The board must meet its quorum in order to convene – in other words a majority of members must be present. Right now, the board is not at its full capacity, after Amanda Williams and Tom Williams stepped down last month. Board members Courtney Amundson and Paul Rioux were present at the district office ahead of the meeting, along with Superintendent Deidre Jenson who participated remotely, but Board President Phil Burdick’s unexpected absence triggered the cancellation.

The board planned to review a revision to its cell phone policy for students and hear an update on the budget for next school year. Rather than reschedule, the board will move its agenda items to a special meeting that was already set for later this month. At that time, it will also appoint two new board members to fill the recent vacancies.

District staff say, so far, two Sitkans have submitted applications to fill the vacant seats. The deadline to apply is June 22 at 4 p.m. The following day, applicants’ names will be published, allowing a week for public input before the board appoints two candidates at the June 30 meeting. Both appointed members will serve on the board until the October 6 municipal election.

Bill Hill- “My name is Bill Hill, lifelong Alaskan, Dena’ina Athabaskan, and I’m from Naknek, out in Bristol Bay, home of the greatest sockeye salmon run in the world…had some interesting looks when I said that here today earlier.”

KCAW- “From our fishing fleet?”

Hill- “Yes, sockeye salmon run in the world!“

Bill Hill has worked as a commercial fisherman for decades. He runs a small business with his wife, Diane, and he’s worked in construction. He served on the board of Paug-Vik Incorporated, Naknek’s Alaska Native village corporation, for 15 years, and spent a quarter of a century in education, as a teacher, administrator and superintendent in  communities across the state. In a joint interview with KCAW and the Sitka Sentinel on Tuesday (6-9-26) he said he’s really concerned about the state’s future, especially affordability for the next generation.

“I’m really worried that Alaska is not going to be a place where they can work hard and build good lives. I’m really worried about our nation as well,” Hill said. “We see tax on the rule of law and unchecked corruption, and I just think some things need to be done about it.”

Hill’s experience is wide and varied, and he thinks that’s something Alaskans will value at the polls. 

“Right now we have a congressman who, you know, has lived a pretty privileged lifestyle and is associated with pretty significant money, I think,” Hill said. “Alaskans are not just this sort of, like, this one set person, right? I mean, we all do so many things in Alaska, and I think Alaskans appreciate somebody who can represent that.” 

Of the 14 challengers to incumbent Republican Nick Begich’s congressional seat, Hill is expected to top the list alongside Anchorage Democrat Matt Schultz. Hill is running as a nonpartisan candidate, and that’s not new for this race. 

“I didn’t learn until jumping into this race that I’m like a lot of Alaskans. Most Alaskans, really, over 60% of us do not align with the Republican or Democratic Party, and you know we need representation too, and I think there are a lot of people who are in the Democratic or Republican Party who would like another option as well,” Hill said. “So I didn’t decide to run as an independent. In fact, it was a real consideration when I was thinking about jumping into this race. Is there a path to victory for an independent?”

Hill spent his time in Sitka meeting and talking with locals about issues that are important to them, like the Tongass National Forest. When it comes to Alaska’s resources, he said he’s pro-development, but Congress needs to consult with Alaskans on every project that happens on their lands. 

“I’ve heard somebody who’s really interested in making sure that the Roadless Rule remains intact, and then I’ve heard other people who say that we need to make sure that we have more access to logging, and, you know, that crosses the boundary between different communities and different organizations, and so I think that’s a conversation that the local communities need to have, but it needs to be supported by your congressman,” Hill said. “So if there’s an opportunity for a resource to be developed as a congressman, I’d bring that to Alaskans to see what their thoughts were on it, and we would move forward with it if it’s good for Alaskans.” 

He would support and advocate for the rural subsistence priority on federal lands and updates to the Magnuson Stevens Act to address issues with trawling.

“Ensuring that Alaskans have a real seat at the decision making table that really represent all voices in Alaskans, not just industry advocates,” Hill said. “So, promoting legislation like that would be a priority.”

