03/20/2023 03:30 PM Senate EDUCATION
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB13 | |
| Presentation Alaska Grads Following 2005 High School Graduates into the Workforce | |
| Presentation State Tribal Education Compacting Overview | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 13 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
March 20, 2023
3:31 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Löki Tobin, Chair
Senator Gary Stevens, Vice Chair
Senator Jesse Bjorkman
Senator Jesse Kiehl
Senator Elvi Gray-Jackson
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 13
"An Act relating to costs of and charges for textbooks and other
course materials required for University of Alaska courses; and
providing for an effective date."
- MOVED SB 13 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PRESENTATION ALASKA GRADS FOLLOWING 2005 HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES
INTO THE WORKFORCE
- HEARD
PRESENTATION STATE TRIBAL EDUCATION COMPACTING OVERVIEW
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 13
SHORT TITLE: UNIVERSITY: TEXTBOOKS/MATERIALS COST
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) MYERS
01/18/23 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/9/23
01/18/23 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/18/23 (S) EDC
03/13/23 (S) EDC AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
03/13/23 (S) Heard & Held
03/13/23 (S) MINUTE(EDC)
03/20/23 (S) EDC AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
WITNESS REGISTER
SENATOR ROBERT MYERS, District Q
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as sponsor of SB 13.
JOSH WARREN, Economist
Division of Research and Analysis
Department of Labor and Workforce Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented the study Alaska Grads Following
2005 High School Graduates into the Workforce.
JOEL ISAAK, Director
Tribal Affairs
Department of Education and Early Development (DEED)
Bethel, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented an overview on Tribal Compacting.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:31:30 PM
CHAIR LÖKI TOBIN called the Senate Education Standing Committee
meeting to order at 3:31 p.m. Present at the call to order were
Senators Bjorkman, Stevens, Kiehl and Chair Tobin. Senator Gray-
Jackson arrived shortly thereafter.
SB 13-UNIVERSITY: TEXTBOOKS/MATERIALS COST
3:32:42 PM
CHAIR TOBIN announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 13
"An Act relating to costs of and charges for textbooks and other
course materials required for University of Alaska courses; and
providing for an effective date."
3:33:03 PM
SENATOR ROBERT MYERS, District Q, Alaska State Legislature,
Juneau, Alaska, stated the Textbook Cost Transparency Act allows
students to know what the cost of textbooks will be prior to
starting the semester. It will standardize the process across
campuses both in person and online.
3:34:28 PM
SENATOR STEVENS said he wished to lodge a complaint against
textbook companies for rearranging chapters in textbooks so that
siblings cannot use the book later.
3:34:51 PM
SENATOR MYERS agreed as a former student and the sponsor of SB
13.
3:35:06 PM
CHAIR TOBIN opened public testimony on SB 13; finding none, she
closed public testimony.
CHAIR TOBIN solicited a motion.
3:35:30 PM
SENATOR STEVENS moved to report SB 13, 33-LS0168\A, from
committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal
note(s).
3:35:41 PM
CHAIR TOBIN found no objection and SB 13 was reported from the
Senate Education Standing Committee.
3:35:54 PM
SENATOR GRAY-JACKSON joined the meeting.
3:35:57 PM
At ease.
^PRESENTATION ALASKA GRADS FOLLOWING 2005 HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES
INTO THE WORKFORCE
PRESENTATION: ALASKA GRADS FOLLOWING
2005 HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES INTO THE WORKFORCE
3:37:12 PM
CHAIR TOBIN reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of a presentation on following Alaska's 2005 high
school graduates into the workforce. Mr. Warren based his
presentation on the article he co-authored in the February
edition of Alaska Economic Trends.
3:37:49 PM
JOSH WARREN, Economist, Division of Research and Analysis,
Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Juneau, Alaska,
moved to slide 1 and stated his presentation would be a summary
of an Alaska Trends article that discussed Alaska's 2005 high
school graduating classes and where they went following
graduation.
3:38:11 PM
MR. WARREN moved to slide 2 which shows the status of the
students in 2021. The pie graph shows that 52 percent were
Alaskan residents. The sidebar shows that of the 52 percent
living in Alaska, 17 percent were not working, 20 percent were
working with no college, 37 percent were working with some
college, and 26 percent were working college graduates. He noted
that the research did not distinguish the self-employed within
the "not working" group.
