accounted for the non-Title I districts to provide
comparable funds through the discretionary CARES Act funding,
and while there are still no specifics, she complimented the
department in its estimates for the work that has been done to
support all the school districts to receive the CARES Act
distributions. She commented that as previously mentioned,
there will still be the resulting loss of local matching funds
to affected districts, and there will be additional costs as a
result of COVID-19. She said that school districts would
appreciate a quick approval by the legislature to receive the
funds once distributed.
DR. PARADY, referencing slide 4, stated that ASCA has been the
communications hub through COVID-19, supporting Zoom meetings
and calls, as shown on the chart on slide 4. She thanked
Commissioner Johnson and his staff for their willingness to join
most of these to best support education leaders across the state
to be on the same page and to hear the same information from the
department and each other. She noted that Shawn Arnold,
President, ASA, has facilitated meetings almost every morning
with superintendents and the commissioner, through COVID-19.
She said that Robin Jones, President, AASSP, and Eric Pederson,
President, AAESP, have been supporting a weekly call with
Commissioner Johnson and all the K-12 principals. She said
there is a weekly call for education leaders statewide to hear
the same information from DEED and share with each other how
each organization has been working to support education during
this time. She stated that there is a current COVID-19 website
that acts as a clearinghouse for school district resources that
has been sorted by like-sized districts, so that school
districts have not had to "[reinvent] the wheel," but can work
with each other to support documents, messaging, or anything
needed during this time.
3:11:01 PM
DR. PARADY, referencing slide 5, stated that ASCA is committed
to continuing to support collaboration across school district
leaders and statewide educators moving forward. She said that
Commissioner Johnson and she have had many conversations about
how they can best support school districts with school restart
dates, reentry for next year, soft openings, and staggered
openings, whether that is physical, virtual, or a hybrid. She
said ASDN will continue to provide development and will continue
to help with communication and collaboration across Alaska.
DR. PARADY, referencing slide 6, stated that Commissioner
Johnson had shared that ASDN has been providing extraordinary
services during this uncertain time. She said that ASDN has
created no-cost, one-hour support sessions for teachers to
quickly transition them to remote education. She thanked the
ASDN team Kathy Blanc, Sam Jordan, Kelly Tonsmeire, and Ceann
Murphy for working for a month straight to support educators
across Alaska. She said that the mission of ASDN is to improve
student achievement by providing research-based, online learning
and face-to-face professional development programs for Alaska's
teachers and school administrators; it has been doing this for
nearly 40 years.
DR. PARADY, referencing slide 7, showed an example of the
services that have been provided to Alaska educators since the
coronavirus. She said that it is worth noting that 42 of
Alaska's 54 districts have participated. She expressed pride in
the work, which focused on core content to continue to provide
students what they need in this remote environment.
3:13:02 PM
DR. PARADY, referencing slide 8, showed an example of offerings
from ASDN in the current week. She explained that the offerings
are different every week, and she noted that ASDN is cognizant
of the disparity in Alaska regarding connectivity, bandwidth,
and infrastructure, and it is focused on how to help teachers
without Internet access support their students. She said that
these classes have been incredibly popular, because so many of
Alaska's school districts that are off the road system and
without connectivity are using paper and packets. She said ASDN
partnered with NEA-Alaska to conduct a statewide needs
assessment to determine what teachers' needs are before courses
are developed; those needs were targeted, and the results can be
seen on the slide.
DR. PARADY, referencing slide 9, pointed out some samples of
feedback that have been received, and she said that all the
feedback received has been incredibly positive. She reiterated
that she is proud so many people are working hard to make this
all work for Alaska's students. She expressed that she thinks
it is important to make sure that the superintendents have the
opportunity to share with the committee a boots-on-the-ground
perspective of their transition to remote learning, the costs
being incurred, the challenges being faced, and the successes
that they have had. She stated that she would like to turn the
presentation over to Dr. Karen Gaborik, Superintendent,
Fairbanks North Star Borough School District; Dan Walker,
Superintendent, Lower Kuskokwim School District; and Dr. Deena
Bishop, Superintendent, Anchorage School District.
3:15:08 PM
KAREN GABORIK, PhD, Superintendent, Fairbanks North Star Borough
School District, testified during the PowerPoint presentation on
Education Budget, Instruction, and Staffing. She stated that it
was a pleasure to be there to share how Fairbanks has responded
to school closure during COVID-19 and to highlight some of the
efforts and challenges as it shifts to a remote learning model.
She said that the first two weeks of school closures, which were
non-student-contact days, were utilized to prepare. She
explained that using an online tool that was created by the
district's team, school leaders and staff conducted a needs
assessment with each family in the district to determine their
status at that time. She said that several questions were asked
about: the effectiveness of the district's communication and
families' ability to access it; awareness of and access to
resources on the district website; personal belongings of
students and medications at the schools; whether supplies were
needed to participate in engagement activities; whether
assistance was needed with snack or meals at home; Internet
connectivity; and access to devices. She said that the needs
assessment has served as the foundation for the response efforts
in the district throughout this whole event.
DR. GABORIK stated that teachers focused initially on providing
engagement activities for students and preparing for the
transition to remote instruction. She said that in her district
remote instruction covers the full gamut from no-tech paper and
pencil options, to high-tech online options. She commented that
educators had to get up to speed very quickly with platforms
like Zoom, Google Suites, and a multitude of other digital
tools. She said that naturally, the teachers who had been
effectively integrating technology already were able to make the
transition with much more ease than others, so a full range of
support had to be provided to teachers to help with that.
