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| My first view of musk oxen, wishing me well on the day I flew out of Nome |
I have always felt that teaching is the “renaissance-man” of occupations. During a typical school day teachers complete work as an actor, a judge, a therapist, a comedian, and even a lawyer pleading the case for a student. The job I’m doing now has expanded my repertoire tremendously. This week I kept asking myself; “Is this really part of my job?”, and the answer was always yes. I have become an administrative assistant, scheduling career exploration mini-field trips to local businesses in 45-minute slots. I am a journalist, designing and writing two publications; NACTEC News and NACTEC News Jr. outlining each of our 17 sessions. I am a housekeeper, washing and folding 26 sets of bed sheets and towels, replacing them neatly on beds for the next group of students. My favorite new job however is that of a traveling salesman and public relations worker.
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| Happy to start recruiting! And look at those trees! |
As I mentioned before, the district I work for includes 15 separate villages spread across 80,000 square miles. And when I say separate, I mean that these remote places have no connecting roads and can only be accessed by small plane; some only in the dead of winter when the ocean has frozen enough to act as a landing strip. The students that attend NACTEC are selected from each of these schools, so an important aspect of my job is recruiting out in the bush. The first two villages I was tasked with were White Mountain and Golovin. Despite the fact that they are only 15 miles apart, there are no connecting roads so a 5-minute plane ride was the only way to get between the two.
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| The village of White Mountain; the school is the big building in the foreground |
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| The village of Golovin; the school is the big tan/red building on the left |
Equipped with a suitcase and a backpack stuffed with promotional swag, I made my first stop in White Mountain, which is undeniably one of the most beautiful villages in the district, and the only one with trees. After getting accustomed to the endless tundra and scrub brush willows, it made me a little homesick to see trees again. The community consists of about 200 total people, with dirt roads navigated only by 4-wheelers as cars are unnecessary and impractical. I arrived at school during their lunch hour, and was surprised to find that only one table was occupied by all of the students, jam-packed together to include everyone. The tables that were left empty made me so happy; it’s hard to imagine a school with no cliques, and no one left out.
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| White Mountain School, K-12 |
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| The teacher parking lot is all 4-wheelers |
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| The cafeteria; and yes there are only 3 tables |
Once I got situated, I met with the high school class; nine students total, with only one senior. If he studies real hard, he might help his school achieve a 100% graduation rate this year! Due to the small enrollment, classes are not designed for a specific grade, but rather all high school level students are taught together. I was fortunate enough to speak with them, and after a couple weeks of office work it was inexplicably good to be back around kids again. The only differences I can detect from students I’ve taught in the past are that they tend to speak softer and more slowly, observe more than they act out, and they’re all related in some way. Other than that, they laughed at my jokes, asked me questions (Do you think our village is small? Do your parents miss having you in NY? Why don’t you have earrings?), and reenergized my teaching spirit. Kids really are, and will hopefully always be, the best part of my job.
I’ll admit I came to Alaska thinking that these students couldn’t possibly be getting the quality education that I’m used to in New York, but I found it’s quite the opposite. In fact, these students were some of the brightest, most high achieving and inquisitive I’ve ever met. Small, grade grouped classes allow for more personalized education with opportunities for both enrichment and remediation, while the socioeconomic needs and demographics of the community invite ample grants and outreaches not available to most populations. It’s the best of both worlds; top of the line technology and resources meeting individualized small-group education. Schools here do incredible things that just couldn’t happen anywhere else.
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| Many villagers collect rainwater to use in their homes, because they have no indoor plumbing |
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| The doors on every house I passed were literally wide open, talk about welcoming! |
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| Rain brings rainbows! |
After my workday was finished, it was time for my favorite part; walking around town to explore the village. I’m still amazed by the hospitality of Alaskans; every 4-wheeler that passed me offered help or a ride. My jaunt always led up to the airport (which is actually just a runway), because it has the highest elevation and the best view in town. The weather may not have been pleasant, but it allowed me to see double rainbows and the phenomenon of lifting fog; one minute everything would be white, the next minute there would be cliffs and mountains for miles! I also took this time to peek into the village stores, which made me appreciate Nome prices. To give you an idea: there was nothing fresh, everything came in a box, can, or bottle, and a box of rice crispy treats cost over $20. Each item must be flown in, which was made even more relevant to me during my plane ride between villages. I was the only passenger on a cargo plane, and every available space was packed with items for the village store. I can only imagine the other places these packages had to travel before making it here.
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| The plane to Golovin; packed with cargo! |
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| Packages were stored in the wings, and also the nose of the airplane |
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| The village store, where all of the packages arrived at their final destination |
My experiences in Golovin were very similar to those in White Mountain. The entire school consisted of a gym, library, and two hallways; one for primary school and one for secondary. I got the chance to eat lunch with the students, and as soon as I walked through the cafeteria door they all ran up to me asking my name, and squirming to sit next to me. There’s no concept of stranger danger in a community of only 150 people. Even in Nome, it’s been sort of fun becoming the “mother goose”, having children follow me around whenever I leave the house. They’re always ready for a hug or a game of “Caribou” (a mix of tag, red rover, and reindeer herding). Although it’s important to set limits; I’m pretty sure these kids would stick around forever if I let them!
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| The view right outside of school; welcome to Golovin! |
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| Golovin School, K-12 |
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| These kiddos roped me into a game of "Caribou", and one rascally girl made off with my new coat! |
One thing that takes some getting used to as an itinerant, or travelling teacher, was sleeping in the library. Growing up I always imagined that my teachers lived in school, and now it’s become a reality! As I was putting my belongings next to the mattress in the library, one girl ran over and invited me home with her to sleep in her Auntie’s bed because she sleeps in a full-size with lots of room. While I didn’t take her up on this generous offer, I’m telling you, these people are accommodating. Needless to say, sleeping was tough for a few reasons. I love libraries and felt compelled to explore and read every book instead of sleep. Also, as it’s still light enough outside at 11pm, children were making a joyful and not unpleasant raucous on the playground until it was too dark to play anymore. And there’s the fact that I’m completely alone, bunked in a library, in one of the most unfamiliar and isolated places I’ve ever been. All things considered, I suppose I slept pretty well.
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| Pretty sweet digs, if I do say so myself! |
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| Playing in the puddles on a school night |
My excursions in the bush completely reshaped how I view Nome. I feel as if I left a small town, and came back to a HUGE city. My appreciation has grown for our three grocery stores, restaurants with live entertainment, movie theater, bowling alley, and recreation center with saunas and yoga classes. No, we don’t have a Wal*mart, but most of the 3,500(!) people that live here have indoor plumbing. I loved my visits to rural Alaska, and I can’t wait to venture into other villages. But it’s good to be home.
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| Rainbow on my way home to Nome! |
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