3:38:54 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked how many students graduated in the Class of
2005.
MR. WARREN replied that the universe was a little over 6,000
students.
3:39:13 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked if that number included students from
private schools and homeschooled students.
3:39:28 PM
MR. WARREN replied that it included anyone whose student records
were with the Department of Education and Early Development
(DEED), primarily public and correspondence schools.
3:39:40 PM
MR. WARREN moved to slide 3 which shows students' wages from
2005 through 2021. The dark blue line represents students who
obtained a college degree. The light blue line represents
students with some college, and the orange line represents
students without college experience.
CHAIR TOBIN asked what the average wage in Alaska is.
3:40:12 PM
MR. WARREN replied that he would report to the committee with an
exact amount. He stated his belief that it is under $49,284.
3:40:28 PM
MR. WARREN said students who obtained a college degree earned
the least wages until 2009, or about four years after starting
college. In 2009 college graduate earnings began a steep upward
trend, and by 2021 averaged $70,000 annually, or roughly $20,000
more than their counterparts.
3:40:59 PM
MR. WARREN turned to slide 4 and compared the residency of
students who attended college in Alaska against students who
graduated outside of Alaska. Students who graduated outside of
Alaska leave the state quickly. Students who graduate from
schools in Alaska leave slowly over time. By 2021 about 55
percent of in-state graduates remain in Alaska compared to 25
percent of students who graduated out-of-state.
3:41:51 PM
CHAIR TOBIN asked why students leave.
3:41:59 PM
MR. WARREN replied that researchers have yet to study why
students leave Alaska. Speculation is that they leave for better
out-of-state opportunities.
3:42:18 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked whether people with associate degrees were
considered graduates.
3:42:29 PM
MR. WARREN confirmed that researchers included graduates with
associate degrees.
3:42:38 PM
MR. WARREN moved to slide 5 and said the map shows all colleges
that the 2005 high school graduates attended, not just the
college they graduated from:
University Number of
Location Students
Alaska 3,358
Washington 442
Oregon 353
Arizona 288
California 277
Colorado 180
Idaho 176
Texas 163
Utah 137
Montana 116
Minnesota 90
Florida 89
Nevada 88
New York 84
Iowa 80
Illinois 78
Hawaii 72
Virginia 62
Maine 60
Pennsylvania 53
Michigan 52
3:43:35 PM
CHAIR TOBIN asked how she could subscribe to a paper copy of
Alaska Economic Trends.
MR. WARREN replied that a link to the magazine is available on
the Research and Analysis Department of Labor website, and the
electronic email subscription option is free.
3:44:03 PM
SENATOR STEVENS commented that Alaskan college graduates earning
more than non-college graduates aligns with nationwide findings.
It is one reason why going to college is a good idea. He
expressed appreciation for the report.
MR. WARREN said he was happy to do the research and confirm the
predicted outcome.
3:44:39 PM
At ease.
^PRESENTATION STATE TRIBAL EDUCATION COMPACTING OVERVIEW
PRESENTATION
STATE TRIBAL EDUCATION COMPACTING OVERVIEW
3:45:26 PM
CHAIR TOBIN announced the consideration of an overview of State
Tribal Education Compacting.
3:46:08 PM
JOEL ISAAK, Director, Tribal Affairs, Department of Education
and Early Development (DEED), Bethel, Alaska, began his
presentation on slides 2 - 4:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Mission, Vision, and Purpose
Mission
An excellent education for every student every day.
Vision
All students will succeed in their education and work,
shape worthwhile and satisfying lives for themselves,
exemplify the best values of society, and be effective
in improving the character and quality of the world
about them.
Purpose
DEED exists to provide information, resources, and
leadership to support an excellent education for every
student every day.
- Alaska Statute 14.03.015
Strategic Priorities:
Alaska's Education Challenge
Five Shared Priorities:
1. Support all students to read at grade level by the
end of third grade.
2. Increase career, technical, and culturally relevant
education to meet student and workforce needs.
3. Close the achievement gap by ensuring equitable
educational rigor and resources.
4. Prepare, attract, and retain effective education
professionals.
5. Improve the safety and well-being of students
through school partnerships with families,
communities, and tribes.
Agenda
• Connection to Alaska's Education Challenge
• State Board Committee Priority
• What is Compacting?
