Two 37-year-old women are running uncontested for the open seats on the Haines Borough school board. Shelly Sloper has served on the board for the last three and a half years, first as an appointed replacement and then as an elected member. Her family moved to Haines in 1997, and Sloper attended the Haines school for both […]
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Posted inNews, Education
Swimming now official high school sport
Haines High School swimmers will compete against 2A schools again this year after the school board voted unanimously on Tuesday to formally include swimming among high school activities. The board voted last year to support the team financially for one season, but Tuesday’s vote made swimming an official school activity for the long term and will compete […]
Posted inLocal News, Klukwan, News, Education
Chatham district looks to boost enrollment at Klukwan school
Klukwan School has a new superintendent and a new principal, both committed to keeping it open and boosting enrollment. The Chatham School District – whose sites include schools in Klukwan, Angoon and Gustavus, and an independent learning center in Tenakee Springs — named a new superintendent, Ralph Watkins, in April after its previous superintendent died suddenly […]
Posted inNews, Education
School district uses last of federal pandemic funds to support students
With $155,700 of federal pandemic relief money left over from the past two years, the Haines Borough School District will continue to support student activities, summer programming and a second counselor for the 2022-2023 school year. “Many districts used (the federal money) to fill significant budget shortfalls, usually due to drastically reduced enrollment,” superintendent Roy Getchell wrote […]
Posted inNews, Education, Housing
Nationwide teacher shortage hits Haines
Amid a teacher shortage across Alaska and the Lower 48, the Haines Borough School District is struggling to fill vacancies. For two months, the district hasn’t been able to hire a second-grade teacher and for over a month it has been trying to fill a high school science position. Administrators say they’ve never had so few applicants. […]
Posted inDuly Noted
Duly Noted
Whitney Morgan O’Brien was born at 6:39 p.m. on April 9 to Lucinda Boyce and Billy O’Brien at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital. She weighed 8 lbs., 11 oz. and measured 20 inches. Lucinda and Billy chose Fairbanks for the delivery to stay with Lucinda’s sister Ellie Boyce and husband Andy Mahoney. New grandmom Annie Boyce and Paul Swift drove north for Whitney’s arrival. Lucinda, Billy, and Whitney have moved […]
Posted inNews
Haines cleared of community spread
School will be mask-optional starting next week Haines Borough School District superintendent Roy Getchell will make masks optional for students and staff on March 7. The Alaska Department of Health and Human Services has cleared all known cases of community transmission in Haines (cases where the source of infection is unknown) and there are no […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
We’re on a path to normalcy
Our board is appreciative of the respectful communication we received from HBSD families and the Haines community regarding COVID-19 mitigations. We are proud to be one of very few districts in Alaska with no school closures during the pandemic. Because the Alaska Department of Education urges us to treat COVID-19 cases in accordance with CDC […]
Posted inNews
Protesters gather outside school to oppose mask mandate
A handful of protesters gathered in front of the Haines School every day this week, before and after classes, to voice opposition to the school’s mask mandate. The demonstrators – no more than five or six – displayed numerous signs, with such phrases as “My Body, My Choice,” “Make School Great Again” and “Unmask the Kids.” […]
Posted inNews, School Board
School board approves Upward Bound program, art club trip
The Haines Borough School District board approved at its Tuesday regular meeting a trip to Seattle for the Haines High School Art Club and a commitment to participate in the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Upward Bound program that helps rural, first generation, low-income high school students prepare for secondary education. The program includes college preparation, academic year […]