Although there are notable exceptions, Alaska has had a troubled history with residential boarding schools. Yet the challenges of teaching students in off-the-road communities has also had problems.
Education consultant Jerry Covey wrote in a 2012 study, as reported in the Alaska Dispatch News, that the outlook continues to be bleak.
“Alaska’s system of small, off-the-road high schools deliver, for the most part, a second-rate education system that denies rural students the educational opportunities their on-the-road system counterparts enjoy.”
On today’s Hometown Alaska, we’ll consider some bright alternatives to the four-year residential boarding school. We’ll have guests from the Voyage to Excellence program of the Chugach School District, offering short-term residential learning opportunities in urban settings.
And we’ll hear from participants in an inspired program in the Lake and Peninsula School District, offering online and onsite tutoring for their students, using newly-minted education graduates from around the United States.
Join us for some inspiring stories about education ideas that bear good results in a challenging financial and educational environment that is Alaska.
HOST: Kathleen McCoy
GUEST:
- Rob Crumley, superintendent, Chugach School District
- Rick Luthi, COO, Lake and Peninsula School District
- Kelsey White, teacher, online tutor, now teacher in Kokhanok
- Kristen Buckmaster, onsite tutor, now teacher in Port Heiden
LINKS:
- Revolution in rural Alaska education? ADN, Nov. 26, 2012
- Voyage to Excellence, Chugach School District
- Facebook, Voyage to Excellence
- Lake and Peninsula School District
- Lake and Peninsula School District Tutoring Program, 2015 (You Tube, 3:50 min)
PARTICIPATE:
- Call 550-8433 (Anchorage) or 1-888-353-5752 (statewide) during the live broadcast (2:00 – 3:00pm)
- Send e-mail to hometown@alaskapublic.org before, during or after the live broadcast (e-mails may be read on air)
- Post your comment or question below (comments may be read on air)
HOST: Kathleen McCoy
LIVE BROADCAST: Wednesday, March 11, 2015, 2:00 – 3:00 pm (Alaska time)
REPEAT BROADCAST: Wednesday, March 11, 2015, 9:00 – 10:00 pm (Alaska time)
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