• Compacting Overview
• Senate Bill 34
• Senate Bill 34 Implementation
3:50:11 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 5 and said if members want to know more
about how the tribal compacting initiative began, they can read
The Alaska Education Challenge, a 130 page report and watch
online videos. In short, it began with the following strategic
priority being discussed and adopted:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Strategic Priority: Inspire Tribal and Community
Ownership of Educational Excellence
Adopted Priority: Self-Governance Compacting: Create
the option for self- governance compacting for the
delivery of education between the State of Alaska and
Tribes or tribally-empowered Alaska Native
organizations
MR. ISAAK explained that Alaska has 229 federally recognized
tribes. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) created
regional corporations such as Doyon, Cook Inlet Region
Incorporated (CIRI), and SeaAlaska. In addition to regional
corporations, Alaska has village corporations and one
reservation. Tribal partners sometimes handle interactions
between tribes, corporations, tribal non-profits, and their
foundations. Tribal compacting is about governance and is
legally allowable due to the political status of federally
recognized tribes. As governments, tribes can identify entities
to provide and deliver educational services.
3:53:57 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 6 and spoke to the following points:
[Original punctuation provided.]
State Board of Education Tribal Compacting Committee
Committee Mission Statement
Support Tribal compacting by identifying and
developing regulations that support the efforts of
Tribes throughout Alaska.
Alaska's Education Challenge Strategic Priorities
• Close the achievement gap by ensuring equitable
educational rigor and resources.
• Improve the safety and well-being of students through
school partnerships with families, communities, and
tribes.
3:57:05 PM
MR. ISAAK turned to slide 7 and spoke to the following points:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Compacting in Education
What is Compacting?
Government to Government Agreement
• Tribes as Political Subdivision
• Self-Determination
• Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance
Act
3:59:08 PM
SENATOR BJORKMAN joined the meeting.
4:00:22 PM
MR. ISAAK advanced to slide 8 and said the image is a linguistic
map of North America and a bit of Russia. He said the Native
language families in Alaska are large and spread across the
continent. Indigenous people have anchored themselves to the
land for thousands of years with cultures, traditions, clan
systems, and complex organized systems of governing.
4:02:18 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 9 and said the map shows the indigenous
languages recently spoken in Alaska and noted that most
languages are endangered. The map is a way to visualize how
indigenous people identify themselves with colors indicating the
closeness of the language families. For example, Inupiaq and
Yupik are different but related, so they are different shades of
blue. The white lines are not borders but indicate areas of a
100-mile interface where people might shift languages and clan
systems. Indigenous people of Alaska identify themselves by
their language family. It is a sophisticated way of organizing
that anchors the political status of tribal government.
4:04:43 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 10 and said interruption to tribal
organization and education began 150 years ago with the Comity
Agreement. Shortly after the US government put the Comity plan
into effect, Sheldon Jackson became the Federal Indian Agent
over the Territory of Alaska. He divided the territory into
areas based on religious affiliations and, a decade later, used
federal funding to operate religious boarding schools. Agents
captured children and delivered them to schools to increase
enrollment and federal funding. Five years later the court ruled
the practice illegal. Residential schools stem from the era of
religious boarding schools that instituted the contracting
process, which is why contracting has not been a successful
mechanism for engaging tribes. It was a horrific time for
children and their families. Children experienced physical and
sexual abuse, exposure, and death. Compacting affords healthy
self-determination, hope, and optimism to move forward from the
long-lasting effects of a dark period.
4:08:33 PM
SENATOR STEVENS asked why the Russian Orthodox Church was not
included on the map.
4:09:04 PM
MR. ISAAK replied that although the Russian Orthodox Church had
established a presence in Alaska through early Russian contact,
it was not a denomination in the United States. He noted that
the Treaty of Cession marked a shift from Natives sharing and
learning other languages to Native language eradication by US
policy.
4:10:53 PM
MR. ISAAK advanced to slides 11-12 and said due to the history
of contracting and the newness of compacting in Alaska, members
of the Alaska Education Challenge recognized the need to partner
with the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN). AFN is a fantastic
partner but not a federally recognized tribe. AFN is partnering
with Alaska as a subject matter expert, not a tribal partner.
