We have amazing choices and communities in our neighborhood schools as well as a variety of charter, optional, and homeschool programs. All of these options are suffering from a lack of support, especially with a decade of flat funding that has not kept up with inflation. 

Donna is looking forward to the new high school academy model which will provide options for youth to get engaged in career skills and paths in a much more broad way than they can now. Many are skeptical of the success of this model if we do not properly fund public education, which would lead to ever larger class sizes and the inability to attract educators that can provide this level of instruction. Every job sector is competing for and struggling to get workers, and providing opportunities for Alaskan youth to get these skills and certifications early will help build Alaskan jobs and our economy.

Supporting teachers means adequate funding to reduce class sizes and restoring defined retirement benefits to attract and retain teachers. Between a decade of flat funding, and 18 years since teachers were able to join a defined retirement program, a whole generation of kids has seen our public education system be slowly under-resourced. It’s more than time to reverse that trend.

Donna also supports increasing funding for pre-K kids from 50% to 100%. Sure these kiddos are small, but they need more teacher support than their older counterparts. Growing our pre-K options will improve student numbers in our neighborhood schools, and provide more options for families looking for childcare. 

Our public correspondence (homeschool) programs have been getting scrutiny from the courts this year. Donna homeschooled her oldest child during high school, and fully appreciates and supports the choice of homeschooling for families. She was a co-sponsor on Representative DeLena Johnson’s bill that preserved allotments for these programs, and is looking forward to a more permanent fix.

Inflation is hitting Alaskans hard and the state needs to do what it can to keep costs under control. Donna has successfully fought to maintain funding for revenue sharing which contributes to the Anchorage Municipal budget and keeps down property taxes. She’s also leading efforts on energy diversity and food security.

This year the Legislature made broad improvements to natural gas storage and electricity transmission regulations which will add security to supply and decrease long-term costs of energy. Providing matching funds to the federal Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnership (GRIP) will greatly reduce the chance that the electric utilities will need to shed loads when there is an interruption in the system, like a tree falling on a transmission line. Just recently these load shedding events have led to widespread temporary loss of electrical service throughout town.This is just some of the work that needs to be done, and Donna is committed to leading energy solutions for the state. 

Donna’s leadership on the Food Strategy Task Force is tackling reducing food waste in transportation, increasing local food supply, and making it cheaper to get food into our schools. She has also been pushing back on the potential grocery store merger that could see ownership of many Safeway stores go to a grocer with no experience in Alaska.

Concerns about safe streets and parks are a frequent topic brought to our community councils and when visiting with neighbors. Folks are asking for more resources to slow traffic and enforce laws. 

Requests for sidewalks, speed bumps, and other solutions to slow traffic and provide pedestrian and cyclist safety are a top item at community council meetings. The number of pedestrian deaths in Anchorage this year is alarming and unacceptable. There is a call from the community to put more resources to street safety. Donna has been supporting safer streets since her work on the Northeast Community Council which resulted in an additional state allocation of $500,000 for improvements. 

We have seen significant increases in crime in Anchorage while experiencing the double challenge of understaffed police departments and the need for emergency responders to devote critical resources to address homelessness, trauma, and substance misuse. The result is that many of our public spaces, including streets and parks, are being taken over by a few.

Donna fully supports providing  APD and the Troopers with the tools they need to fully staff their departments. This means attracting new officers and retaining the ones we have. This support has earned Donna an endorsement from the Anchorage Police Department Employee Association. 

We also have to address solutions for those experiencing homelessness, starting with more affordable housing, as well as the ability to offer help and treatment for those suffering from substance misuse and mental health problems. Donna champions efforts to provide the necessary resources for local governments to make progress on these issues, and reduce the barriers for the many other organizations that are developing facilities for crisis stabilization and treatment.

Infrastructure is a critical part of Alaska’s future. New federal infrastructure money will boost our economy and strengthen our communities in many areas. We’ll see more construction jobs, an improved environment for local businesses and improved broadband service and availability. Alaskans are also asking for more resources for road maintenance, snow removal, and stable energy. 

As a civil engineer, Donna has been building Alaska’s rural and urban infrastructure for more than 25 years. With a career including regulation, engineering design, construction management, and industry development she brings diverse, real-world experience to Juneau.

As we face declining supply of natural gas from Cook Inlet, Donna is seeking out broad solutions for our future energy supply so we can continue to produce Alaskan energy that residents and businesses can rely on and afford. In her first term, Donna quickly joined the ranks of those legislators developing solutions for maximizing the timeline to use natural gas as well as develop renewable energy projects for the long-term.

Donna has been a champion for neighborhood road improvements and traffic calming, as well as improving safety along the Tudor/Muldoon curve. In her first term she has also supported additional funds for snow clearing, making reforms to the rate structure for electricity transmission, advocating for expanding loan programs for renewable energy projects, and expanding broadband internet access.

Donna’s professional experience as a civil engineer is valuable in the legislature as we take on the tasks of changing regulations, supporting businesses and industry, and protecting residents' needs and pocket books.