The Anchorage Daily News asked candidates for the April 2 election to the Anchorage School Board to answer a series of questions on issues facing those bodies. We’re publishing select responses daily. The answers were fact-checked when facts were cited and edited for spelling, grammar and writing style. To see all the responses, click here. For Assembly candidate surveys, click here.
Q: The Anchorage School Board decided last year to not change school start times after a lengthy study. Do you support this decision? Why or why not?
SEAT A
Kai Binkley Sims
I support using science and data to make informed decisions. Personally, I like the start times as they exist today, but if the studies show that it’s better for our students overall then I would support the change.
Margo Bellamy
I do not support the board’s decision to not change school start times. The evidence, from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, supports that a later start benefits student learning, health and safety.
SEAT B
Starr Marsett
I voted to not change school start times for several reasons. There were many changes going on in our district at the time and I did not feel the time was right for one more change and it would have created hardships on our students’ families.
David Nees
I was an education activist encouraging parents to testify against the Starr Marsett-led policy to run an experiment on our elementary school children. Current research does not show any proven positive benefit for elementary students and that costs have gone up in all districts who have tried it. I was glad to see so much parent participation in killing bad policy that would have affected parents and students. One of the few victories for parents in the last 3 years.
Ronald Stafford did not respond to the survey.