Alaska Progress Report

AGIA Training Report Receives National Recognition

From a press release: "The Alaska Department of Labor’s Research and Analysis section has been recognized for its contributions to the 'AGIA Training Strategic Plan – A Call to Action' by two national organizations. 'Our training plan shows the way for us to close the Alaskan skills gap and prepare a workforce for this century,' Labor and Workforce Commissioner Clark Bishop said. 'Especially in today’s economy, we need to have Alaskans prepared to build a gas pipeline.'"

The 74-page report "...outlines a five-year strategically phased approach for accomplishing its strategies. Phase one – establish industry skill standards for training and extend accreditation to regional training centers; Phase two is to address the existing 'skills gap' and will require significant new investments in public post secondary training programs with significant expansion of registered apprenticeship programs; Phase three will require information on the number of jobs created by the gasline project and focus on training for those jobs."

Growing Our Own Occupational Therapists

Health care providers are in short supply in many fields in Alaska. Creative solutions are needed, and a new pilot program at UAA is leading the way: "In Alaska, students must attend out-of-state schools to earn degrees in such fields as occupational therapy, physical therapy and pharmacy... And, once they leave Alaska, they often do not return upon graduation." To reverse the brain drain UAA is partnering with Creighton University, a Jesuit school in Omaha, Nebraska, to deliver a nine-semester doctoral degree in occupational therapy.

Why OT? "...a 2007 study by the Alaska Center for Rural Health determined that Alaska faces a 'perfect storm' in its struggle to meet the health needs of its residents, due to an aging population, a lack of health professionals, and the state’s unique geography. The report listed shortages in many health care fields, including nursing, dentistry and medicine. However, the area which had the greatest need and shortage was in the field of rehabilitation, specifically in occupational therapy..."

Medical services are labor intensive: technology can do little to reduce the time it takes to bathe, dress and feed a patient. Physician recruitment and retention are critical to allowing Alaskans to stay in their communities of choice.

Teacher Turnover Remains High in Alaska

In the immortal words of David Lee Roth, a man who truly appreciated teachers, "I don't feel tardy..." But Alaska certainly lags in improving teacher turnover. Why do we care? Outside of the family, teacher quality is perhaps the primary determinant of student performance. And the longer teachers stay on the job, the better they get.

In August ISER released a new report: Turnover Among Alaska Teachers: Is It Changing? The answer is no, it's still bad: "Turnover among Alaska's teachers was roughly the same in 2007 as it had been in 1999, with about 14% leaving their school districts. Turnover also remained twice as high in rural as in urban districts - about 22%, compared with 10%. That lack of broad change comes after years of effort... to reduce teacher turnover, especially in rural areas."

Teacher salaries are still about 10% above the national average, but that may not be enough given the recent elimination of the defined benefit pension for new state employees and other challenges: "To put Alaska teacher turnover in context, it’s useful to know that turnover in Alaska’s largest districts is roughly comparable to turnover in mid-sized cities nationwide. [T]urnover in Alaska’s rural districts is higher than turnover just about anywhere in the U.S.—except in inner-city neighborhoods in America’s largest cities. Conditions unique to remote rural Alaska certainly contribute to high turnover—the shortage of good housing, high living costs, isolation, difficulties and costs of travel, and limited access to medical care, to name some."