If the question is “what is truth?” then for people at the Juneau School District there apparently is no single correct answer when describing the situation at the newly consolidated schools during the first month of classes.
A mix of glowing assessments, harsh criticisms and occasional flaring tempers were seen during a Juneau Board of Education meeting on Tuesday night, the board’s first regular meeting since classes started under the consolidation plan that combined two middle schools and two high schools into one of each.
Among the most serious issues raised were large class sizes, middle school students being forced to repeat classes already taken due to a new curriculum program, and the district failing to meet legal requirements of the state’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) for students with disabilities. Officials also noted progress on some other early problems, including providing more parking for students at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé.
The wide gap in perceptions was evident in assessments made early during the meeting by two officials.
The optimistic view was offered by Superintendent Frank Hauser.
“I did have an opportunity to visit every single school at the beginning of the school year this year and, at all the schools, energy and excitement at the start was just palpable,” he said.
Offering a much gloomier assessment was Chris Heidemann, president of the Juneau Education Association, although he attributed the primary cause to relatively flat state funding over many years rather than actions local leaders have taken to cope with the district’s finances.
“Everything that’s wrong in the Juneau School District — the low morale, the job dissatisfaction, the huge class sizes, the lack of support and programs that we have — it’s all a symptom of one disease, and the disease is that you’re broke. You have no money to pay for these things,” he said.
Enrollment is up — and so are concerns about large class sizes
One absolute truth is the enrollment count — sort of — with the 3,953 students announced at the meeting 12 higher than the projected total. However, the official figure will be based on the 20 days of school between Sept. 20 and Oct. 25.
Another sort-of precise number is 23 additional parking spaces have been secured for JDHS students, plus an additional amount of space by modifying the bike lane on Glacier Avenue past Ross Way to allow for extended parking along that street.
Hauser said particularly noteworthy in the preliminary enrollment totals is Thunder Mountain Middle School as of Sept. 5 had 589 students, a significant increase over the 516 projected before the school year started.
“I think that’s a celebration and I really, in looking at that number, I think that is a response to the school coming together,” he said.
The district is trying to hire extra staff, including two full-time instructors, due to the higher-than-expected enrollment, Hauser said.
However, school board member David Noon said his interactions at the school are showing crowding issues, including math classes started the year with class sizes “in the mid 40s.”
“At the start of the year (that) led to some pretty enormous classes in this building, and we’ve got some classes there that are meeting in the commons,” he said. “There’s a deficit in classroom space. So how are those needs going to be addressed?”
Juneau Board of Education Board Member Will Muldoon, foreground, reads a memo during a board meeting Tuesday night at Thunder Mountain Middle School. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Hauser said there should be classroom space for additional staff when they are hired and it appears at least some of the use of the commons space may be situational.
“I know one was the science classes that was doing some measuring techniques and so I saw them doing a lot of movement (and) some work,” he said. “So I assume that was them utilizing the space out in the commons.”
Issues of crowding raised during the meeting went beyond TMMS.
“Deep concern” about class sizes in elementary schools was expressed by Tara Kulbeth, a second grade teacher at Auke Bay Elementary School. She said 31 students per class in second grade, 32 in third grade and 29 in “split” classes including both grades — above the district’s established pupil-to-teacher ratio of 26 and “we are not the only school facing such large classes.”
“The impact on both students and the overall classroom environment is significant,” she said. “With such large classes it becomes increasingly difficult to provide individualized attention, differentiate instruction, and ensure a positive, engaging learning experience. This is especially critical at the primary level where foundational skills in reading, writing and math are being developed.”
TMMS students being forced to retake classes
Another major concern about TMMS raised Tuesday is some students are being forced to retake classes from last year due to a new system that sorts students in both seventh and eighth grades into three “houses” in various parts of the building, rather than separating seventh- and eighth-grade students. Board member Elizabeth Siddon said the issue was discussed at a meeting of the TMMS Site Council on Monday, which Hauser also attended.
“I guess my question is what are we doing about that?” she said. “And can I make the request that with the two additional staff that we’ve allocated we spend some real time thinking about a better plan than what we’re offering right now.”
Further discussions about the situation are occurring with TMMS staff, and another took place Tuesday with officials at the Sealaska Heritage Institute on possible collaborative efforts, so administrative leaders are “definitely aware of those unique needs and working together on a plan,” said Kristin Garot, the district’s director of teaching and learning support.
That didn’t satisfy Siddon.
“There was a lot of talk of plans and now there’s more talk of plans,” she said. “What I didn’t hear last night was any sense of urgency. These are students that are in our classrooms today and they do not have time to waste a year of academic instruction. I wasn’t satisfied with the answers from administration last night. I’m not satisfied now. I don’t want to just hear we have a plan.”
Disappointment in the decision-making that resulted in the curriculum problems was expressed by Board President Deedie Sorensen.
“I don’t want to pretend like we weren’t hearing from some middle school teachers last spring that these were going to be some issues,” she said. “I am disappointed that we didn’t do a better job in middle school design, troubleshooting, some of these things. I’m not just exactly sure how the decision-making was made that got us here. But if we are truly in a situation that is not working the solution is not just to keep driving deeper into the mud.”
Board member Amber Frommherz asked Hauser why the problem wasn’t included in his upbeat report about TMMS.
“I absolutely appreciate the positivity and the good information up front, but this is something that I would have expected that you would have raised the flag and rallied to help correct,” she said.
Hauser said one of the outcomes of Monday’s TMMS council meeting is Principal Shawn Arnold scheduled another for Sept. 30 “so this work is a priority I know for him.”
District not meeting legal requirements for state’s Individualized Education Program
Tensions also were raised about the revelation that legal requirements for the state’s IEP aren’t being met. Jason DeCamillis, the district’s director of student services, confirmed that shortfall to board members who said that concern was expressed in an email to them.