DR. GABORIK stated that when the closure was extended to May 1,
the school district began student device deployment; its target
was to put 3,000 Chromebooks in the hands of students. She said
that the priority was seniors, as the district wants to ensure
that they graduate this spring. She stated that after that
students then rose to the top of the list based on the needs
assessment. She pointed out that Fairbanks is not currently a
one-to-one district, but one silver lining in all of this will
be a renewed commitment on the district's part in terms of
resources, to ensure that every student in the district has a
device, and she said the district would actively look at
developing lease options so kids can take the devices home and
have them available at all times. She stated that additionally,
the district has begun to provide meals to kids across the
community and there are two tiers - morning and afternoon - with
approximately 45 drop off sites across the borough, including
schools, local businesses, and agencies. To date, almost 94,000
meals have been delivered to students.
DR. GABORIK stated that her district's team of educators have
curated high quality social and emotional learning resources and
provided them on the website, through regular newsletters and
personal contacts with families. She said that telephone
counseling ("telecounseling") was deployed so that school
counselors could continue to do their general and academic
support work with students. She said her district is very
fortunate to be a recipient of the Alaska Rises Grant, and it is
engaging in teletherapy services to students to address mental
health needs as appropriate to that grant. She remarked that
her district's social services managers have provided a critical
link for high-risk families, and they are working hard to keep
those families connected with community resources. She stated
that one of the "heavy lifts" included the development of
telework agreements for all employees, which was new to the
district; in partnership with unions, the district was able to
create agreements that have been seamlessly deployed across the
organization. She said that in addition to working from home,
which most of the district's employees are currently doing,
there are some staff onsite, and to protect the health of these
onsite employees, some crews, such as those in nutrition
services and facilities maintenance, have split their shifts so
that if an employee becomes ill with COVID-19, an attempt can be
made to mitigate the impact.
DR. GABORIK stated that another heavy lift was developing a
grading policy that was grounded in equity and a commitment to
do no harm to students. She said that the district looked at
best practices that were emerging around the country and put
into place guidelines that focus on providing learning
activities and feedback to students. She remarked that priority
was once again given to seniors who needed to improve third
quarter grades in order to graduate. She stated that the
district tried to be very family friendly and cognizant of the
limitations of family to support children at home. She remarked
that the announcement that schools would remain closed for the
rest of the school year put a damper on everyone's spirits and a
noticeable dip in energy could be seen the week after that. She
expressed that she thinks in general people were experiencing
emotional and physical fatigue, and she said it has been
important to shift from "sprint mode, to marathon mode" to
encourage staff to take care of themselves and make sure they
are getting a break.
DR. GABORIK stated that there are hundreds of amazing stories of
students and staff creating meaningful connections and utilizing
all the resources available. There are also heartbreaking
pieces to this as well, and she said she thinks those parts of
the story should not be glossed over. She stated that this
year's seniors and their families are genuinely mourning the
loss of traditional graduation ceremonies. She said that in
Fairbanks it has been found that while principals truly want to
create alternative events that are fun and celebratory, it is a
challenge to do so with limited people who would normally be
available to assist. She stated that her commitment has been to
adhere to the advisories and mandates from the state and with
only two and a half weeks left, decisions had to be made, so she
gave directions to schools the previous week that there would be
no gatherings of any type for graduations. She pointed out that
the governor's message the day before confirmed this for the
district. She stated that principals are working on ways to
create remote graduation events to celebrate the students.
DR. GABORIK stated that the kids she worries about most are the
at-risk students, who have unfortunately dropped off the radar.
She said that there have been multiple outreach efforts, home
visits, and attempts to connect with families. She said that it
is known that for some students the safest, warmest, and
healthiest part of their day is at school, and they have not had
that. She expressed that she is very concerned for these
students, and if the schools reopen in August, they will have
been off the school grid for five months. She said that she
anticipates the district will need to significantly ramp up its
social and emotional and trauma informed supports for these kids
when they come back to schools. She stated that with every
student it is anticipated that there will be some level of a
learning gap, but for the at-risk students this will involve so
much more than just academics.
DR. GABORIK stated that another thing to remember in all of this
is that the staff have been stressed as well. She explained
that educators do not function in a bubble, and all the social
and economic stressors in the community are impacting them also;
they have their own children to support, spouses who are out of
work, and family members who are immune compromised. She added
that some of the staff themselves are immune compromised. She
stated that the district has been working hard to extend self-
care and resilience resources to the staff during this time and
to reach out to them as frequently as it is reaching out to
students and families.
DR. GABORIK stated that looking ahead she is worried about
education funding for fiscal year 2022 (FY 22). She said that
not only is the price of oil a concern, but the impact of loss
of jobs on community population and, ultimately, student
enrollment in the long term, has her worried. She said that she
personally wonders whether, once the travel bans are lifted,
people will choose to stay in Fairbanks or Alaska, especially if
there has been irreparable damage to their employment
opportunities or they feel the need to get closer to family
support networks out of state. She summarized that COVID-19 has
changed the perspective on school, work, and life in general.
She said there are moments of brilliance and inspiration, as
well as moments of heartbreak and fatigue. She stated that
everyone is finding their way to figuring it out, and she
expressed that she truly appreciates the House and Senate
Education Standing Committees' interest in hearing from
superintendents across the state.