AFN has been assisting with the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Partnership with Alaska Federation of Natives
• Identify relevant federal and State laws and
regulations
• Compile relevant material related to educating
Alaska Native students
• Engage with Alaska Native leaders and subject matter
experts on educational compacting options
Partnership with Alaska Federation of Natives
• Identify relevant federal and State laws and
regulations
Compile relevant material related to educating
Alaska Native students
• Engage with Alaska Native leaders and subject matter
experts on educational compacting options
4:14:03 PM
MR. ISAAK turned to slide 13 and said Cook Inlet Tribal Council
is not a federally recognized tribe but works with the tribes
and DEED because it has compacting experience. Many ask the
tribes and DEED what success in education compacting will look
like. The reply is the Alaskan Native community is not a
monolith; it is highly relationship-based. The grant with Cook
Inlet Tribal Council facilitates communication as tribes and the
state create a successful learning system that reflects
communities and cultures.
4:15:46 PM
CHAIR TOBIN said she heard that an immersion school DEED visited
described how it reimagined assessments rooted in its worldview.
She wondered if and how tribal compacting would use tools
reflective of communities and cultures to build assessments for
determining student learning.
4:16:41 PM
MR. ISAAK said the short answer is yes, but the department and
Western education systems will need help with how to assess or
show progress and student success that is articulated from an
indigenous or tribal perspective. He noted that the outcomes of
that question are being tracked at https://ourfutureancestors.com
4:20:05 PM
MR. ISAAK returned to slide 13 and said people have suggested
that tribal compacting begin as a pilot program. Evaluation is
critical to show that the program works before it is expanded.
4:21:03 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slides 14-15 and said the screenshots from
the interactive website Our Future Ancestors illustrates the
work of the Cook Inlet Tribal Council in starting conversations
about what success in education looks like. Written answers and
recorded stories are available and creating a login allows
individuals to add their answers and stories.
4:23:51 PM
MR. ISAAK turned to slide 16 and spoke to the following points:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Senate Bill 34
• State Tribe Negotiation
• State Board
• District Consultation
• Teacher Union Consultation
• Report to the Legislature
4:26:49 PM
MR. ISAAK turned to slide 17 and spoke to the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Request For Application: State Tribal
Education Partnership Grant
• Up to five (5) Tribal Partners
• Up to five (5) $100,000 grant awards
• Application window: October 8 - December 30, 2022
• Department of Education and Early Development Review
• State Board of Education Compacting Committee Review
• State Board of Education Selection at March 2023
quarterly meeting
4:28:36 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 18 and said the request for application
(RFA) process shows that tribal partners can think about the
technical side of drafting a report and how to transform
education in Alaska. He provided the purpose of the State Tribal
Education Partnership (STEP) program as follows:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Purpose of Program: The purpose of this program is to
provide support for Tribal partners to work with the
Alaska State Board of Education on the negotiation,
consultation, and co-development of a legislative
report on what is necessary for creating the
opportunity enacted through statute and regulations to
provide for future State Tribal Education Compact
schools.
4:29:28 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 19 and spoke about the STEP grant award
amount and funding period:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Award Amount
• The Department of Education and Early Development
(DEED) will award up to five (5) grants of $100,000
each. Grantees will draw down funds through quarterly
reimbursement requests through DEED's established
grants procedures.
Funding Period
• The grant will be awarded for March 31, 2023 through
January 31, 2024. If selected for an award, grantees
shall provide budgets and quarterly reimbursement
requests in both FY2023 and FY2024.
4:29:44 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 20 and said DEED wanted to be a good
partner and have the application process available to tribes
without needing a grant writer. The general application
requirements for the grant are:
Overview Narrative
• 5 pages, maximum
• Provide a one-to-three sentence mission statement
for applicant's proposed Tribal school
• State the vision of the school in one paragraph
(250-300 word maximum)
• Describe your Tribe's education model and
pedagogical approach to education
• Provide succinct examples of education
activities that help visualize the educational
model and pedagogy
• Briefly explain how elder guidance will be
integrated into the educational model
• Explain how this school aligns with the Tribes
overall mission, vision, and goals
• Include a description of how your Tribe has
been preparing for a Tribal school in areas
such as community input, organizational
capacity building, and infrastructure, etc
4:31:53 PM
SENATOR GRAY-JACKSON asked if compact schools would include
grades K-12.
