NOTN- As Suicide Basin nears capacity, the City and Borough of Juneau is urging residents in the flood evacuation zone to finalize their emergency plans.
In an interview with CBJ Emergency Programs Manager Ryan O’Shaughnessy, he said residents are encouraged to know where they’ll go if an evacuation is ordered.
“The basin is is almost full, once the basin becomes full and gets to 1350 ft, folks can expect to get an alert on their phones.” O’Shaughnessy said, “That’ll that loud, sort of jarring alert, a sort of siren that comes out of your phone for just a minute. And that’ll let people know that the basin has become full. And in our Ready, Set, Go framework, we’ve moved from Ready into Set. That means it’s time for folks to have a bag packed, it’s time to make sure your phone is charged, there’s gas in the car, and that you’re ready to go when the basin begins to release.”
We’ve put together the CBJ approved evacuation routes, take note of what’s nearest to you if you are in the evacuation zone.
Residents north of Division Street, please travel north on Riverside Drive, toward Mendenhall (Back) Loop Road and out of the inundation area.
Residents south of Division Street, travel south on Riverside Drive, turn left on Stephen Richards Memorial Drive, towards Mendenhall Loop Road.
On Rivercourt Way, travel south on Riverside Drive, toward Egan Drive
On the west side of the Mendenhall River, travel west on Mendenhall (Back) Loop Road toward Auke Bay (avoid Back Loop Bridge).
West of Brotherhood Bridge, travel west on Glacier Highway toward Auke Bay
An emergency shelter will be available at Floyd Dryden Middle School, and limited space is available there for pets. Juneau Animal Rescue can also help coordinate temporary pet sheltering.
People in the evacuation zone are also being asked to register their vehicles in advance if they plan to use the city’s temporary flood parking areas, which are located at St. Brendan’s Episcopal Church 4207 Mendenhall Loop Road, Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church 8198 Keegan Street, Christ Lutheran Church 10300 Glacier Hwy, Juneau Christian Center 8001 Glacier Hwy.
“We’re optimistic, and we have a tremendous amount of confidence in the HESCO barriers, but it’s not something to bet your life on. That’s why we’re really encouraging folks who live in the hazard area to evacuate and go ahead and heed that evacuation advisory when that’s issued.” O’Shaughnessy said.
Officials recommend preparing homes now by moving valuables, as well as items such as oils, paints and cleaning products, into secure waterproof containers at higher elevations.
Residents should also have a go-bag packed and ready in case an evacuation order is issued.
Officials remind residents not to drive or walk through floodwaters and to wait for an official all-clear before returning home after the event. The City and Borough of Juneau has also activated a flood information hotline for non-emergency questions. The hotline currently operates weekdays, with expanded weekend and around-the-clock hours planned once the basin fills and, if necessary, when a flood begins. United Way of Southeast Alaska is also coordinating volunteers and assistance for residents who may need help before or after the flood.
Flood waters are rising at a rate of about 3 feet per day but more information about flood preparedness is available through the City and Borough of Juneau’s flood readiness resources, the National Weather Service or by calling the flood hotline.
Six candidates for Alaska governor and lieutenant governor participated in a debate on education hosted by the Alaska Superintendents Association in Juneau on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith)
Six candidates for Alaska governor from across the political spectrum appeared side-by-side in a room full of superintendents and school officials in Juneau and promised that boosting education funding would be a priority of their administration, if elected.
Six candidates participated in the debate, out of 17 running for governor this year. Randy Hoffbeck, a candidate for Lieutenant Governor who stood in for his running mate, Bill Walker. They discussed their plans for education in a two-hour event hosted by the Alaska Superintendents’ Association on July 30. 2026 Voter Guide.
The candidates, the ballot measures, and the tools you need to cast your vote.
The gubernatorial candidates included Republican Click Bishop, Democrat Tom Begich, Republican Matt Heilala, Republican Lesil Maguire, Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, and Independent Hoffbeck.
The panel was moderated by Randy Trani, superintendent of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, with questions organized by the board of the Alaska Superintendents Association. A group of roughly 50 superintendents and school administrators from across Alaska attended as part of the association’s summer conference event in Juneau.
