New Students in Anchorage School District: Where Are They From?

In early December, the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at UAA released the results of its study on Anchorage School District enrollment. In 2008, enrollment in the Anchorage School District was considerably higher than the district had expected, and some Alaskans--including the mayor of Anchorage and the superintendent of schools--thought the spike in enrollment might be due to more families moving to Anchorage from rural Alaska communities. ISER has a long-standing interest in migration patterns in Alaska, and researchers decided to track where the new students from other Alaska districts were coming from--and why.

With help from the Anchorage School District, ISER surveyed hundreds of parents or guardians of students who had recently transferred from other Alaska school districts to Anchorage. A new study by Marie Lowe, an assistant professor of anthropology with ISER, reports the results.

Those include:

• By far the largest number of new students came from the Mat-Su Borough, but new students came from almost all of Alaska's 53 school districts. The largest numbers from off-road communities came from the Bethel and Nome census areas.
• More than 40 percent of the new students moved independently--that is, they moved but their parents didn't. There were various reasons why students moved alone, but the most common ones included being sent in to Anchorage to live with other relatives and changes in custody arrangements.
• When entire families of the new students moved, the reason they cited most often was for better employment opportunities. A significant share of families from off-road places also said they had moved for better education opportunities.
• When asked what they needed in Anchorage, new families most often cited affordable housing. Other needs included jobs, affordable food and health care.

ISWE did not have access to data on new Anchorage students in earlier years--so wasn't able to determine how the number and characteristics of new Anchorage students in 2008 compared with patterns in earlier years. But this ISER survey--which is believed to be the first of its kind--now provides a benchmark for any future look at students and families moving to Anchorage from other parts of the state.

Click here to read a story published on Dec. 11 by the Anchorage Daily News: "Migration from villages played small role in student surge."

Please direct any questions to Marie Lowe at (907) 786-6534 or marie.lowe@uaa.alaska.edu.