MR. ISAAK replied that applicants can list how they want to
build the school. For example, one applicant intends to start
with a school that is grades 9 - 12 and eventually work towards
K-12. A second applicant operates a Head Start program and wants
to start with earlier grades. Another school wants to operate a
school based on the enrollment ages, so the report would need to
include a vehicle to cover grades K-12. There are also
conversations about including PreK because of the Reads Act.
4:33:30 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slides 21-22 and discussed the program design
narrative portion of the application as follows:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Program Design Narrative
• 10 pages, maximum
• Detail the approach for selection and development of
curriculum and instructional frameworks to be used in
the school
• Describe the process for ensuring community
engagement and parent involvement
• Provide an overview for how programs will be offered
for special populations
• For example, how students eligible for special
education, English language learners, and various
federal title programs will be addressed
• Provide the school calendar and explain how it
directly supports the school's educational model
4:35:38 PM
CHAIR TOBIN asked if the schools would be open to every student
in the community or only specific students.
MR. ISAAK replied that they must be open for everyone to enroll.
There have been conversations about what to do if there is
limited space. The current programs that tribal partners operate
follow the laws for their types of schools. He provided an
example of a private school and a charter school. The schools
must be available to all students as the Constitution requires.
4:37:55 PM
MR. ISAAK advanced to slide 22 and continued:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Program Design Narrative (continued)
• Explain how the proposed school will be culturally
based
• Include how instructional methods, classroom
environment, and assessment will be culturally
based
• Describe how students will be grouped/organized for
instructional purposes
• For example, grouping by grade, age, or
developmental ability, etc.
• From the standpoint of the Tribe, describe what
student success will be
• Describe how assessments, standards, and targets
will be grounded in the school's educational model
and pedagogy that show student achievement/success
• Provide one succinct example that showcases how
assessments will be used to inform instruction
and visualize student achievement
• Briefly explain the school's approach to
discipline/correction
• Include any other program design considerations that
are relevant based on your Tribe's expertise and
knowledge of working in your community
4:39:00 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slides 23-24 and discussed the following
points of the general application requirements:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Operations Narrative
• 10 pages, maximum
• Describe the school governance/oversight structure
• Include how the school governance/oversight body
is established and its relationship to school
programing and operations
• State the number of students (both in grades and
ages) the school programing is designed to serve, as
well as state the intended student enrollment for
the school
• Outline the number of anticipated staff and their
roles and responsibilities as needed to carry out
the school's goals
• Describe the approach for providing professional
development for staff as needed to carry out the
educational model of the school
• Provide two organizational charts
• Tribal Governance organizational chart
• School Operations organizational chart
Operations Narrative (continued)
• Outline the facilities needs for the school
• Include the ability to provide for these
facilities needs independently or if
partnerships are needed to meet the facilities
needs for the school
Outline transportation needs for the school
• Include the ability to provide for these
transportations needs independently or if
partnerships are needed to meet the
transportation needs for the school
• Describe the anticipated support and connection to
the local school district needed to operate the
Tribal school
• Include any other operations design considerations
that are relevant based on your Tribe's expertise
and knowledge of working in your community
4:41:17 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 25 and said the application empowers
and sets tribes up for success. The application is a checklist
of the nuts and bolts needed to start a school.
4:41:44 PM
MR. ISAAK turned to slides 26-27 and read the application's
scoring rubric:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Centering Tribal Voice 10
Tribal Community and Tribal
Administrative Support 10
Transformational Design 10
Carrying out Educational Services
Presents strong expertise and 30
understanding of what is necessary
to carry out educational services
within the PK - 12 arena, including:
1. Program design
2. Leaderships/governance
3. Administration
Demonstrates Capacity to Carry out
the Work 10
Diverse Representation Priority 30
The applicant represents the following
priorities for diversity:
1. Geographic diversity
2. Methodology
3. School size
4. Community size
Total (Maximum) 100
4:43:11 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 28 and said the Alaska State Board of
Education and Early Development (SBOE) felt strongly about the
priorities for diversity and addressed it in the application as
follows:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Diverse Representation Priority
• The Alaska State Board of Education and Early
Development (SBOE) is seeking a variety of
applications based on geographic representation,
variety of educational methodologies, representation
of different size schools, and communities, and
overall statewide representation
• The intent is to have a demonstration project that
shows how State-Tribal Education Compact schools can
work across all of Alaska
The goal of the demonstration phase is to lead to a
more permanent widely available education compacting
process
• The Department of Education and Early Development staff
and the SBOE Compacting Committee will evaluate all
applicants to ensure a broad and diverse
representation
Final selection is made by the SBOE based on the
totality of the criteria described above
4:43:35 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slide 29 and said implementation dates for
Senate Bill 34 are:
[Original punctuation provided.]