All six candidates agreed Alaska education has been underfunded by the Dunleavy administration, with several candidates characterizing public education as “in crisis.”
A record 12 schools were closed this year, amid millions in budget shortfalls, and others have cut teachers, programs and extracurricular activities. Districts reported funding has not kept pace with skyrocketing operating costs, amid declining enrollment as families leave the state or move to homeschool programs.
Trani said afterward he found all the candidates “super impressive,” particularly their ideas for funding education.
“They understand that there’s a fiscal reality problem in the state and it has to be addressed,” he said. “They all have different ideas of how they’re going to do it, but at least they’re leading with it as a top priority.”
Superintendents and school officials from across Alaska gathered for a summer conference in Juneau listen to a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Luke Meinert is superintendent of the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, which has closed seven schools in the past five years due to budget shortfalls and declining enrollment. He said he was impressed with the candidates, their willingness to invest in education and their experience working on education issues in Alaska.
“They’ve been in the game,” Meinert said. “I think maybe every one of them went to public schools here in Alaska, and so they had experienced public schools at a time where we were investing a lot in our school districts. And it was great to hear that they want to get back to those times because that can improve our retention and recruitment efforts for teachers, and then obviously student outcomes on the other end of that.”
Hoffbeck, who is running for Lieutenant Governor on Bill Walker’s ticket, did not go to Alaska public schools, but Walker did.
The candidates shared their plans for funding for Alaska districts, tackling billions of dollars in deferred maintenance, boosting recruitment and retention of teachers and staff, and providing them healthcare and retirement, as well as views on local control of school boards, fiscal plans for the state and other issues.
Funding for education
Despite Alaska school districts reporting severe budget shortfalls and cutting teachers and programs, Gov. Mike Dunleavy has opposed sustained increases to per student funding, arguing against more funding without changes to policy. He has particularly sought changes related to charter schools and homeschool programs.
Democrat Tom Begich discusses his education policy platform, with Independent Randy Hoffbeck (left) and Republican Click Bishop (right) at an education debate on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
But all six candidates agreed that schools have not been adequately funded under the Dunleavy administration, and that stable and reliable funding for districts is essential. They all said boosting investment in education is a priority of their campaigns.
Begich, Hoffbeck, Kreiss-Tomkins and McGuire said they support “forward funding” education and providing budgets to districts earlier in the year to provide more stability to districts. The state budget is currently finalized in June.
Begich said he would advocate for an immediate boost to per student funding, known as the base student allocation — the core of the state’s funding formula — to account for rising inflation. He proposed increasing the figure by roughly 15% to $7,680 per child and tie increases with inflation each year. He said he would also support fully funding pre-K to be available in all school districts.
Bishop said he would focus particularly on investing in career and technical education, referring to his experience growing up in a family of operating engineers and working in construction. “I’m going to push that till the day I die,” he said. “Nothing wrong with four-year degrees or higher. Career and tech ed needs to be improved upon in this state, and I’m the person that can do it working with you.”
McGuire and Kreiss-Tomkins said they support reviewing and revising the state’s complex funding formula to ensure districts are adequately funded. Both McGuire and Kreiss-Tomkins as well as Heilala said education has become a politically divisive issue which has obstructed progress. Kreiss-Tomkins called education policy a “Pandora’s box” avoided by lawmakers not wanting to take political risks.
Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, a candidate for governor, speaks at a debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Kreiss-Tomkins and Hoffbeck said they support a constitutional amendment to create a special fund for education separate from the state’s budget. “A constitutional amendment’s only way to dedicate funds in Alaska that can effectively politically de-risk education funding going forward, and also largely account for inflation,” Kreiss-Tomkins said.
Hoffbeck agreed there is a lack of trust between districts and the state under Dunleavy, which he said must be repaired. He said he believes adequate funding varies by school district across the state, and he and Walker both support a review of state funding for education by an independent third party to study and assess how much funding is needed by each school.
“Just throwing more money at it doesn’t fix the problem. We need to be surgical on how we add that money,” he said. “Yes, absolutely, we are underfunded. We need more funding, but we need to fund very surgically as we go forward.”
