A task force aimed at combating alcohol abuse will launch a series of public service announcements aimed at discouraging drinking. Announcements will include teens giving a message that it’s “cool” not to drink, community members “telling their stories” and police providing information on penalties associated with alcohol-related offenses, including for providing alcohol to minors. A […]
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Posted inNews, Elections
Voters Tuesday will decide mayor, recall, 3 assembly seats
Voters go to the polls Tuesday in an election that could dramatically change the make-up of local leadership. Including a recall initiative that targets two assembly members, all but one of six elected seats on the Haines Borough Assembly will be in play. Voters also will choose a Mayor and fill up to three of seven seats on the Haines […]
Posted inNews, School Board
Should high school be more difficult? Board mulls graduation requirements
Should Haines High School graduation requirements be changed or stiffened? The Haines Borough school board took up that question Tuesday, at the request of board chair Carol Kelly. “It seems to me a student could graduate in three and a half years here, and it seems we have more to offer,” she said. Rather than the board making […]
Posted inNews
Task force wants to connect with youths
The first meeting of an alcohol task force Wednesday focused on connecting with youths instead of “preaching” at them. Nine residents attended the meeting in the assembly chambers as a follow-up to an Aug. 31 town hall that addressed alcohol abuse and misuse in Haines. Police chief Gary Lowe again facilitated the meeting, along with officer Cassandra […]
Posted inNews
New teaching tactics aim to increase reading skills
Veteran teacher Jeanne Kitayama is on special assignment for the Haines Borough School District. Her mission: To help ensure that all Haines students are reading at proficiency by the end of third grade. Kitayama’s part-time position, established on a trial basis this year, grew out of new research about developing brains and borrows from some recent, […]
Posted inNews, School Board
Board OKs raises for school staff
The school district’s classified employees received a 4 percent raise and teachers received raises between 2 and 8 percent as the result of a new contract agreement between the Haines Borough School District and the local education union. The district also agreed to pay an additional $100 per month per employee for health insurance, or $1,400 per […]
Posted inNews
Byer gets raise, contract extension
The Haines Borough school board has extended the contract of superintendent Michael Byer through 2014 and given him a 5 percent raise. Byer’s new contract represents a two-year extension to a previous, three-year contract that was due to expire June 30, 2012. The contract will pay Byer $105,000 per year, up from $100,000. The board evaluated Byer in […]
Posted inNews
District, police wait, wonder about signs
At the state Department of Transportation shop in Haines, three-foot alders are growing between two, new, flashing road signs designating a school zone. The signs have been there at least three years. Why they’re not up in front of the Haines School is what school and police officials want to know. A similar set of […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Election change doubles length of political season
A change in law approved by the Haines Borough Assembly last year effectively doubled the length of the municipal election season. Local politicians are divided on the merits of the change, which extends the duration of a campaign for assembly or school board to at least two months. The change – requested by borough clerk Julie Cozzi – was […]
Posted inNews, Elections
Election lineup finalized; Smith and Hess vie for seat, again
The filing period for the Haines Borough’s October municipal election closed Friday, with contested races for Mayor and the Haines Borough Assembly, but a shortage of school board candidates. The race for assembly seat “E” is a rematch of sorts, pitting Karen Hess against Norm Smith. Greg Goodman replaced Smith on the assembly last October, after defeating write-in candidate Hess. […]