Mosquito Lake School is a gem of a school. I hope to see it re-open its doors in fall 2015. This small school model is a valuable, alternative choice within our Haines Borough School District. As the satellite school in the Haines district, the school is a feeder school. It generates a surplus in funding when 10 or more students are enrolled. Also as a “feeder,” most of its students go on to attend in town. I was present at the meeting held at the school January 21, 2014. A large group of concerned residents and school officials met to discuss options for keeping the school open. Former superintendent Michael Byer shared the latest fiscal numbers for the 2012-2013 school year. He stated, “With the enrollment of 10 students, the district received $308,000 in state and borough monies. The school costs the district about $245,000 a year to operate.” I wrote down his remarks in notes that I retain from that evening. A $63,000 surplus is impressive and it’s likely Mosquito Lake has generated a surplus for 31 of its 32 years of operation. Can you think of any other borough facility that produces a fiscal surplus when used for its intended purpose? The surplus is a great advantage for our school district and has reduced requests for additional monies from the borough’s general fund. I am happy to speak to anyone about the educational attributes of Mosquito Lake School from the perspective of a parent of three former students.
— Marianne Rasmussen