3:23:11 PM
CHAIR STEVENS commented that he appreciates Dr. Gaborik's
comments and thoughts about not glossing over the issues. He
expressed that he thinks she did a good job of informing the
committee on how bad things are looking, and he understands her
concern about funding in the future. He said that his main
concern is young people graduating this year without meeting
academic standards, thus going off to college without really
being ready for it. He said he is concerned also about the
students Dr. Gaborik had mentioned, who are dropping out. He
asked Dr. Gaborik whether she could give the committee an idea
on how many students in her district have been lost through this
process, be it through parental involvement or other causes.
DR. GABORIK answered that she would speak to the seniors
specifically. She said there is always an intersession in June
to help the seniors who "just didn't make it," and she said the
number of students who are at risk have doubled. She said that
for some students, the online environment does not work, and she
expressed that she thinks everyone is beginning to appreciate
that there need to be several options for students. For some,
in-person [instruction] is what they need and what works, and to
expect them to be effective learners remotely is a challenge.
She commented that she does not have numbers on how many kids
have dropped off the radar, but she is hearing from the social
service managers that there have been students "hanging on by a
thread," and now "they're just not sure that thread even
exists." She said that these would be important numbers to
track after this is all over.
CHAIR STEVENS remarked that it is a shocking statement that at-
risk students have pretty much doubled, and he said it would be
interesting to know what that number is in other districts as
well.
3:25:28 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY remarked that Dr. Gaborik had prepared a document
to send to [the House Education & Early Development
Subcommittee] about what the loss of $30 million in one-time
funding would mean for her district, and she said that Dr.
Gaborik talked about class size being conducive to learning,
instructional aids, and a reduction in school activities. She
expressed that she assumes this is going to become a reality for
the district now.
3:26:00 PM
DR. GABORIK replied that it has been interesting to track that
conversation. She said that she has more questions for DEED,
and she appreciates the questions from the legislators, because
it helps bring some clarity to how the money can be used. She
commented that the need is high, Fairbanks has a $3 million hole
from the vetoes, although she said she is still not clear as to
what degree the district can fill that hole. She stated that
she thinks summer programs and supplemental academics in the
coming fall are going to be key for Fairbanks, which would be
new services on top of cuts. She explained that sanitation
training and supplies, planning for long-term closures, and
educational technology will be huge for Fairbanks, as well. She
said that someone had commented that rural areas are impacted,
but even in a "community down the road system," there is a wide
variety of connectivity for families. She said that these needs
will have to be addressed. She stated that the equity gap in
all of this has become glaringly clear, much of which has to do
with connectivity and access.
3:27:20 PM
DANIEL WALKER, Superintendent, Lower Kuskokwim School District,
testified during the PowerPoint presentation on Education
Budget, Instruction, and Staffing. He stated that the last five
weeks had been an unprecedented time for everyone, and he said
that the breadth of new challenges seems to be unending. He
expressed that the level of stress that teachers are
experiencing is unlike anything he has seen in his 28 years in
the Lower Kuskokwim School District. He stated that most of the
anxiety is around the uncertainty of the future and ranges from
how to support students in this new learning paradigm, whether
schools still will be in this mode of operating in the fall, and
how to ensure quality learning for students. He said that this
is further complicated by teachers' anxiety over their own
personal safety and wellbeing. He commented that one frequently
asked question is whether teachers will be able to leave
villages for summer break to visit family and take care of their
own personal healthcare needs, whether they will be able to
return in August, and what this will look like in terms of
quarantine needs.
MR. WALKER stated that in terms of education delivery, as can be
imagined, the quality of education in rural Alaska is partially
determined by access to the Internet, and most of the families
in the communities do not have the luxury of basic Internet
service outside of their personal cell phones. He said that
without access to the Internet, teachers must think of creative
ways to deliver instruction that is engaging and allows for
creativity for the students. He stated that because of the lack
of Internet, the use of the Florida Virtual School is simply not
an option for his district outside of the school walls. He said
that as his district has worked through logistics and has
challenged teachers to move from packets of work delivered to
home to more project based approaches that allow for hands on
and meaningful experiences supported by the teacher through
phone calls, text messages, pictures, and so forth. He stated
that where available, teachers are holding Zoom calls with
students and their parents. He expressed that he is
continuously amazed by the staff and their desire to provide
quality experiences for the district's students.
MR. WALKER reiterated that the Lower Kuskokwim School District
does not have the capability to use the Internet to a high
degree for instruction outside the school walls; while some
infrastructure exists, it is financially out of the reach of
most families. He said that the district is looking toward the
future in determining what technologies might be utilized to
provide access to rich multimedia content that does not require
direct access to the Internet. He stated that current e-rate
rules prohibit the district from extending its school Internet
connections to students in their homes; however, the district is
looking at technologies that would allow for the school networks
to be extended across communities to provide access to media
content and caching service, but without direct access to the
Internet. This would allow for student issued devices to access
a special network from students' homes to access the content.
He expressed that in these uncertain times it is more important
than ever to communicate on a regular basis, and the district is
meeting with its 28 principals 3 times per week via Zoom calls
and doing district-wide Zoom calls with all staff periodically
to update them with the latest information. He pointed out that
there are routinely more than 400 staff members on these
district-wide calls. He stated that it is important that
students continue to be fed through food service during this
time of uncertainty, and the district is providing meals to
students seven days a week and to the elders five days a week
and has served approximately 64,000 breakfasts and 67,000
lunches to date.
