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At the first board meeting of the academic year last week, the Petersburg School District board decided that school meal prices will increase by at least $0.25 this school year. This decision was approved in order to maintain the financial sustainability of the school food service program and comply with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Paid Lunch Equity Policy. The policy says that schools serving lunch need to have enough money to pay for meals that students buy at the regular price, not the discounted price; some s...
August 16 – An individual left the Fram Street area at the direction of an officer. Petersburg Police Department (PPD) received a report of an unwanted person on a Birch Street property. An officer contacted the individual and issued a trespass. A search warrant was executed. PPD received a report of a dangerous driver on Sandy Beach Road, but the responding officer was unable to locate the described vehicle. August 17 – An officer responded to a report of suspicious activity in the North Harbor. An individual on Harbor Way was served a tre...
August 2 – An officer conducted extra foot patrols downtown. Petersburg Police Department (PPD) received a report of an interaction with an aggressive dog on the Hungry Point Trail. PPD received a report of vehicles impeding traffic at a construction site on Mitkof Highway at King’s Row. An officer responded, spoke with the drivers and provided traffic control to remedy the issue. PPD received a report of a bear wandering the Dolphin Street area. The Alaska Wildlife Trooper (AWT) and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) were not...
Gus Pennington will return to Stedman Elementary School this fall as the new fifth grade teacher. However, Pennington is no stranger to the Petersburg School District. His new teaching role comes on the heels of experience in the district as a substitute and student teacher - and as a pupil in Petersburg, himself. Pennington graduated from Petersburg High School with the class of 2019 and left for college at University of Alaska Southeast. He returned to town later that fall - just before...
Athletes earn awards through excellence in competition. Athletes of distinction are feted for that excellence, but it is secondary to the character and compassion they exhibit and nurture as lives off the podium continue. Heralded for such achievements on the track, in the pool and beyond, Petersburg High School 2017 graduate Izabelle Ith was honored Sunday at the 2023 Alaska School Activities Association Alaska High School Hall of Fame induction ceremony at Anchorage's Lakefront Hotel. "It's...
The Petersburg School District announced last Friday that it has hired Gustavus High School Principal Brad King as the new principal of Petersburg High School and Mitkof Middle School starting next year. According to the school's announcement, King has over 30 years of experience in education ranging from teaching, administration, curriculum development, budgeting, coaching, and more. "Mr. King will bring a calm, steady hand to our school, and a wealth of educational experience," the district...
Mitkof Middle School and Petersburg High School Principal Ambler Moss's contract will not be renewed and he will leave the district at the end of the school year. Moss was hired last summer and signed a one-year contract with the district, which is the standard length for principal contracts. Superintendent Erica Kludt-Painter wrote that they mutually agreed that he would not continue in the role after this year. She added, "We wish him all the best in his next adventure and thank him for his...
Thanks for going above and beyond To the Editor: I want to take a moment to recognize someone who went above and beyond for the youth of our community. Mike Corl was the driving force behind the newly formed Mitkof Yggdrasil Wrestling Club. Mike, with the help of Levi Entz for the K-2nd grade kids, and Bill Schroepfer and Eldon Walker for the 3rd - 5th grade kids, along with James Valentine filling in while Mike was traveling with the Middle School wrestlers, all gave up their evenings three days a week to teach our children the fundamentals...
March 22 – Property found on Mitkof Highway was turned in to the Petersburg Police Department (PPD). An officer assisted an individual with a civil matter on North Nordic Drive. An officer responded to a report of suspicious activity on Howkan Street. A driver on South 3rd Street was issued a warning for license requirement. March 23 – A driver in the high school parking lot was issued a warning for speed. PPD received property lost on South Nordic Drive. An officer responded to a report of a suspicious individual but was unable to locate the...
WRANGELL - Ferry service resumed mid February, with the Columbia pulling in on its northbound run. But it had been over a month with no service, and during that month privately operated water taxis have been filling even more than before, responding to an increased need for passengers and cargo looking to get to Banana Point at the southern end of Mitkof Island, or all the way into Petersburg or to Coffman Cove and the road system on Prince of Wales Island. Not only have companies like Muddy...
Reads Act funding and PFD taxation To the Editor: I met with Representative Himschoot on Super Bowl Sunday to chat about the Alaska Reads Act. I pointed out that parts of the Act include unfunded mandates and she agreed. In discussion, I realized there are three logical sources from which the funds can be had: Permanent Fund, State Income Tax or local sources. Representative Himschoot did not endorse any of my funding suggestions, but she did point out that it would be unfair for a state mandated program to require local funding. I pointed out...
January Petersburg experienced record snowfall on New Year's Day with 17.5 inches of new snow on the day, bringing the total snow depth to 40 inches according to the National Weather Service. The Petersburg Borough Assembly passed a resolution requesting a discussion with the U.S. Postal Service about providing additional services in Petersburg following continued issues with staffing, irregular hours, and long lines. All-purpose vehicles became legal to drive on roads in Alaska, including in...
