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Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé cheerleaders Stefano Rivera, MAC the Bear, Olivia Hickman (kneeling), Ayla Keller and Gabby Ely pose for a photo during a recent basketball game at the George Houston Gymnasium. The cheerleaders will be helping honor their seniors and the seniors of the basketball and dance teams and pep band this weekend during homecoming games against North Pole. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)

Sports

JDHS homecoming weekend welcomes North Pole for senior nights

Crimson Bears to honor basketball, cheer, dance and pep band seniors

A sign that gives a land acknowledgment greets visitors of the Egan Library on the University of Alaska Southeast Juneau campus. It’s also found in other buildings around UAS. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)

News

Students and faculty at UAS react to the decision to remove DEI references from all print and online materials

A week after a Board of Regents’ directive, UAS makes two online key modifications.

The main campus of the University of Alaska Southeast. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Full-time faculty members ratify tentative agreement with University of Alaska

87% approve pact that still needs OK from Board of Regents and funding from Alaska Legislature.

Aerial photo of the Juneau airport and newly formed dike around the perimeter in about 1956. Note the absence of any trees and the fully inundated area. (Courtesy Juneau International Airport, photographer unknown).

News

The path to Juneau’s heart: The Airport Dike Trail

Created as emergency access road for airport, it’s now a popular area for dog walking and birdwatching.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration vessel Rainier pulls into port at Coast Guard Station Juneau on Sept. 16, 2020 for rest and replenishment of stores. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Mass firings begin at NOAA as part of Trump’s federal government downsizing

More than 10% may be let go from agency that oversee weather forecasting, Suicide Basin monitoring.

The Office of Personnel Management cannot order agencies to cut staff, a federal judge ruled Thursday. (Valerie Plesch for The New York Times)

News

Judge tells Trump administration to retract memos directing mass firings

A federal judge ordered the Trump administration on Thursday to retract directives that prompted the firing of thousands…

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) is surrounded by reporters as she arrives on the Senate Subway to vote on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025. (Eric Lee/The New York Times)

News

Murkowski co-sponsors bill to help Ukrainians stay in the US

Alaska senator is first Republican to join Democrat-led effort to grant guest status to refugees.

The Planned Parenthood location in Juneau, seen here in June of 2023, is now closed permanently. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Planned Parenthood opens virtual health center for Alaska following Juneau closure

Online access to birth control, emergency contraception, pregnancy testing and other services offered.

Kake fans, including members of the boys team, cheer on the Thunderbirds’ girls Thursday during the 2025 Alaska Airlines Region V 1A Girls Basketball Tournament at Thunder Mountain Middle School. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)

Sports

Friday girls 1A Region V Championship games set

Klawock runs through Kake; Hoonah outlasts Skagway to earn berths.

Kake’s Talen Davis (3) and Josiah Jackson (21) force a ball loose from Hydaburg’s Ricky Alander in the Thunderbirds win over the Warriors on Thursday during the 2025 Alaska Airlines Region V 1A Boys Basketball Tournament at Thunder Mountain Middle School. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)

Sports

Kake runs past Hydaburg, Klawock topples Skagway to earn boys 1A Region V title shots

Both win semifinal games convincingly, will meet in final Friday

The front page of the Juneau Empire on Feb. 23, 1995. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

News

Empire Archives: Juneau’s history for the week ending March 1

Three decades of capital city coverage.

(Photo by Douglas Sacha/Getty Images)

News

Alaska property crimes decline over long term, but violent crime rates remains ‘exceptionally’ high

National crime data for 2023 shows Alaska’s overall violent crime rate was more than 540% the national rate.

Officials prepare to move Ashley Rae Johnston from the street where she was fatally shot by police on Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2025, near the Mendenhall Valley Breeze In. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Investigation: Fatal shooting of woman with hatchet by JPD officer on Christmas Day justified

Ashley Rae Johnston threatened customers outside store and then police, state report finds.

Kake freshman Aurora Davis and sophomore Eden Hallingstad and Angoon junior Lisa Kookesh-Booth go for a loose ball during the Lady Thunderbirds 54-12 win over the Eagles on Wednesday during the 2025 Alaska Airlines Region V 1A Girls Basketball Tournament at Thunder Mountain Middle School. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)

Sports

Region 1A tournament starts with a slam

Skagway dunks Thorne Bay, Kake presses Angoon

Skagway radio announcer Mason Jennings, 13, and his father Nathan Jennings calling action at the Region V 1A tournament on Wednesday at Thunder Mountain Middle School. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)

Sports

The voice of Lynn Canal giving listeners hoops

Skagway 13-year-old Mason Jennings calling Region V 1A basketball tournament action.

Hydaburg junior Tyrone Carlson (1) shoots over an Angoon defender in the Warriors 48-45 win over the Eagles during the 2025 Alaska Airlines Region V 1A Boys Basketball Tournament at Thunder Mountain Middle School. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)

Sports

Hard challenges finish Wednesday regional tournament play

Hydaburg boys nip Angoon, Hoonah girls topple Hydaburg.

Daniel Nichols, a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, presents results from the organization’s Infrastructure Report Card for Alaska during a presentation Wednesday at the Alaska State Capitol. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

News

Alaska improves slightly to a C on Infrastructure Report Card, state ferries still at bottom with a D

Authors say Biden-era funding bills a key reason for improvement, ponder impact of Trump’s cuts.

The Alaska Senate Finance Committee chambers are seen on April 22, 2022. (Photo by Rashah McChesney)

News

With bipartisan support, Alaska Senate panel again proposes new ‘75/25’ PFD formula

Proposal directing money mostly to state spending would mean about $1,420 per recipient this year.

Huna Totem Corp. team members meet with the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly in a work session on the company’s proposed Aak’w Landing project on Feb. 24, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)

News

Assembly takes step forward on Aak’w Landing tideland lease by 5-4 vote

Brainstormed amendments include additional data on traffic and navigation.

Juneau Assembly members and other visitors examine a meeting room in the Michael J. Burns Building formerly used by the Alaska State Board of Education and Early Development on Monday, April 8, 2024. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Assembly OKs negotiations to relocate city offices to Burns building; concerns about cost linger

Building owners asking $12M for space assessed at $9.3M; city manager says alternatives are limited.