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Schools briefs for the week of May 20, 2019

What’s happening this week

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Rep. Andi Story, D-Juneau, listens to Patience Frederiksen, State Librarian and Head of Library Developement, during a hearing for House Bill 75 on increasing school internet speed at a House Education Committee meeting on Monday, April 1, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
Rep. Andi Story, D-Juneau, listens to Patience Frederiksen, State Librarian and Head of Library Developement, during a hearing for House Bill 75 on increasing school internet speed at a House Education Committee meeting on Monday, April 1, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
Assembly members Kenn Carpenter and Brent Hibbert discuss Ordinance 2019-03 at the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly Meeting in Soldotna on Tuesday, March 5, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Borough to take public comment on FY 2020 budget

State fiscal uncertainty played a role in the borough’s proposed budget.

Assembly members Kenn Carpenter and Brent Hibbert discuss Ordinance 2019-03 at the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly Meeting in Soldotna on Tuesday, March 5, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Local athletes and volunteers line up outside the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex to start the annual Special Olympics Torch Run in Soldotna, Alaska on May 18, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Racing for a good cause

Annual Torch Run fundraiser marks 50th anniversary of Special Olympics

Local athletes and volunteers line up outside the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex to start the annual Special Olympics Torch Run in Soldotna, Alaska on May 18, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
‘Dangerous and outrageous’: Bill introduced in Alaska House would treat abortion the same as murder
‘Dangerous and outrageous’: Bill introduced in Alaska House would treat abortion the same as murder
Students from Redoubt Elementary pick up trash along the river during the 6th Annual Kids Kenai River Spring Cleanup at Swiftwater Park in Soldotna, Alaska on May 3, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Spring cleanups scheduled around the Central Peninsula

Spring is in full swing, with cleanups taking place across the central peninsula. Kenai Parks and Recreation is hosting a Kenai Community Clean Up on… Continue reading

Students from Redoubt Elementary pick up trash along the river during the 6th Annual Kids Kenai River Spring Cleanup at Swiftwater Park in Soldotna, Alaska on May 3, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Rep. Ivy Spohnholz, D-Anchorage, walks with Speaker of the House Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham, as the House takes an at ease to wait for the conference committee on the crime bill to take place at the Capitol on Thursday, May 16, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Million dollar special session?

Here’s how much it will cost the state.

Rep. Ivy Spohnholz, D-Anchorage, walks with Speaker of the House Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham, as the House takes an at ease to wait for the conference committee on the crime bill to take place at the Capitol on Thursday, May 16, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Sen. Peter Micciche, R-Soldotna, listens to testimony in Juneau in this undated photo. (Photo courtesy of Peter Micciche)

Peninsula lawmakers weigh in on crime bill

‘It’s a slam dunk’

Sen. Peter Micciche, R-Soldotna, listens to testimony in Juneau in this undated photo. (Photo courtesy of Peter Micciche)
Artist Christina Demetro, left, and Shimai Toshi Garden Trails President Sarah Pyhala show off a rough model of Demetro’s 6-foot crane statue at Coffee Roasters in Soldotna on May Wednesday. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Artist invites community to collaborate on crane sculpture

Anyone interested can collaborate on the sculpture by adding clay to the wings and head of the bird

Artist Christina Demetro, left, and Shimai Toshi Garden Trails President Sarah Pyhala show off a rough model of Demetro’s 6-foot crane statue at Coffee Roasters in Soldotna on May Wednesday. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairwoman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, speaks during a hearing with Energy Secretary Rick Perry on the President’s budget request for Fiscal Year 2020 on Tuesday, April 2, 2019, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. (Patrick Semansky | Associated Press)

Murkowski gets federal funds for fight against spruce bark beetle

U.S. Forest Service would be transferring $2 million in carryover funds

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairwoman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, speaks during a hearing with Energy Secretary Rick Perry on the President’s budget request for Fiscal Year 2020 on Tuesday, April 2, 2019, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. (Patrick Semansky | Associated Press)
Alaska House Speaker Bryce Edgmon, left, speaks to House Minority Leader Lance Pruitt before the start of the House floor session on Wednesday, May 15, 2019, Juneau, Alaska. Wednesday marked a constitutional deadline for the end of the regular session. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Dunleavy plans special session amid dividend debate

