Alaska Minority Democrats today offered their own education package that includes an increase in base student allocation and allows charter schools to be located within neighborhood schools when space is available.
Incorporated in the set of bills will be an increase of the base student allocation to $404 per student, a one-time grant of $500 for charter schools to assist with startup costs, and a requirement for traffic control at and around school zones.
Democratic lawmakers hope the allocation increase will hold off teacher layoffs for next year.
The bills will be introduced Friday, more than a third of the way into the session. Sen. Berta Gardner, a Democrat from Anchorage, says of the timing: good things take a long time to happen.
