Chris Simon grew up in rural Alaska

and knows what it takes for education to be

successful in that cultural climate. Chris encourages

students to become teachers in their communities and hopes

that home-grown educators, especially school administrators,

will cease to be a rarity. He views high teacher turnover as the largest issue facing

today’s schools in Alaska. “We need

more students from rural Alaska going into

the teaching profession,” he says. Training more home-

grown educators is one way to address teacher turnover. “We

need more teachers from Alaska who will stay in the rural areas and provide continuity for the young people’s sake.” During high school in the community of Nulato, Chris was inspired by his social studies teacher. The way the teacher was able to connect with the students made Chris and his fellow classmates look forward to the class. This connection between student and teacher is essential in providing consistent high quality education. In Chris’ words, “It is vitally important that we have rural Alaskans working in the schools in the villages…They understand who we are, they understand our concerns, and they understand our values. Our values are probably the most important.”

Through all of Chris’ years in the field of education, his focus remains on rural communities. It is his hope that today’s students become encouraged and inspired by their own teachers and that they too decide to become teachers, principals, or even superintendents. “We see the successful schools; they’re the ones that have the long-term teachers in the community.” At the end of the day, Chris believes that it is critical for a teacher to be able to instill and preserve the values of the community. “It’s important because we are not going to become anyone else anytime soon, and people will continue living in rural Alaska, and that’s a whole different way of life.”

Chris

SimonHuslia

“It is vitally important

that we have rural Alaskans working in the schools in the

villages.”

Advisory Board of Cultural Knowledge Bearers