3:31:36 PM
MR. WALKER stated that there are several other logistical
challenges being addressed, including travel restrictions that
have limited the ability of itinerants to provide services in a
variety of areas. As an example, he said that one community had
several tragedies involving students, and schools not being open
and social workers not being able to provide in-person
counseling has made it difficult to meet the social and
emotional needs of students. He said that the district
continues to provide teletherapy to students in these
situations, but as can be imagined, it is not ideal. He stated
that many staff are taking advantage of the district's employee
assistance program, seeking counseling to deal with the
emotional stress of the pandemic. He said the facilities staff
are struggling to provide the same level of service to remote
communities, due to the travel restrictions in some villages.
He pointed out that a generator went down in a village the past
week, and the needed part had to be transported to the edge of
the village by snow machine and sled and wait for local staff to
pick it up, as the people delivering it were not allowed to
enter the village. He said that additionally, there are several
construction projects ongoing, and village communities are not
allowing contractors to come to the villages to work, which will
cause delays and cost overruns. He stated that the district is
working with the Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corporation to make some
of its facilities available, should there be a surge in COVID-19
positive patients in Bethel. He summarized that overall the
district is working through these challenges and moving forward,
and like Dr. Gaborik had said, many of the same challenges being
experienced across the state in addition to the ones he
mentioned, including graduation and meeting the mental health
needs of students, is a challenge that he thinks they are all
worried about in the long term.
3:33:56 PM
CHAIR STEVENS remarked that he appreciated Mr. Walker's comments
and thoughts on the stress levels that everyone is facing.
3:34:25 PM
DEENA BISHOP, PhD, Superintendent, Anchorage School District,
co-offered a PowerPoint presentation on Education Budget,
Instruction, and Staffing. She stated that she would be
presenting distance learning data, and she said she and the
Anchorage School Board appreciate being asked to share the
information. She stated that she would be sharing surveys from
teachers on their thoughts and perceptions on the three weeks
they have been fully engaged in distance learning, as well as
the actual student data from electronic systems that captured
it. She shared that the information she would be presenting has
some limitations, as it does not reflect the paper packets that
have gone home to nearly 6,000 people this week. Some of those
packets were for families that do not have connectivity or
devices; however, she said that the district has had additional
requests for paper packets: "something that a child could do at
a table without a parent looking at a computer." She added that
this data also does not account for long-term projects, such as
online learning projects that are tracked based on students
logging in during the week. She said that the Anchorage School
District has distributed over 9,000 Chromebooks and 940
hotspots, with 1,300 more to be dispersed, and it has worked
with partners in MTA Solutions, Alaska Communications (ACS), GCI
Communication Corp, AT&T, and Verizon for the Internet.
3:36:30 PM
DR. BISHOP, referencing slide 14 of the PowerPoint presentation,
stated that the student remote learning engagement survey was
asked teachers, the people on the front lines, their perceptions
of student engagement in their classes. She noted that this
data was "hot off the press." She noted that of the 3,227 in
the district, 73 percent of elementary school teachers
responded, [61 percent of middle school teachers responded], and
55 percent of high school teachers responded. Referencing slide
16, she said that the overall level of student engagement -
shown on the chart from not engaged to very engaged - is a
classic bell curve, with the little engaged and moderately
engaged being what teachers are finding to be the most common.
When surveyed, 46 percent of teachers felt that their students
were moderately engaged.
DR. BISHOP, referencing slide 17, stated that there is an
interest in equity regarding educating all students. The
Anchorage School District has a motto regarding the students it
educates, which is that "all means all." She stated that there
is a direct inverse relationship between Title and Non-Title
schools with the center of the bell curve in the engagement.
DR. BISHOP, referencing slide 18, stated that this chart looks a
little busier, and at the top it asks, "To what degree do the
following barriers affect your ability to support the remote
learning needs of your students?" She said that this was a
question to individual teachers in the community, who responded
that they had no difficulty in using the online communication
platform or caring for or teaching their own children at home
while teaching their students. The teachers also had no problem
with bandwidth or Internet access in their homes. She said that
there were some other challenges. She explained that this data
is taken to plan for the kinds of support needed for teachers
for the next week and the future. She stated that in order to
create this program on the fly, the district wanted to
understand what the needs are of the people doing the work.
3:39:17 PM
DR. BISHOP, referencing slide 19, stated that the data she
mentioned previously can be juxtaposed with the data pulled from
the online programs being used for students in middle and high
schools to engage in the content. She explained that platforms
such as Canvas and Zoom are used to connect with students and
have the student learning system, but the actual content is
through Apex Learning, which is another high-evidence online
learning program. She stated that in the research for the
Florida Virtual School online learning, Apex Learning is the
second from the top, and it is used in her district. She
pointed out that the chart on slide 19 shows the number of
students enrolled in Ninth through Twelfth Grades, the
percentage logged in, and the percentage of submitted
assignments. She said that this data is compared to other urban
school districts. She remarked that Anchorage is in the Council
of Great City Schools, and Co-Chair Drummond was a member of
that as well when she was on the Anchorage School Board. Dr.
Bishop said that this is the organization that represents the
top enrolled school districts in the nation, so the data in
Anchorage is more favorable than other urban areas. She stated
that the third week of education showed a significant drop in
the number of students logging in and the number of assignments
submitted. She said that the limitations are that some of the
courses do not need the students to log in every day or every
week; they are longer term with just a choice to log in during
office hours. She stated that all the teachers in the Anchorage
School District have office hours for students.
