Supporters of Senate Bill 34 say culturally relevant education can lead to better outcomes for Native students. The bill would create a pilot program for Alaska Native tribes to begin running their own public schools through an agreement with the state.
Graduating seniors line up to receive their high school diplomas at the Bethel Regional High School graduation ceremony on May 16, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska. A bill in the Alaska Senate would create a pilot program
Supporters of the bill say tribal education compacts could lead to a drastic improvement in education for Alaska Native communities. Naneng serves on the board of a new charter school in Hooper Bay. The school’s curriculum is centered around Yup’ik values, called yuuyaraq. He hopes that the state will choose his school in the first round of demonstration projects.
“We’re taught as, like, life-and-death situation. Things that we needed to know in order to survive and do very well in the environment that we live in,” Naneng said. Joel Isaak, the Alaska Department of Education & Early Development’s tribal liaison, has been advising the state on what the bill should look like for Alaska Native communities.
In Hooper Bay, the charter school’s principal, Jamie Wollman, said that this bill could allow her more consistent funding to hire local elders to help the teachers plan their lessons.
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