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Ketchikan board approves amended agenda, adds reviews of attorney fees, HR practices and transportation
Summary
The Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District Board of Education on Sept. 10 approved an amended agenda removing an improperly noticed executive session, entered work sessions and used an agenda‑setting meeting to add discussion items including attorney fees/contracts, district HR practices and a transportation report on student bus arrangements.
KETCHIKAN, Alaska — The Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District Board of Education on Sept. 10 voted to approve an amended agenda and to enter two work sessions, and used a subsequent agenda‑setting work session to add several discussion items that the board said it will address at upcoming meetings.
The board voted 8–0 to approve the meeting agenda after removing item 6, an executive session that the board said had not been properly noticed. The board later entered a work session to hear the Association of Alaska School Boards’ Project Transform presentation and then entered a second work session for agenda setting for the Sept. 24 regular meeting. Each motion to enter a work session passed by roll call with no recorded opposition.
Board members discussed and approved placing several items on the Sept. 24 agenda or reserving them as reports for that meeting. Those additions include a Fawn Mountain school report, a written report from the district’s bus company, a report or discussion of district human resources practices (including questions about signing contracts and whether contracts should be included in board packets), and a discussion on attorney invoices and the district’s use of outside counsel versus the borough attorney. Members also asked for a transportation report about high school students riding on buses with elementary students and said the board may request a written report from district transportation staff.
Ally Ginter, a board member who raised concerns earlier about the placement of public comment on the agenda, asked why the board had moved public comment. "I just like to know the why. I'm not necessarily against it," she said. Board members described the change as intended to keep student recognitions and school presentations from being delayed by long public‑comment periods and to allow information in written reports to answer some public questions before comment.
Board members also discussed outreach plans, including reviving informal listening sessions at school events and parent‑teacher conferences so board members can meet constituents where they gather. The board agreed two members would volunteer for on‑site outreach events and that staff would publish contact information to remind teachers and staff they may contact board members directly while asking that administrators be allowed to try to resolve school‑level problems first.
Votes at a glance: - Approve amended agenda (removal of item 6, executive session): outcome approved; tally 8 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain. - Enter work session for Association of Alaska School Boards Project Transform presentation: outcome approved; tally 8 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain. - Enter work session for agenda setting (Sept. 24, 2025): outcome approved; tally 8 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain.
The board also confirmed scheduling items: the next regular meeting is set for Sept. 24, 2025; a work session on Oct. 8 will include kickoff activity for the superintendent search with AASB; and the board discussed a potential special meeting to certify election results pending the borough’s certification schedule.
No binding policy changes were adopted Sept. 10; the session established follow‑up steps and directed staff to provide requested reports and materials for future meetings.
