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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, Alaska, elections

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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District
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District details
School board members: 7
Students: 19,421 (2023-2024)
Schools: 49 (2023-2024)
Website: Link

Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District is a school district in Alaska (Matanuska-Susitna County). During the 2024 school year, 19,421 students attended one of the district's 49 schools.

This page provides information regarding school board members, election rules, finances, academics, policies, and more details about the district.

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Elections

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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 3

General election

General election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 3

Kathy McCollum defeated Sydney Zuyus in the general election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 3 on November 7, 2023.

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Kathy McCollum (Nonpartisan)
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Sydney Zuyus (Nonpartisan)

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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 6

General election

General election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 6

Incumbent R. Ole Larson defeated Dianne K. Shibe in the general election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 6 on November 7, 2023.

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R. Ole Larson (Nonpartisan)
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Dianne K. Shibe (Nonpartisan)

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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 3

General election

General election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 3

Incumbent R. Ole Larson won election in the general election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 3 on October 3, 2017.

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R. Ole Larson (Nonpartisan)

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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 6

General election

General election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 6

Incumbent Kelsey Trimmer won election in the general election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 6 on October 3, 2017.

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Kelsey Trimmer (Nonpartisan)

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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 1

General election

General election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 1

Incumbent Deborah Retherford won election in the general election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school board District 1 on October 6, 2015.

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Deborah Retherford (Nonpartisan)

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Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school Board District 2

General election

General election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school Board District 2

Incumbent Sarah Welton won election in the general election for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District school Board District 2 on October 6, 2015.

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Sarah Welton (Nonpartisan)

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About the district

School board

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District consists of seven members serving three-year terms. To find information about school board meetings, click here.

List of school board members
NameSeatYear assumed officeYear term ends
Thomas BergeyDistrict 12027
Andrew ShaneDistrict 42027
R. Ole LarsonDistrict 62026
Kathy McCollumDistrict 32026
Kendal KruseDistrict 22025
Brooks PitcherDistrict 52025
Ted SwansonDistrict 72025

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District map

School district map

Overlapping state house districts

Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District
Office NameCurrent OfficeholderParty% School District Covered% Other District Covered
Alaska House of Representatives District 30Kevin McCabeRepublican Party 51% 50%
Alaska House of Representatives District 29George RauscherRepublican Party 48% 67%
Alaska House of Representatives District 25DeLena JohnsonRepublican Party 1% 100%
Alaska House of Representatives District 26Cathy TiltonRepublican Party< 1% 100%
Alaska House of Representatives District 27Jubilee UnderwoodRepublican Party< 1% 100%
Alaska House of Representatives District 28Elexie MooreRepublican Party< 1% 100%

The table was limited to the lower chamber because it provides the most granularity. State house districts tend to be more numerous and therefore smaller than state senate or U.S. House districts. This provides an impression of the partisan affiliations in the area.

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[1]

Revenue, 2021-2022
SOURCE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Federal: $53,359,000 $2,762 15%
Local: $81,999,000 $4,244 23%
State: $227,274,000 $11,764 63%
Total: $362,632,000 $18,771
Expenditures, 2021-2022
TYPE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Total Expenditures: $362,297,000 $18,753
Total Current Expenditures: $312,408,000 $16,171
Instructional Expenditures: $176,391,000 $9,130 49%
Student and Staff Support: $47,194,000 $2,442 13%
Administration: $38,272,000 $1,981 11%
Operations, Food Service, Other: $50,551,000 $2,616 14%
Total Capital Outlay: $39,764,000 $2,058
Construction: $37,841,000 $1,958
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other: $33,000 $1
Interest on Debt: $10,092,000 $522

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements. To protect student privacy, percentages are reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five or fewer students were included in a data set, the data will display as "PS."[2]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 42 40-44 11-19 38 30 37 46
2018-2019 41 30-34 20-24 30-34 30 38 45
2017-2018 42 35-39 20-24 30-34 33 39 46
2016-2017 35 29 15-19 25-29 26 36 38
2014-2015 33 30 25-29 25 25 PS 36
2013-2014 76 77 65-69 71 69 PS 78
2012-2013 76 77 65-69 70 69 >=50 78
2011-2012 75 73 55-59 72 67 60-79 78
2010-2011 76 70-74 55-59 70-74 67 80-84 78

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 50 45-49 40-49 48 29 45 54
2018-2019 45 35-39 25-29 35-39 32 46 49
2017-2018 51 40-44 30-34 45-49 38 52 55
2016-2017 47 35-39 35-39 40-44 35 47 51
2014-2015 36 33 25-29 33 28 PS 39
2013-2014 87 85 80-84 87 81 PS 89
2012-2013 87 84 75-79 84 81 >=50 88
2011-2012 88 87 75-79 87 83 >=80 90
2010-2011 86 75-79 70-74 85-89 78 85-89 88

