Legislature(2025 - 2026)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
02/12/2025 03:30 PM Senate EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB41 | |
| SB23 | |
| SB22 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SB 41 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 22 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 23 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 23-CIVICS EDUCATION
3:53:28 PM
CHAIR TOBIN reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 2 "An Act relating to civics
education, civics assessments, and secondary school graduation
requirements; and providing for an effective date."
3:53:56 PM
SENATOR GARY STEVENS, speaking as sponsor of SB 23 stated that
SB 23 addresses a longstanding lack of civic knowledge in the
education system, describing it as a "quiet epidemic" caused by
decades of prioritizing core subjects like math and science at
the expense of social studies. He explained that the bill
establishes a required civics course or exam for graduating
seniors, emphasizing that it is not a high-stakes test but a
critical learning tool to promote understanding of citizenship.
SENATOR STEVENS shared his personal experience taking the civics
test, noting that it reinforced the idea that learning is a
process. He stated that SB 23 directs the State Board of
Education and Early Development to develop civics curriculum and
assist districts in aligning instruction with civic standards.
He expressed hope that the bill would help renew a sense of
civic responsibility, including voting and community engagement,
which he said aligns with the original purpose of public
education as envisioned by the Founding Fathers.
SENATOR STEVENS added that he recently met with representatives
from the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN), who expressed
concern about declining voter turnout. He told them that SB 23
offers a solution by educating young people on the importance of
civic participation and understanding how government functions
3:56:40 PM
TIM LAMKIN, Staff, Senator Gary Stevens, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, stated that he would be reviewing
the Sectional Analysis for SB 23, version I, and the fiscal note
from the Department of Education and Early Development (DEED),
which is currently marked as indeterminate. He mentioned that
committee members should have a sample of the civics exam, which
many had already taken at Senator Stevens' request, along with
examples of online civics resources. He noted that the packet
did not include DEED's recently adopted December 2024 Alaska
Social Studies Standards, which provide detailed focus on
civics. He described the new standards as encouraging and a
positive development for advancing the goals of SB 23.
3:57:31 PM
MR. LAMKIN paraphrased the sectional analysis for SB 23:
[Original punctuation provided.]
SENATE BILL 23
Civics Education in Alaska Schools
SECTIONAL ANALYSIS
(Version I)
Sec. 1: AS 14.03.076, relating to public schools, adds
a new section directing:
a. The State Board of Education & Early Development
(SBOE) to develop curriculum, an assessment, and
a project-based assessment relating to
comparative government and civics, to include:
i. an assessment that is based on the civics
portion of the naturalization examination
administered by the U.S. Department of
Homeland Security for immigrants seeking
U.S. citizenship;
ii. the curriculum developed by SBOE may be
used by school districts in educating
students in comparative government and
civics.
b. The curriculum developed by SBOE must include
instruction on a wide variety of the fundamental
U.S. principles of government, to include study
of:
i. the founding history the U.S., the U.S. and
AK Constitutions, the responsibilities of
the executive, legislative, and judicial
branches; the rights and responsibilities of
U.S. citizenship, civil rights and
liberties, political parties and interest
groups, campaigns and elections, foreign and
domestic policy, and comparative systems of
government used globally and by Alaska
Natives.
c. In order to receive a high school diploma, a
student must either:
i. complete a semester course covering topics
described in (b) above;
ii. pass the written assessment described under
(a) above;
iii. present evidence of having passed an
assessment similar to that described in (a)
above within the previous 5 years;
iv. achieve a passing score on a project-based
assessment described under (a) above;
v. present evidence of having passed a project-
based assessment similar to that described
in (a) above while in high school; or
vi. is exempted as a student with a disability
who receives a waiver.
3:58:47 PM
MR. LAMKIN continued the sectional analysis for SB 23:
[Original punctuation provided.]
d. Provides exemptions for students transferring
into a school district from within the state as
a junior or senior, or if from another state and
has completed a state history course while in
that state.
e. Schools are to document on student transcripts
when a student has passed the assessment, with
the option for the student to retake the
assessment repeatedly.
f. The AK Dept. of Education and Early Development
(DEED) is directed to adopt regulations
recognizing students who achieve an excellent
level of proficiency in civics knowledge and
skill by affixing a seal of civic readiness on
the student's diploma or transcript.
g. A student may satisfy the civics studies
graduation requirement (c) by completing any of
the options described above, that being the
written assessment (a), or a project-based
assessment (b).
h. Specifies a passing score is a minimum
satisfactory score of 70 percent.
