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The 2025-26 Denali Award winners were recognized Tuesday, May 19, 2026, during the Anchorage School Board meeting. 

Denali is an Athabascan word meaning “great one,” and the Anchorage School District (ASD) is proud to have employees that display greatness in the areas of achievement, service, and dedication. The Denali award is the highest award offered by the District.

About the Denali Awards

Each spring, supervisors submit nominations, and a panel of ASD staff selects a number of employees and a team of colleagues that demonstrate outstanding commitment to the District’s mission of educating all students for success in life.

There are three different categories for the Denali Award: Classified, Certificated, and Team. ASD is honored to recognize two individuals and one group as the 2026 Denali Award winners. 

The District would like to acknowledge the individuals who received Honorable Mention for their exceptional service and dedication. These employees were nominated and stood out to the selection panel for their outstanding contributions to their schools and the Anchorage School District community.

2026 Honorable Mention recipients

Extraordinary Service: Typhoon Halong Response

As an extension of this year’s Denali Award ceremony, ASD is honored to recognize a group of schools, departments, and individuals for their extraordinary service in response to Typhoon Halong.

During a time of tremendous need, these employees embodied the values of the Denali Award through their compassion, leadership, and unwavering support for displaced students and families from Western Alaska.

Their efforts helped create stability, belonging, and care for families experiencing unimaginable loss, and their actions reflected the very best of ASD.

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2026 Denali Award recipients

Certificated Denali Award winner

Krista Rice, School Psychologist at Bartlett High School

This year's Denali Award winner in the Certificated Award category is Krista Rice, School Psychologist at Bartlett High School.

Ms. Rice is a core part of what makes Bartlett High School such a welcoming, supportive, and student-centered school community.

As a school psychologist, Ms. Rice consistently goes far beyond the responsibilities of her role. In addition to managing the demands of her own position, she stepped in throughout the year to help fill critical Special Education staffing gaps, supporting students and staff during a time of significant need.

Ms. Rice serves on Bartlett’s PBIS team at multiple levels, leads small groups, participates in the school’s attendance cohort, and provides mentorship and support to new teachers, counselors, and administrators. Most importantly, she serves as a trusted adult for countless students across the school community.

Her impact reaches every corner of Bartlett High School. Through her leadership in student risk assessments, threat assessments, and emergency interventions, Ms. Rice has quite literally helped save lives.

Colleagues describe her as someone who is always willing to help, no matter how full her plate may be. She is known for greeting others with kindness, compassion, and a steady smile, even during the most challenging moments.

Ms. Rice embodies the heart of what it means to be a Bartlett Golden Bear and exemplifies the very best of the Anchorage School District.

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Classified Denali Award winner

Jeremy Coulson, Maintenance Supervisor

Jeremy Coulson exemplifies what it means to serve the Anchorage School District with dedication, integrity, and heart.

With more than 23 years of service to ASD, beginning in November 2002, Mr. Coulson has built a career defined by reliability, expertise, and an unwavering commitment to students and staff.

Since becoming Maintenance Supervisor in May 2022, Mr. Coulson has overseen critical systems including plumbing, heating, and building automation systems—the essential infrastructure that keeps schools safe, warm, and operational every day.

This past winter brought some of the most extreme and prolonged cold conditions our district has faced in more than 25 years. During that time, Mr. Coulson went far beyond the expectations of his role.

He worked day and night, often seven days a week, ensuring schools remained open, safe, and ready for students.

Even when he was not the designated on-call supervisor, Mr. Coulson consistently stepped in to respond to emergencies, support his team, and make sure no issue went unresolved. His level of ownership and accountability is exceptional.

Mr. Coulson leads by example. He shares his knowledge freely, supports his crews, and fosters a culture of accountability, teamwork, and pride in workmanship. His team knows they can rely on him, and that trust is reflected in the strong performance of his departments.

What truly sets Mr. Coulson apart is his understanding that every repair, every system check, and every late-night call directly impacts students and their ability to learn.

He consistently puts students first, ensuring learning environments are safe, warm, and ready each day.

Mr. Coulson embodies the spirit of the Anchorage School District through his commitment, service, and willingness to do whatever it takes to support schools and students.

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Team Denali Award winners:

Whaley School Life Skills Team

• Madison McDonald
• Adam Martinez
• Erica Monkelien 
• Vicki Price
• Mauricio Rocha 
• Brandy Russo 

The Whaley Life Skills Team exemplifies what it means to serve students with compassion, expertise, and unwavering commitment.

Each day, this team goes far beyond the responsibilities of the classroom to create learning environments centered on dignity, independence, and belonging for some of ASD’s most complex learners.

In addition to delivering highly individualized instruction, the team thoughtfully designs systems that support communication, behavior regulation, adaptive functioning, and transition skills. They continually adjust instruction, routines, and environments to meet students’ evolving needs, often extending their work far beyond the school day to ensure every student receives the support they need to succeed.

The Whaley Life Skills Team works in close partnership with families, behavior specialists, and related service providers to create consistency and stability for students across settings. They are also known among colleagues for modeling collaboration, flexibility, and compassion—mentoring paraprofessionals, supporting fellow staff members, and fostering a culture where both students and adults feel valued and supported.

Their impact reaches far beyond the classroom.

This team serves students whose needs exceed what neighborhood schools were able to support—students who require the highest levels of structure, consistency, and individualized care. Whaley families have shared that they truly felt heard, supported, and partnered with as caregivers.

Through their work, this team builds trust with families and students with intensive needs, and creates environments where growth, learning, and belonging are possible.

The Whaley Life Skills Team fills a critical role in the Anchorage School District and demonstrates every day what it means to ensure every learner is seen, supported, and valued.

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Thank You Student Artists

ASD is thankful for the student arts who make the Denali Award celebration even more meaningful.

Denali Award winners and those in attendance enjoyed music by students Andy and Kevin Zhang, brothers and violinists, during the cupcake celebration.

Andy is a senior at Dimond High School and Kevin is a junior at West Anchorage High School. They've made big waves through local news headlines as they are the first set of siblings from Alaska to be named to the National Youth Orchestra in the same year.

They will perform at Carnegie Hall in July then tour internationally along with some of the most talented youth from across the country.

 

 

ASD thanks School Business Partnerships for generously sponsoring the 2026 Denali Award cupcake reception.