By R.J. Sullivan Students have all heard it at some point in their educational career “such and such is getting cut” or “that teacher is being let go”. It’s a hard truth that the past few years students have watched as unique educational opportunities are being cut one by one.
In the last few years West Valley has had a number of programs at risk of getting cut. Some notables being the Chinese class last year, which was consolidated and put as a seventh period, and the removal of choir class a few years back. But after all that, how much do students really know about the budget and how it really affects them? In order to get a grasp on how much students know about the school budget, I ran a quick survey on 32 random people with four yes or no questions. The results were surprising; only roughly 28% of people felt like they knew how the budget worked, however 81% of people said they knew how budget cuts affected them. Most of our money comes from the state and is pushed down to the borough, which decides how much money gets funneled into our schools. However the state legislature doesn’t decide the amount of money the borough gets until May or June, meaning the school district has to make their budget based off estimates until they know how much money they have at the next school year. This means that some teachers might get laid off only for the district to ask for them back the next year, when the budget comes out higher or lower than estimated. So when did this start happening? According to Mr. Genson around the early 2000’s the budget stopped growing while other costs such as healthcare and utilities kept going up, meaning the district was paying higher costs but with the same budget that couldn’t handle the rising costs. So why doesn’t the borough just give more money to schools? Well it’s not that simple, they’re capped at a certain amount of money they can give the school district by law. So when the budget doesn’t grow with costs, it leads to class sizes being expanded into what Social Studies teacher Sean Genson calls “hectic” and “crazy” with class sizes averaging at around 30 students. When asked about the importance of having a healthy education budget Mr. Genson responded calling it “absolutely vital” as it “has to be a huge thing” for Alaska. As of the writing of this article most of the 8 million dollar cuts made to this years budget have been restored as the district had obtained more money than expected.
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By Robert Willard The West Valley High School MCJROTC will be hosting a silent auction and dinner fundraiser for the school and community on Friday, October 12th, 2018. The fundraiser will be held at West Valley High School in the commons/cafeteria from 6:00-9:00 pm.
The Senior Marine Instructor of the MCJROTC program, Major Leroy Hessner, says, “This will be the first cadet planned fundraiser.” He hopes to build relationships with the community and wishes the student body would come and show their support for the program and Wolfpack Pride. The cadets that are part of the planning committee for the fundraiser are, Amber Pollen, Caitlyn Berrian, Hannah Hanson, Dickson Hubb, and Hailey Clawson. These committee members, advised by Hannah’s mother, Mrs.Hanson-Whatley, are to plan and have everything ready to go to before the big night. The cadets have invested their time for a month, and are very excited to see this event happen. Hessner says, “This is a big turning point for the West Valley High School MCJROTC program and the cadets” because this will test the cadets to prove themselves. Cadet 2nd Lt. Jake Kinder, who is the executive officer of the MCJROTC, hopes to see a lot of positive outcomes from this event and also encourages the student body to come help and support the auction. Kinder says that he would like cadets that are part of the JROTC family “to come experience this event” he encourages the growth of cadets within the school and encourages them to always keep learning and pushing on to what ever dream they might have. Cadet 2nd Lt, Amber Pollen, is the Operations officer of the MCJROTC. She is in charge of the committee and the whole dinner planning. Pollen says she “is so grateful for the cadets who took their time to help”. According to Pollen when it comes to planning big events it relieves so much stress when there are people to help. Pollen feels confident in this event and is happy that all is running smoothly and she also cannot wait for the big night to start. By Duncan Baumgarten On Wednesday, September 12th, outside of Mrs. Damario’s history classroom during fifth period, a very important man sat on the floor. He helped campaign for, and run, a middle-school Model UN conference at West Valley, on May 5, 2018, which 30 students attended. He is part of the planning for an upcoming conference on November 10th. He belongs to an exclusive club, one of only four members. He boasts an uncontested election. With an assured smile, and luscious locks that could unify a nation, he might not immediately strike a student as a man of power,but he leads one of the most popular, and influential, clubs at West Valley. His name is Jack Winford, and he’s the President of Model United Nations, or Model UN.
President Winford has a myriad of accolades to his name; “Brave”, says Mrs. Damario, the adult sponsor of Model UN; “Relaxed and confident”, says Sarah Gerstenfield, a member; an “outgoing” and “genuine guy”, says Secretary of Model UN Naomi Hartman. Since it’s early days for Model UN, there haven’t been any major conflicts. However, tensions were high for his first meeting. Damario describes herself as rigid, while Winford is laid back. With such conflicting styles, one might assume that there would be impassable conflict. “I work for him”, says Damario. “I have to step back… I trust him completely”. With seventy-five students at their first meeting, Sept. 10, there was no PowerPoint, like his predecessor, President Tanner Sprankle. Winford pulled up a chair and spoke. Damario promises that he is going to make it his own, when questioned whether he will be as consequential as his former presidents. Winford is guided by his own actions, not by the actions of others. Words like “redefine” and “out of the box” and “dedicated” came up repeatedly. “I’m interested to see how he takes on the role”, with such big shoes to fill, says Zee Nace, the Official Liaison for Model UN. Winford stresses a new aspect to Model UN. “We’ll be less focused on trips, and more focused on the community,” says the President. This new focus on the community was a main focal point of his opening speech as President. Model UN member Sarah Gerstenfield predicts Winford is “bring[ing] something different in than what we do now”. Vice President Sebastian Boice describes the President’s governing style as “what the club needs right now”. President Winford has an energy and ability to encourage excellence. “He has a great combination of being laid back, but has the ability to mobilize people”, says Damario. It’s in his job description to create and maintain the community feel, to advocate for joining, and to draw everyone together. A lofty task, but according to both members of his team, and members of the club alike, he fulfills it. “I teach more than I tell,” he says, when describing his own view of his governing style. A common explanation for a lack of involvement in clubs is a lack of time to commit. However, President Winford has an alternative. “Model UN is for people who are too busy for clubs. If it’s not your habit, we’ll make it your habit.” It was stressed that “If there is a club at West Valley that needs help to accomplish their goals, Model UN can help them.” It all goes back to the creation of a community feeling, which returns to the foundation of what West Valley is about. “I’m impressed,” says Damario. Model UN meets Mondays and Fridays at lunch in the Dewild Theatre. Visit Ms. Damario, or President Winford, for more information. |
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