Teacher recruitment and retention
The candidates agreed investing in hiring and retaining teachers is a major priority, but diverged on the question of whether the state should revive a defined benefit retirement plan for educators.
Bishop and Heilala said they would focus education investments on boosting teacher pay. Heilala said funding should be more focused and efficient, and directed to teachers. “I believe teachers need pay raises. I think they probably need 15 to 30% pay raises, and of course, that’ll happen with a booming economy,” he said.
Independent Randy Hoffbeck, candidate for lieutenant governor running with Bill Waker, speaks at a debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Hoffbeck said teacher recruitment and retention should focus on training and hiring local teachers, particularly for rural Alaska. “The local teachers would stay in the rural communities,” he said, referring to his time working in the North Slope Borough. “And so I think we need to have a robust local recruitment process, including certification programs that make it possible for somebody in the village that may not have a four-year degree.”
Bishop, Begich and Kreiss-Tomkins support reviving the defined benefit retirement system for teachers, and said they believe offering that again would boost recruitment.
The state defined benefit retirement system for public employees was ended in 2006, after the system accrued a multi-billion dollar shortfall. Lawmakers passed legislation to revive the program this year, but Dunleavy vetoed it.
Begich said he would also want the state to provide medical benefits in a new defined benefit retirement plan, as well as grants for teacher housing.
Heilala disagreed, and said the defined benefit system is the “biggest mistake.” He said a 401(k) retirement plan has greater certainty to create income.
Republican Lesil McGuire speaks at a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Hoffbeck said he has concerns about a defined benefit retirement system as some districts would not be able to afford it.
McGuire said she does not support a defined benefit retirement plan, but supports a retirement system that the state can afford. She said she supports a student loan forgiveness program for teaching in Alaska, and low interest loans for housing to boost recruitment and retention.
“I think housing is a huge issue. Let’s make Alaska the place you want to come teach,” she said.
School maintenance backlog
The candidates all agreed that addressing the state’s multi-billion dollar backlog in deferred maintenance in K-12 schools and the University of Alaska system would be a major priority of their administrations, and presented various ideas on how to fund it.
Republican Click Bishop speaks at a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Bishop said part of his plan for funding education would be to levy an “education head tax,” a flat-rate tax per Alaskan regardless of income to pay for school maintenance. He said he’d introduced similar legislation when he was a member of the Alaska State Senate.
“It’s ludicrous that we have this much of a deferred maintenance schedule,” he said.
Begich said he supports the state paying to help boroughs and districts with school bond reimbursement, which is debt incurred by voter-approved bonds to fund school maintenance. He also supports the state backing a general obligation bond to generate hundreds of millions to address the existing maintenance backlog list.
McGuire, Hoffbeck and Kreiss-Tomkins agreed issuing bonds was a good idea. Hoffbeck and Kreiss-Tomkins also said prioritizing hiring local contractors for construction and maintenance is important.
Kriess-Tomkins noted maintaining schools is an obligation under Alaska’s Constitution. He also cautioned that there will be changes to schools with declining numbers of students as a result of outward migration from the state and families having fewer children. He said he’d want to invest in a system to keep up with school repairs in order to avoid large costly repairs like roof replacements decades in the making.
Republican Matt Heilala speaks at a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Heilala said the deferred maintenance backlog is a challenge, but sees opportunities for consolidating schools with “goodwill.” He said he believes “connectivity” will change infrastructure needs and said he sees artificial intelligence as a “supersonic tsunami” hitting American society now, and creating opportunities for education. “Education is going to be disrupted and changed. I believe in a good way,” he said. “There’s a lot of great opportunity, but we need to approach it with optimism.”
McGuire said a variety of solutions are needed to address school maintenance and repairs. “We’re so far behind at this point. We’re actually bordering up against litigation,” she said.
She cited legislative hearings and public outcry around the state-run boarding school, Mt. Edgecumbe High School this year when a quarter of students disenrolled sparking public focus on deteriorating school facilities.
“It was a stomach-turning event,” McGuire said. “So I think there are a variety of solutions. We need to be brave and bold, pull it out, assess what we need to do, and then look at solutions and address it immediately.”
