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Petersburg’s school district approved a budget last week that will draw down nearly $700,000 dollars from its reserves to make up for school funding vetoed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy. Dunleavy reduced education funding for school districts statewide with a line-item veto on June 12, just weeks before districts start their next fiscal years. The Legislature originally approved a $700 increase in per-student funding, known as the base student allocation (BSA). It was the first substantial increase since 2017. Dunleavy didn’t approve enough money to fu...
The Coos Bay Times announced: "A serious forest fire spreads through the South Inlet section causing much damage. A daughter is born to Mr. and Mrs. L. R. McDonald and is named Colleen Mae." Colleen Mae McDonald, daughter of Lauchlin "Mac" and Anna (Aberge) McDonald, was born July 28, 1926, in North Bend, Oregon. She learned patience early-waiting while her mother had her hair done on the way to the hospital! By age two, Colleen was already accompanying her mother to Norwegian Lutheran Ladies... Full story
Three teachers from the Petersburg School District are state finalists for awards in excellence – Hannah Smith and Alice Cumps, math and science teachers at the middle and high schools respectively, are two of the finalists for a Presidential Excellence Award, and Becky Martin, a third grade teacher, for the Alaska Teacher of the Year Award. The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) is the highest honor a K – 12 math or science teacher in the U.S. can...
In an effort to generate money for essential services, Petersburg voters will be asked this fall whether to impose income limits for the community's senior sales tax exemption. That's after the Petersburg Borough Assembly approved the proposal on Monday, June 16. The change would limit the decades-old exemption to only low-income seniors who qualify for the state's Senior Benefits Payment Program, with annual incomes below $34,213 for individuals or $46,253 for couples. Revenue from...
June 12, 1925 – Miss Mary Wolverton has returned from the Cassiar mining district and says: “Three experienced miners who went to Gold Pan Creek diverted a stream at their own expense, after two months’ labor, and took out $1.60 in gold. Very little gold has been found. Many Alaskan and Yukon sourdoughs who went in with dog teams are coming out and are on their way to other fields. The only real money made is in selling claims for hundreds of dollars. One school teacher put her savings of $600 into a claim and sent in two men with supplies. The...
Construction will be happening all summer long at the Petersburg School District. Two major projects are underway to increase safety at the schools, inside and out. The first project is a complete remodel of the high school office. The office has been entirely gutted, and will be rebuilt for visibility and safety. "The office area was such that the folks working in the office really didn't have a good, clear view of who was coming to the door," said Superintendent Robyn Taylor. In 2023, threats...
Alaska is required by law to fund public education equitably across all school districts through its Base Student Allocation formula. Each student generates a set amount of state funding, with adjustments for factors like special needs, district size, and geographic isolation. The federal government also sends Alaska over $100 million annually in “impact aid” – money meant to compensate certain school districts for lost property tax revenue from federal and Alaska Native lands that cannot be ta...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously approved the first reading of an ordinance last week that would limit Petersburg's sales tax exemption for seniors to only those with low incomes. Currently, all Petersburg residents aged 65 and older who have lived in the borough for at least one year qualify for sales tax exemption, regardless of income. According to the borough, there are 477 senior exemption cards currently issued. In 2024, senior tax exemptions applied to more than $7.4 million...
On Saturday, the Petersburg Community Foundation awarded $37,125 in grants to seven local organizations during its annual awards ceremony and honored one community volunteer with its prestigious Volunteer of the Year recognition. The foundation, which began 17 years ago with support from the Alaska Community Foundation and the Rasmuson Foundation, has seen accelerated growth in recent years. It took the organization around a decade to award $100,000 in local grants, but it has matched that...
The 37 graduating seniors of Petersburg High School's Class of 2025 have navigated a challenging path through their school years, supporting one another through highs and lows. They will leave a lasting impression on the educators and administrators who've guided them along the way. Petersburg Schools Superintendent Robyn Taylor, in her first year with the district, has been struck by both the students' talents and the community that rallies around them. "This class is incredibly supportive of...
Sarah Pederson has taken the reins as the new director of the Clausen Museum, bringing with her a wealth of experience in community building and a passion for local history. Originally from Michigan, Pederson is no stranger to Southeast Alaska, having lived in the region for more than 20 years. She and her husband Cody moved to Petersburg about a month ago after he accepted a position as the new manager at the SSRAA Crystal Lake Hatchery, replacing the retiring Loren Thompson. "We've been living...
May 1, 1925 – Some of the school children while playing ran across a cache this week in the brush in which there were over 100 pint bottles full of liquid at first thought to be beer. The news caused a wild stampede and soon the woods were full of those only too anxious to sample the goods. During the stampede one or two other small and select caches were discovered, and the rule seemed to be “finders keepers.” In a short time the city and federal officers were on the scene and the bottles were removed to the commissioner’s office, where t...
I Feel So Blessed To the Editor: Reaching out to our entire community with a heartfelt THANK YOU!!! To all my friends, family, loved ones, well wishers, and prayer senders, to the EMTs, PMC staff, Medivac staff, PPD staff, Providence Alaska Medical Center staff, and Providence St. Elias staff – your generous and caring support both physically and emotionally have followed my sons and me to Anchorage for life-saving medical care. One never knows what the next day is going to bring. Your continued support is much needed and appreciated along this...
