JUNEAU, Alaska (KTUU) – Alaska school districts are projected to lose 1,500 students next year, according to state budget documents presented to lawmakers Wednesday by Department of Education and Early Development leaders—a decline that for the first time includes both traditional classrooms and online programs.
“So, we have an overall decrease of about one percent, so a total of 1,500 students from FY26 to 27,” Heather Heineken, the department’s finance and support services director, told lawmakers during an earlier budget presentation Wednesday morning.
DEED Deputy Commissioner Karen Morrison told the House Finance Committee later that families are leaving public schools for independent homeschooling, private schools, out-of-state virtual academies or moving out of Alaska entirely…