December 22, 1922 – The Kake mail boat Trygve broke her tail shaft and went adrift at Point McCartney last Sunday forenoon and for three days considerable anxiety was felt for her safety. She arrived Petersburg safely on Thursday morning in tow of the Americ which had been sent out in search of her. The Trygve made Kake last week and was bucking a hard Taku wind on her return trip when the shaft parted. Paul Adams, a native of Kake, was a passenger on the boat for Petersburg. He at once took the skiff and rowed a distance of seven miles to Kake...
November 24, 1922 – Forced to turn out to sea for six days, with the engines running every minute without a stop, and one member of the crew kept a prisoner in the hold for twenty-four hours, the halibut fishing boat Sentinel was held in the storm that raged in the Gulf of Alaska last week according to Captain Louis Sunderland in command. Nearly all of the oil was used and not a fishing line was cast during the entire trip, Captain Sunderland said. The Sentinel weathered the storm safely and came into port for supplies before leaving again l...
October 20, 1922 – Considerable excitement in a quiet way has been caused by the announcement of a discovery of nickel on Baranof Island near Snipe Bay by Arthur Hofstad, young son of I. M. Hofstad of Scow Bay. The deposit was found accidentally by the young fellow while hunting and it is claimed that a seventy-foot ledge was found. Engineers in the employ of the Granby Company are now on the ground looking into the report and it is understood that a bond will be arranged if the ledge shows any promise. October 17, 1947 – Some old-timers amo...
Petersburg will host its first cross country meet since 2019 on Saturday with 165 runners from 11 schools expected to take part, according to Activities Director Jaime Cabral. The meet will see a return to the usual course, which will begin at the start of Frederick Sound Drive near Sandy Beach. Runners will turn from Sandy Beach Road onto Haugen Drive. They will then turn left onto Water Tank Road and run uphill for a short ways before turning right into a tunnel of trees. After running...
Some new and some returning faces have joined the ranks of the Petersburg School District staff in preparation for the upcoming school year. Elsa Wintersteen will teach English language arts and a drama class at Petersburg High School. She completed her undergraduate studies at Montana State University, earning a literature degree and an interdisciplinary degree, and for a short time studied theater at the University of Montana. Wintersteen is originally from Montana, but her mother's family is...
Some new and some returning faces have joined the ranks of the Petersburg School District staff in preparation for the upcoming school year. Erin Hofacre will be starting her first year of teaching in one of Stedman Elementary School's two first grade classrooms. She earned her bachelor's degree at Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington where she received endorsements for elementary, reading, and special education. "I was able to go to a great program with lots of practical work so I feel l...
The Petersburg School Board updated its COVID-19 mitigation plan for the upcoming school year during its meeting last week. The school district is required to update its plan by the Alaska Department of Education and under the American Rescue Plan funding. The new guidelines resemble those the district had at the end of the previous school year but with a couple of changes. Masking will remain optional for students, staff, and visitors and there will be no trigger for universal masking or...
School got out last week, but Bridget Wittstock still had one week to go until she ended her final year with the Petersburg School District. She is set to retire after 29 years of service and there will no doubt be a void left that will be difficult to fill. The district recently held a surprise party to recognize Wittstock and, of course, the eventwas catered by Wittstock's mother Julie Dahl and included a song written and preformed by the Luncheonettes. "I cried, it was very touching,"...
Petersburg High School and Mitkof Middle School Principal Rick Dormer announced that he will be leaving at the end of the school year to become the principal at Ketchikan High School after 13 years in Petersburg. Dormer said that he has been looking at other opportunities for a couple of years and that now feels like the right time for a change as the district comes out of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, believing that a leadership change would be healthy for the district. "It's n...
March 16 – An extra patrol watch was conducted on Haugen Drive. March 17 – A runaway dog was reported on Sandy Beach Road, it returned home. An officer responded to a noise complaint on South Third. It was unfounded. A verbal warning was issued for a taillight violation on the airport access road. Property found at Kiseno and Third Streets was turned into the Police Department. Officers assisted with the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade downtown. A citizen reported lost property on Charles W Street. It was later found. A mechanical alarm was a...
Seventh grader Abby Worhatch stands between DD Toyomura and Head Coach Mike Corl after winning her bracket at the 46th Tanana Invitational in Fairbanks on February 26. Nine students from Mitkof Middle School attended the tournament which saw 513 middle school students, including a record 107 girls, from all sizes of schools enter the ring. Worhatch wrestled in four matches and managed to pin each of her opponents in less than four minutes. After beating the second-ranked wrestler in her bracket...
The Mitkof Middle School robotics team traveled to Anchorage to compete in the state tournament on February 5, and though they did not place, the experience gave the team some insight into what state level competition looks like. The team got the opportunity to compete in the state competition after placing first in the innovative project category for their presentation on a cargo transport system at the local Alaska Marine Lines facility during the regional tournament in December. Those who...
