School Board Discusses Contracts, Funding, and Therapy Dogs

On Tuesday, February 3, 2026, the CRSD school board discussed proposed state legislation that may impact the Copper River School District and approved all proposed non-tenured teaching contracts for the upcoming 2026-27 school year. They also extended Superintendent Theresa Laville’s contract through March of 2029.

Board President Mark Somerville mentioned different pieces of legislation being discussed in Juneau that would have an impact on local schools, including a bill that would require families enrolled in homeschool programs like Upstream Learning to participate in state testing, and stricter special education stipulations if passed that could increase CRSD expenses by $130,000-$150,000 a year by Somerville’s estimations.

Superintendent Laville mentioned several different grants her office is working to procure. Some of these will help with building expenses, like those required to fix the boiler at the Kenny Lake School, and a new program that could provide funding to create a curriculum for high-school students interested in receiving training and certification as medical assistants. 

Administrative reports from various schools relayed news and updates around the district. Upstream Learning sent several teams to the robotics state championship. Head Teacher Shawna Goodwin gave positive results from Kenny Lake’s MAP assessments, with approximately 83% of elementary students and 91.2% of high-school students reading at or above grade level.

In Slana, lead teacher Dave Rojeck reported hopes of training a therapy dog that can be brought to school to decrease anxiety, improve morale and learning, and be an incentive for families in the community to enjoy being involved in the school.

It was also mentioned at Tuesday’s meeting that the board of education is still accepting applications for its empty seat. Their next meeting will be in the Glennallen District Office on March 3, followed by a monthly meeting in Slana in April.

Disclosures: Anna Somers occasionally works as a substitute teacher in Glennallen. Her husband works for the school district as a teacher, and her son is enrolled and serves as a student board representative.