Fired federal workers formerly with the U.S. Forest Service based at the Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau speak at the Alaska State Capito; on March 21, 2025, about their experiences. The Forest Service was among the federal agencies in Alaska most heavily affected by job cuts. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Alaska lost a higher percentage of its federal workforce last year than almost all U.S. states to sweeping Trump administration cuts, according to a newly published analysis by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
By the end of 2025, Alaska’s federal workforce was 10.5% smaller than it had been at the end of the prior year, according to the analysis, published in Alaska Economic Trends, the monthly magazine of the department’s research section. In the fourth quarter of 2025, after many workers accepted buyouts or early retirement, the state’s federal workforce had dropped by 1,607 from the total in the fourth quarter of 2024, to 13,767 from 15,374 the year prior, according to the analysis.
The job losses came through mass firings and cuts made by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, the government-reducing campaign led by trillionaire Elon Musk that started shortly after Donald Trump took office for his second term. To a large extent, job losses were concentrated at the end of the year.
Calculated by the annual average, Alaska lost about 4.5% of its federal jobs in 2025. Only Maryland, which lost 6.5% of its federal jobs, and New Mexico, which lost 5.8% of its federal jobs, lost more.
Federal job losses reduced Alaska’s total earnings by $36.5 million on average in 2025, according to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development analysis, and they brought federal employment in Alaska to the lowest level since at least 1990.
Much of the cutting in Alaska came in the U.S. Department of Defense’s civilian workforce. Calculated by annual average, 340 defense related jobs were lost to the DOGE cuts, but the fourth-quarter loss was calculated at 755 jobs.
The large amount of job losses in the Department of Defense category was a bit surprising, said Karinne Wiebold, the state labor economist who wrote the Trends article. “I assumed early on that the DoD might be one of the less affected departments and that our strong military presence might insulate us,” she said by email.
Federal agencies that sustained high numbers of job losses included the U.S. Forest Service, which had 180 fewer employees at the end of 2025 than in late 2024, the Bureau of Land Management, which had lost 133 jobs at the end of the year, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which had lost 101 of its workers by the end of 2025.
The fallout from the job losses continues, and the public does not yet have a complete picture, Wiebold said. “I do think the public is aware of the federal job losses and that they have been deep and a bit unpredictable,” she said. “I don’t know if the public generally understands what the ramifications of the cuts will be — federal employees perform a wide variety of oftentimes highly specialized work.”
Certain parts of the state were harder hit than others. The Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, which has been reliant on military-related employment, and parts of Southeast Alaska, where employment related to the Tongass National Forest is important, are among those regions with steeper job losses by percentage, according to the analysis.
Alaska’s ranking among states hit by DOGE-related job cuts could change, Wiebold said. Data from this year has yet to be fully analyzed, she said. “Even in the first parts of 2026, there are reports of the rankings shifting somewhat,” she said.
Now, there are reports claiming that the royal firm is outlining how things will go down if the Sussex couple splits.
Charles wants to “support” his son. Does that mean sabotaging his marriage?
King Charles, Duchess Meghan Markle, and Prince Harry on December 25, 2017. (Photo Credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
‘Contingency plans in the event of a split’
According to a report from Heat World, Buckingham Palace has created a “divorce plan.”
In the event that Meghan and Harry part ways, the royal firm wants to have a strategy ready to go.
An alleged insider claimed that the royals are “quietly be drawing up contingency plans in the event of a split.”
As an institution, the royals are known for drawing up plans for all sorts of events — from family deaths to other crises.
Though Harry and Meghan are no longer active royals after being essentially driven out of the UK by a harassment campaign, it is conceivable that the royals would draw up a plan for this potential outcome.
One highlight of the alleged divorce plan is that it isn’t some sort of relationship sabotage.
“This isn’t about trying to come between Harry and Meghan,” the insider clarified.
“In fact contrary to what a lot of people might think,” the source continued, “Charles is actually rooting for them.”
The insider added: The king would reportedly help Harry if the latter ever needed advice.”
Though we of course cannot verify any of the claims in this report, it is interesting to consider. But fortunately, at least from the outside, it seems null and void — as Meghan and Harry seem to be doing very well.
