Superintendent Meinert discusses enrollment numbers at FNSB School Board meeting

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTVF) - The Fairbanks North Star Borough School Board met on Tuesday, October 17 for the final regular meeting before the newly elected board members are seated into office.

At the meeting, the community heard from Superintendent Luke Meinert, who discussed various issues facing the district.

Meinert discussed bullying in schools, saying administration tries to create a safe environment for all students.

In October, the school district makes a count of all students enrolled. These numbers are used to determine funding from the state. According to Meinert, this month the district is seeing a little over 12,500 students enrolled, about 125 kids short of projections.

Board members paid tribute to two of their own who are near to ending their tenure with the body, Maggie Matheson and April Smith. Matheson was not in attendance at the meeting.

Melissa Burnett, school board member, said, “I would just like to take a second and thank both Mrs. Matheson and Mrs. Smith for their time and service on the board. It’s not easy being in the public eye, not easy putting yourself out there, especially in the name of children, so just, thank you for your last three years, and I wish you the best.”

School Board President Chrya Sanderson, spoke about Smith, saying, “Mrs. Smith has shown herself to be a very dedicated board member, always came prepared, always did research. Sometimes she read stuff that I wouldn’t read, but she was always researching and trying to find answers and networking with people across this community.”

Meanwhile, School Board Vice President Tim Doran spoke about Matheson, saying, “I’d like to add my thanks and appreciation to Maggie Matheson for her service on the board the last three years.” He added, “I really appreciated when she’d come and talk about school events, activities, things going on that she experienced. not only with her own children, but with other students in our district. She really did that with enthusiasm, good support, and I appreciate her advocacy for public education.”

The two new school board members, Bobby Burgess and Meredith Maple, are set to be sworn in to their positions on Monday, October 30.

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