By DAVE DONLEY
Under a new “Patriotic Activities” policy adopted by the Anchorage School Board, no patriotic activities of any kind are mandated to occur in Anchorage schools other than the Pledge of Allegiance which is mandated by state law. Although some patriotic days and activities are mentioned none are mandated to be recognized. Pearl Harbor Day Dec. 7 and Sept. 11 are not mentioned at all.
The result is that an ASD student could attend every class of every day of the school year and never hear the National Anthem or Alaska Flag Song played.
Of particular concern to me during the process was public testimony and Board Member comments that a district-wide policy would be inappropriate because patriotic activities, such as the National Anthem, might be offensive to the students at certain public schools.
In March 2023, I sponsored a School Board resolution to adopt new patriotic activities within Anchorage schools. Board Policy 6115 stated:
“The School Board encourages activities that instill pride in our country. The Pledge of Allegiance shall be recited, or patriotic exercises conducted on a regular basis as determined by the School Board.” Unfortunately, not all Anchorage schools were saying the Pledge of Allegiance, and the Board had rejected my past efforts to adopt additional “patriotic exercises.”
My Resolution 146 would have had schools recognize Veteran’s Day, Sept. 11, 2001, and Pearl Harbor Day by playing the National Anthem sometime during the school day. Additionally, Juneteenth and Independence Day would be recognized during the last week of the school year by reading two sentences from the beginning of the Emancipation Proclamation and the Declaration of Independence over school speaker systems.
Further, on Constitution Day, the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States would be read over the public address system or at a school-wide assembly. Constitution Day is a federal holiday, and federal law requires public schools to recognize it as a condition of federal funding. ASD had no policy requiring this and various schools do various Constitution-related activities. Finally, the resolution called for schools to play the National Anthem and “Alaska’s Flag” at least once a month at some time during a school day.
In March 2023, Resolution 146 was referred to the School Board’s Governance Committee. The committee requested a report from the administration on current patriotic activities and held multiple meetings. Over the next year and some months, the committee adopted multiple amendments, and the administration recommended the adoption of an amended resolution. In April 2024, after the municipal election, the committee moved the resolution back to the full School Board with a recommendation of adoption.
At the May 21 meeting, after over a year in committee, Member Margo Bellamy moved to send the resolution back to committee and the board voted 5-2 to do so. Member Bellamy offered no specific reason and made no suggestions for changes. Member Andy Holleman, the new board President, joined me in voting against returning the resolution to committee. The only board member to offer any suggested changes was Member Kelly Lessens, who had drafted language that additional instruction be provided to students about the significance of these holidays. I supported that additional language, but she did not offer it prior to the resolution’s return to committee.
At the August 29 meeting of the School Board Governance Committee, my resolution was replaced by a much watered-down version. Other than complying with state law mandating the saying of the Pledge of Allegiance, the new version mandated no other patriotic activities and did not recognize 9/11 or December 7.
The new resolution version was considered at the October 1, School Board meeting. I offered five amendments to restore:
1. Playing the National Anthem once a month;
2. Playing the Alaska Flag Song once a month;
3. Playing the national anthem on Veteran’s Day, Sept. 11, and Dec. 7;
4. Reading the introduction to the Declaration of Independence and the Emancipation Proclamation once during the school year; and
5. Reading the preamble of the U.S. Constitution on Constitution Day.
Three of my amendments failed without a second. Two were seconded but rejected by a majority vote. Although disappointed, I voted for the final version because it is better than the former policy and it was approved.
I am pleased to report that with passage of the final version, all ASD schools are at least now saying the Pledge of Allegiance every morning.
Former Senator Dave Donley served 16 years in the Alaska Legislature, is in his third and final term on the Anchorage School Board and has twins in public high school. This comment is from Donley as an individual and not on behalf of the Anchorage School Board or Anchorage School District.