Restoring Merit-Based Education: Rewarding Excellence, Not Excuses

As a 20-year Air Force Veteran, educator, and most importantly a Dad, I've seen what real merit looks like: earning your spot through grit, skill, and results. I even have the medals and accolades to prove it. In Anchorage schools, though, we're shortchanging our kids by chasing checkboxes over competence, for the stats and patting of the bureaucratic backs. What this is doing is leaving talented teachers sidelined, classrooms bloated, and standards softened to push students through. "No Child Left Behind" is a good phrase, but "... at the expense of your child" should come with it as a disclaimer. Parents tell me they're furious about uneven school closures and resource "shell games" that starve needy sites (ASD Budget Dashboard 2025). Teachers echo the same sentiment, and we all fight to be listened to by the School Board. Principals beg to trim class sizes from 25+ to 20, but get ignored, risking 40% proficiency drops in overcrowded rooms (Anchorage Daily News, Nov 2025). This is a stat that nobody is connecting.

The Problem?

Our 81% graduation rate looks good on paper, but hides the truth: Too many grads aren't ready for jobs or college, thanks to lowered bars and "social promotion" tied to Base Student Allocation funding (DEED Report Card 2025). Hiring's no better, I have witnessed it firsthand; a rigid "death cap" funnels talent through UAF/UAS coursework and unpaid year-long student teaching. This is coupled with often wasted leave-covering or non-teaching tasks like SPED shadowing, noon duty, crossing guard, etc (Alaska DEED Certification 2025). What builds great teachers? Repetition, patience, adaptability, and core knowledge. The basics one would expect of an educator, not rites of passage that burn out the best. Once hired, they're stuck in unchallenging or some new confusing curricula, unable to fail underperformers or accelerate high-achievers. This turns classes into "social experiments" (ASD Climate Survey 2025). Even the Alaska Reads Act, meant for 3rd-grade proficiency accountability, gets sidestepped, denying kids early intervention (DEED Implementation Report, March 2025). And accountability? Total lack of morality lead to dangerous situations, like teachers facing no repercussions for inflammatory statements, erode trust.

This isn't about fault. It's about fixing a system where approximately 1 in 5 educators shine and carry the load for the rest. 20% of the talent does 80% of the work screams true here. Most grind to year 5 for pensions, not pride and purpose; certainly not merit. Parents though, do know how to perform across the board: Homeschool ratios deliver better results because expectations match kids. Charters also prove it, 98% grads thrive with parent input and its merit focus (Alaska Charter Study 2025). Teachers do not quit the kids, but the mismatch; principals also bolt from blocked reforms. We can reward excellence instead.

My Plan: Build on Merit, Lift All - 'Not everyone is a Pikachu, you also need to level up the SquigglyPuffs'

Let's empower locals to lead:

1. Merit-Based Hiring That Welcomes Alaskans: Streamline certification: Cut barriers for proven paraprofessionals and veterans via site-led evals and apprenticeships. Hold UAA accountable for losing accreditation. Require supporting a solid pathway for Veterans transitioning from the military; 50% faster entry, focusing on skills like classroom management over unpaid drudgery (inspired by ASD's Special Ed Pathways 2025). No more excluding hometown talent.

2. Challenging Curricula with Real Accountability: Roll out rigorous, science-backed programs honoring Alaska Reads. Hold sites to proficiency benchmarks, with grace for growth but no excuses. Remove funding for students who are simply 'pushed through'. Parent councils review grading policies to ensure zeros count on missed assignments, and high-achievers have the opportunity to advance.

3. Celebrate Hard Work and Fair Policies: Transparent rewards: Bonuses for top performers, tied to student outcomes along with peer reviews. Enforce conduct codes swiftly and without remorse or emotion. Kids deserve role models who build unity, not division. Integrate military mentors for evals, drawing JBER's discipline to foster pride.

4. Equal Opportunity Through Local Control: End the shell game completely. Redirect budgets via community audits, prioritizing class caps at 20. School choice expands ensure that all students have a seat to excel. Implement vouchers for charters where merit rules, serving diverse families best.

High-standards classrooms spark thriving environments: kids start days with purpose, not pity. Teachers stay inspired; parents feel heard. On April 7, 2026, vote to restore merit and accountability. Because Anchorage kids deserve educators and outcomes that match their potential, not their BSA dollar amount.

Your Turn: Share a merit win story (Teacher hire? Class breakthrough? 'Ah-Ha!' moment of a student) at @AlexForSchools on your favorite social media platform. Let's rally parents, educators, and Vets for real change.

Full platform at www.alexforschoolboardak.com.

Let’s celebrate what they achieve.

Alexander Rosales

Dad | Air Force Veteran | Educator

Candidate for Anchorage School Board @AlexForSchools www.alexforschoolboardak.com