DR. BISHOP, referencing slide 20, stated that equity has
challenged the board and administration to "keep an eye on the
all," and to the district's surprise, of the kids logging in
there was not a big "delta" among any of the groups and there
was about the same amount of engagement from all the student
groups, including the economically disadvantaged. She expressed
that she was happy with the data so far, even though she wished
there were more students online.
DR. BISHOP, referencing slide 21, stated that the middle school
data was broken up between students that are "on straight Apex
and then using a Canvas platform." She pointed out the middle
school data in the same format as the other slide. She said
that it is still early; there are only two data points, which do
not create a trend, but the district is keeping a close eye on
it. She said the district continues to query what it should
expect. She said the city is hunkered down, the state is
hunkered down, there is limited access, families are in their
homes, and there is stress in communities and homes; therefore,
the district is trying to engage with the data in its learning
of the system and discover the appropriate expectations for what
is doable and possible.
3:42:56 PM
DR. BISHOP, referencing slide 22 of the PowerPoint presentation,
pointed out the middle school engagement in Canvas, which is
more social studies and science, and in Apex, which is English
and math. Referencing slide 23, she said that the slide
demonstrates the same thing about middle school student groups,
and again the Anchorage School District has found that the
engagement of the different races and ethnicities, as well as
students represented in different categories such as Title, have
all been very comparable to each other. She stated that this
leads to more questions.
DR. BISHOP referenced slide 24, which spotlights English
language, Indian, migrant, and special education learners. She
said that some of the special education students are engaged in
the general curriculum with support, while others are on
alternate assignments, and it was difficult to gauge due to the
differences there. She reiterated that she wants to be
transparent and open and share data with the committee that is
hot off the press. She said there is a struggle with
expectation, but the world is in a pandemic, so that has to be
taken into account to determine what needs to be done to bring
hope to the communities, to bring routine to children and
families, and to assure them that the district is there for
them. She said that the district does its best, although it is
difficult to determine what the needs will be in the future.
She stated that the district knows through the data that a
significant input will need to be made into summer learning to
reengage students who have not been engaged.
DR. BISHOP, regarding finances, said, "We don't know what we
don't know." She explained that the largest expense is going to
be making up the learning that was lost. She related that the
district budgeted for food and computers for students, as well
as items budgeted in the normal, everyday running of the school
district. She added that there are areas where school districts
are reserving money by not using substitutes, energy, and other
things like that, and that money can be redistributed for
present needs. She said that an unknown is the summer school
issue and how there will be an "additive program" so that the
children of Anchorage and all Alaska "can get back up on their
feet and continue in the learning trajectory to meet the student
outcome," which she emphasized is the main reason why public
education exists.
3:45:55 PM
CHAIR STEVENS remarked that he appreciates Dr. Bishop providing
the committee with such up-to-date information. Referencing
slide 19 of the PowerPoint presentation, he remarked that the
submission of assignments seems to be almost half from Ninth
through Twelfth Grades, and he asked Dr. Bishop what conclusions
she draws from that.
DR. BISHOP answered that the data was just received the day
before, and the district is looking at it. She said the
district understands that "the excitement and newness of
something got folks out there and now we're falling into
routine." She said that a lot of these courses are not designed
for students to log in everyday with their teachers to complete
them, and some of what has been shared by students and teachers
is that they log in, download the assignment, do the assignment,
and then upload and submit them. She remarked that the district
had looked at the make-up of the students and the courses and
found that there is not a disparity among the different
ethnicities and races. She said that the next step that the
board charged the district with after seeing this data the night
before, was to look at where these students are in their schools
and what the differences and similarities are of those who are
logging in and completing [assignments] versus those who are
not. She added that the next goal the district has for itself
is to use a multi-tiered system of support, which she said
addresses instruction in different levels; students in tier one
are logging in and doing fine at this pace, but added support
needs to be there for students who are not logging in, and the
district is trying to figure out what it can do and how to do it
with distance education. She reiterated that the district is
meeting people where they are, and the needs are vast. She said
that she has communications from some families that they want
more rigor and accountability and from other families that they
cannot take on even one more thing, and the vast differences are
difficult.
3:48:24 PM
CHAIR STEVENS thanked Dr. Bishop and remarked that he looked
forward to hearing from her in the future on how things have
developed. He expressed concern that this could be a lost year
for so many of Alaska's young people, and he said that he knows
Dr. Bishop is doing her best to make sure that doesn't happen.
3:48:47 PM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND remarked that this must be enormously
stressful, and she said that she appreciates all the work that
Dr. Bishop and her "thousands" of staff are doing to approach
normalcy in Anchorage. She expressed that she has concerns
about the loss of the $30 million one-time funding and the
resulting loss of local matching funds to affected districts.
She remarked that this is all so new she has no idea how the
CARES Act funding will intersect with that funding space, and
she asked Dr. Bishop whether she has any thoughts on that. She
remarked that the $30 million that was outside the formula has
been vetoed, and the funding from the CARES Act will be
considerably more for the Anchorage School District, but overall
for the whole state, it will only be approximately $8 million
more than the $30 million would have provided. She said it
sounds like, as Mr. Wooten had said, school budgets are
basically out the window and districts are scrambling as fast
they can to provide services and keep up with the needs of
students and are not worrying about the budget impact at this
point.
