Ashlyn O'Hara

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Jennifer Medley (left) practices literacy skills with students at Fireweed Academy on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023, in Homer, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

From Hope to Homer, how one school district is adjusting to Alaska Reads Act

Implementing the standards outlined by the legislation is not a one-size-fits-all approach

 

A sign opposing the participation of trans girls in girls sports is propped against a fire hydrant outside of the George A. Navarre Admin Building on Thursday, June 8, 2023, in Soldotna, Alaska. The Alaska Board of Education met in the building to discuss a resolution that would ban trans girls from girls high school sports. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

State Board of Education bars trans girls from girls’ high school sports teams

Alaska becomes 24th state to impose such restrictions.

 

A plane sits in brush on Fontaine Avenue at around 5:45 p.m. after a crash on Thursday, May 11, 2023, near Sterling, Alaska. (Courtesy Photo / Alisha Joe)

No injuries reported after Sterling plane crash

Alaska State Troopers were notified of the crash at around 5:45 p.m. on Thursday

 

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, left, addresses constituents during a town hall event on Saturday, April 15, 2023 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Nikiski senator’s bill ‘lumbers’ toward governor’s desk

Senate Bill 87 aims to make locally milled lumber more widely available for the construction of housing in Alaska

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, left, addresses constituents during a town hall event on Saturday, April 15, 2023 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Apayauq Reitan, the first transgender woman to participate in the Iditarod, tells the House Education Committee on March 30, 2023, why she opposes a bill restricting sex and gender content in schools. A second meeting for public testimony is scheduled Thursday. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire)

Peninsula voices among ‘parental rights’ debate in Juneau

People who spoke in opposition outnumbered those who spoke in support by three to one

Apayauq Reitan, the first transgender woman to participate in the Iditarod, tells the House Education Committee on March 30, 2023, why she opposes a bill restricting sex and gender content in schools. A second meeting for public testimony is scheduled Thursday. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire)
Former Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor and current Alaska gubernatorial candidate Charlie Pierce speaks at a “Get Out the Vote” rally hosted by the Kenai Peninsula Republican Women at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai Borough to pay more than $237K to settle sexual harassment suit

As part of the settlement, the borough is not admitting any wrongdoing

Former Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor and current Alaska gubernatorial candidate Charlie Pierce speaks at a “Get Out the Vote” rally hosted by the Kenai Peninsula Republican Women at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
The badge for the Kenai Police Department

Police seek information on woman found dead in Kenai

The woman was found Friday near Haller Street and the Kenai Spur Highway in Kenai

The badge for the Kenai Police Department
Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire Rep. Justin Ruffridge works in the Alaska State Capitol building on March 28 in Juneau. Rep. Justin Ruffridge works in the Alaska State Capitol building on Tuesday, March 28, 2023 in Juneau, Alaska. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire) Rep. Justin Ruffridge works in the Alaska State Capitol building on Tuesday, March 28, 2023, in Juneau, Alaska. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire)

House bill aims to boost Alaska Performance Scholarship use

The scholarship is awarded to support education after high school graduation

Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire Rep. Justin Ruffridge works in the Alaska State Capitol building on March 28 in Juneau. Rep. Justin Ruffridge works in the Alaska State Capitol building on Tuesday, March 28, 2023 in Juneau, Alaska. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire) Rep. Justin Ruffridge works in the Alaska State Capitol building on Tuesday, March 28, 2023, in Juneau, Alaska. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire)
Rep. Ben Carpenter, R-Nikiski, speaks during a meeting of the House State Affairs committee on Tuesday, March 28, 2023 in Juneau, Alaska. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Kenai area lawmakers set sights on financial fixes

KENAI — The central Kenai Peninsula’s representatives in the Alaska House of Representatives have their eyes on state finances this week. Reps. Justin Ruffridge, a… Continue reading

Rep. Ben Carpenter, R-Nikiski, speaks during a meeting of the House State Affairs committee on Tuesday, March 28, 2023 in Juneau, Alaska. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Office Max at the Nugget Mall in the Mendenhall Valley advertised Permanent Fund dividend sales in July 2020. Alaskans have until the end of the month to apply for the PFD. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire File)

PFD application deadline is next week

Amount in flux as state revenue forecasts lower than expected.

