Tag: Well being

‘Sandwich Project Brings Together Community Around Student Food Security’ by Carmen Pell

ouralaskanschools on
Totes of weekend food await to be transported to the nine schools supported by the Sandwich Project.

In November 2018, a Palmer High School (PHS) student, Zoe Nelles, was struck by a realization that her peers may not have weekend food security. Zoe took the initiative and reached out to a PHS teacher for help, and from there the PHS Sandwich Project began. In the beginning stages of the project, Zoe would make PBJ sandwiches in her home and used donated non-perishable food items to fill the bags. The first week 7 food bags were delivered to students on a Friday afternoon. Zoe continued to spear head the program for 2 years, through the spring of 2020, when she graduated.

Through generous grants from the Mat-Su Health Foundation, The Food Bank of Alaska, and The Palmer Community Foundation, an affiliate of The Alaska Community Foundation, the project continues to grow each year. This grant money was used to buy not only food items, but also to buy structural supplies to sustain the program, such as shelving and bins to properly store items as well as a freezer and refrigerator for perishable items. Continue reading ‘Sandwich Project Brings Together Community Around Student Food Security’ by Carmen Pell

‘Year Four for the Our Alaskan Schools Blog!’ by Sam Jordan at ASDN

ouralaskanschools on

The Our Alaskan Schools Blog turns four this month! In 2022, we presented 21 stories from classrooms, schools, and communities around the state. It was a dynamic year of transition across the state, as educators shifted from a pandemic stance to new stances infused with all we’ve learned from the challenge of the past few years. Here are some of the highlights of the stories featured this past year. Continue reading ‘Year Four for the Our Alaskan Schools Blog!’ by Sam Jordan at ASDN

‘Six Alaska Teens Recognized as Heroes for Work in their Local Communities’ by Alaska Communications

ouralaskanschools on

From showing the positive outcomes of inclusion to preserving cultural traditions for future generations, or simply lending a hand to those in need, youth today are proving that an individual’s actions can have a tremendous impact on those around them. Through the Summer of Heroes Program, Alaska Communications is proud to celebrate six teens for their outstanding community service across Alaska. Five youth heroes at large and one youth hero from the company’s employee program each will be awarded a $1,500 scholarship for their efforts. Additionally, as part of the program, the broadband provider will donate $15,000 to Boys & Girls Clubs – Alaska to further support youth development in the state. Continue reading ‘Six Alaska Teens Recognized as Heroes for Work in their Local Communities’ by Alaska Communications

On Surviving and Thriving in the Online Classroom by Billeen Carlson

ouralaskanschools on

In the Spring of 2020 my students stopped coming to school. The Kenai Peninsula extended Spring Break while my colleagues and I scrambled to figure out how we were going to reproduce the learning that had been going on in our classrooms for children that were now at home, often unsupervised.

I will admit, I was rather smug. I assumed that my technology-rich Nikolaevsk classroom trained my students for this. My class of 5th-12th grade social studies and language arts students were already prepared to do their learning online. They knew how to navigate Google Classroom and Canvas and PowerSchool. All of them could compose and post videos reflecting on the learning they had gained by engaging with online learning materials.  Continue reading On Surviving and Thriving in the Online Classroom by Billeen Carlson

Alaskan Student Filmmakers Produce “Atmautluak, AK: Our Village Our Home”

ouralaskanschools on

Students in the Lower Kuskokwim School District village of Atmautluak, produced this film as part of the GEAR UP Program at the Joann A. Alexie Memorial School. GEAR UP in LKSD includes: drone pilot certification, filmmaking, culinary institutes, tutoring and college readiness activities. GEAR UP liaison, Jeffery Behelsich supported students as they scripted, planned, interviewed, flew drones, filmed, and edited this introduction to Atmautluak.

The Rural Alaska GEAR UP Partnership is a collaboration between Bering Strait School District, Lower Kuskokwim School District, the University of Alaska, Yuut Elitnaurviat and Alaska Staff Development Network (ASDN) designed to address the needs of students in 37 villages in western Alaska.

‘Lighthouse Room – A Collaboration Between the School Library and School Counseling’ by Pamela Verfaillie and Shannon Major at Valdez High School

ouralaskanschools on

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

Students and staff have been under increasing amounts of stress, from the pandemic, social media overload, and a myriad of other causes. This year, the Lighthouse Room was installed in the Valdez High School library (a central location within our building) to help students manage their stress and other mental health challenges.

Continue reading ‘Lighthouse Room – A Collaboration Between the School Library and School Counseling’ by Pamela Verfaillie and Shannon Major at Valdez High School

‘The 2022 Alaska RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference’ by the Staff at ACSA/ASDN

ouralaskanschools on

Alaska’s teachers are some of the most devoted professionals in the country. Almost 1,000 educators from across the state of Alaska chose to spend two or three weekend days in January learning, collaborating, and reinvigorating their practice at the RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference 2022 (and RTI Rural Schools Pre-Conference).  

 What educators took away from the conference was tremendous, and what we heard from them was worth sharing out.  Continue reading ‘The 2022 Alaska RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference’ by the Staff at ACSA/ASDN

‘Hope On The Slope: Messages of Hope in the North Slope Borough Schools’ by Ronald Brower, Sharene Ahmaogak, Lisa Peterson and Lori Roth

ouralaskanschools on

As Alaskans know, living in remote areas under harsh winter conditions can be challenging. Add in the fears, restrictions and isolation of a pandemic, and life can be downright overwhelming. In response to those shared challenges, staff at North Slope Borough School District (NSBSD) started a ‘Messages of Hope’ campaign asking students to draw and share what hope means to them.

One of the ‘Walls of Hope’ at NSBSD schools that was created during the ‘Message of Hope’ campaign

Continue reading ‘Hope On The Slope: Messages of Hope in the North Slope Borough Schools’ by Ronald Brower, Sharene Ahmaogak, Lisa Peterson and Lori Roth

‘The Art of Thriving as a Transplant Teacher’ by Angie Busch Alston

ouralaskanschools on

I never could have predicted that my teaching life would include arranging demonstrations involving marine mammals and holding my students inside because of polar bear warnings, but that’s exactly what happened.

My name is Angie. I teach high school in Brevig Mission, an Inupiaq village in the Bering Strait School District.

Brevig Mission, Alaska

It’s 2021, and I love my life in the village and my job at the school. I’ve gone from never having butchered a single animal to being able to make heart and tongue soup. I’m raising a daughter who can spot a berry patch from a distance and gets it right every time. Last year’s senior class had been in my class since sixth grade. There was a lot of growth in those years, and I got to witness it all. Continue reading ‘The Art of Thriving as a Transplant Teacher’ by Angie Busch Alston

‘What Works: Relating To and Respecting Parents’ by Nikki Fisher

ouralaskanschools on
Teacher Nikki Fisher’s remote teaching set up

I teach 4th and 5th grade in the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, all subjects, and math for 4th through 8th grade. I am finding that being in daily contact with parents and being completely transparent with them about my own life is what is working for me. Continue reading ‘What Works: Relating To and Respecting Parents’ by Nikki Fisher