- Academies of Anchorage
- Academies
January 23, 2025: Message from the Superintendent
Dear Academies of Anchorage Community,
Thank you for all your hard work and patience as we continue to develop and refine the Academies of Anchorage (AoA) program implementation across the District. As we begin a new semester, I am sharing an operational update on the latest plan for AoA.
📚 Next steps for the first phase of Academies implementation:
- The AoA team has worked with site-based teams to develop at least two pathways at each comprehensive high school pending final budget approval. These CTE electives will be:
- Optional
- Open to all students beginning in the 2025/2026 calendar year
- Outlined with plans to move forward one grade level each year
- CTE Pathway Growth Plans for the 2025/2026 school year can be found here. Students will sign up for these courses during their regular registration process.
- Each school has selected the pathways based on what can be implemented by leveraging existing resources. This first stepping stone is what we mean when we say we are “going slow to go far.” This measured approach will allow the initiative to continuously progress and expand in a way that is both sustainable and equitable.
- King Tech High School and the Alaska Middle College School will continue to be a core component of the broader AoA master plan and mission.
🏫 College & Career Exploration and Personal Finance
- This freshman class will be retooled to fulfill social studies credit requirements in 2025 and beyond. Updates to the curriculum will include a focus on personal finance, and connecting the course to the ASD’s adopted Portrait of a Graduate.
- The updated Freshman Academy course will continue to provide the following guaranteed experiences:
- Freshman First Day Orientation
- Career Expo
- UAA Campus Visit
💡 Steering Committee meeting feedback
We had a productive meeting with the AoA Steering Committee on Jan. 17. This group of community leaders and partners have been strong champions of the program, and we are grateful for their continued support. At the meeting, we discussed some of the challenges the team has faced with full program implementation. Our team shared with the Steering Committee that other AoA communities experienced similar headwinds and challenges when implementing Academies.
The Steering Committee restated its support for the full Academy model, noting that a phased approach will allow more community engagement and communication about the program's benefits.
We also acknowledged a need to emphasize the messaging that these pathways and courses are academic at their core. The same Academy might lead a student immediately into a career or to a higher education journey in any college, apprenticeship program, or other postsecondary opportunity. These courses expand, not limit, our students’ options. We will lead with this messaging in the future.
⏭️ What’s next:
- The Academies team will take feedback from the Steering Committee to help inform the roadmap for full execution in the coming years.
- ASD will present the roadmap to the School Board during a meeting this spring.
We understand that it has felt like a lot has changed in the past few months - we’ve heard your feedback and are committed to providing you with transparent and consistent communication over the next year.
Despite the challenges, we’re committed to the Academies model because we know its incredible impact on our students. Look at this Shine Bright Podcast video to see how students thrive in the Service High School Biomedical Career Academy. Don’t miss this video that takes you along with the U.S. Secretary of Education, Dr. Miguel Cardona’s visit to Service High School to meet with students in hospitality and biomedical science programs. We want students at every Anchorage high school to have these experiences. That is the driving force behind our work to implement these programs districtwide.
Thank you to every one of you for your continued work toward making this possible for our students.
Sincerely,
Dr. Jharrett Bryantt
Superintendent
Anchorage School District