Sec. 2: Transition language, making the graduation
requirement for civics effective for students entering
grade 9 on or after July 1, 2026
Sec. 3: Establishes an effective date of July 1, 2026.
MR. LAMKIN said other states, such as New York, have adopted
civics legislation. SB 23 is modeled after legislation in
Kentucky.
3:59:54 PM
CHAIR TOBIN asked for a review of the fiscal note for SB 23.
4:00:37 PM
KELLY MANNING, Deputy Director, Division of Innovation and
Education Excellence, Department of Education and Early Child
Development, Juneau, Alaska, reviewed the fiscal note for SB 23.
She explained that the Department of Education and Early
Development (DEED) submitted an indeterminate fiscal note due to
uncertainty around the actual costs of curriculum and assessment
development for SB 23. She stated that past estimates were based
on similar projects but lacked precision, prompting concern
about their accuracy. She said DEED intends to issue a request
for information from vendors to better determine the costs of
each component. She clarified that DEED would need to partner
with an external organization to support the development of the
civics curriculum and assessments required by the bill.
4:01:39 PM
SENATOR KIEHL stated that he had not yet seen the newly adopted
social studies standards. He noted that he did not expect a
crosswalk comparing the bill's requirements with the standards
to be readily available. However, he asked for a general sense
of how much of the civics education required by SB 23 is already
addressed within the recently adopted standards.
4:02:05 PM
MS. MANNING stated that the updated social studies standards
were approved by the State Board of Education in December and
were developed with awareness of ongoing state-level
conversations about civics education. She explained that
previous legislative discussions informed the content included
in the new civics standards. She acknowledged that DEED has not
completed a crosswalk comparing SB 23 with the updated
standards. However, she emphasized that prior legislative intent
and feedback were considered during the development process.
4:02:52 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked whether it would be fair to say that the
updated social studies standards have made progress toward the
goals of SB 23, but that the bill goes a bit further in its
requirements.
4:03:03 PM
MS. MANNING stated that a key piece of SB 23 is the development
of the curriculum and assessments. She explained that standards
establish what students must know upon completing coursework,
curriculum outlines how that content is delivered, and
assessments measure student understanding of the standards. She
added that the bill's components and the standards would guide
curriculum and assessment development. She emphasized that this
process would require additional components to align both the
curriculum and assessments.
4:03:42 PM
SENATOR STEVENS stated that some districts, such as Anchorage,
the commissioner's former district, have already implemented
successful models. He suggested that rather than recreating the
system, the state could use one that already exists and works.
He noted that the bill is largely modeled on initiatives from
Kentucky and New York, recommending a review of those states for
potential guidance. He expressed concern about costs, especially
in a difficult budget year, and asked DEED to consider ways to
save money and accomplish the objectives of SB 23.
MS. MANNING stated that the intent behind issuing an
indeterminate bill and a Request for Information (RFI) is to
ensure the proposal reflects the actual costs of implementation.
She emphasized that the process would include reviewing what
other states have done and the programs or processes they have
used. She noted that this review would help determine how to
implement a statewide program in the most cost-effective way
possible.
SENATOR STEVENS expressed appreciation for the response and
emphasized the importance of considering not only other states
but also successful districts within Alaska.
4:05:36 PM
CHAIR TOBIN announced invited testimony on SB 23.
4:05:56 PM
LISA BOUDREAU, Director, State Policy, iCivics, Cambridge,
Massachusetts, testified by invitation on SB 23, paraphrasing
the following written statement:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Senate Committee on Education Hearing on SB 23 - Civic
Education
State of Alaska
February 12, 2025
Testimony of Lisa Boudeau
Director of State Policy, iCivics and CivxNow
Coalition
Good afternoon, I'd like to thank Madame Chair,
Senator Tobin and Vice Chair Stevens and the other
honorable members of the Committee for allowing me to
testify. I am happy to be here.
