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Cigarette butts are crammed into an ashtray outside one of the Atlanta office buildings used by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The photo was taken in 2009, prior to the area becoming tobacco-free. In Alaska, the state’s anti-tobacco program has helped resident quit smoking or using smokeless tobacco or electronic cigarettes. (Photo by Dr. Oscar Tarragó/Division of Toxicology and Environmental Medicine/U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

News

Annual report tracks Alaskans’ tobacco-cessation progress — and tallies tobacco’s costs to the state

Alaskans trying to quit their tobacco habits made some significant progress over the past year, according to the…

The Alaska State Capitol is seen on Thursday morning. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

News

Alaska’s working population loss casts long shadow over legislative session

As the Alaska Legislature convenes in Juneau, the state population is on the minds of lawmakers.

Thunder Mountain High School senior Thomas Baxter and South Anchorage High School senior Larenz Miller were selected Players of the Game after their contest on Friday during the Wolverine Classic Basketball Tournament at SAHS. (Photo courtesy South Anchorage High School)

Sports

Falcons boys top South, earn championship game tonight in Anchorage basketball tournament

Player of the Game selection Thomas Baxter scored 22 points to lead the Thunder Mountain High School Falcons…

Thunder Mountain junior varsity and Hoonah varsity players battle for a rebound during the inaugural Elizabeth Peratrovich Women’s High School Basketball Invitational Tournament on Thursday at Thunder Mountain High School. The tournament runs through Saturday. (Klas Stolpe / For the Juneau Empire)

Sports

Smalls schools win big at inaugural Elizabeth Peratrovich basketball tournament

A chance for more opportunities, a voice for those often slighted and a venue to showcase athletic talent…

A view from the library of the Angoon High School, one of Alaska’s public schools, is seen on June 19, 2023. (Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)

News

Alaska board of education sends the plan for tribally run public schools to lawmakers

A report detailing the framework for tribally run public schools will be sent to the legislators and the…

UAF Ph.D. student Audrey Rowe trowels loess soil at an archeological site in the uplands of Interior Alaska. (Photo by Mat Wooller)

Sports

Alaska Science Forum: On the ancient trail of a woolly mammoth

The female woolly mammoth was 20 years old when she stumbled amid the grasslands. She fell in a…

Thunder Mountain High School’s James Polasky scored 17 points against the Chugiak Mustangs during Wednesday night’s road game. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

Sports

Falcons boys fly past Mustangs

Thunder Mountain topples Chugiak 70-54 on start of northern road trip

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)

Opinion

Clean up the Tulsequah Chief mine before considering more mining in the Taku Watershed

The international Taku River is more than a source of clean water and salmon. It is the source…

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Police calls for Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

Tortilla strips being fried in preparation as the base for this soup recipe. (Photo by Laurie Craig)

Neighbors

Cooking For Pleasure: A taste of Mexico in the dead of winter — tortilla soup

Many years ago on a family vacation near Zihuatenejo, we loved eating at a tiny restaurant down the…

The halls are lined with lockers and portraits of elders at the Anna Tobeluk Memorial School in Nunapitchuk on Oct. 12, 2023. (Photo by Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)

News

Alaska board of education lowers standard for student test scores, citing nationally high bar

State standards still among top third in nation, commissioner says.

Gaza resident Haytham Mohanna accepts first prize during the State Department’s International Education Week in November of 2013 for a presentation he gave in Haines. (Photo by Tom Morphet)

Opinion

Opinion: Israel, Gaza and a future of student diplomacy

I spent eight years as the community representative for several exchange students from Gaza. Haytham Mohanna was one…

Lathrop senior Atticus Foley and Thunder Mountain senior Samuel Lockhart were selected Players of the Game after their contest on Thursday during the Wolverine Classic at South Anchorage High School. (Photo courtesy Lathrop High School)

Sports

Falcons boys run past Lathrop 68-55

Player of the Game selection Samuel Lockhart connected for 25 points to lead the Thunder Mountain High School…

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Police calls for Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

Thunder Mountain senior Jaya Carandang (3) scores past South Anchorage defenders Reese Gebauer (11) and Isa Costadasily (32) during the Falcons 73-37 win over the Wolverines on Thursday at the Thunderdome. (Klas Stolpe / For the Juneau Empire)

Sports

Undefeated Falcons girls too fast for South Anchorage Wolverines in home opener

A well-tuned machine is only as good as its parts and Thunder Mountain High School sophomore guard Cambry…

Members of ASEA/AFSCME Local 52 protest on Feb. 10, 2023, in front of the Alaska State Capitol. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

News

U.S. Supreme Court decision kills controversial Alaska union dues plan for now

2019 plan by Dunleavy required employees to regularly reaffirm their membership

Juneau’s HoopRats won the Girls Youth Championship at the 17th Annual Mt. Edgecumbe Invitational Basketball Tournament on Saturday at MEHS’ BJ McGillis Fieldhouse. (Photo Courtesy MEHS)

Sports

Juneau women, Haines men topple Anchorage teams for adult basketball titles

32 teams participate in 17th Annual Mt Edgecumbe Invitational Basketball Tournament.

Kristina Abbott is a member of Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church. (Photo courtesy of Kristina Abbott)

Neighbors

Living and Growing: Struggles with this dark, wintry season will pass

January is my least favorite month of the year, it feels like an eternity of darkness, snow, and…

Areas like Denali National Park allow nature to be preserved which is great, so long as there are also areas that allow for the maximum benefit of Alaskans as stated in the state’s constitution. (Photo by Jeff Lund)

Sports

I Went to the Woods: The problem with caricatures

While people are usually up for a good fight, things seem to get particularly heated this time of…

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Police calls for Monday, Jan. 15, 2024

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.