Six candidates for Alaska governor and lieutenant governor participated in a debate on education hosted by the Alaska Superintendents Association in Juneau on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith)
Six candidates for Alaska governor from across the political spectrum appeared side-by-side in a room full of superintendents and school officials in Juneau and promised that boosting education funding would be a priority of their administration, if elected.
Six candidates participated in the debate, out of 17 running for governor this year. Randy Hoffbeck, a candidate for Lieutenant Governor who stood in for his running mate, Bill Walker. They discussed their plans for education in a two-hour event hosted by the Alaska Superintendents’ Association on July 30.
The gubernatorial candidates included Republican Click Bishop, Democrat Tom Begich, Republican Matt Heilala, Republican Lesil Maguire, Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, and Independent Hoffbeck.
The panel was moderated by Randy Trani, superintendent of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, with questions organized by the board of the Alaska Superintendents Association. A group of roughly 50 superintendents and school administrators from across Alaska attended as part of the association’s summer conference event in Juneau.
All six candidates agreed Alaska education has been underfunded by the Dunleavy administration, with several candidates characterizing public education as “in crisis.”
A record 12 schools were closed this year, amid millions in budget shortfalls, and others have cut teachers, programs and extracurricular activities. Districts reported funding has not kept pace with skyrocketing operating costs, amid declining enrollment as families leave the state or move to homeschool programs.
Trani said afterward he found all the candidates “super impressive,” particularly their ideas for funding education.
“They understand that there’s a fiscal reality problem in the state and it has to be addressed,” he said. “They all have different ideas of how they’re going to do it, but at least they’re leading with it as a top priority.”
Superintendents and school officials from across Alaska gathered for a summer conference in Juneau listen to a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Luke Meinert is superintendent of the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, which has closed seven schools in the past five years due to budget shortfalls and declining enrollment. He said he was impressed with the candidates, their willingness to invest in education and their experience working on education issues in Alaska.
“They’ve been in the game,” Meinert said. “I think maybe every one of them went to public schools here in Alaska, and so they had experienced public schools at a time where we were investing a lot in our school districts. And it was great to hear that they want to get back to those times because that can improve our retention and recruitment efforts for teachers, and then obviously student outcomes on the other end of that.”
Hoffbeck, who is running for Lieutenant Governor on Bill Walker’s ticket, did not go to Alaska public schools, but Walker did.
The candidates shared their plans for funding for Alaska districts, tackling billions of dollars in deferred maintenance, boosting recruitment and retention of teachers and staff, and providing them healthcare and retirement, as well as views on local control of school boards, fiscal plans for the state and other issues.
Funding for education
Despite Alaska school districts reporting severe budget shortfalls and cutting teachers and programs, Gov. Mike Dunleavy has opposed sustained increases to per student funding, arguing against more funding without changes to policy. He has particularly sought changes related to charter schools and homeschool programs.
Democrat Tom Begich discusses his education policy platform, with Independent Randy Hoffbeck (left) and Republican Click Bishop (right) at an education debate on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
But all six candidates agreed that schools have not been adequately funded under the Dunleavy administration, and that stable and reliable funding for districts is essential. They all said boosting investment in education is a priority of their campaigns.
Begich, Hoffbeck, Kreiss-Tomkins and McGuire said they support “forward funding” education and providing budgets to districts earlier in the year to provide more stability to districts. The state budget is currently finalized in June.
Begich said he would advocate for an immediate boost to per student funding, known as the base student allocation — the core of the state’s funding formula — to account for rising inflation. He proposed increasing the figure by roughly 15% to $7,680 per child and tie increases with inflation each year. He said he would also support fully funding pre-K to be available in all school districts.
Bishop said he would focus particularly on investing in career and technical education, referring to his experience growing up in a family of operating engineers and working in construction. “I’m going to push that till the day I die,” he said. “Nothing wrong with four-year degrees or higher. Career and tech ed needs to be improved upon in this state, and I’m the person that can do it working with you.”
McGuire and Kreiss-Tomkins said they support reviewing and revising the state’s complex funding formula to ensure districts are adequately funded. Both McGuire and Kreiss-Tomkins as well as Heilala said education has become a politically divisive issue which has obstructed progress. Kreiss-Tomkins called education policy a “Pandora’s box” avoided by lawmakers not wanting to take political risks.
Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, a candidate for governor, speaks at a debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Kreiss-Tomkins and Hoffbeck said they support a constitutional amendment to create a special fund for education separate from the state’s budget. “A constitutional amendment’s only way to dedicate funds in Alaska that can effectively politically de-risk education funding going forward, and also largely account for inflation,” Kreiss-Tomkins said.
Hoffbeck agreed there is a lack of trust between districts and the state under Dunleavy, which he said must be repaired. He said he believes adequate funding varies by school district across the state, and he and Walker both support a review of state funding for education by an independent third party to study and assess how much funding is needed by each school.
“Just throwing more money at it doesn’t fix the problem. We need to be surgical on how we add that money,” he said. “Yes, absolutely, we are underfunded. We need more funding, but we need to fund very surgically as we go forward.”
Teacher recruitment and retention
The candidates agreed investing in hiring and retaining teachers is a major priority, but diverged on the question of whether the state should revive a defined benefit retirement plan for educators.
Bishop and Heilala said they would focus education investments on boosting teacher pay. Heilala said funding should be more focused and efficient, and directed to teachers. “I believe teachers need pay raises. I think they probably need 15 to 30% pay raises, and of course, that’ll happen with a booming economy,” he said.
Independent Randy Hoffbeck, candidate for lieutenant governor running with Bill Waker, speaks at a debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Hoffbeck said teacher recruitment and retention should focus on training and hiring local teachers, particularly for rural Alaska. “The local teachers would stay in the rural communities,” he said, referring to his time working in the North Slope Borough. “And so I think we need to have a robust local recruitment process, including certification programs that make it possible for somebody in the village that may not have a four-year degree.”
Bishop, Begich and Kreiss-Tomkins support reviving the defined benefit retirement system for teachers, and said they believe offering that again would boost recruitment.
The state defined benefit retirement system for public employees was ended in 2006, after the system accrued a multi-billion dollar shortfall. Lawmakers passed legislation to revive the program this year, but Dunleavy vetoed it.
Begich said he would also want the state to provide medical benefits in a new defined benefit retirement plan, as well as grants for teacher housing.
Heilala disagreed, and said the defined benefit system is the “biggest mistake.” He said a 401(k) retirement plan has greater certainty to create income.
Republican Lesil McGuire speaks at a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Hoffbeck said he has concerns about a defined benefit retirement system as some districts would not be able to afford it.
McGuire said she does not support a defined benefit retirement plan, but supports a retirement system that the state can afford. She said she supports a student loan forgiveness program for teaching in Alaska, and low interest loans for housing to boost recruitment and retention.
“I think housing is a huge issue. Let’s make Alaska the place you want to come teach,” she said.
School maintenance backlog
The candidates all agreed that addressing the state’s multi-billion dollar backlog in deferred maintenance in K-12 schools and the University of Alaska system would be a major priority of their administrations, and presented various ideas on how to fund it.
Republican Click Bishop speaks at a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Bishop said part of his plan for funding education would be to levy an “education head tax,” a flat-rate tax per Alaskan regardless of income to pay for school maintenance. He said he’d introduced similar legislation when he was a member of the Alaska State Senate.
“It’s ludicrous that we have this much of a deferred maintenance schedule,” he said.
Begich said he supports the state paying to help boroughs and districts with school bond reimbursement, which is debt incurred by voter-approved bonds to fund school maintenance. He also supports the state backing a general obligation bond to generate hundreds of millions to address the existing maintenance backlog list.
McGuire, Hoffbeck and Kreiss-Tomkins agreed issuing bonds was a good idea. Hoffbeck and Kreiss-Tomkins also said prioritizing hiring local contractors for construction and maintenance is important.
Kriess-Tomkins noted maintaining schools is an obligation under Alaska’s Constitution. He also cautioned that there will be changes to schools with declining numbers of students as a result of outward migration from the state and families having fewer children. He said he’d want to invest in a system to keep up with school repairs in order to avoid large costly repairs like roof replacements decades in the making.