3:50:21 PM
DR. BISHOP replied that this was a great question. She said the
Anchorage School District and Anchorage School Board voted on a
budget early on that did not include the $30 million. She said
the Anchorage School District made some significant adjustments
to its program, specifically to health education, by increasing
the pupil/teacher ratio (PTR) at high schools, eliminating some
positions, and redesigning its gifted program to make up an
approximately $20 million reduction; the district was able to
make up $14 million dollars outside the classrooms but had to
reduce $6 million inside of them. She stated that the
legislature supporting the $30 million brought $8 million to
Anchorage, which might seem large compared to other school
districts, but is relative because Anchorage has approximately
40 percent of the students in the state. She said there would
have been $2 million in a local match on top of that, and
because there is a high percentage of poverty in Anchorage and
many students, it is receiving an additional $2 million that was
not expected.
DR. BISHOP stated that the school board did make some
adjustments to help teachers in bringing them back, as well as
the gifted, essentially "kicking the can down the road," and it
will have to double up on reductions in the future, because this
is one-time money. She said that this is the biggest issue, and
there is a long road ahead. She said that right now in the
process, there are some savings being made because of things she
had mentioned. She said that the district didn't lose a year,
only nine weeks, but [this time lost] took a toll more on the
social and emotional side of normalcy and stress. She said that
for the most at-risk learners, or most unrepresented learners,
additional inputs will be needed, and summer school, early
learning, and pre-K is where it matters the most. She expressed
that she fears that the district will have to expend money to
summer school or other aspects added to the school year, to
compensate for lost time and learning.
3:53:26 PM
CHAIR STEVENS thanked the Superintendents Gaborik, Walker,
Bishop and Dr. Parady and said the presentation was quite
enlightening for everyone. He said he looked forward to hearing
from them as they move down the path in the coming months.
^PRESENTATION: UA COVID-19 Update: Impact & Response
PRESENTATION: UA COVID-19 Update: Impact & Response
3:53:48 PM
CHAIR STEVENS announced that the final order of business would
be the presentation on UA COVID-19 Update: Impact & Response.
3:54:07 PM
JIM JOHNSEN, PhD, President, University of Alaska, offered a
PowerPoint presentation, titled "UA COVID-19 Update: Impact &
Response" [hard copy included in the committee packet]. He
stated that he appreciated the last hour, hearing from other
education leaders in Alaska and their challenges, and he said he
was inspired by the hard work and commitment that they are
delivering every day. He said that it is an example of the
resilience of Alaskans, which is what he would be talking about.
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 2 of the PowerPoint presentation,
stated that he would give an overview of the levels of
commitment that the University of Alaska (UA) is making to its
mission of higher education in Alaska, through support for
mitigation efforts, communities, and education in general. He
said that UA is experiencing very negative effects of the COVID-
19 virus, and he would talk about those in terms of expenses and
projected revenue declines. He stated that he would also talk
on what is headed the university's way regarding its fiscal
picture, which involves state funding cuts since 2014. He said
that he would then speak to how UA is moving forward, and he
noted that it was great to hear from his colleagues as to how
leadership is happening in the schools across Alaska. He stated
that the UA Board of Regents is meeting weekly to deal with this
specific issue. The university system has a management team,
and each of the three universities have this system as well,
which is linked with the state for close communication and
cooperation in this response.
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 3, stated that in terms of
mitigation response, UA's top priority is the health and safety
of the students and employees. He said that the university was
in spring break and decided to extend it another week, closed
the campuses, and asked students not to come back or find an
alternative if they were living in a student residence. He said
that there were a small number of students from rural Alaska -
international students and some others - who were permitted to
stay on campus as an exception. He stated that UA transitioned
to remote program delivery on March 23, most of which is online;
however, some of it is over the telephone. He said that
thousands of courses were transitioned in a week's period.
DR. JOHNSEN stated that most UA faculty and staff are working
from home; the faculty is providing distance delivery and the
staff is performing their regular jobs. He said that on-campus
events were cancelled, even commencements, which he said was a
sad but necessary thing to do. He stated that access to
facilities is highly restricted and only essential use is
allowed, including preparation of online materials, and research
that needs to continue. He said that additionally, UA operates
critical facilities such as police, heat, and power plants that
need to continue, and social distancing and other hygiene
measures are being taken. He commented that critical research
needs to continue, and UA was able to acquire some exemptions
from several of the governor's health mandates, consideration
for which he expressed appreciation to the governor and his
team. He said that UA is constantly enforcing very strict
monitoring rules, cleaning practices, and distance protocols.
He noted that UA is using the Internet extensively and has a
website for faculty, students, and staff that summarizes how to
learn, work, and teach most effectively.
3:59:19 PM
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 4, stated that in terms of UA's
commitment to communities, it is deploying all available
capacity, brainpower, and resources to communities and the
state, including expertise in epidemiology and economics, as
well as [distribution of] medical supplies and personal
protective equipment (PPE). He clarified that he had just
received approval from Commissioner Crum the previous evening to
transfer hand sanitizer and other PPE UA has manufactured in its
labs and campuses to communities. He stated that UA can work
with the state and the Board of Nursing to graduate senior
nurses early, and they now have interim certification to "get
out there and into the fight" to help take care of Alaskans who
need care. He said that the dorms have been made available to
first responders and there are facilities use agreements in
place with numerous communities across the state. He stated
that the Alaska Airlines Center, [on the University of Alaska
Anchorage campus], is now an alternative-care site for the
COVID-19 crisis. He remarked that UA is also focused on "coming
out of this" and on economic development for the state, and the
center for economic development, business enterprise institute,
and small business development center are all working hard on
this. He said there is a lot of hard work going on in support
of the communities.
