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Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Superintendent Clayton Holland speaks during a meeting of the KPBSD Board of Education in Soldotna, Alaska, on Monday, April 7, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

KPBSD budgeting in ‘no-win situation’

School board plans to advance budget with significant reductions in staff and programs while assuming a $680 BSA…

A draft of three budget scenarios that would implement deep cuts is considered during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District’s Board of Education in Homer, Alaska, on Monday, March 3, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Additional cuts added to KPBSD budget reduction scenarios as April deadline looms

The school district faces a $17 million deficit.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy compares Alaska to Mississippi data on poverty, per-pupil education spending, and the 2024 National Assessment of Education Progress fourth grade reading scores during a press conference on Jan. 31, 2025. Alaska is highlighted in yellow, while Mississippi is in red. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)

Opinion

Freeing states from the ‘stranglehold’ of the U.S. Department of Education

The USDOE has also been captured by a political ideology that has been harmful to education in America

Delana Green teaches music to second graders at Tustumena Elementary School in Kasilof, Alaska, on Friday, March 21, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Bringing back music education

Tustumena Elementary students get lessons from Artist-in-residence Delana Green.

Opinion

Advocating for more equitable public school choice

It’s about choice, not money when it comes to improving student outcomes.

Students perform at the Homer OPUS fundraiser on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at Chapman School in Anchor Point. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

Community

Homer OPUS hosts spaghetti fundraiser and concert for elementary music program

The fundraiser came ahead of the Sea of Strings spring concert on April 10.

West Homer Elementary School Principal Eric Waltenbaugh. (Homer News file photo)

Opinion

Opinion: Alaska homeschools are in a race to the bottom

Imagine a school of nearly 23,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade with thousands of teachers. There are…

Virginia Morgan speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District’s Board of Education in Homer, Alaska, on Monday, March 3, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

School budget scenarios would cut staffing, programs

Even at the highest level of funding, the drafts describe significant cuts.

Penny Vadla and Assistant Superintendent Kari Dendurent listen to a presentation on proposed school closures during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District’s Board of Education in Homer, Alaska, on Monday, March 3, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

School board strikes 6 schools from closure consideration

The board will continue to consider closing Nikolaevsk School, Sterling and Tustumena.

Opinion

Opinion: The urgent call for education reform in Alaska

Education is the cornerstone of a thriving society, and in Alaska, our education system is at a critical…

Tina Hamlin, chair of the Coalition of Student Leaders, speaks during a meeting of the University of Alaska Board of Regents at Kenai Peninsula College in Soldotna, Alaska, on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Kenai Peninsula College showcases career programs to Board of Regents

A group of KPC students were first to speak during the full board meeting Thursday afternoon.

Soldotna High School student Ethan Anding asks a question during a Kenai Peninsula Borough School District budget development meeting at Kenai Central High School in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

District discusses $17M deficit at community meeting

More than 100 people gathered in the KCHS auditorium.

Cy Garcia, a student at Soldotna High School, speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Assembly calls on state to boost school funding

The move was made as the school district faces a $17 million budget deficit.