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Program aims to quell teacher turnover

December 9th 1:11 am | Hannah Heimbuch Print this article   Email this article   Create a Shortlink for this article

Buffered by a $1.92 million federal grant, the Alaska Humanities Forum is introducing a new program designed to ease new teachers into Alaska's Bush schools. The program aims to combat rural Alaska's annual teacher turnover rate, which at 35 percent soars over urban areas.

There are a number of theories behind that high turnover; isolation and loneliness, cultural differences, and the sometimes difficulty of gaining a community's trust when coming from Outside.

"A lot of new teachers are enticed by the beauty and uniqueness that Alaska has to offer," said Ambler teacher Ann Washburn in an e-mail. "However, for some, there are so few opportunities to socialize and connect with others that it can get pretty lonely."

Over the next two summers, the forum's new teacher immersion program will hold several camps introducing new teachers to the ways of life, culture and education in the Bush. The exact locations have not yet been decided, though one each will be within the Northwest Arctic Borough School District and the Lower Kuskokwim School District.

"A lot of our focus is assisting teachers to bridge that cultural gap," said Program Director Laurie Evans-Dinneen.

The Forum oversees other programs that build that bridge from the other direction - assisting Alaskans from rural areas as they seek education and employment in urban centers. This program focuses on successful relation- ships and experiences within Alaska's small communities.

"The goals are to increase teacher retention, thereby hoping to affect student achievement," Evans-Dinneen said.

Starting in late August, the week-long camps will take 30 teachers who are new to both education and the state of Alaska into the districts they've been placed in. Evans- Dinneen hopes involvement by community elders and youth will strengthen the connection the forum hopes to foster between the teachers and their new homes.

Washburn is halfway through her first year of teaching in Ambler, and she's been teaching in Alaska's rural commu- nities since 2008. Had this program been around when she began four years ago, she would have been the ideal candidate.

Washburn entered the profession and the state as a first- year teacher with the Lake and Penn School District, where she learned first-hand how rocky the transition from the Lower 48 to the Bush can be.

"The first year is probably the most difficult, and without the proper supports, it can really sour a person's perspective," Washburn said. "It is difficult for a person to fully grasp the entirety of the situation prior to living and teaching in Bush Alaska."

While Washburn speaks highly of her experience as a Bush teacher, and clearly hasn't thrown in the towel, she points out both the obvious and the subtle difficulties of entering an isolated community.

"In many instances, the villages are accepting," said Washburn. "But it is hard for new teachers to know when and how to begin integrating into the thread of the village fabric."

In light of this difficulty, new teachers selected for the 2012 summer program will have more than the forum's support in their transition. They will also be placed in a two-year partnership with a master-teacher from the University of Alaska's mentor project. As the university supports the teachers professionally and academically, the forum program seeks to support people from a cultural and communal standpoint.

Washburn said she relied on insight from her fellow staff in her first year, and now has the support of her husband - Ambler School Principal Todd Washburn.

"We are still working on becoming part of the commu- nity," Ann Washburn said. "It is a challenge at first. You have to get to know the kids and their parents. You have to learn all the intricacies of the village. You can live and work in a village for 20 years and still not know everything."

 

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