The customized learning plans known as IEPs are provided to disabled students under requirements of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. As with some other district struggles, a shortage of staff is hampering IEPs — particularly paraeducators who work with such students, as well as on other duties such as safety monitoring outside before and after school, DeCamillis said.
DeCamillis said attempts are underway to hire more paraeducators, as well as find other ways to have the duties they perform be fulfilled. But as with the TMMS curriculum problem, some board members weren’t satisfied with such assurances.
“What we’re all hearing from the ground up is desperate,” Noon said. “The quotation in that email (is) we’re literally just trying to keep kids safe. That’s at a school that is currently down eight paras. And the person who said that said that’s literally all they’re doing, all they’re able to do is keep kids safe. That’s a good day. So that’s how far the bar has been lowered at the moment.”
Mixed reports from student representatives
Three high school student representatives at the meeting, like their older peers, offered varying takes about the first month at the consolidated schools.
Offering the most positive assessment — at least from the students’ perspective — was Lena Field, a JDHS senior who is continuing at the same school as last year. She said she works as an office aide and “day after day the office is getting calls from parents wanting to complain about every single thing they can.”
“However, many of the things parents are complaining about I have not heard a single student talk about,” she said. “The parents seem to have a harder time with the consolidation…Many of the students, myself included, are trying to move forward with a positive mindset, knowing that in a few years this whole issue will not be as big of a deal as it is now.”
While some of the district’s academic programs were under scrutiny during the evening, a silver lining was presented by Tessa Polasek, a senior at JDHS who attended Thunder Mountain High School last year before its conversion to a middle school.
“So far a highlight of this year is the variety of classes available,” she said. “The option to pick electives that cater to what a student will do after high school makes going to school more rewarding.”
The ability to offer an expanded range of classes was among the possibilities highlighted by supporters of the consolidation while it was in the works. Polasek said “personally the intro to engineering and small engine repair classes have made me more excited for the school year than nervous because I know I’ll be learning something long-lasting.”
That said, there are some hitches, Polasek said.
“A rough spot with the school consolidation is moving, moving students from a newer building to one in need of repair,” she said, adding it isn’t affecting relationships between students. Also, she noted, there were long lines to the school counselor’s office during the first weeks of school.
More difficult issues were raised by Aster Davis, a senior at the alternative Yaaḵoosgé Daakahídi High School, which was consolidated along with Montessori Borealis Public Alternative School and Juneau Community Charter School into what used to be Dzantik’i Heeni Middle School. Davis said among the concerns are funding for projects, after-school clubs and extracurricular activities.
Having three schools, one with over 100 students, and sticking them in different wings was probably not a good idea,” Davis said.
Another concern that prompted discussion by the board is students getting to the school in winter since it is on a steep hillside and many students take public transportation rather than school buses to get there, Davis said.
“Many of the students take public transportation instead of school busses because the school busses are meant for the elementary schoolers instead of the high schoolers,” Davis explained. Furthermore “many of our students are there because we are the needy ones. We have special needs. A lot of them are physically disabled, and walking up the hill during the winter is a concern over the ice and slipping.”
Among the possibilities raised by board members are an additional bus stop on the hillside next to the school and allowing student IDs to be used to ride city buses.
Tempers boiling over and simmering down
Acrimony in discussions about staffing level struggles hit a peak about three hours into the meeting when Lyle Melkerson, the district’s director of human services, was explaining difficulties in filling vacancies quickly and remarked “there’s many things going on.”
“One, the first payday was last Friday and I don’t know if the board is aware, but there was a consolidation where we moved staff from building to building and in order to move them they also have to be moved in the payroll system to be paid appropriately,” he said. “That requires the work of approximately five people and those five people are focusing on making sure that our employees are paid, and that is our priority. And at the same time we’re also watching to make sure that we are hiring the external candidates. Those are the same five employees doing those things.”
Such comments resulted in a heated response a few minutes later from Will Muldoon, chair of the board’s finance committee.
“Director Melkerson, I am on my 13th consecutive hour of meetings today,” Muldoon said. “I have to go to work after this so I can respect you’re busy. I do not appreciate your glib attitude. I was here for the consolidation. I made that motion (for it). OK? Do you understand?
“I do,” Melkerson replied. “I was the person that—”
“I’m not done, sir,” Muldoon cut him off. “And my last question for you is do you understand that until your reports are satisfactory and you keep the glib stuff to a minimum that I will be pulling all of your reports?”
“I, too, have been in 13 hours of meetings today,” Melkerson replied. “I understand.”
“Yes or no — do you understand?” Muldoon asked.
“Thank you,” Muldoon said, standing afterward and exiting the room for a few minutes.
Frustration about the contentious situation that’s often been at boiling point since January, when a major financial crisis was revealed that resulted in the consolidation, was voiced later in the meeting by Emil Mackey, the school board’s vice president.
“I’m tired of hearing teachers blame administration,” he said. “I’m tired of administration trying to plug holes without the tools from state government and the funding from state government to do it. I’m tired of crazy rumors and the public distracting us from actually doing our work, and having me and administration chase ghosts. I’m tired of a lot of things.”
Mackey, who at one point during the evening noted it might be his last regular meeting as a board member due to a recall petition of him that is on the Oct. 1 municipal election ballot, said people are going to have to put such antagonism aside for the schools to function well under their new alignment.
“Let’s be respectful to each other and let’s remember that we really are in the same boat, and we need to start rowing again in the same direction we came together for consolidation,” he said. “The stress hasn’t been taken off of our necks yet, but we have a job to do whether we’re administration, whether we’re a teacher, whether we’re a board member, whether we’re a member of the public, and that’s to give the best and most effective education we can under the circumstances to our students.”
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