Republican Matt Heilala speaks at a gubernatorial candidate debate on education on July 30, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
Heilala said the deferred maintenance backlog is a challenge, but sees opportunities for consolidating schools with “goodwill.” He said he believes “connectivity” will change infrastructure needs and said he sees artificial intelligence as a “supersonic tsunami” hitting American society now, and creating opportunities for education. “Education is going to be disrupted and changed. I believe in a good way,” he said. “There’s a lot of great opportunity, but we need to approach it with optimism.”
McGuire said a variety of solutions are needed to address school maintenance and repairs. “We’re so far behind at this point. We’re actually bordering up against litigation,” she said.
She cited legislative hearings and public outcry around the state-run boarding school, Mt. Edgecumbe High School this year when a quarter of students disenrolled sparking public focus on deteriorating school facilities.
“It was a stomach-turning event,” McGuire said. “So I think there are a variety of solutions. We need to be brave and bold, pull it out, assess what we need to do, and then look at solutions and address it immediately.”
Russell Dickerson may have been physically sitting down with Country Now for an interview, but mentally he was already somewhere else: back home by the fire pit with his family, roasting s’mores under the summer sky.
“A s’more is in my future,” he noted.
Growing up, making s’mores was a favorite tradition for Dickerson. He remembers going on camping trips as a young boy with his best friends and his dad and making core memories around a fire, thinking, “how could life get better?”
Russell Dickerson and family; Photo via Instagram
Now with a family of his own and a demanding tour schedule, he has a new appreciation for those simple moments. The evenings spent around a fire with his own family, whether on the road or at home, have become some of the most meaningful memories.
“Nowadays it’s up at our fire pit with our kids and just seeing them running around in the woods and we’re making s’mores and they don’t even know these are the best memories of their life. It’s like the sun setting, fire going, s’mores roasting. That’s living right there…We do s’mores on the road with the boys after the show and there is something, just turn your brain off and just stare at a fire, roast them all out, get that Hershey’s chocolate on the graham just right. That’s kind of the perfect post-show.”
Inspired by that connection, Dickerson has teamed up with Hershey’s to encourage families to make time for those special traditions that bring people together. Ahead of National S’mores Day on Aug. 10, he’s celebrating the nostalgic treat that has helped create memories across generations while reminding fans to slow down and enjoy the moments that matter most.
While there are plenty of ways to put a twist on the summertime treat, Dickerson says he’s a fan of keeping things simple with the traditional combination of toasted marshmallow, graham crackers and Hershey’s milk chocolate.
“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” he stated.
However, he is inviting fans to weigh in on the Hershey’s “Heated Debate” and decide whether they are Team Toasty or Team Gooey. No matter which side wins, Dickerson and just about everyone else can agree that a s’more isn’t complete without Hershey’s milk chocolate.
“I will double up the mallow. And you can double up the Hershey’s too. Two layers of Hershey’s milk chocolate goodness? I think it’s kind of like when you put peanut butter on both sides of the bread, on top and bottom, and then you put the jelly. That’s kind of the mentality behind the ultimate RD s’more,” he explained.
Hershey’s “Heated Debate”
The “Boots” singer takes every chance he gets to slow down and enjoy time with his two boys, Remington and Radford, especially now that he and his wife Kailey are expecting their third baby. He admits “life is happening right in front of our eyes” while sharing an update on fatherhood as he prepares to celebrate his oldest turning six in September and his youngest turning three in October.
“Remington, our oldest, it’s like overnight he went from playing dress up as a cop, every day cop was like, all he wanted to wear was his police uniform to one day he was just like, ‘No, I’m a baseball player now.’ And all he wants to do is play baseball, wear his jersey, wear his cleats around the house. And we signed him up for his first team this fall.”
He added, “It’s like you come home off the road and all of a sudden they’re talking a little different. They’re like, ‘Where did you learn that?’ You’re talking like a man now.”
Russell Dickerson is currently making his way from venue to venue on his RUSSELLMANIA Tour 2026. Being a family man himself, the Tennessee native has loved getting to see his shows turn into a full-on family event.
“There’re families now, there’s kids…they’re all dressed up in wrestling gear. They got the boas and the sunglasses and they’re all just like, I don’t know, just this cool culture that has formed out of this tour.”
