The Alaska Legislature’s biggest education overhaul in a decade would budget tens of millions of dollars for preschool and adopt new reading standards. Some legislators are wary, but others warn that failure to adopt the new policies could risk a veto of a boost to classroom spending.
An aide to Begich acknowledged that the legislation used a “supporting document” from Alaska Policy Forum; she described that as evidence of the bill’s bipartisan approach, as the legislation also has support from the NEA union.The Senate version of the bill passed the chamber in a unanimous vote Tuesday, with five members absent.
The bill’s boosters note that provisions have been added in response to feedback from rural stakeholders. Those include broadening a department advisory panel of teachers, administrators and parents to include researchers with expertise in teaching Indigenous students, along with regional representation.
But Republicans like Dunleavy and Holland, in turn, say they’ll be less inclined to approve cost increases without simultaneously adopting measures like those in the broader education bill. That divide means that the House’s boost to schools spending could stall in the GOP-controlled state Senate, or face a gubernatorial veto.
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