Finances, vaping on the docket at Nome School Board Meeting
Discussion of finances and the ever-present vaping problem at Nome Beltz Middle High School took center stage at the December school board meeting last Tuesday, December 9.
NBMHS Principal Teriscovkya Smith told the board that she has about $300 left in her general supplies fund for the school year. Part of this is because of unexpected costs – a teacher quit at the start of the year, the school had to scramble together a new science offering that included about $9,000 of science kits – and part of that is late supplies. Even if supplies are ordered during the previous year, when they arrive past June 30, the expense comes out of the new fiscal year. Smith said that she ordered supplies last April that arrived after June 30.
“I have about less than $300 for general supplies, and I have five months to go,” she said. “I have no more money left in my administrative line, so if I want to buy something for my teachers, it’s out of pocket.”
Nome Public Schools Superintendent Jamie Burgess said in a follow up interview with the Nugget that the board will go through one more FY26 budget revision, and they will see if there are funds that can be shifted around to bolster the general supplies fund. She said that a lot of what comes out of that fund is not strictly essential, but it helps boost staff morale and keep people happier. Buying coffee or donuts for teachers is a way of showing appreciation for their tough jobs. “We recognize that nothing makes up for the fact that, you know, your paycheck is tight, you might have to have a second job, but we’re doing what we can with the little amount that we have available,” she said.
Smith said that in addition to the general budget woes, the Career and Technical Education program, CTE for short, at NBMHS is suffering from a lack of funds. The classroom itself is outdated. Smith pointed out that other subjects, like language arts and social studies, have two teachers. CTE only has one. With two teachers, the school could fill two full classes of students and better prepare students to take on the professional jobs that will be available with the Port of Nome expansion and other construction work. “We have one person and $30,000 to try and make all of that happen” she said. “And some of you probably own homes here in town, $30,000 doesn't get you much when you're fixing a kitchen, and yet that's what we have to run two entire programs on, everything from the welding rods to equipment that's outdated.”
Burgess told the Nugget that there isn’t money in the budget available to fully fund the CTE program. “We have cut so many things from our budget, we used to have a librarian, we used to have a counselor and or a social worker at the elementary school,” she said. “We’ve been asking for funding for years, but flat funding combined with rising costs makes that impossible.”
School Board Vice President Darlene Trigg and board member Jon Gregg both brought up different strategies how the district could bridge the gap. Both suggested that the district reach out to different professional organizations who could offer teaching to students. “We, as in public schools, don't have the money to be able to afford to pay for the teachers compared to the competitive ways wages that are being offered for these kinds of jobs,” said Trigg. “So we have to think about creative practices.”
Trigg said that it wasn’t organizations that helped start ANSEP at the high school, but parents. “They asked outright for the next thing for them to do fundraising on,” she said. “I don't know if this is where their energy is, but this might be.”
“The conventional model has failed us. We are so far down this road,” said Gregg. “We’re just fooling ourselves to think that, ‘Oh, man, maybe next year the governor is going to pass all the money we need.’ That's not a thing.”
Vaping
The other big issue plaguing the middle-high school right now? Vaping. Smith pulled a shopping bag out and emptied the contents into a box on the podium as she addressed the board. Inside were e-cigarettes and dab pens, gathered from about a week and a half of confiscations. Smith said the contents were equivalent to about 300 cigarettes.
Smith said that often she and Assistant Principal Holly Harlow are running around collecting vapes all day. The contraband she dumped on the podium is the product of just a few days of confiscations. Smith said that kids have told her they don’t want to use the bathrooms because people are vaping inside.
“I think of the students who are attached. This is not kids off to be sneaky and bad. They're kids who say, ‘Can't go through the day without it,’” she said.
Board member Nancy Mendenhall said that there’s been joint sessions between the school board the Nome Common Council to discuss the issue in the past, and that maybe there should be one every year.
Smith said in a follow-up interview that it can be tricky to deal with kids who get caught with nicotine products. In the past, students could attend an American Lung Association training administered by NSHC’s CAMP department and bypass an out of school suspension. “You send somebody who's addicted to nicotine home, now they're not in their academic classes, and they're just home without a device, and they have time to procure a new one” she said. “It’s not helping with the issue.”
This year, the CAMP sessions aren’t available, so Smith must suspend students. She said that the student council is working on system where some students could face a Youth Court in lieu of out of school suspension, but that idea is still in the planning process.
Smith said that she would like to have input and help from the community and the city council in helping solve the issue. She said that maybe the solution will have to be a creative one. “But then, who's willing to come to the table, to come up with those solutions?” she asked. “Because if it’s just me and my team, we’re tapped out. We need some help.”
