Public Education

I believe in a strong public education system and will work to empower public schools with the tools they need to support students as they work to become successful adults. Alaska has been battling budget cuts to education and teacher benefits year after year. This must end. Education is one of the most robust predictors of economic growth rates. I will fight for education funding on the federal level while maintaining autonomy of states and school districts outlined in the Every Student Succeeds Act. I strongly support local autonomy for educational decisions. I am opposed to closing schools in response to the Covid pandemic and am opposed to mask and Covid vaccine mandates in our schools. 

My plan to help Alaskan educators, Alaskan students, and Alaska schools: 

• Partner with local communities, not more testing from the federal government. I support the Every Student Succeeds Act and know that the only way for this law to be more effective than No Child Left Behind is to stop the Washington first approach and instead work with educators and families.  We don’t need more testing mandates; we need more support from Washington;
• Support collective bargaining for educators;
• Support broadband expansion and connectivity for rural Alaska;
• Build federal funding for education; and
• Support forward funding for education;