Assembly calls on state to boost school funding

The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly on Tuesday called on the state government to provide a sustainable increase to per student funding and for an investment in “strategic improvements” to public education.

The move was made as the school district faces a $17 million budget deficit and during a meeting in which students, the district and the governor’s office testified about education funding and reform proposals.

A resolution sponsored by assembly members Tyson Cox and Ryan Tunseth says that the state is constitutionally obligated to maintain a system of public schools and that a stagnant base student allocation — the amount of funding each district receives per student — has coupled with “constant upward inflationary trend” to erode the effectiveness of the state’s funding formula. “Additional funding will be necessary to sustain essential educational programs and opportunities for students in the upcoming fiscal year.”

The resolution, which was adopted unanimously via the consent agenda, comes after months of conversation from the KPBSD around a $17 million deficit. Despite status quo budgeting and after years of siphoning from its unassigned fund balance to contend with budget shortfalls, district leadership say there’s not much left in savings. The district’s Board of Education on Monday will discuss school closures, as well as program and staffing cuts to meet the budget needs.

The district has joined others in the state in calling for an increase to the BSA, citing data from the Alaska Council of School Administrators that says a BSA that kept up with inflation since 2011 would be $1,808 greater than today’s per student funding.

That’s what the district has communicated at board meetings and at a series of community meetings in Homer, Kenai and Seward and what district leadership told the assembly during a Tuesday committee meeting before the full board.

At that meeting, Borough Mayor Peter Micciche said that the borough has been providing a greater share of local school funding — including near or at the legal allowable amount — than other comparable boroughs and that it can’t continue forever. The school district’s need is greater than the revenues generated by the borough’s sales tax, and “we’re using more and more property taxes every year.”

“We simply don’t have the ability to keep up,” he said. “There has to be solutions on the table for not only bringing the cost down but the state being a partner on the fact that the price of an apple today is quite a bit more than it was five years ago. It’s just how real dollars work.”

In addition to calling for increased funding, he said, the district should be considering and implementing cuts — even to schools.

“This problem’s not going away,” he said. “We cannot afford half-full schools.”

The resolution that was passed later that night says both that the BSA needs to see a “permanent and sustainable increase” that’s tied to inflation and also that there must be a suite of strategic investments to create a comprehensive education plan — providing predictable funding and incorporating policy to “enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of Alaska’s education system.” The resolution cites Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto last year of a bill that would have increased the BSA because it lacked the governor’s priorities for teacher recruitment and charter schools.

KPBSD Board President Zen Kelly said that the school district is open to discussions about school policy, like those pushed by Dunleavy, alongside the calls for more funding.

Students speak out

During the full assembly meeting Tuesday, the chambers were filled with students from Soldotna High School who came to speak in support of the resolution.

Kenneth Fine, freshman class president, was first to speak, saying the cuts that KPBSD might implement to overcome the deficit will mean bigger class sizes, fewer teachers, and cuts to programs that are important to students.

“I love my school,” he said. “I love my teachers, and I love my classmates. How are we supposed to succeed when we’re constantly being told that there’s not enough money for basic things like keeping class sizes manageable or keeping good teachers in our district?”

Brett Haas said he was worried about disruptions in classrooms with more students; Cy Garcia said extracurriculars and sports are an important part of student’s lives; Ethan Anding said declines in education are harmful to students — and to the future.

That student testimony, Tunseth said, was “powerful.”

Governor’s office pushes policy reform

After the public testimony, Todd Smoldon, education policy advisor to Dunleavy, spoke in a formal presentation to the assembly about his reform priorities — saying that the reason schools are having trouble with funding is because of declines in attendance.

“If there isn’t demand for the public school product, then enrollment will fall — which it has on the Kenai, in Anchorage and in other places,” he said.

That’s why he said the governor will support some amount of increased funding, but not without his reforms.

Micciche questioned Smoldon’s calls for increased school transparency and results, saying that the KPBSD is among “the most conservatively run school districts in the state,” already offers open enrollment — one of the governor’s priorities — and is delivering results. He said he supports reforms like the governor is pushing, but funding is needed.

“Our kids shouldn’t be paying the price on the basic cost of running an educational system within a state that has a constitutional requirement,” he said. “You look at education statewide, in some ways, the Kenai Peninsula Borough is paying the cost of districts that are run very differently.”

A full recording of the meeting and work session is available at kpb.legistar.com.

Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.