He supports federal funding for public radio, and said Alaska’s state-run ferries are an essential service that should receive federal dollars. He would work to secure those funds to bolster the ferry schedule and restore access to ports like Prince Rupert.

“If we took a major road anywhere else in Alaska, and we cut it off all of a month except for one day, what would be the outcome? We’d have huge outcry, right?” So, the marine highway system is very important to Southeast Alaska, and I think it needs to be supported,” Hill said.

But affordability tops his list, and he said he’d work in Congress to reduce the cost of healthcare and childcare, and energy. 

“Right now, you know, we have somebody who seems to be more interested in providing tax cuts to corporations and billionaires, and that’s where the money goes when they cut important programs to Alaskans, so I think we have a lot of work to do,” Hill said. “I think there are a lot of people who’d love to stay in their hometowns. I think there are a lot of people who love to stay in Alaska, but they’re being forced out.”

He said he’s centered most of his life around building partnerships, and believes, if elected, he’ll collaborate well with Alaska’s senators. 

“Regardless of who they are, whatever the name is, I’d work with the delegation, because we’re there for Alaska, we’re not there for ourselves,” Hill said. “And, oftentimes, I’ve found is that when you work in conjunction with other people with the same mission to serve the people, that you’re much more powerful.”

Hill spent a couple of days in Sitka, before heading back to Anchorage. Then he’ll go fishing before he’s back on the campaign trail again. 

Paul Reid is the project coordinator for the Office of Education Advocacy. He said the ad hoc committee for Mt. Edgecumbe High School would meet on the second Wednesday each month all summer long, and would base a lot of their early work on results from surveys that were sent out in May. 

“The feedback that we received from these surveys was was very thoughtful and meaningful. I was very pleased to see the responses that we got,” Reid said. “We received 186 responses from students…I received 14 of 18 staff members’ respondents, and then for the parent survey we’ve had 60 responses so far.”

Reid was speaking at last week’s Alaska Department of Education and Early Development board meeting. Earlier this year, the state’s board of education voted to form the ad hoc committee in response to concerns about student mental health, deteriorating school facilities, and an unusually high number of students pulling out of the school, mid-year. 

The ad hoc committee, which will be composed of parents, students, staff, and alumni, is tasked with doing a deep dive into the functions of the school, and delivering its findings and recommendations for improvements to the state board in the fall. Reid said the meetings would be hosted on Zoom, and transcripts would be available to the public. 

Board Member Pamela Dupras, a Mt. Edgecumbe alum, said she wanted to be sure that the committee’s focus was on the future.

“I’m a little concerned the focus will be on this year, where we want improvement, and the same standards that were there when I was a student,” Dupras said. “I’m glad that the ad hoc committee has been created, but how exactly it’s going to help to create that outcome?”

Education Commissioner Deena Bishop said the goal of the ad hoc committee is to both move forward while understanding the past. And she said that work would extend beyond the committee to staff’s responsibilities, from directing millions of dollars in unspent state funding for the school, to updating the schools business practices and policies, all the way down to student handbooks.

“This isn’t a one-stop shop, one-time thing. We have a vested interest in the success of the students and the staff and the school and the tradition of Mount Edgecumbe High School,” Bishop said. “It is all hands on deck for this to really move it forward, and have it continue to grow.”

The ad hoc committee convened on June 10 for its first meeting. It will deliver its recommendations to the state board in October.

While the ad hoc committee is only temporary, the state board was also tasked with appointing two new members to the school’s permanent advisory board. Mt. Edgecumbe Superintendent David Langford recommended appointing Doug Walwrath, of Nome, to the parent seat and Candace Nielsen, of Wasilla, to the alumni seat. Walwrath is a former middle school teacher who has led the Northwestern Alaska Career and Technical Center for the last 17 years. Nielsen graduated from MEHS in 2010, and currently works for the Aleut Corporation. The board approved their appointments unanimously.