Photo courtesy of Russell Dickerson
Much like the quiet nights around the fire with his family, Dickerson has learned to appreciate the moments happening right in front of him. Whether he’s roasting s’mores with his kids or stepping onto a stage in front of thousands of fans, he knows these are the memories he’ll cherish forever.
“I feel like for anybody, it’s hard to realize that in the moment, these are the days. Every night I go on stage and just try to soak that in, understand that however many people…we were just in Canada and it’s like 25,000 people and they’re like, ‘All right, we get to play music in front of 25,000 people.’ I remember the days when we were playing for 25 people at noon, and now here we are playing before Keith Urban in front of 25,000 people and just give it your all. What else could you want?”
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Finding NFL players with something to prove this season — or in any season — is not difficult. But of those currently navigating contract years or looking to move past 2025 hiccups, who has the most to gain in 2026? Here’s my top 11 in descending order, ranking players not only by financial compensation at stake but also their perception in the eyes of the league: Williams established himself as one of the league’s brightest young quarterbacks last season, delivering in the clutch and leading the Bears to their first playoff victory in 15 years. If he builds on what was an impressive second season, he sets himself up for what could be an extension that resets the quarterback market in the 2027 offseason. The 31-year-old Mayfield is entering a contract year after he and the Bucs failed to reach an extension agreement before training camp. A bounce-back campaign in 2026 — Mayfield’s numbers regressed across the board last season compared to his first two years in Tampa — should earn the former No. 1 overall pick a deal that ranks comfortably in the top 10 of quarterback contracts. Nix has been a good quarterback through two NFL seasons, helping lead the Broncos to back-to-back playoff appearances. If he makes the leap to elite in Year 3, it not only would mean a record-setting contract for the 2024 first-round pick next offseason, but would also make Denver a legitimate Super Bowl contender. If Pickens once again performs like a true WR1 in 2026, a top-end wide receiver contract awaits him from the Cowboys or someone else in the spring. The former second-round pick will play in Dallas this season on the franchise tag, which will pay him $27.3 million fully guaranteed. After an injury-riddled 2025, Daniels needs to show the Commanders that he can stay on the field. Doing that, and picking up from his historic rookie season two years ago, would all but guarantee him a deal that resets the benchmark for quarterback contracts. The talented Woolen is coming off a season in which he lost his starting job. After three years with the Seahawks, he’s now with the Eagles on a prove-it, one-year deal worth $12 million fully guaranteed. If he can recapture Pro Bowl form from his rookie season, he’ll be able to secure a contract that will rank among the richest cornerback deals. The 2023 No. 1 overall pick, Young’s career has been marked by inconsistency, including a benching in 2024. But he’s coming off his best season as a pro — he posted career-highs in completion rate, passing yards and touchdowns, and guided the Panthers to their first playoff appearance in eight years. Another step forward in 2026 will cement his place as Carolina’s long-term quarterback. After playing just 12 games over the past two seasons combined due to suspension and injury, Rice is now in the last year of his rookie deal. If he’s on his best behavior and produces like a WR1 this season, the former second-rounder is in line for a lucrative second contract. Texans general manager Nick Caserio has said the team has had “productive” extension talks with Stroud, but there’s a possibility that the QB plays this season without a new deal, given his playoff struggles last season and general regression since his rookie year in 2023. A bounce-back Year 4 would not only cement Stroud’s status as Houston’s long-term quarterback, but also earn him a mega extension in 2027. Murray signed a league minimum, one-year contract with the Vikings after his release by Arizona. If he wins Minnesota’s starting quarterback job and regains Pro Bowl form, a top-end QB deal will be waiting for him in the spring. Football-wise, Nacua already deserves a second contract that would be the richest for a wideout in league history. He led the NFL with 129 catches last season and his 95.3 receiving yards-per-game career average is the most all time. But after a few off-field controversies dating back to last season, the All-Pro receiver must rebuild the Rams’ trust in him to earn that mega extension. The former fifth-round pick is slated to make just over $5.6 million in base salary in 2026, while a new deal would be expected to start at over $42 million in average annual value.Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
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