Displaced teacher says she doesn’t feel supported by ASD
She worries the arts are being targeted
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - The uncertainty over school funding is taking a toll on teachers who fear jobs and programs will be cut.
It’s a concern for Amanda Thompson, who learned at the end of March that she would be displaced from her full-time art teaching position at Hanshew Middle School next school year.
Thompson, who was hired by the district in 2017, was in her first year at Hanshew, and one of three elective teachers at the school, she said, who got word that day that they would be displaced.
Thompson said the experience is not only disheartening, it’s also raised questions about whether there is actually money in the budget to fund her position.
“My question is, why is that money being used in the HR savings bucket and not being used for arts?” Thompson said. “Is this a programmatic decision? Does ASD not want to support art teachers?”
The district has said it has had to make tough decisions on staffing and program cuts as a result of years of flat funding from the legislature.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy recently vetoed a bill that would have raised the funding level per student — instead offering an alternative bill with a lower amount of per-student funding that he says includes more policy changes — and districts across the state are still waiting to see ultimately what funding will come through.
Thompson has concerns about why arts programs seem to be on the chopping block first when money is tight.
“I have kids that are getting Fs in all their other classes, but they come into art [class] and they become alive,” she said.
Thompson said growing up as a student in the Anchorage School District, she felt fine arts were appreciated.
“You always felt supported. There’s no doubt why the arts mattered, and I feel like something is changing,” she said. “That no matter how well my students do, it’s very doubtful whether ASD will truly support them.”
The district says it will release more information about displacements, as well as money in its fund balance account, during a work session with the Anchorage School Board on Tuesday.
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