United States Senate candidate Mary Peltola continued her campaign tour of Southeast Alaska with a stop in Sitka on Thursday (6-28-26).

In a meet and greet at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall, the former Democratic representative spoke to a crowd of around 100 Sitkans. She said when she served as Alaska’s lone representative until 2024, she worked well with Senators Lisa Murkowski and her now opponent, Dan Sullivan.

“We were in lockstep, and I think that Dan Sullivan and I surprised each other with how well we worked together. I like to joke that we were bad cop, bad cop, and then Lisa was the only good cop,” Peltola said. “But after 2024 when I was no longer in service, 2025 was just a completely different experience.”

Peltola went on to discuss the policy decisions that have troubled her since then, from DOGE cuts and firings of federal workers in the state, to the Big Beautiful Bill, which cut billions from safety net programs like SNAP, Medicare and Medicaid. Peltola said living in a region where most of the land is federal means that federal agencies are partners with Alaska. And federal funding in Alaska is essential.

“Not only do we rely on those employees for every single thing we do, living in a place where it’s 90% federal land, but the federal payments to Alaska, federal jobs, the federal programs, that’s half of our economy across our state,” she said.

“We really rely on our federal government. We cannot afford to have two thirds of our federal delegation, one of our senators, more concerned about the federal deficit than Alaska.”

She said cuts, alongside the rising cost of living, hurt Alaskans, and she would like to be the person in Congress fighting for Alaskans’ needs. 

“This is a moral moment, and I know that you all know that, because we wouldn’t have a packed house if it wasn’t a moral moment on a sunny day,” Peltola said, addressing the rare break in Sitka rain. “So, thank you for being here on a sunny day. Thank you for recognizing with me, and many other people, what an important moment this is.”

After a performance from Sitka Native Education Program’s G̲ajaa Héen Dancers, Peltola addressed the crowd for a few minutes, then asked the audience to line up so she could speak with each person face-to-face.

Peltola’s team declined KCAW’s request for an interview. Sitka was the second-to-last stop on her Southeast tour after she visited several other communities, including Petersburg, Wrangell, Ketchikan and Metlakatla. She’ll be in Haines on Saturday, May 30. 

In 2022, shortly after Sitka’s privately owned marine haulout announced it would close, voters overwhelmingly approved city funding to construct a new one. When the facility opened its doors last September, it was a relief for many in Sitka’s fishing fleet. They now had a local option to haul boats for repairs.

Since then, Highmark Marine, the contractor that operates the city-owned facility, has pulled more than 56 boats out of the water. But some of Sitka’s fleet is out of luck, because their vessels aren’t insured. Either they can’t secure a policy, or it’s too expensive. At a meeting on May 22, Denise Klinger told the Gary Paxton Industrial Park board that she owns an uninsured vessel, but prefers the term “self-insured.”

“It’s a decision we made, like 30 years ago, after putting money out for insurance, that every time we did something to the boat to improve it, the premiums went up. You put a new engine in, the premiums went up. You put new planks in, the premiums went up,” she said. “So we finally said, ‘You know what, we can set aside the money and have this in a fund…if something happens, we have that to fall back on.” 

Klinger said she was excited when the haulout opened, but soon found its insurance policy kept them from hauling locally. So they went to Wrangell’s haulout instead. 

In addition to working uninsured vessels, Eric Calvin said there are derelict or abandoned boats in Sitka that pose a risk to local waters if they’re not hauled. Calvin urged the park board to support waiving an insurance requirement for those. 

“I’ve helped raise several boats here in the harbors over the years, and you’re either going to pay for it on the front end or you’re going to pay for it on the back end, and I would suggest getting them out of the water before they sink, even if the people can’t afford it,” Calvin said. “We’re going to end up paying for it.”

Park Director Garry White said Sitka has the same insurance requirements as many other haulouts it’s modeled after. He said the difference is Sitka’s haulout operators are double-checking for coverage. 

