Improving School Success for Alaska Native Students in Large High Schools and Students in Low Performing Rural High Schools

AK Native 4-Year Graduation Rates Large High Schools 2011 District Enrollment Graduation Rate Anchorage *1, % Mat-Su % Fairbanks % * In the school year, ASD reported that 2,016 high school students identified themselves as Alaska Native and/or American Indian either alone or in combination with other ethnicities.

2011 Sample Graduation Rates Rural High Schools 2011 Sample Graduation Rates in City and Road System High Schools Aleutians East Borough61.11% Bering Strait 55.00% Chatham 76.92% Galena City % Iditarod % Kuspuk 56.52% Lake & Peninsula 50.00% Lower Kuskokwim 40.86% Lower Yukon 42.95% Northwest Arctic Borough 48.72% Yukon Flats 36.36% Yupiit 33.33% Average54.53% Anchorage 72.00% Copper River 80.65% Cordova 94.12% Delta-Greely 57.47% Denali Borough 50.00% Fairbanks 71.21% Juneau 71.73% Mat-Su 67.78% Petersburg 80.00% Unalaska 91.67% Valdez 82.33% Wrangell 83.87% Average 75.32%

Statewide 2011 Alaska Native High School Enrollment 8,270 4-Year Graduation Rate %

Alaska Performance Scholarship Caucasian students are four and one-half times more likely to be academically eligible for the APS than are Alaska Native/American Indian students, at 37.9% versus 8.3%. Source: 2012 Alaska Performance Scholarship Outcomes Report, page 8

Low Performing Rural High Schools A Closer Look

Small High School Size Data Small Rural High School Sample Districts Galena City Iditarod Kuspuk Lake & Pen Lower Kuskokwim Aleutian Region Aleutian East Bering Strait Chatham Chugach Lower Yukon North Slope Northwest Arctic Pelican City Pribilof Islands St. Mary’s Southeast Island Southwest Region Tanana Yupiit Yukon Flats Yukon Koyukuk (22 school districts)

Small High School Size Data Small High School Size Data Of the 131 High Schools in the Sample, the Number of High Schools With students: students: students: students: students: students: 10 Total high schools in sample: 131 Total high school students:2,662 Total Native students: 2,539 % AK Native students: 95.38%

Rural Education Policy Shift Molly Hooch Residential high schools Expanded correspondence programs Loss of thousands of students and millions of dollars in state education funding

State Policy Impacts on Rural High Schools Limited enrollments Diseconomies of scale High costs Competition from state-funded programs Workforce issues Limited resources/scant programs Lower graduation and higher drop-out rates

What Alaska Native and Rural Students in Low Performing High Schools Need Opportunities

Model Demonstration Programs Voyage To Excellence Rasmuson ANSEP College Readiness Program CITC Education Program Small Residential Programs Programs Within Schools Variable Term Length District or Regionally Located Locally Controlled

Voyage To Excellence Overview Operator: Chugach School District Program Type: Residential short-term,1-4 weeks Years in Operation: 15 Service Area: Statewide Enrollment: 250 students annually Curriculum: Employability skills, character education, life skills, Work Keys training, UAF CTE credits, 8 national career certifications Public/Private Partnerships: 70 Results: Since 2003, 98% high school graduation rate, 92% of graduates enter college, join military, or enter work force Entry Requirements: None State Funding: No

Rasumuson ANSEP College Readiness Program Operator: Lower Kuskokwim School District Program Type: 2 short-term summer sessions 6 and 12 weeks, plus 1 semester at BHS during junior year and 1 semester during senior year Years in Operation: 2 years Service Area: LKSD Enrollment: students Curriculum: Advanced academics – math/science Public/Private Partnerships: Results: 100% graduation Requirements: GPA of 2.5 or higher to enter, 3.0 or higher to remain, commitment to summer programs State Funding: No

CITC Education Program Overview Operator: Cook Inlet Tribal Council Program Type: School within a school Years in Operation: 12 Service Area: Anchorage Enrollment: 300 Curriculum: ASD curriculum Partnerships: Anchorage School District Entry Requirements: Alaska Native State Funding: No Needs: Residential facility and state stipend funding

Programs on the Horizon North Slope Borough School District Northwest Arctic Borough School District CITC Residential Program

Benefits of Residential Learning Centers 1. Student access to short- and long-term courses and programs that small high schools are unable to deliver. 2. State education funding would remain in a student’s home district or region. 3. Collaboration on course delivery and cost sharing.

Benefits continued 5. Year-round course delivery. 6. Increased opportunities for Performance Scholarship Program, CTE programs, social and service learning. 4. Student access to technical centers, university campuses, job shadowing, and apprenticeships.

Next Steps 1. Fund existing unfunded residential programs. 2. Solicit applications for residential programs that augment school success for Alaska Native students in large high schools and students in low performing rural high schools. 3. Partner with other organizations to build residential facilities for approved programs. 4. Develop a network of regionally-based state funded residential programs.

Thank You