My name is Lisa Boudreau, and I serve as Director of
State Policy for the CivxNow Coalition, a project of
iCivics. We were founded in 2009 by late Supreme Court
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. And it is in her legacy
that iCivics is a nonpartisan organization dedicated
to advancing civic learning by providing educators and
students with the knowledge, skills, and resources
needed to embrace and engage in our civic life
together. We empower educators and lead the movement
to make civic education a nationwide priority so all
young people have the confidence to shape the world
around them and believe in our country's future.
4:06:46 PM
MS. BOUDREAU continued her testimony on SB 23:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Civics has been neglected over the past 50 years.
Instructional time has decreased, only 47 percent of
U.S. adults could name all three branches of
government, NAEP scores show that only 22 percent of
8th graders tested proficient or above in
understanding how this country's constitutional
democracy is supposed to work and how to apply that
knowledge.
These results are predictable as civics consists of
only a one-semester course in high school for most K
12 students across the nation.
• Just 5 states require a stand-alone civics course in
middle school, and elementary schools spend less than
30 minutes per day on social studies.
• Students from rural areas, native students, and
students from low-income families often encounter
fewer civic learning opportunities in their schools.
• Only about 30 percent states have a recognition
program.
4:07:34 PM
MS. BOUREAU continued her testimony on SB 23:
[Original punctuation provided.]
So we're all here, because it's fair to question the
extent to which Alaskans are prepared for informed,
effective, and lifelong civic engagement. And we must
also question extent to which our school districts are
offering civics universally to every student in the
classroom.
With that in mind, our CivxNow coalition has developed
research-based nonpartisan policies that have
attracted bipartisan support across states. Since
2021, 25 states have adopted 38 policies aligning with
CivxNow's policy recommendations. To name of few:
strengthening civic course requirements, Increasing
funding for civic learning; improving professional
development for educators; aligning state standards
with best practices; project-based assessments, and
more.
This year I'm tracking 99 different bills across 34
states related to civic education. 70 percent of them
are directly aligned directly with at least one of
those bi-partisan policy recommendations that I just
listed.
Indeed, many parts of SB 23 sponsored by Senator
Stevens also align with our recommendations, more
required time on civics in high school, an assessment,
and civic seal program.
This is a really good bill and we've been supporting
it for three sessions now, helping to craft the
language, improve it by providing feedback to the
author from stakeholders including legislators,
teachers, administrators and cultural institutions.
Often the first question I hear from committee members
is, well what are other states doing.
4:09:17 PM
MS. BOUREAU continued her testimony on SB 23:
[Original punctuation provided.]
I can share a few quick examples now:
Last session in Kentucky the legislature passed House
Bill 535, and students can now choose between civics
test and taking a credit class in civic education.
Also last session, Indiana passed SB211, that created
a new "Excellence in Civic Engagement" designation for
graduating high school students.
Two sessions ago, Missouri's General Assembly passed
HB 2002, which included $500K for educator
professional development in "civics and patriotism."
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) signed
HB 171 into law, updating high school graduation
requirements to include an additional semester of
social studies and civics.
I commend the Alaska's Department of Education for
their rigorous development of new social studies
standards just released in December 2024. As a quick
refresher; standards outline the minimum standards
that students in Alaska should learn in each grade
band.
Senator Steven's bill takes this work to the next
level by requiring more dedicated time on civics in
the classroom in high school, accountability for
schools and students through an assessment, and a
recognition program.
In closing, I'll just share that were doing this work
because too many young people are losing faith in our
country. The best way to strengthen our democracy is
to teach it.
Building young people's faith in our country starts
with teaching them how to participate in itdeveloping
the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to
effectively share their ideas with others and
contribute to their communities. When young people see
they can shape our country, they believe in its
future.
4:11:16 PM
MS. BOUREAU continued her testimony on SB 23:
[Original punctuation provided.]
iCivics and CivxNow support SB23 and I urge you to
work with the author to shape a bill that can be
passed this session.
Thank you so much for your time and attention, I
welcome any questions that you may have.
Thank you.
4:11:42 PM
SENATOR STEVENS thanked Ms. Boudreau for her assistance.
4:12:02 PM
CHAIR TOBIN held SB 23 in committee.