Keeping Anchorage Schools Safe: A Community Effort

Parents and teachers in Anchorage are worried. They see students acting out and not enough support to handle these issues. This is making teachers leave their jobs at a rate higher than the national average. Many teachers feel unsupported. Families are questioning if public schools are still the best choice for their children.

This problem won't fix itself. It's time to stop relying on big programs that sound good but don't work. Instead, we should trust the people who know the students best: parents, teachers, principals, and community leaders.

How to Make Schools Safer

1. Utilize Existing Resources Effectively

The StopIt program was introduced, but no one was assigned to check the reports. Principals can't see the bigger picture, and serious tips are ignored. A team should be put in place to check every report quickly and give principals up-to-date information.

2. Deploy School Resource Officers (SROs) Strategically

• Every middle and high school should have a full-time SRO.
• Elementary schools should have an SRO visit at least every other day. These officers build relationships with students and act as a deterrent and responder.

3. Involve Military Families in the Solution

Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson has service members who want to help. A volunteer program could be created where active-duty and retired personnel spend time with kids, providing a positive adult presence that research shows reduces bullying and violence.

4. Launch All Pro Dad Chapters at Every School

Studies show that having an involved father or father figure is the biggest protective factor against bullying and delinquency. This program gets dads on campus once a month for breakfast and conversation with their kids. Having hundreds of dads visible and engaged in every building can change the culture and the future.

5. Return Discipline Policies to the Local Level

• One-size-fits-all rules don't work in every neighborhood.
• Site-based councils made up of parents, teachers, and the principal should have the final say on discipline, dress codes, and cellphone policies. Parents know their kids best, and community leaders see what's happening day to day. They should have the authority to act.

Conclusion

Teachers aren't quitting their students; they're quitting a system that ties their hands. Parents aren't fleeing to charter or homeschool options because they suddenly dislike public schools; they're doing it because they no longer feel their children are safe or heard.

Put safety decisions back where they belong: in the hands of parents, teachers, and principals—not downtown administrators who never step foot in your child's classroom.

Together, we can make every Anchorage school a place where kids walk in with pride and purpose—and walk out safer than when they arrived.