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 5, stated that in terms of
education more generally, UA has converted thousands of classes
to alternative modes and is in communication with Commissioner
Johnson on how to support K-12 teachers with professional
development for online courses and programs going forward. He
said that UA is continuing its virtual middle college, for
college-ready high school students across the state and
conducting research on the transition from in-person to
alternative modes of education. He stated that now more than
ever there needs to be a focus on stepping up and growing UA's
teachers, for several reasons already stated throughout the
afternoon. He noted that the day before, UA had a very
constructive meeting with the heads of the Alaska Native Claims
Settlement Act (ANCSA) Regional Corporation Education Foundation
and is working closely with the funders and supporters of rural
and Alaska Native students to do the best for their access and
retention in academic programs during these tough times.
4:02:14 PM
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 6, mentioned financial impacts
and stated that there is no question that UA is getting hit. He
said UA has had to help its students get off campus and provided
support for travel, housing, and other basic living expenses.
He remarked that it has also set up private donation funds, and
people across Alaska have been very generous in supporting
students' needs. He said that some students are kept on campus,
and those who are low income or have other specific needs are
being taken supported. He stated that UA has expanded payroll
benefits to take care of, which is a burden it bears as an
employer. He pointed out that it is buying Chromebooks and
Mifis and getting them to students, faculty, and staff across
the state. He expressed appreciation for the cooperation of the
Internet service providers in Alaska and said they have really
stepped up to help bring down the cost of distance delivery. He
added that there have been increased costs for security,
cleaning, and other steps that have been taken.
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 7, stated that the bigger
challenge is the impact on revenue. He remarked that UA does
not know exactly what these are, which is why the slide shows a
range, and he expressed that UA is very concerned about impacts
on revenue. He stated that UA earns a lot of money from
investments and subsidizes operations from investment income,
which is obviously down. He said that if enrollment continues
to decline as a result of the pandemic, tuition and fee revenues
will decline. If students are not living in UA dorms, going to
hockey games, buying books or food, or parking vehicles on
campuses, auxiliary income will decline. He stated that if
research is delayed, research revenues decline and indirect cost
recovery declines, and he said that there are compelling needs
for philanthropy in Alaska and across the country, and UA
anticipates some softening in philanthropic giving. He said
that UA's estimate at this point for the coming year is between
$35 million and $40 million in costs and foregone revenues.
4:04:50 PM
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 8, stated that Congress has
passed statutes that provide some assistance to higher
education, and $7.9 million is coming to UA directly, via a
formula; $3.9 million of which is for students and has already
been received, and UA is in the process of designing how it gets
distributed to students. He said that the other $3.9 million
will go directly to UA institutions; it has yet to see money but
anticipates it will arrive in the next couple of weeks.
Additionally, Congress appropriated $6.5 million dollars into an
Emergency Education Relief Fund that is discretionary with the
governor, to fund any education needs, whether they be at UA,
the schools, or other post-secondary institutions in the state.
He stated that UA is working with the governor's office on that
and has indicated a strong interest in receiving some portion of
those funds.
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 9, remarked that the slide
depicts the decline in funding of the state's Unrestricted
General Fund (UGF); the peak was in FY 14, and there was a
downward slide beginning in FY 15 where there were substantial
year-over-year reductions with a cumulative impact of $490
million. He stated that the current three-year compact
agreement has a $70 million reduction, so there is a serious
combination of continuing base budget reductions with
increasingly less ability to absorb the reductions, and COVID-19
laid on top of that. He said that UA is back in Washington,
D.C., advocating for additional federal stimulus funds, directly
with its delegation and in conjunction with higher education
associations. He pointed out that two big ideas have bubbled up
as areas of possibility, one of which is to refinance debt at
zero or low interest, which would bring down the annual service
cost of debt to free up resources to offset other reductions or
to take care of operating expenses. A second option would be to
do two things to the e-rate program: to expand its scope to
include post-secondary institutions, which as of now it includes
only primary and secondary; and to "plus out" the appropriation
for it, so that it is not in a zero-sum competition with the
schools across the state who benefit from this important
program.
4:07:57 PM
DR. JOHNSEN, referencing slide 11, remarked that looking ahead,
UA continues to believe that education is critical for Alaska's
economic recovery, and it is an essential partner with the
state, communities, and businesses in the effort. He expressed
that it is going to be a difficult time ahead, and said that UA
is open this week for enrollment for classes in the fall,
keeping a close eye on enrollments and spending small
discretionary pots focused on recruitment, marketing, and
retention of students, and the university is at this point
delaying the decision as to whether it will be delivering
classes primarily in-person in the fall or via distance online.
He stated that it is the goal to offer as much as it can in-
person in the fall, but it will be prepared to offer mostly
online if that is what conditions require. He said that UA
students and faculty want this decision made as soon as
possible, and it will make the decision as quickly as it can,
given the conditions on the ground, and he expressed that UA is
very hopeful that as plans come forward on opening up, it will
be able to open up, as well. Nevertheless, UA will be prepared
to offer its full curriculum in the fall. He noted that
continued uncertainty is likely to contribute to enrollment
challenges, and although the direction and focus UA has on
meeting its mission will help, he expects some challenges on the
enrollment front this coming year.
