Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Ptpc Appointments topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
House Education Committee hears two nominees for Professional Teaching Practices Commission; no public opposition
Summary
The committee held hearings for Catherine Baird and Angela Alston on March 20; both described education backgrounds and approaches to ethics and discipline. No public testimony was offered during either hearing; the committee signed a hearing report under AS 39.05.080.
The Alaska House Education Committee heard governor’s appointees Catherine Baird and Angela Alston on March 20 for positions on the Professional Teaching Practices Commission (PTPC). Both nominees described their education backgrounds, experience with rural and Title I schools, and said they would approach complaints against educators with neutrality and adherence to the PTPC code of ethics.
Catherine Baird, a third‑grade teacher from Fairbanks and a former law clerk and assistant district attorney, told the committee she became an educator in 2019 and now teaches in a Title I school. Baird said her legal background taught her to "approach each case in an unbiased manner," and she said that as a classroom teacher she is a member of her school's leadership team where colleagues bring anonymous concerns to the team for resolution. Baird noted classroom pressures such as rising class sizes (she reported 33 third‑grade students this year), more administrative responsibilities and family‑engagement challenges, and she said the PTPC should hold educators to high standards while starting from a position of neutrality when reviewing complaints.
Angela Alston introduced herself as an assistant professor in the secondary education department at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and a former teacher in the Bering Strait School District, with 18 years of classroom experience in communities including Shishmaref and Nome. Alston said she supervises student teachers across Alaska and emphasized place‑based teaching strategies that connect curriculum to local communities. When asked how she would approach allegations of ethics violations, Alston said each complaint must be considered on its own merits, that she would avoid assumptions and adhere strictly to the PTPC code of ethics.
No members of the public testified for either nominee in the room or online; the committee closed public testimony after each hearing. Committee staff recorded the hearings and the committee signed the hearing report under AS 39.05.080; the chair noted that signing the report does not indicate how members will vote on confirmation in a later session.
Both nominees thanked the committee for the opportunity to appear. The committee scheduled a final hearing on an additional nominee, Patrick Freymark, for its Friday session.
Details from the hearing • Catherine Baird: third‑grade teacher (Title I school), former law clerk and assistant district attorney; cited classroom size (33 students) as a current challenge and emphasized neutrality in ethics investigations. • Angela Alston: assistant professor at University of Alaska Fairbanks, former rural teacher and mentor to student teachers; emphasized place‑based curriculum and strict adherence to the PTPC code of ethics.
The committee recorded no public opposition during the hearings and will include these hearings in the PTPC hearing record.
