Legislature(2025 - 2026)DAVIS 106
03/24/2025 08:00 AM House EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation(s):alaska Statewide Assessments | |
| Presentation(s): School Facilities and Major Maintenance | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
March 24, 2025
8:02 a.m.
DRAFT
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Rebecca Himschoot, Co-Chair
Representative Andi Story, Co-Chair
Representative Ted Eischeid
Representative Jubilee Underwood
Representative Rebecca Schwanke
Representative Bill Elam
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Maxine Dibert
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
PRESENTATION(S):ALASKA STATEWIDE ASSESSMENTS
- HEARD
PRESENTATION(S): SCHOOL FACILITIES AND MAJOR MAINTENANCE
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
KELLY MANNING, Deputy Director
Division of Innovation & Education Excellence
Department of Education & Early Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave a presentation titled "Alaska
Statewide Assessments".
KAREN MELIN, Administrator
Division of Standards & Assessments
Department of Education & Early Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered committee questions on the
presentation titled "Alaska Statewide Assessments".
FRANK HAUSER, Superintendent
Juneau School District
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave a presentation titled "School
Facilities and Major Maintenance".
LORI WEED, School Finance Manager
Division of School Finance & Facilities
Department of Education & Early Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered committee questions on the
presentation titled "School Facilities and Major Maintenance".
ACTION NARRATIVE
8:02:23 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY called the House Education Standing Committee
meeting to order at 8:02 a.m. Representatives Eischeid, Elam,
Story, Himschoot, Underwood, and Schwanke were present at the
call to order.
^PRESENTATION(S):Alaska Statewide Assessments
PRESENTATION(S):Alaska Statewide Assessments
8:03:20 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY announced that the first order of business would
be a presentation titled "Alaska Statewide Assessments".
8:04:24 AM
KELLY MANNING, Deputy Director, Division of Innovation &
Education Excellence, Department of Education & Early
Development, gave a presentation titled "Alaska Statewide
Assessments". She began on slide 2, which described the
Department of Education and Early Development (DEED)'s Mission,
Vision, and purpose with regard to education assessment in
Alaska. She skipped to slide 4, which outlined the agenda of
the DEED's education assessments and continued through slides 5-
8, which detailed each major education assessment in Alaska that
is administered throughout a student's career.
8:08:03 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked why Alaska has so many English Language
Learner (ELL) Students comparatively to other states.
MS. MANNING answered that she would follow up with more
information later.
8:12:14 AM
MS. MANNING resumed the presentation on slide 9, which displayed
a table that detailed the cost of each previously mentioned
assessment.
8:13:26 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked what entity administers the National
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test.
MS. MANNING answered that the federal government is responsible
for the administration of the NAEP test.
8:14:54 AM
REPRESENTATIVE ELAM asked how the United States Department of
Education being cut would affect the DEED's ability to
administer any of its tests.
MS. MANNING said that the DEED is closely monitoring education
politics in the United States Federal Government.
8:16:27 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY asked which school districts in Alaska are chosen
to receive the NAEP test.
MS. MANNING answered that the selection process for the NAEP
test often depends on the size and scope of a school district
and explained how the geographic size of Alaska leads to the
same school districts being chosen to take the NAEP test year
after year.
8:17:21 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SCHWANKE asked if the United States Department of
Education (ED) generally follows up with any information after
the NAEP test is administered.
MS. MANNING explained that the ED delivers the testing
information to the school district that the NAEP test was
administered in and said that the science portion of the NAEP
test does not overlap with the Alaska Science Assessment.
8:19:22 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked why Alaska does not participate in the
science portion of the NAEP test given the state's historic
excellence in the category.
8:20:46 AM
KAREN MELIN, Administrator, Division of Standards & Assessments,
Department of Education & Early Development, answered committee
questions on the presentation titled "Alaska Statewide
Assessments". She said that the primary reason Alaska does not
participate in the science portion of the NAEP test is that it
is not a required assessment, and the DEED does not want to
increase any assessment burden on students in Alaska.
8:22:22 AM
MS. MANNING resumed the presentation on slide 10, which outlined
a "balanced assessment system" is and moved to slide 11, which
described the goals of the previously mentioned "balanced
assessment system".
8:28:05 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SCHWANKE asked how the DEED determines where to
correct when an assessment is showing an area to be failing.