Office Max at the Nugget Mall in the Mendenhall Valley advertised Permanent Fund dividend sales in July 2020. Alaskans have until the end of the month to apply for the PFD. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire File)
Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor-elect Peter Micciche testifies before the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly during a meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Former Senate president now Kenai Peninsula Borough mayor

Peter Micciche is the Kenai Peninsula Borough’s new mayor.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor-elect Peter Micciche testifies before the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly during a meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Signs supporting Kenai Peninsula Borough mayoral candidates Peter Micciche and Linda Farnsworth-Hutchings are staked in the snow at the intersection of the Kenai Spur and Sterling highways on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Former state Senate president leads in Kenai Peninsula Borough mayor race

A runoff is still possible with 1,700 ballots uncounted.

Signs supporting Kenai Peninsula Borough mayoral candidates Peter Micciche and Linda Farnsworth-Hutchings are staked in the snow at the intersection of the Kenai Spur and Sterling highways on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Bob Bird (left) and Lisa Parker (right) participate in a Constitutional Convention Forum at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Constitutional convention debate comes to Kenai

Alaskans will be asked on the Nov. 8 general election ballot: “Shall there be a constitutional convention?”

Bob Bird (left) and Lisa Parker (right) participate in a Constitutional Convention Forum at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Alaska gubernatorial candidates Bill Walker, left, and Les Gara participate in a candidate forum hosted by the Kenai and Soldotna chambers of commerce at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Gara and Walker face off at forum

The two, who found common ground on some issues, took aim at Dunleavy

Alaska gubernatorial candidates Bill Walker, left, and Les Gara participate in a candidate forum hosted by the Kenai and Soldotna chambers of commerce at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Alaska LNG Project Manager Brad Chastain presents information about the project during a luncheon at the Kenai Chamber Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday, July 6, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Murkowski, Sullivan throw support behind Alaska LNG Project

The project would move gas from the North Slope through an 800-mile pipeline to a liquefaction plant in Nikiski

Alaska LNG Project Manager Brad Chastain presents information about the project during a luncheon at the Kenai Chamber Commerce and Visitor Center on Wednesday, July 6, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Alaska SeaLife Center Animal Care Specialist Savannah Costner releases a 1-year-old female elephant seal back to the ocean on March 24, 2022, after the animal was admitted as a patient to the ASLC Wildlife Response Program. The 320-pound animal was released near Lowell Point in Seward, Alaska. (Kaiti Grant/Alaska SeaLife Center)

SeaLife Center rehabs baby elephant seal

The seal is the first mammal admitted to the center’s Wildlife Response Program this year

Alaska SeaLife Center Animal Care Specialist Savannah Costner releases a 1-year-old female elephant seal back to the ocean on March 24, 2022, after the animal was admitted as a patient to the ASLC Wildlife Response Program. The 320-pound animal was released near Lowell Point in Seward, Alaska. (Kaiti Grant/Alaska SeaLife Center)
A teapot holds crocheted sunflowers at Already Read on Thursday, March 31, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

In Kenai, crocheted sunflowers raise money for Ukrainian refugees

The flowers are sold in multiple businesses around the central peninsula

A teapot holds crocheted sunflowers at Already Read on Thursday, March 31, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
State Rep. Ron Gillham speaks at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Kenai Municipal Airport on Friday, Aug. 6, 2021 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai area rep introduces raft of education-focused bills

One bill targets critical race theory; another would create state scholarships for private schools.

State Rep. Ron Gillham speaks at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Kenai Municipal Airport on Friday, Aug. 6, 2021 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
State Sen. Peter Micciche fields questions from constituents during a joint chamber luncheon on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022 at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

State Senate president lays out vision for upcoming session

Micciche seeks path forward on budget, looks to pass legislation on fishing permits, alcohol regulations

State Sen. Peter Micciche fields questions from constituents during a joint chamber luncheon on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022 at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
An emergency worker holds a COVID-19 test sample at the Juneau International Airport in Juneau, Alaska, in October 2020. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)

COVID tests at airports catch 6K cases since June 2020

The program to test travelers will stop at Alaska airports at the end of January.

An emergency worker holds a COVID-19 test sample at the Juneau International Airport in Juneau, Alaska, in October 2020. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire file)