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2019-2020 86 80-89 >=50 85-89 80-84 85-89 86
2018-2019 85 70-79 60-79 >=90 80-84 80-84 86
2017-2018 83 80-89 70-79 60-69 80-84 80-84 85
2016-2017 81 80-89 60-79 80-89 75-79 80-89 82
2015-2016 79 80-89 60-79 80-89 70-74 70-79 81
2014-2015 78 >=80 >=50 60-79 60-64 75-79 79
2013-2014 75 70-79 60-79 60-69 60-64 PS 78
2012-2013 74 80-84 60-79 70-79 60-64 PS 76
2011-2012 72 70-79 60-69 60-69 60-64 <50 74
2010-2011 70 70-79 60-69 60-69 55-59 60-79 72

Students

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[3]

Year Enrollment Year-to-year change (%)
2023-2024 19,421 -1.5
2022-2023 19,705 2.0
2021-2022 19,319 5.7
2020-2021 18,220 -7.0
2019-2020 19,502 3.5
2018-2019 18,828 -2.3
2017-2018 19,259 1.7
2016-2017 18,926 1.0
2015-2016 18,742 3.8
2014-2015 18,028 1.4
2013-2014 17,784 1.7
2012-2013 17,484 0.0
2011-2012 17,480 2.3
2010-2011 17,079 1.8
2009-2010 16,770 1.8
2008-2009 16,468 1.9
2007-2008 16,159 1.3
2006-2007 15,945 2.8
2005-2006 15,506 4.8
2004-2005 14,768 2.7
2003-2004 14,372 3.5
2002-2003 13,870 3.3
2001-2002 13,410 3.0
2000-2001 13,008 2.1
1999-2000 12,735 0.0
Racial Demographics, 2023-2024
RACE Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District (%) Alaska K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native 7.3 21.6
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander 1.0 4.9
Black 0.6 2.3
Hispanic 7.8 7.7
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.6 3.2
Two or More Races 15.6 13.6
White 67.2 46.9

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Staff

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[4]

As of the 2023-2024 school year, Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District had 1,028.87 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 18.88.

Teachers, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten: 26.00
Kindergarten: 68.30
Elementary: 418.64
Secondary: 515.93
Total: 1,028.87

Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District employed 42.36 district administrators and 106.95 school administrators as of the 2023-2024 school year.

Administrators, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators: 42.36
District Administrative Support: 9.19
School Administrators: 106.95
School Administrative Support: 9.23
Other staff, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides: 345.94
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors: 0.00
Total Guidance Counselors: 43.76
Elementary Guidance Counselors: 9.27
Secondary Guidance Counselors: 31.49
Librarians/Media Specialists: 22.89
Library/Media Support: 0.00
Student Support Services: 112.62
Other Support Services: 74.70

Schools

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[5]

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District operates 49 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.
List of schools
SCHOOL NAMENUMBER OF STUDENTSGRADES
Academy Charter School267KG-8
American Charter Academy197KG-12
Beryozova School31KG-12
Big Lake Elementary320PK-5
Birchtree Charter School407KG-8
Burchell High School2179-12
Butte Elementary272PK-5
Colony High School1,0929-12
Colony Middle School757PK-8
Cottonwood Creek Elementary428PK-5
Dena'Ina Elementary School384PK-5
Finger Lake Elementary402PK-5
Fred And Sara Machetanz Elementary School476PK-5
Fronteras Charter School347KG-8
Glacier View School31KG-12
Goose Bay Elementary317PK-2
Houston High School3729-12
Houston Middle School3446-8
Iditarod Elementary416PK-5
Joe Redington Senior Jr/Sr High School5166-12
John Shaw Elementary483PK-5
Knik Charter Correspondence School29PK-12
Knik Charter School156PK-12
Knik Elementary School268KG-5
Larson Elementary354PK-5
Mat-Su Career & Tech Ed High School7239-12
Mat-Su Central School2,558KG-12
Mat-Su Day School81KG-12
Mat-Su Middle College School2048-12
Mat-Su Secondary School146-12
Meadow Lakes Elementary286PK-5
Midnight Sun Family Learning Center179KG-8
Palmer High School6499-12
Palmer Middle School5676-8
Pioneer Peak Elementary471PK-5
Sherrod Elementary369KG-5
Snowshoe Elementary356PK-5
Susitna Valley High2366-12
Sutton Elementary45PK-5
Swanson Elementary343PK-2
Talkeetna Elementary108PK-5
Tanaina Elementary377PK-5
Teeland Middle School657PK-8
Trapper Creek Elementary24PK-5
Twindly Bridge Charter School592KG-12
Valley Pathways153PK-12
Wasilla High School8599-12
Wasilla Middle School5686-8
Willow Elementary119PK-5

About school boards

Education legislation in Alaska

Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

School Boards Education Policy Local Politics Alaska
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External links

  • Office website
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    • Footnotes

    1. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    2. ↑ U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
    3. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    4. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    5. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
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