MS. MANNING explained that school testing and curriculum is
often up to the local school district, not the DEED.
CO-CHAIR STORY added that she would like DEED to consider that
teachers need time for the professional development that it
demands.
MS. MANNING said that the DEED does not currently monitor any
use of funds for professional development and explained how the
DEED is making efforts to create better opportunities for
assessment-related professional development. She detailed the
Northwest Education Association (NWEA) training that DEED has
made available to school district staff and highlighted how this
training reduces the training burden on teachers.
8:38:47 AM
REPRESENTATIVE UNDERWOOD commented that the Matanuska-Susitna
School District makes certain to have "early-start Mondays" to
allow time for professional development.
8:40:03 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT shared her memory of the Sitka School
District receiving a title II grant that allowed recently
retired teachers to teach a class while another teacher observed
the instruction.
CO-CHAIR STORY added her curiosity as to how many school
districts in Alaska have implemented an early-release Friday
policy to allow for professional development.
8:42:18 AM
MS. MANNING resumed the presentation on slide 12, which compared
the AK STAR test and the MAP growth assessment and moved to
slide 13, which outlined a school district's "roadmap" of
testing throughout a school year. She continued to slide 14,
which detailed the Alaska Science Standards between practices,
core ideas, and crosscutting. She moved through slides 15-7,
which detailed the specifics of Standards Aligned Assessments,
testing screener exemptions, as well as the difference between
the Screener, Interim, and Summative test types. She continued
to slide 18, which displayed a graphic that visualized the
cohesion of the MAPs, Amplify, and AK star test and moved
through slides 19-20, which detailed how the DEED might provider
support for both the administration of tests and the
interpretation of the results of those tests.
8:54:19 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EISCHEID asked how vacancies within school
districts and the DEED are currently affecting the DEED's
standards and assessment team.
MS. MANNING answered that there are no current vacancies within
the DEED's standards and assessment team and acknowledged that
district vacancies can have a serious impact on a districts
ability to properly administer and interpret education
assessments.
8:58:23 AM
MS. MANNING resumed the presentation on slides 21-29, which
detailed the specific participation rates by grade level and
year administered for each assessment that is delivered in
Alaska.
8:59:30 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY asked if correspondence and homeschool students
also receive detailed reports on their assessment performance.
MS. MANNING replied that the DEED has a multitude of resources
regarding correspondence and homeschool performance.
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked if the DEED is required to provide
information to parents and asked if there is a federal test
participation rate requirement. She asked why there is a
historically lower participation in the AK STAR science
assessment.
MS. MANNING clarified that participation rates for students were
reflective of an entire age group in Alaska, not a specific
school district's student body. She continued to detail
assessment participation rates on slides 21-29 and concluded the
presentation on slide 30.
9:08:50 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY asked why the participation rate for the World-
Class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) test is higher
among certain types of schools.
MS. MANNING spoke to the Alaska developmental profile's report
that found the delivery of a student's assessment to be the most
effective tool in establishing a consistent testing schedule and
standard for students in Alaska.
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT added that the WIDA is comprised of four
separate tests that are major drivers in a student's potential
to remain in a school's ELL program.
REPRESENTATIVE SCHWANKE asked if there is anything that the
Alaska State Legislature can do to incentivize school districts
to deliver assessments.
MS. MANNING said that it is important that everyone understand
the purpose and intent of education assessments in Alaska.
^PRESENTATION(S): School Facilities and Major Maintenance
PRESENTATION(S): School Facilities and Major Maintenance
9:15:49 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY announced that the final order of business would
be a presentation titled "School Facilities and Major
Maintenance".
9:16:40 AM
FRANK HAUSER, Superintendent, Juneau School District, gave a
presentation titled "School Facilities and Major Maintenance".
He began on slides 2-3, which compared the learning environments
of Massachusetts schools and Alaska schools. He moved to slide
4, which emphasized the old age of Alaska's schools and
continued to slide 5, which highlighted the fiscal year 2025
(FY25) school closures that occurred within the Juneau School
District (JSD). He continued through slides 6-7, which
highlighted the major maintenance projects and priority
categories in the JSD. He moved through slides 8-10, which
displayed images of deteriorating school buildings within the
JSD. He continued through slides 11-12, which emphasized the
positive impact on test scores that a quality learning
environment has as well as the pressure on the City and Borough
of Juneau (CBJ) from other projects that demand funding. He
moved to slide 13, which displayed the JSD deferred maintenance
backlog and continued through slides 14-15, which displayed
further images of dilapidated school structures within the JSD.
