The Juneau School Board decided to add back one position Tuesday night that was on the cusp of being cut. The budget includes the Tlingit Culture Language and Literacy program, or TCLL. But some program support staff are below the school district’s cutoff for what the governor’s proposed budget will cover. For now, the $35,000 Middle School Native Success support position is safe.
Members of the Alaska Native Sisterhood, parents and concerned community members told the school board the programs that help Native students graduate should be a higher priority. The school board was taking public comment on its budget — just as lawmakers in the Capitol worked late into the night on the state’s budget, which will affect what the school system can afford.
Here are four voices from Tuesday night’s public testimony to the Juneau School Board meeting: Lorraine DeAsis, Richard Peterson, Barbara Dude and young Kaija Guthrie.
The school board’s final approval for the budget is expected at the end of March.
