Petersburg’s April 15 Borough Assembly meeting drew a small crowd to the Assembly Chambers. A group of eight high school students sat in on the meeting. They were there to ask the Assembly to consider the needs of local schools as they build the Borough’s operating budget for 2025. High school junior Eleanor Kandoll spoke for the group. She said she’d arrived in town on the seven o’clock ferry that morning, and was fighting through her exhaustion to get through her public comment.
“I almost fell asleep in two of my classes today, but I’m here right now, because of something I love very much,” said Kandoll. “The Petersburg School District is a very special place. And what scares me is, it’s in danger. Our schools lack funding. Even now, I can see the effects of not enough money taking place all around me. Teachers are leaving, programs are dying, and our school is powerless to stop this.”
In March, Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed legislation that would have increased the state’s per-student funding formula by $680. Schools across the state are building their budgets with the expectation of flat funding from the state. And Petersburg is no exception. The school district is preparing to tighten its belt as it balances the books for next year. A first draft presented at the April 16 School Board Meeting budgeted for one less student aid, four fewer teachers, and zero travel funding for middle school activities. Every department was asked to make cuts.
Many of the students present at Monday’s Assembly meeting took part in a statewide walkout advocating for increased state education funding. Students who were protesting in Petersburg told KFSK that they have watched their extracurricular opportunities dry up over the years.
In her public comment, Kandoll said participating in Petersburg High School’s music program “completely changed [her] life for the better.” She said that, without enough money, Petersburg’s schools are forced to give their students the “bare minimum.”
“All the things that make our lives beautiful — art, music theater, gone,” said Kandoll, regarding her school’s financial woes. “All the advanced classes that consistently give our school an edge in getting into college and finding fulfilling careers. Those classes that are such a source of pride for so many members of our community, that’s gone. You have the power to help us. Please, please choose to use it.”
(Photo by Shelby Herbert/KFSK)
The School District’s budget draft — cuts included — hinges on a best-case scenario: that the Borough will make the highest possible contribution it is legally allowed to make to the school’s coffers. The state caps the Borough’s contributions to Petersburg’s schools at $3.4 million.
The Borough increased its contribution to the school budget last year for the first time in two decades. It has never given the maximum amount of funding to the school district, which is what the district is counting on this year.
As a note of disclosure, Eleanor Kandoll is a student volunteer at KFSK.