October-December 2022: Request For Application
• Up to five (5) $100,000 grant awards
January-March 2023: Review and Selection of Tribal
Partners
• State Board Compacting Committee and Department
Staff
March 16, 2023: Meet with Tribal Partners
• March-December 2023: Negotiations and Consultation
• January 2024: Report to Legislature Transmittal
MR. ISAAK noted that grant partners are to use the funding to
help draft the legislative report. It is to cover items like
legal fees, travel, and planning. The grant is not funding to
start or operate a school. The grant would not cover items like
teacher salaries, custodial staff, or curriculum. DEED, through
the negotiation process, will draft the report in consultation
with the tribes. The negotiation process ensures that tribes
know the report's content before it is transmitted to the
legislature.
4:45:42 PM
MR. ISAAK advanced to slide 30 and said a newsletter on tribal
compacting developments is available at https://education
.alaska.gov/compacting.
4:46:56 PM
MR. ISAAK moved to slides 31-32 and provided contact
information.
4:47:22 PM
SENATOR STEVENS stated that he participated in the Alaska
Education Challenge. He expressed appreciation to DEED for how
far the program has advanced. He asked how the state board of
education and tribal schools would interface.
4:47:59 PM
MR. ISAAK replied that there are a series of ways they relate.
The state board of education represents Alaska on educational
issues and may negotiate with a tribal council. Also, tribal
schools as public schools, will still interface with the board
in ways other public schools do, such as submitting assessment
data. Regulations, reports, approvals, and other processes will
still exist between the board and tribal schools. Tribal
compacting is a government-to-government relationship; there is
no third-party intermediary.
4:50:52 PM
SENATOR BJORKMAN asked what the overall effect will be when
tribal compact schools draw from the population of the existing
school system and how will students not attending tribal schools
be affected.
4:51:53 PM
MR. ISAAK answered that tribal compacting does not create a net
loss because students are not leaving the state or the public
education system. Therefore, there is no decreased obligation to
fund public school students. Students also stay in their
communities, so hiring personnel or creating and maintaining a
building has no economic impact. The five tribes that applied
have building use needs and will work with school districts to
figure out how the operating costs of the building are fiscally
covered. All five tribes involved in the demonstration project
will function under a school within a school model, or the
demonstration school will be autonomous with multiple education
entities in the community. The demonstration project hopes to
explore what would occur if only one school existed in a
community. The project also addresses potential federal funding
opportunities for the tribes, such as using Indian Health
Services (IHS) funding for cultural programs such as suicide
prevention. However, the demonstration school could not use
those federal funds to cover direct classroom instruction.
4:55:54 PM
SENATOR BJORKMAN asked if local districts already receive and
utilize IHS funding through Title IV. He also wondered if tribal
entities that compact with the state would make a local
contribution to assist in covering the cost of compacted
schools.
4:56:33 PM
MR. ISAAK replied that tribal schools and districts would
negotiate local contributions, which they have flagged as a
critical conversation. A specific answer will be available in
January 2024. Local contribution, federal impact, and state aid
are the three main channels funding education in Alaska. He
clarified that the IHS funding he referenced comes directly to
tribes. School districts are not eligible to receive it. It is
not Title IV funding.
4:58:41 PM
CHAIR TOBIN thanked Mr. Isaak for his presentation.
4:58:55 PM
MR. ISAAK said he appreciates the time the committee is giving
to learning about tribal compacting because it can bring
partners together and transform education. Tribal compacting is
the braiding of tribal, state, and federal governments to form a
strong partnership instead of being three divided entities.
5:00:34 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Tobin adjourned the Senate Education Standing Committee
meeting at 5:00 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| DEED Tribal Compacting Presentation 03.17.2023.pdf |
SEDC 3/20/2023 3:30:00 PM |
Tribal Compacting |
| Dept of Labor and Workforce Development Class of 2005 Presentation 03.17.2023.pdf |
SEDC 3/20/2023 3:30:00 PM |