WRANGELL — More than five dozen high school students from around Southeast, along with their art teachers, will be busy painting, inking, printing, beading, knitting and more during Artfest, a four-day series of workshops in Wrangell this week. Artfest will run Thursday through Sunday, April 24-27, at the high school, with an art show open to the public from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Sunday, said Tawney Crowley, the Wrangell School District’s art teacher. The festival for Southeast students started in 1997 when Wrangell art teacher Kirk Garbisch helped or...
"The Senate's new education bill is a joke!" declared Governor Mike Dunleavy in a social media post last week. "It does absolutely nothing to improve educational achievement... Welcome to Alaska: 51st in the nation in educational outcomes. In what world does one write a blank check with no expectations?" The governor's comments came as the Alaska Legislature passed House Bill 69 on Friday, April 11, which would increase the Base Student Allocation (BSA) by $1,000 per student. Dunleavy...
The Petersburg School District presented its draft budget for the 2026 fiscal year at Tuesday's school board meeting, April 15, revealing a major budget deficit and the strategic use of the fund balance to maintain educational services amid uncertain state funding. PSD Finance Director Shannon Baird presented a draft budget projecting total revenue of $9,876,947 against expenditures of $11,426,685, creating a deficit of approximately $1.5 million. This shortfall would be covered by spending...
We felt loved and cared for To the Editor and this wonderful community: One year ago I came very close to dying. I got very, very sick with three upper respiratory viruses which allowed a strep infection to turn into pneumonia which caused sepsis or toxic shock syndrome. All in a matter of days. Luckily, I live here in Petersburg, the best place on earth. The doctors, nurses, and staff at Petersburg Medical Center were amazing and got me out on a medivac as quickly as possible. The outpouring of love, prayers, good vibes, cards, and gifts was...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted unanimously Monday to approve a resolution calling on state lawmakers to increase education funding and create a sustainable formula for Alaska's schools. Resolution #2025-07, which passed 6-0, urges the Alaska Legislature to "significantly increase the Base Student Allocation" and develop a long-term bipartisan solution for education funding beginning in fiscal year 2026. Assembly members cited the strain on local resources - the borough currently provides...
Education Funding To the Editor: Article VII of the Alaska Constitution requires the Legislature to “maintain a system of public schools open to all children of the State.” Alaska Statute (Alaska Students’ Educational Bill of Rights (3)) states “A quality education for students of all ages is a concrete investment that vastly improves the future prosperity, welfare, productivity, and vitality of society.” The indisputable, mathematical fact is that at least for the last 10 years (years in which I served in the Alaska State House), the Legis...
The Petersburg School District and its support personnel union reached a tentative three-year contract agreement in less than a day of negotiations, school officials announced Tuesday. The agreement includes a $2.50 per hour wage increase across the board in the first year, followed by 1.5% increases in each of the following two years, according to Finance Director Shannon Baird. Support staff will also receive a $500 matching contribution to a 403(b) retirement plan. This matches a similar...
We Can Protect Each Other To the Editor: “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced,” as James Baldwin reminds us. So let us look at what is happening to people like Fabian Schmidt, Camila Munoz, and Dr. Rasha Alawieh. All have been living in the United States legally. Schmidt has a green card, Munoz is in process of obtaining citizenship as the spouse of a U.S. citizen, and Alawieh has her H1B visa as a kidney transplant specialist and professor at Brown University. Nevertheless, Schmidt and Mun...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voiced serious concerns that potential federal funding cuts could devastate essential services and potentially threaten the town's viability by approving a strongly worded letter to Alaska's congressional delegation during Monday’s assembly meeting. The letter, approved by all six assembly members present, details how the rural Southeast Alaska fishing community of approximately 3,000 residents could face an existential crisis if federal support is significantly reduced. “Indiscriminate and across the board red...
The first-of-its-kind event was an all-male pageant where dance dads of Mitkof Dance Troupe (MDT) students bravely entertained a sold out crowd at the Elks Ballroom. After several uproarious rounds of competition, high school teacher Dustin Crump was crowned Mr. MDT and celebrated his win with an encore rendition of "the Dougie." Thousands were raised to upgrade the dance studio's facilities....
Elementary students in Petersburg won’t get as much physical education next year. Rae C. Stedman Elementary Principal Heather Conn said it comes down to limited education funding. Renting Petersburg’s community pool and gym is expensive for the Petersburg School District. So is staffing physical education classes. Conn said the district’s tight budget this year means they will have to reduce hours. “We have been conservatively budgeting but at this time, even we are being affected,” she said. This isn’t the first year the district has had to...
Budgets are tight for some schools in Alaska again this year, but in Petersburg, the borough budget is also tight. Borough officials are saying it’s going to be tough to get the Petersburg School District the local funding school officials say they desperately need. Last year the Petersburg borough’s budget was nearly $400 thousand dollars in the hole. At an assembly work session with the school board on February 6, Borough Manager Steve Geisbrecht said there will likely be similar problems this year. “I try not to be a downer at every meeting...
