School District To Meet With Kenny Lake Parents To Talk Things Over On November 2nd

School Superintendent To Meet Parents At Kenny Lake School Regarding "Issues & Solutions"

In mid-October, the Copper River School district posted the following notice regarding Kenny Lake School:

There is a growing concern about the significant number of students who leave Kenny Lake School once they reach the high school level. CRSD Superintendent, Thérèse Ashton, will be hosting a gathering for past, current and future KLS families as well as staff and community members to discuss the future of Kenny Lake School. The meeting will take place in the school gym on Tuesday, November 2 at 6:00 p.m.


The purpose of the meeting is for Mrs. Ashton to hear the desires of the KLS stakeholders and to collect information in order for the district to be better informed on how to proceed with decisions that will affect the school in the future. We encourage you to attend this very important meeting. Coffee and dessert will be served. 

Therese Ashton, school superintendent, told the Country Journal about Kenny Lake School and the decision to meet and have coffee with families there this fall. The main reason is that "some of the high school students are going to Glennallen" for schooling instead of staying in Kenny Lake she said. "It seems there's been a trend for awhile. This year is no different."

The district is inviting anybody from the community who has a stake in the school, including past students and staff. 

The school district is calling the November 2nd meeting "The Future of Kenny Lake." Superintendent Ashton noted that the meeting will be one of several planned for different schools, and does not mean that Kenny Lake is in danger of losing the school.

She said the meeting will be to find out "...what people want to see with their school." She added that she "wants to listen to people and hear what they think; start a conversation." 

The drift to Glennallen School by high school students from the more rural community of Kenny Lake could have several reasons, she said. It could be either something that "needs to be dealt with" or it could just be "a choice that people are making."

She added that Kenny Lake and Glennallen are two different types of schools.

 

OPTIONS FOR HIGH SCHOOL LOCALLY

There are four choices for high school offered by the Copper River School District at this time: Correspondence School, Glennallen Jr. & Sr. High School, Slana School, and Kenny Lake School. 

The Alaska Department of Education lists Kenny Lake School as having 6 teachers and 66 students. Kenny Lake has all school grades, down to the youngest students, and includes high school. 

Glennallen has two separate schools: an elementary school with 129 students and 10 teachers, and a Jr. & Sr. High School with 133 students and 10 teachers, the state of Alaska says. 

Slana School has 10 students and a single teacher, and has the full run of classes up to 12th grade, state figures show.   

Finally, there are 125 students listed by the Department of Education's website in the district correspondence "Upstream Learning," for all grades. The district's correspondence program has 2 teachers.

STATE SAYS COPPER VALLEY ACADEMIC SCORES VARY WIDELY BY SCHOOL 

Of the various options,  the school district's correspondence program is the best academically,  producing the highest testing results, according to the state of Alaska. Upstream Learning  students test highest in the district in Math and English language proficiency -- with almost 55% Math and 67% English proficiency. 

Kenny Lake is second, academically, in the district lineup, with 42.86% proficiency for both Math and English. 

Glennallen Jr/Sr. High is last, with a Math proficiency of 22% and  English Language proficiency of 23%, according to the state of Alaska's website.