“We’re doing our own due diligence and we’re checking to make sure you do have your certificates of insurance,” White said. “Every single lease back in the day, people just say, ‘Yep, I got the insurance.’ Now we have to have a certification of insurance to verify that.”

Insurance requirements are a part of the contract agreement between the city and Highmark Marine. Jordan Young is a project manager with the marine fabricator, which is in the middle of its busy season. 

“Basically, right now I’m focused on holding up our end of the contract and doing it in an ethical and honest way,” Young said.

While Young said he believed there was a path forward toward hauling uninsured boats and was eager to work with all parties to find a solution, for now the company’s insurance broker recommended against it. 

“They don’t want to see us get pulled into a scenario of compromise that could basically, like, it could ruin the company if things were to go wrong,” Young said. “We don’t keep a fire extinguisher under our sink because we, you know, plan on not having a fire. You do it just in case.”

At the work session, several options were explored in addition to an insurance waiver, like requiring uninsured vessel owners post a $5000 refundable bond before having their boats hauled, or charging a flat fee that would go into a city fund. Municipal Administrator John Leach told the board that city staff had begun developing a waiver for consideration, but ultimately it comes down to a policy decision and who wants to accept the risk.

“If a waiver is put in place, that is an option that the city could waive that requirement, but the city would eat the risk at the same time,” Leach said. “The unique situation with this is the operator would get the benefit of it, while the city would would take the risk.”

Because the facility is city-owned but operated by a private contractor, establishing a policy is more complicated. 

“Simply waiving the insurance requirement doesn’t mean we wave a magic wand and it’s done,” Leach said. “Since it is part of a contract, we need to negotiate and determine what the modification of that contract is going to look like.”

Board member Lauren Howard said working toward a solution is essential because the problem extends beyond the fishing fleet.

“It’s a community-wide issue, and so it’s just, it’s a decision of whether we want to serve our fleet,” Howard said. “We want to get people to, you know, be able to work on their boats so that they don’t sink at the dock, because there’s a lot there.”

“Annual maintenance is what preserves a vessel, period,” she continued. “If you’re not taking that boat out of the water and doing the maintenance, it’s only a matter of time. So, it’s a huge importance to get these boats out of the water.”

At a meeting immediately following the work session, park board members asked staff to continue working on an insurance waiver. White, the park’s director, said he would bring a draft back to the board for review at their June meeting. Once the park board makes a recommendation, it will go to the assembly for consideration. 

Phone and internet service was down for a portion of Sitka on Friday (5-22-26).

Internet and telephone service in Sitka is provided, in large part, by two Alaska-based companies, GCI and Alaska Communications, or ACS. A representative from ACS declined to comment. However, a message on the ACS answering machine gave some information.

“We are experiencing intermittent internet disruptions in Sitka. We are working to restore service as quickly as possible. Thank you for calling Alaska Communications,” the message said.

The outage impacted phone service for some residents, businesses, and public offices, including the Sitka Police Department and Fire Hall’s non-emergency lines. A city press release said staff are actively working to resolve the issue. 911 service is still operational and should be used for emergencies. 

GCI Senior Director of Communications Megan Webb said the company has received no reports of outages from GCI customers.   

Editor’s Note: This is a developing story and may be updated

A Coast Guard helicopter crew is standing around a long table in Air Station Sitka’s hangar. They’re suited up in orange, and Lieutenant Commander Mick Klakring is reviewing their flight plan for the day.

Sitka High School junior Bristol Clifton is standing at one end of the table, taking it all in. It’s her first flight in an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, and Klakring says it’s about time.

“Bristol’s been around, gosh, for a couple months now, right?” Klakring says. “Took a bit of an internship upstairs and now we’re getting her airborne, which, sounds like it’s a little late in the game, but we’re gonna fix that.”

Clifton is a lifelong Sitkan and her interests reflect that fact. She loves the outdoors, and she’s planning to work as a fly-fishing guide this summer. She likes math and science. Her eyes light up when she tells me she’s also interning with the Sitka Sound Science Center’s hatchery program. 