Smith noted that the school has found a long-term substitute for the spring semester to fill the teacher vacancy discussed at the November meeting, and that the district will be ramping up hiring efforts for that position.
NES and ACSA Principal Reports
Nome Elementary School principal Michelle Carton discussed ongoing cultural education integration efforts. NES held an Inuit Day celebration and has been working on cultural celebration activities for the whole school. Carton said that there had been mixed responses to the activities. Students were positive about the activities, but when she sent out an anonymous survey to families, there was some negative feedback. Some respondents said that what the school board wants and what the community wants are two separate things. Some families feel that there was an over-emphasis on local Indigenous culture. “A lot of our community members have, or a lot of our family members have said, ‘We feel as though it's great that you are just introducing these opportunities, but we feel even more left out than we did before,’” she said.
Board Vice President Darlene Trigg one of the things the school board focuses on is making sure that what happens in the schools is reflective of the local population. “So please know you're doing the right thing by asking these questions and bringing the topic to the table, because it's been a complicated conversation that people have had for really, really long time,” she said.
Carton also noted that a lot of kids lack proper gear for playing outside and walking to school. Students don’t have warm outside clothes and don’t have reflective gear to identify them to drivers in the dark. Carton is reaching out to community organizations for reflective tape and also said she’s considering to go to thrift stores during her winter break travels for kids winter gear. “Families are really feeling like this year more than any other, they're struggling to have their basic needs met, which is putting food on the table, so they just don't have the money in order to get hats, more than just thin cotton dollar gloves, snow pants and good gear,” she said.
Anvil City Science Academy Principal Emily Annas updated the board on the school’s holiday plans. ACSA is planning a reader’s theater performance, their annual holiday party and a silent auction where students can purchase gifts and wrap them at school. The school also received a donation of tether balls and soccer balls. “The kids are really loving soccer, and so they really took to that,” she said.
Financial Audit
The district received their independent financial audit report for financial year 2025 from Evan Seaman of Altman, Rogers & Co. Seaman said that Nome Public Schools passed the audit and there were no issues to report. “There is no going concern whether Nome Public Schools can continue over 12 months beyond the issuance of the audit report,” he said. The board voted to approve the audit report in a roll call vote. Burgess praised Financial Director Genevieve Hollins for her work. “Thank you to Jon [Gregg] for pointing out the fact that ever since Genevieve has been part of our school district, we have had clean audit reports with no findings, and that's huge,” she said.
Action Items
The board approved the district’s six-year capital project priority plan and a letter to the city council asking for funding for three projects: Updated entrances at the elementary and middle-high school; fire alarm replacements at the elementary school and a second teacher apartment building. They also approved Nome Public School’s legislative priorities. The board will be advocating for funding of construction projects at the school, more student educational opportunities and more efforts for teacher career development and retention.
Technological Director Report
Jim Shreve gave his technological director’s report in person. In the interest of the meeting not running long, he told the board to just ask him any questions they had after reading his report. Gregg asked if about the potential for more internet providers for the district.
“Now, with the possibility of low Earth orbit solutions, and with the data port being here in Nome and everything else, it opens up quite a few more things to other vendors,” said Shreve.
ANSEP Report
ANSEP Acceleration Academy Director Kacey Miller gave the board an update on the academy’s first semester of operation. The academy has eleven students this semester and will continue with the same students for the spring semester. Miller said that there seems to be substantial interest in the academy for next school year as well.
Superintendent Report
Superintendent Burgess noted in her report that she suspects the drop in enrollment in the public schools is partially linked to the housing situation in Nome. “I really think that if we can get more housing coming online, we will see some families that I think want to come back here. A lot of them are in the villages,” she said.
Burgess also said that there will be an update on the roof construction project in the January board meeting. Several city council members and City Manager Lee Smith have expressed a desire to do a walk-through of various areas in the school that need improvement.
Nome Education Association Report
Nome Education Association representative Sarah Liben told the school board of recent successes in some classrooms. Students in Erika Rhodes’ eighth grade English language arts classes exchange their books for art supplies every Friday. “Sometimes, our art helps us reflect on what we are reading and writing in class, and sometimes our art just helps us calm down, reconnect with ourselves and each other and embrace abilities and interests that aren't always developed in the classroom,” read Liben.
Student Council Report
Student Representative Sara James gave an update on the high school student council’s work. The council has been working to increase student feedback. They have an anonymous suggestion box and student representatives hold weekly lunch meetings to hear student comments.
The next meeting of the Nome School Board is scheduled for January 13 at 5:30 p.m. in the Nome Elementary School library.