In Today's Newsletter
1. Dr. Deena Bishop Appointed New Commissioner
2. $1,000 for Teachers' Classrooms
3. Summer of Heroes Awardees
4. E-Rate Webinar
5. thread's Economic Impact Summit
6. Toolkit from NASA
7. An Alutiiq Coloring Book and Lesson Plan
8. Yesterday's Superintendent Fly-In
9. Apply for the White House Internship Program
10. We are Hiring!
11. JROTC Coast Guard
12. Nominations Open: Shirley Demientieff Award
13. School Spotlights
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On Wednesday, July 26, the Alaska State Board of Education and Early Development voted unanimously at their quarterly meeting for Dr. Deena Bishop to take the role of the Commissioner of the Department of Education and Early Development (DEED). Dr. Bishop’s appointment is effective on August 9, 2023, and is contingent on the approval of Governor Mike Dunleavy.
Dr. Bishop has three decades of public education experience in Alaska. She was the Superintendent of the Anchorage School District from 2016 to 2022, and prior to that role, she was a principal and then the Superintendent of the Matanuska-Sustina Borough School District. Dr. Bishop also served on the University of Alaska Board of Regents.
“We are excited to bring Dr. Bishop on board for the commissioner position. She has a strong passion and dedication to improving outcomes for all students,” said Board Chair James Fields.
DEED has partnered with DonorsChoose to allocate $2 million in federal COVID Relief funding to support the efforts of Alaska’s teachers. This funding will go to much-needed classroom supplies. With this investment, over 2,000 of Alaska’s educators will receive up to $1,000 in funding for their classrooms, Funding for eligible projects will be applied shortly after a project is approved. Teacher's can request funding through the link below.
Alaska Communications and Boys & Girls Clubs-Alaska honored six young Alaskans through the Summer of Heroes Program. The awardees are celebrated for their outstanding community service across Alaska, and each receive a $2,000 scholarship for their efforts. Congratulations to the following 2023 youth heroes:
- Dalton Ante, 11, Anchorage
- Shawn Carter, 16, Kotzebue
- Noah Victoriano-Cruceta, 13, Anchorage
- Elizabeth Djajalie, 17, Juneau
- Aaron Harkley, 17, Anchorage
- Josephine Herbert, 16, Palmer
Learn more about their inspiring stories at the link below.
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In July, the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) adopted rule changes to make it easier for Tribal libraries to participate in the E-Rate program, which provides support to eligible schools and libraries for affordable, high-speed broadband services and internal connections. Join a webinar on Thursday, August 10th at 10AM to learn more about these rule changes and how your library may be able to participate in the E-Rate program.
thread is Alaska's Child Care Resource and Referral organization, working to advance the quality of early education by empowering parents, educating child care professionals, and collaborating with communities.
thread is hosting their 5th Summit on the Economic Impact of Early Care and Learning to have a critical conversation with national and local business leaders, policy makers, and economics about the future of child care in Alaska.
Thursday, October 26, 2023
8:30am - 1:00pm
Hotel Captain Cook
939 W. 5th Ave, Anchorage, AK
Did you know? NASA has tons of free toolkits and educator resources, from topics like the Earth's moon, Climate Science, Newton's Laws, and many more. One particular resource is NASA's James Webb Telescope STEM toolkit. Designed for grades K-5 or grades 6-12, it offers multiple lesson plans and activities for students.
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For thousands of years, Kodiak’s salmon, cod, herring, halibut, and rockfish have fed Alutiiq families. But how did Alutiiq ancestors catch fish and what fish are important today?
The Alutiiq Museum in Kodiak recently published a coloring book that explores Alaska fish and Alutiiq fishing practices. Created by Hanna Sholl and Catherine West, the book is informative and creative.
Educators can download the coloring book and a corresponding lesson plan.
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 Photo from Dr. Amy Phillips-Chan, Director of LAM
Thank you to all the superintendents and school administrators who joined DEED yesterday for the 2023 Superintendent Fly-In. Discussions included Federal COVID-19 relief funding, assessment and AK STAR, the Alaska Reads Act, and more. DEED is here to serve our school districts in order to fulfill our mission of an excellent education for every student every day.
DEED provides resources, information, and guidance to school districts. If you were a participant in yesterday's discussion and want access to the Fly-In materials, please scan or click the smart barcode to the right.
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The application for the spring session, starting in January 2024, for the White House Internship Program opened on July 24th and will close on August 18th. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, so candidates are encouraged to submit their applications as soon as possible.
The White House Internship Program is a public service leadership and development program that provides emerging leaders with an opportunity to gain valuable skills while supporting the work of the White House.
Interns receive a stipend, live in Washington D.C., and can earn academic credits.
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Do you enjoy helping ensure that children have access to a wide range of reading material? Do you like helping libraries create impactful and imaginative programming for youth?
If making a difference in Alaska youth and libraries across the state excites you, join the Library Development Team at the Alaska State Library in beautiful Juneau!
The successful applicant will provide a broad range of professional and technical consulting and training to Alaska librarians as they develop, fund, and manage early literacy and children's services in their libraries. This position strengthens local library services by identifying and selectively engaging in early literacy and children's services projects and grant opportunities that support these services. This position will share information from the state, regional, and national library community pertinent to Alaska’s children’s and youth services librarians and will represent Alaska at national, regional, and state discussions and activities. As a member of the Library Development unit, this person will collaborate with other unit members on projects of common concern and will consult with colleagues on how early literacy and children's services may impact their projects. The incumbent may travel once or twice per year, as the agency budget allows.
A candidate will need some or all of the following experience, skills, and abilities:
- Experience partnering with schools and community organizations supporting early literacy.
- Knowledge of and experience with early literacy and children's programs and services in libraries.
- Experience creating and providing continuing education to professionals.
- Knowledge of or experience with grant applications for projects that benefit organizations such as libraries.
- Experience synthesizing and sharing technical information through electronic media such as newsletters, websites, and social media forums.
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The 17th Coast Guard District, which covers all of Alaska, is in need of a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC).
Section 11247 of the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act enacted in December 2022 requires that all Coast Guard Districts have a JROTC unit by the end of 2025. Alaska does not yet have a Coast Guard JROTC.
The flagship purpose of JROTC is "to instill in students in United States secondary educational institutions the values of citizenship, service to the United States, and personal responsibility and a sense of accomplishment."
If any schools are interested in starting a JROTC unit, contact the Program Manager in Washington, D.C at CGJROTC@uscg.mil.
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Do you know someone who has worked hard to improve the lives of Alaska Native women and children?
Each year, the Governor gives the Shirley Demientieff Award to honor someone at the Alaska Federation of Natives conference. Nominations for this year's award is now open and will be presented in October.
Nominations will be accepted through August 14th, 2023. To nominate someone, please send their name and any pertinent information - background, awards, news stories - to Kollette.Schroeder@Alaska.gov.
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Starting in September, DEED will resume hosting a monthly Alaska School Spotlight for the 2023-2024 school year.
Has your school proven great success increasing student reading proficiency utilizing evidence-based curriculum and materials? Do you have something you are really excited about as an outcome of a shift to Science of Reading best practices? We are interested in hearing what amazing things are happening in your school to positively impact student reading proficiency and achievement. Please submit your story to the e-mail below. You may be chosen as the next school spotlight in a future edition of the Alaska Reading Newsletter!
Please e-mail your submissions or questions to: Jenn.Miller@alaska.gov
You can view the 2022-2023 School Year Alaska School Spotlights here.
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