But she’s really interested in aviation. In an interview weeks before today’s helicopter flight, I ask her if she gets nervous when she’s airborne, and she responds with a quick and comfortable, ‘no.’ She’s had a lot of exposure to flying. After all, you can’t take the bus to an away game when you live on an island.

“I do sports all year round, I do volleyball, basketball, and softball, so anytime we travel it’s flying, so I just feel like I fly all the time,” Clifton says. “I like going to different places in Alaska, and like seeing different communities and stuff. I think it’s really fun.”

So this semester, her teacher Mike Vieira set her up with an internship at the Coast Guard base through the school’s Career and Technical Education program. So for the past few months, Clifton has been at the air station twice a week. While she initially was interested in commercial aviation, she is eager to explore every path toward becoming a pilot. 

“My brother is a Marine, and my stepdad, he was also marine, so like I have family that’s been in the military before, so I’m just interested in learning more about that, or like what they do, to see if I would want to go into the Coast Guard,” Clifton says.

Back at the hangar, flight mechanic Cameron Rex shows Clifton where she’ll be sitting on their flight today, and reviews the safety protocol, including what to do in the event of an emergency, and how she may be able to help.

“If you see something we don’t, feel free to speak up. You know, maybe it’s an eagle coming our way. The eagles don’t really respect us, they don’t understand there’s other predators in the sky, or bigger things than them,” Rex says. “You’ll be part of the crew in that sense.”

“Crystal clear? Or clear enough?” he asks, and Clifton laughs and nods her head.

Then, they’re off, and for their first stop, they fly over some familiar territory — her house.

“Everything just looks so much different from up there, obviously,” she tells me the next day.

Over the next four hours, they flew to Hoonah, Gustavus, and landed at the Cape Spencer lighthouse. And her lack of fear was helpful, because, as the crew told her, it’s not unusual to get a touch of motion sickness on the first flight. 

“Compared to obviously flying in the big jets, like Alaska Airlines, it’s completely different, because it’s just so much smaller,” Clifton says.

“Luckily I didn’t get motion sickness, which I thought I was going to, and at the beginning, I was kind of, a little like, ‘whoa,’ because obviously it just feels different,” she adds “But then I got used to it, and I was fine.” 

Clifton says while the weather wasn’t great, she took everything in, and got a lot out of it. 

“You couldn’t really see the tops of the mountains so much, but you could still see all the ocean and like the muskegs and everything,” Clifton says. “Just to get to see everything from a new perspective, I think is really cool.”

So cool, she plans to go up in the Jayhawk again tomorrow.

The Sitka Medical Center closed abruptly last Thursday (5-14-26), after the organization reported a “potential measles exposure.” While no other details were publicly disclosed, the health clinic and urgent care facility notified the Alaska Department of Health and sent a specimen to its lab for testing. The negative results mean there are no confirmed cases of the highly contagious virus in Sitka. 

The clinic and urgent care is operated by the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium, or SEARHC. In an email to KCAW, SEARHC representative Matt Carle wrote “While we are relieved the results were negative, this situation served as a reminder of the value of preparedness, strong internal protocols and close coordination with public health partners.” Carle expressed appreciation for the understanding of patients and the larger community as the healthcare organization worked through its established safety protocols. KCAW reached out to officials from the Alaska Department of Health for confirmation. 

Read SEARHC’s full statement posted to social media here.

The United States Coast Guard will soon begin construction on a mooring project on Japonski Island in Sitka. When it’s finished, there will be room for a new addition to its local fleet – a fast response cutter.

Erin Hale is an environmental protection specialist with the Coast Guard. At the Japonski Island Boat House on May 13, she presented updated construction plans to Sitkans. She said they haven’t started building yet, even though an audience member thought they saw a truck full of construction materials heading that way. 

“So it sounds like we’re going to mobilize at the end of summer. So that big truck you saw shouldn’t have been us,” Hale said.

