Anchorage: Education and Research

View more Travel videos

Elementary and Secondary Schools

The Anchorage School District prides itself on test scores that are better than state and national averages. The district's 50,000 students represent a diverse array of ethnic backgrounds. In the 1990s Anchorage voters approved more than $500 million in school construction that continues today. Two middle schools and nine elementary schools were built, and the new South Anchorage High School, serving 1,600 students, opened for the 2004-2005 school year. The new Eagle River High School will open in fall 2005 and will educate 800 students, relieving crowding at Chugiak High School. Many of the other Anchorage schools have undergone expansions or upgrades since 1990.

The school system is administered by a nonpartisan, seven-member school board that appoints a superintendent on the recommendation of a selection task force. The system faced budget hardships, making cuts to supplies and services in the 2004-2005 school year. A 2005-2006 budget was announced with hopes for increased funds, pending approval from state legislature.

The following is a summary of data regarding the Anchorage School District as of the 2004–2005 school year.

Total enrollment: 50,000

Number of facilities elementary schools: 59

middle schools: 9

senior high schools: 7

other: 1 middle/high school, 1 K-12 school, 1 vocational school, 10 specialized schools, 5 charter schools

Student/teacher ratio: 25:1

Teacher salaries minimum: $35,284

maximum: $66,286

Funding per pupil: $8,764 (2001-2002)

A small percentage of students attend private and parochial schools in the Anchorage area.

Public Schools Information: Anchorage School District, 4600 DeBarr Road, Anchorage, AK 99508-3126; telephone (907)742-4000

Colleges and Universities

Anchorage boasts one of the highest percentages of residents with postsecondary degrees in the country. Two fully accredited universities are located there: the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA), which enrolls more than 17,000 students, and Alaska Pacific University, a private institution affiliated with the United Methodist church with about 700 enrolled students. Both institutions offer undergraduate degrees in a wide range of disciplines and master's degrees in such fields as biological sciences, business and management, logistics, and engineering. Also located in the Anchorage area are several vocational, specialty, and technical schools.

Libraries and Research Centers

In addition to its main branch downtown, the Anchorage Municipal Libraries system operates five branches throughout the city. Holdings consist of more than 452,000 books, nearly 1,700 periodical subscriptions, and films, records, tapes, art reproductions, and sheet music. Special collections at the system's main Loussac Library include the Alaska Collection, featuring more than 25,000 books and documents on Alaska and the North, and the Loussac Children's Collection, with materials for parents and people who work with children. Nearly 50 special libraries and research centers are located in Anchorage, most of them affiliated with the University of Alaska Anchorage and specializing in the fields of environment, natural resources, art, history, law, and education. ARLIS, or Alaska Resources Library and Information Services, features a collection of more than 200,000 books, 700 journals, and a variety of other sources of information about Alaska. Housed on the University of Alaska campus, ARLIS contains the collection of The Oil Spill Public Information Center, featuring scientific data from the Exxon Valdez oil spill damage. The National Center for Infectious Diseases Arctic Investigations Program seeks to improve the quality of life of arctic and subarctic people.

Public Library Information: Anchorage Municipal Libraries, 3600 Denali St., Anchorage, AK 99503; telephone (907)343-2975