He moved to slide 16, which displayed a series of images from
the Sleetmut Public School's poorly maintained building and
continued to slide 17, which emphasized the "Mississippi" model
of school maintenance. He moved through slides 18-19, which
described the positives impacts of a safe and structurally sound
school facility on its students and staff. He continued to
slide 20, which highlighted the California Policy Lab's finding
that new school construction had a positive impact on student
test scores and concluded the presentation on slides 21-22,
which highlighted the positive impact of capital spending on
school facilities and maintenance.
9:28:22 AM
REPRESENTATIVE UNDERWOOD commented that the Alaska State
Legislature simply needs to "figure out" new revenue streams to
fund the maintenance needs of Alaska's public schools.
9:29:34 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SCHWANKE asked Mr. Hauser if he had any
suggestions as to how to improve the process surrounding the
Capitol Improvement Project (CIP) grant.
MR. HAUSER explained that a major challenge with the CIP grant
is getting engineers out to the sites that are in need of the
CIP grant. He emphasized that only 60 percent of school
districts in Alaska are able to submit a CIP grant application
due to the lack of access to engineers and said that the JSD is
"lucky" to be able to carry out its maintenance needs. He
pointed to revenue streams like bond debt reimbursement as
important sources of funding that organized broughs have access
to that unorganized boroughs cannot utilize. He opined that
Alaska is driving families away from the state because of its
"lack of commitment" to public education and used an example of
military leaders not wanting to station soldiers in Alaska
because of its failing education system.
REPRESENTATIVE SCHWANKE thanked Mr. Hauser for cutting schools
in the JSD and asked how the JSD goes about submitting CIP grant
applications.
MR. HAUSER replied that the JSD utilizes the CBJ engineering
department when it is creating a CIP grant application.
9:40:43 AM
REPRESENTATIVE ELAM asked, "which revenue from the state would
be the least impactful on your community".
MR. HAUSER said that he was unsure if it would be appropriate to
answer Representative Elam's question.
9:43:26 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT shared her concern that a failing fire panel
in a school actually would lead to a net higher cost due to the
need for a staff member to be constantly monitoring the panel
and asked if the DEED has any plan to solve deferred maintenance
issues in Alaska's schools.
9:47:05 AM
LORI WEED, School Finance Manager, Division of School Finance &
Facilities, Department of Education & Early Development,
answered committee questions on the presentation titled "School
Facilities and Major Maintenance". She said that the DEED does
not currently have any proposed solutions to the deferred
maintenance crises that Alaska's schools face.
9:48:30 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked if the DEED has any role in the
caretaking of Mt. Edgecumbe high schools' facilities
maintenance. She asked which entity is primarily responsible
for the advocacy of school facilities maintenance.
MS. WEED explained that the Department of Transportation &
Public Facilities (DOT&PF) is responsible for the maintenance of
Mt. Edgecumbe high school. She said that Alaska is a "local
control state", so the DEED is tasked with partnering with local
school districts to solve school facilities maintenance
problems.
9:51:01 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY asked Ms. Weed what she thought of the idea to
separate deferred maintenance lists for Rural Education Area
districts and asked how DEED could obtain the funds that need
engineering and architectural support.
MS. WEED said that she wouldn't advocate for separate
maintenance lists in the name of equality and said that the DEED
would afford school district major maintenance through
legislative appropriations.
9:56:00 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked if the DEED has a "good sense" of
public school maintenance needs across Alaska.
MS. WEED answered that the DEED has the data that Co-Chair
Himschoot requested and would follow-up later.
9:57:59 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EISCHEID commented that he would like to see the
DEED give more comparative analysis of the condition of Alaska's
schools to other states' public schools.
9:58:48 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY thanked the invited testifiers and delivered
committee announcements.
9:59:51 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Education Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 9:59 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| DEED Presentation Assessment Overview 3.24.25.pdf |
HEDC 3/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
|
| JSD Major Maintenance 3.24.25.pdf |
HEDC 3/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |