September 24, 2025
Three years ago, a team of brilliant educators at the Anchorage School District created a plan to think outside the box of classroom learning. This plan reimagined how learning connects to community, better equipping our high schools to uplift a new generation of Alaskans.
I was honored to be one of the framers of this new visionary project, now called the Academies of Anchorage. We developed an innovative whole learning plan that gives kids the tools to create their own pathways of success, setting the opportunity for tens of thousands of kids to learn by connecting their interests to the community’s needs.
In 2022, our plan was awarded a $14 million equity grant from the US Department of Education. In the award announcement, then Education Secretary Miguel Cardona praised this project for advancing 21st-century learning several steps ahead of the status quo. He celebrated how the Academies of Anchorage would put kids in the driver’s seat of their own journey and take learning outside the four walls of the classroom.
Since the project launched two years ago, many new doors have opened for our high school students. We now have thousands of young people beginning to explore career mentorships, apprenticeships, and life/career coaching directly in their own neighborhood schools. This project realizes that young people should be learning in community spaces and have these opportunities without leaving their neighborhood schools.
The early results are encouraging. Our high school students are no longer forced into one-size-fits-all schedules. Instead, students choose classes that align with their interests and goals. Already, 7% more students are “on track” to graduate, a remarkable outcome after just two years. It’s common sense: the best way to keep kids engaged and earning college credits is to give them the freedom to enroll in classes they find meaningful. The Academies of Anchorage program is providing exactly that.
Despite these successes, the Trump administration suddenly terminated the Fostering Diverse Schools (FDS) grant last week, cutting off the very opportunity we built through the Academies of Anchorage. Gutting this grant is just the latest sucker punch in President Trump’s ongoing assault on public education. And it leaves us with a reasonable question: Why?
The answer is simple. This is a top-down attack from the White House meant to break our resolve and dismantle public education. But that won’t work because I believe Alaskans are far too resilient to let President Trump get under our skin.
We must stand firm for our kids and protect the vision we’ve built for a stronger and more innovative high school experience. The Academies of Anchorage has proven its worth, and we cannot allow the disenfranchisement of students to continue. This program must continue with or without federal funding because every child deserves schools that inspire, challenge, and prepare them for lifelong success.
Paul McDonogh
Candidate for Anchorage School Board, Seat D