Michael Regan, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, speaks with students at Barrow High School on Aug. 30, 2023. . A report from the Association of Alaska School Boards linked it to underfunding public schools — especially guidance counselors and guidance programs.
She said money and support are one piece of the puzzle, but another is creating a culture around college and future planning for students. Janelle Vanasse is now the president of Alaska Pacific University, but when she was the principal of Bethel Regional High School, she implemented the program there.
At Bethel Regional High School, only about 30% of students were college-bound before the program — below the state average at the time. But after the school brought on college counselors and “near peers,” former high school students who had navigated the college application process and experienced a first year at a university, that number roughly doubled.