Anchorage School District ends school year with eye on changes next fall

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Students and staff in the Anchorage School District celebrated the last day of school Tuesday as they welcomed three months of a well-deserved summer break.

With the academic year now in its rearview mirror, the district is already looking ahead to next fall to keep families updated on what changes they should expect for the 2023-24 school year.

Starting in August, all grade levels in the district will be starting an hour later on Mondays. The late start provides teachers within the district with an hour of Professional Learning Communities.

For the last few years, ASD had implemented these learning opportunities for high schoolers, according to the district, but this will be new this upcoming school year for middle and elementary school facility members.

During the hour, staff will focus on looking at data and having the opportunities to discuss curriculum with fellow teachers, the district said. Later starts on Mondays will not impact school end times, but families should keep in mind that transportation to schools will start an hour later than their scheduled route times.

ASD superintendent Jharrett Bryantt said students will still be able to come to school at a time they’re used to.

“Things will be open at the same time every day for families, so at the normal time, and students will be supervised by other staff members who are in the building,” Bryantt said. “That will look different school by school, so what I’ve communicated to our principals is the expectation is that our buildings are open at the same time, and how that looks like will vary from school to school.”

Families can expect to hear from the district during late summer regarding information from their specific schools. Each school, Bryantt said, will be handling the situation differently.

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