JUNEAU, Alaska: Last week, students in Alaska’s capital walked out of school and protested outside the statehouse to protest Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy’s latest veto of a state education package and the Legislature’s failure to override it.
Felix Myers, a student organizer from Sitka, said the executive board of the Alaska Association of Student Governments organized the protest.
He added that plans called for 40-minute walkouts at schools across Alaska, with 40 representing the number of votes lawmakers needed to override the veto. He noted that lawmakers fell one vote short in their override attempt last month.
He further added that the walkout was planned for around 11 a.m., a time chosen in part to minimize disruptions and ensure participation.
“We have tried to be heard, we have tried to be listened to and we have been ignored, and that is why we have gotten to this point,” Myers said.
In March, Dunleavy vetoed a package overwhelmingly passed by lawmakers that called for a US$175-million increase in aid to districts through a school funding formula, claiming that it lacked provisions he supported.
After vetoing the package, Dunleavy said he was moving on to other issues, such as energy.
School leaders and advocates called for around $360 million in further aid and supported the package passed by lawmakers as a positive step.
School officials have cited issues such as inflation, high energy and insurance costs, as well as multimillion-dollar deficits and teacher shortages.
They also said unpredictable levels of state support make long-term planning difficult.
In 2023, lawmakers approved a one-time, $175-million funding increase, but Dunleavy vetoed half that sum.
School funding is expected to be watched closely for the remainder of the legislative session.