DR. JOHNSEN stated that UA will need to cut costs because of the
state budget cuts, but he said that he thinks there will need to
be other further reductions. He said that it is in the planning
process for furloughs of employees in FY 21 and, after several
years of no compensation increases, modest compensation
adjustments that were put into the budget will need to be
reconsidered. He stated that there are administrative and
academic program reviews focused on trying to get $45 million of
cuts out of the UGF in FY 21 and FY 22, which is a major
process; UA has already identified close to 50 different
academic degree programs for discontinuation and reduction, and
the academic and student affairs committee has met, and those
selections are moving forward for a board decision in June.
Additionally, he said there are extensive administrative
reductions, consolidations, and other steps underway.
DR. JOHNSEN thanked the committee for the opportunity to
present. He stated that not everything is negative and like its
colleagues, UA is doing its best to position itself to come out
of the pandemic strong. He remarked that UA will be smaller
with the budget reductions, but he said that he thinks it will
be more focused on its goals of economic development, research,
workforce development, educational attainment and equity, and
cost effectiveness.
4:11:54 PM
CHAIR STEVENS expressed his appreciation for the comprehensive
look at UA, and he expressed that there was concern from the
committee for what happens to the university with the
combination of reductions in budgets plus COVID-19. He asked
Dr. Johnsen whether he has any reflection on what is happening
to college and university education around the country.
4:12:30 PM
DR. JOHNSEN replied that "it is all over the map," because there
is great variance. Small, low enrollment, private liberal arts
colleges with small endowments are suffering dramatically
because they do not have the cash capacity to deal with these
kinds of reductions. He said that he was on a panel a couple of
weeks ago with the head of the regional institutional
accrediting body for the Northeast, who was describing the
number of colleges closing and the number of colleges merging in
that area. He remarked that Vermont is a prime example, and
there is "a lot of that." He stated that the concern is even at
the table of "the big ones." He explained that he was on a
panel recently with the University of California, Berkeley;
Michigan State University; Ohio State University; the University
of Georgia; and many other big universities, and they are very
concerned about enrollment impacts, [lost] revenue from
athletics, research, graduate students and graduate training,
and the future of the faculty for the long term with the
interruption of training future faculty members. He remarked
that there is a high level of concern across the country as this
issue is addressed. He stated that there is a tremendous amount
of communication and collaboration happening, and universities
are learning from each other going forward and paying close
attention to the experiences of other institutions.
CHAIR STEVENS remarked that he appreciated Dr. Johnsen's
positive comments about seizing opportunities to take care of
teachers and nurses. He said that it seems likely that kids
will not want to leave their homes, and "we have that
advantage"; therefore, he encouraged Dr. Johnsen in his
marketing to students.
DR. JOHNSEN responded that UA would be focusing on marketing.
He said typically when unemployment rates increase, enrollment
increases, and although he was not certain that this would take
place during the COVID-19 recession, such a phenomenon could be
a "silver lining to a dark cloud." He said that UA has
developed over the years some very strong, nationally
competitive, high quality online programs, and there is the
possibility that these programs can be marketed nationally and
internationally, based on areas of unique expertise developed
over the years. He summarized that these were some upsides that
UA will hopefully be able to invest, in spite of cutting
everywhere else, to position itself to grow in the future.
4:16:05 PM
CO-CHAIR STORY remarked that she did not know how much of the
discussion Dr. Johnsen heard earlier, but there were some
questions about the funding of the consortium library program
that had been vetoed from the DEED budget, and it was thought
that the reason it was vetoed was because this was an expansion
of the program, and she asked Dr. Johnsen whether this is an
expansion of the program, from his understanding, or this would
fund the interlibrary loan program in the State of Alaska.
DR. JOHNSEN offered his understanding that a portion of the
funding that DEED received for this program is what was used to
purchase services from UA in the amount of approximately
$200,000. He stated that this does create an issue, because
those funds are used to provide those services. He said that UA
is looking at the situation to evaluate the impact of the veto
in DEED and its inability to purchase those services from UA as
a result. He stated that he could not go into any more detail
at this point because it is a developing situation, but it is a
concern.
4:17:35 PM
CHAIR STEVENS stated that all the testimony heard in the meeting
was extremely valuable, and there would probably need to be more
meetings in the future to explore the details of all the issues
that were presented. He reiterated that it is impressive and
inspiring to hear what everyone is doing during this time.
4:18:07 PM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committees, the joint
meeting of the House and Senate Education Standing Committees
was adjourned at 4:18 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| 4.22.20 AASB.pdf |
HEDC 4/22/2020 1:00:00 PM |
|
| 4.22.20 UA COVID.pdf |
HEDC 4/22/2020 1:00:00 PM |
|
| 4.22.20 DEED Coronavirus Update.pdf |
HEDC 4/22/2020 1:00:00 PM |
|
| DEED Contract with FLVS.pdf |
HEDC 4/22/2020 1:00:00 PM |
|
| 4.22.20 ASCA.pdf |
HEDC 4/22/2020 1:00:00 PM |
|
| 4.22.20 DEED COVID-19 CARES Act Allocation Memo.pdf |
HEDC 4/22/2020 1:00:00 PM |
|
| 4.22.20 CARES Act Allocations by District.pdf |
HEDC 4/22/2020 1:00:00 PM |