Hale said construction will likely begin in September, with plans to complete the project sometime in 2028. When it’s finished, the fast response cutter Douglas Denman, which is currently moored in Ketchikan, will make its way to Sitka. It will be staffed by around two dozen Coast Guard personnel.

That means more families coming to Sitka who will be in need of childcare and housing. Here’s assembly member JJ Carlson, who was in the audience, asked if the Coast Guard was planning on additional housing or childcare associated with the project.

“We have a couple projects in the works…to address our housing because we are a little bit deficient, even just to meet current needs,” Hale said.

While Hale said they won’t be providing childcare, they’re currently working on a separate project to refurbish 60 existing units of Coast Guard housing and add 20 new units. 

The new cutter will be homeported next to the 255- foot Kukui, which has been in Sitka since 2018. Community member John Stein asked how operations could change with more boats at the Coast Guard base. 

“With lots of boats in place, will there be lights and sirens and zooming up and down the channel and that kind of thing? Stein asked.

“It’s a little bit smaller and a little bit sleeker, but they generally don’t go zooming around up and down the channel,” Hale responded as the audience of about a dozen Sitkans laughed. “So we should be okay.”

The land next to the new dock will also look a bit different once the project has wrapped. A row of rose bushes will be removed and transplanted elsewhere, and a public swing set will be moved to the adjacent lot. The area will also include historical signage. 

Editor’s Note: John Stein is a member of KCAW’s board of directors.

Tom Williams was appointed to a vacant school board seat in 2023, and ran for a full term unopposed later that year. Amanda Williams, who is Tom Williams   ’ daughter-in-law, is a former science teacher who lost her job when the board cut over a dozen teaching positions in 2024. She ran for her seat later that year. At a school board meeting on May 6, both tendered their resignations.

Tom Williams said while they disagreed at times, he looked back on his time with the board fondly.

“Even though, when I look back, we had some spirited conversations in executive session, and at the table, and at conferences, it was all very professional,” Williams said. “I know I learned from some of the discussions and the dissents.”

“I’ve worked on a lot of boards, and I think that this board worked together better than any board that I’ve been on,” Williams continued. “Not necessarily as productive, but I think we had really good chemistry. So I appreciate my time and the opportunity.”

Amanda Williams did not make a statement at the meeting. In her formal resignation letter, she said she was grateful for the opportunity to serve on the board, but it was time to move on. “I have appreciated working together with the board members to tackle some of the challenges the district has faced throughout this term,” she said.

The board took a pensive moment to thank both of them for their service before accepting their resignations. Board president Phil Burdick told Tom Williams it was a pleasure working with him, and that he’d learned a lot from him about governance and efficiency. Board member Courtney Amundson complimented Amanda Williams’ effective, even-keeled approach to board discussion. Board member Paul Rioux said he’d worked with her on the policy committee, where she had great ideas and “really showed up for it.”

“Sometimes it’s hard doing that stuff to, like, see the long term value. It feels like it’s just words on a piece of paper and not like that reality. And I feel like you did a good job of bringing it back to like, ‘Well, what does this really mean in the classroom or in the school?” Rioux said. “For Tom, you know, I really appreciate that you’re always willing to ask the tough question, and and that we’ve been able to move, you know, win, lose or draw…move forward and tackle the next thing, and I really appreciate your willingness, and setting the example to do that.”

The board must now fill the two vacant seats from June until the municipal election on October 6. Burdick encouraged Sitkans to apply, pointing to the relatively lower workload the board typically undertakes in the summer months.  

“There’s no meeting in July. The August meeting is really light. The September meeting is pretty light, and then the October meeting, and you’re done,” Burdick said. “If you want to just have a taste of what it’s like to be on a school board, now’s your chance.”

Any Sitkan interested in filling one of the board vacancies must submit a letter of interest to the Sitka School District office by June 22 at 4 p.m. At a special school board meeting on June 30, the applicants will be interviewed and then two will be appointed to the board by majority vote.