Sleetmute residents worry most in winter, when snow and ice build up on the school roof and the back end of the building begins to buckle under the weight. Courtesy Emily Schwing/KYUK.
Rural districts have spent years pleading for repairs, and the 2025-to-2026 funding fight shows how much of Alaska’s school system is still being left to chance.
By Gina Hill | Alaska Headline Living | July 1, 2026
Alaska’s school crisis is not some abstract budget issue. It’s roofs that leak, mold that lingers, tank farms that fail, and families wondering why their kids are still being sent into buildings that feel one bad winter away from disaster.
This has been building for years. Rural districts have asked for hundreds of millions in repair money, but the state has only covered a fraction of what’s needed. By 2026, the backlog had grown to more than $1.12 billion.
Lawmakers did move more money this spring, and Gov. Mike Dunleavy left those school-funding pieces intact in his June vetoes. But it was a bandaid, not a fix.
And that matters beyond the Capitol. Alaska already has a chronic absenteeism problem, with 43% of students missing enough school in 2023–2024 to be considered chronically absent. If a school feels cold, unsafe, or constantly broken, it gets even harder to persuade families that showing up is worth it.
For Alaskans, this is about more than buildings. It’s about whether children can learn, whether teachers stick around, and whether a village school still feels like the heart of the community instead of a warning sign.
If you want to get involved, call the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development at 907-465-2800 and ask what’s funded, what’s waiting, and why the backlog is still so deep. Hold lawmakers accountable and keep this issue front and center when they head back to Juneau.
Sources
- KYUK: Alaska’s deteriorating schools could receive more than $148M for repairs, it’s a fraction of what they need
- ProPublica: A Rural Alaska School Asked the State to Fund a Repair. Nearly 1,800 Requests Later, Little Has Changed.
- Alaska Department of Education and Early Development: Addressing Chronic Absenteeism
- Alaska Department of Education and Early Development: Contact Information