Dunleavy said there has been interest in meeting in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley

  • May 15, 2019
  • By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press
Alaska House Speaker Bryce Edgmon, left, speaks to House Minority Leader Lance Pruitt before the start of the House floor session on Wednesday, May 15, 2019, Juneau, Alaska. Wednesday marked a constitutional deadline for the end of the regular session. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)
Volunteers and clients enjoy hot meals together during Project Homeless Connect at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

More than 200 students enrolled in homeless assistance program

Homelessness among students is comparable to previous years

Volunteers and clients enjoy hot meals together during Project Homeless Connect at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Smith named South Peninsula Hospital CEO

Smith named South Peninsula Hospital CEO

Smith is a former Central Peninsula Hospital Chief Executive Officer

Smith named South Peninsula Hospital CEO
A Coast Guard Station Ketchikan 45-foot Response Boat-Medium boat crew searches for survivors from downed aircraft in the vicinity of George Inlet near Ketchikan, Monday. The Coast Guard, Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue Squad, good Samaritans and multiple other agencies have searched extensively and continue to search for survivors from the crash. (Courtesy photo | U.S. Coast Guard)

Investigators turn to wreckage and passengers for answers

The injured are recuperating and the investigation continues .

A Coast Guard Station Ketchikan 45-foot Response Boat-Medium boat crew searches for survivors from downed aircraft in the vicinity of George Inlet near Ketchikan, Monday. The Coast Guard, Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue Squad, good Samaritans and multiple other agencies have searched extensively and continue to search for survivors from the crash. (Courtesy photo | U.S. Coast Guard)
Drew Hamilton with the Friends of McNeil River gives a presentation to the Joint Kenai/Soldotna Chambers of Commerce in Kenai, Alaska on May 15, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

What about the bears?

Chamber discusses Pebble Mine’s impact on bear habitats

Drew Hamilton with the Friends of McNeil River gives a presentation to the Joint Kenai/Soldotna Chambers of Commerce in Kenai, Alaska on May 15, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Seawatch: Late-stage chinooks not as safe as thought

Seawatch: Late-stage chinooks not as safe as thought

“It has been assumed that the early stage in the ocean is more dangerous”

Seawatch: Late-stage chinooks not as safe as thought
Hannah Tauriainen (left) acts out a scene with Aaron Gordon during rehearsal of Sabrina Fair, Tuesday, May 14, 2019, at Triumvirate North Theater in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Joey Klecka/Peninsula Clarion)

A ‘Fair’ day at the theater

‘Sabrina Fair’ brought to life by Triumvirate

Hannah Tauriainen (left) acts out a scene with Aaron Gordon during rehearsal of Sabrina Fair, Tuesday, May 14, 2019, at Triumvirate North Theater in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Joey Klecka/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai to vote on budget, borough bed tax

The budget appropriates over $16 million in general fund spending.

Alaska House Speaker Bryce Edgmon, center, speaks to reporters after the House failed to accept a Senate rewrite of a crime bill, Tuesday, May 14, 2019, in Juneau, Alaska. Also pictured are state Reps. Matt Claman, left, and Chuck Kopp. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Alaska House refuses to accept Senate crime bill

“Rubber-stamping changes of this magnitude is irresponsible.”

  • May 14, 2019
  • By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press
Alaska House Speaker Bryce Edgmon, center, speaks to reporters after the House failed to accept a Senate rewrite of a crime bill, Tuesday, May 14, 2019, in Juneau, Alaska. Also pictured are state Reps. Matt Claman, left, and Chuck Kopp. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)
The Hotel Mod Housing Unit at Spring Creek Correctional Facility as seen after an overnight riot took place on Wednesday, May 8, 2019. (Photo courtesy Sarah Gallagher/DOC)

Spring Creek Riot investigation ongoing

Inmates in the Hotel Mod housing unit barricaded the entryway and began damaging property

The Hotel Mod Housing Unit at Spring Creek Correctional Facility as seen after an overnight riot took place on Wednesday, May 8, 2019. (Photo courtesy Sarah Gallagher/DOC)