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Bartlett High School (Anchorage, Alaska)
Encyclopedia
Bartlett High School is a high school
in Anchorage
, Alaska
. The high school enrolled 1,729 students as of 2007. Construction started in 1971 and the first classes were held in 1974, the school originally housed both Bartlett High School, named after U.S. Senator
Bob Bartlett
, and Begich Junior High School, named after U.S. Representative
Nick Begich
.
Bartlett is part of the Anchorage School District
and is accredited by the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges. Its attendance area is northeast Anchorage, Fort Richardson, and Elmendorf Air Force Base
, and approximately 25% of its students are military dependents. The student body is racially and ethnically diverse. About 43.7% of the students are white
, 18.9% are black, 6.1% are Hispanic
, 13.5% are Asian
/Pacific Islander
, and 17.8% are American Indian
/Alaska Native.
The school district's 2003-2004 Profile of Performance reported three goals: "Improve school climate" (attained), "increase percentage of students passing HSGQE Math by 5%" (partially attained) and "reduce dropout rate" (attained). The dropout rate in 2003-4 was 7.3%.
Bartlett is classified as a 4A school by the Alaska School Activities Association
.
) and Begich Junior High School (named after Rep. Nick Begich
). During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Anchorage School Board began to change all of these complexes into high schools and to create separate junior high schools (now known as middle schools) as new facilities could be constructed, in each case moving the original junior high school name as the new junior high school was built. Hence, the complexes formerly known as Chugiak-Gruening became Chugiak High School
and Gruening Middle School, Service-Hanshew became Service High School
and Hanshew Middle School
, and so on.
At the time the school now named Benny Benson Secondary School (an alternative school originally paired as a junior high with East High School, opened in 1991) was designed and built, it was not anticipated that a junior high school in the northeast Anchorage area would be built. The family of Nick Begich was asked if they would like the new facility named after Begich (rather than Benny Benson
), but the family asked rather that the Begich's name remain on the Bartlett High School building until a new junior high could be built in the area, with the assumption that Begich's name would be transferred to that school. Thereafter, Bartlett-Begich remained technically associated with the school building, but Begich's name was not used on Bartlett High School diplomas, in official documents, or in Anchorage School District communications regarding the school; it was retained only in the words "Bartlett — Begich" painted on the southeast wall of the high school building.
In November 2006, the Anchorage School Board made official that the name of a new middle school in Anchorage would be named after Begich. Nicholas J. Begich Middle School
opened for classes on August 22, 2007.
schools, Bartlett High School has occasionally been the target of vandalism. In May 1999, six Bartlett seniors were suspended and their right to march at commencement with their class revoked after they carved their names into acoustic ceiling tiles in the senior hallway. The Anchorage School Board later relented and permitted the six students to participate in graduation ceremonies.
A more serious case occurred on November 2, 2003 when a stand-alone relocatable classroom was destroyed by fire, causing an estimated $89,500 in damage. Two Anchorage
teenagers — an 18-year-old former Bartlett student and a 16-year-old Steller Secondary student — were arrested a week later and charged with tampering with evidence, criminally negligent burning and criminal mischief. The adult defendant in the case was ultimately found guilty on an amended charge of Criminal Mischief 3 (Damage $500+) after a no-contest plea.
Carlson, an English, journalism and film teacher, and columnist for the Anchorage Daily News
and AutoWeek
in the 1980s (and one-time editor of the school newspaper, then called the Toklat Ledger), faced three felony criminal charges in August 1989 involving his sexual relationship with a 17-year-old Bartlett senior that could have sent him to prison for eight years. At least four female students made allegations about Carlson, but only one student's allegations resulted in charges. The charges were dismissed in January 1990 because the student was above the age of 16, the age of legal consent in Alaska; the judge also found that a law raising the age of consent to 18 in cases in which a child is entrusted to an adult's care "by authority of law" applied to court-ordered guardians, but not to teachers. The student sued Carlson in civil court in 1991.
Meanwhile, Anchorage School District
filed a lawsuit against the Anchorage Police Department
and local prosecutors after a two-day police raid on the Anchorage School District Headquarters—its legality disputed by the school district—found documents showing that the school district had given Carlson a 2.5% bonus and a promise of secrecy in exchange for his resignation. The school district argued that as the age of consent in Alaska was 16, the district had no legal obligation to report Carlson's behavior to law enforcement. The agreement between the school district and Carlson specified that he wouldn't seek a teaching job while his current Alaska teaching license remained in effect and that he wouldn't seek to renew his Alaska license. Only if Carlson violated the agreement would the school district report him to the Alaska Professional Teaching Practices Commission (PTPC) and seek to have him officially barred from teaching. Thus, if Carlson adhered to the agreement, there were no safeguards to prevent him from seeking a teaching position outside the state. All but one of the allegations by the school district against Anchorage Police Department were dismissed in the summer of 1990, and ultimately the school district and police department settled, ending 10 months of litigation that cost the two Anchorage city departments a total of over one million dollars. A grand jury report in the civil case heavily criticized Bartlett and school district administrators for their handling of the Carlson case and exonerated the police department of any wrongdoing in the October 1989 search at school district headquarters.
In reaction to the Satch Carlson case, the Alaska State Professional Teaching Practices Commission adopted a new regulation that specifically prohibited any sex at all between teachers and students. The Alaska Legislature
passed the so-called "Satch Carlson law," making sex between an adult and any person under age 18 illegal if the adult occupied a position of authority over the minor. The law also made sex with a minor under age 16 a more serious felony if the adult offender was a teacher.
Richard Von Kennen was a music teacher at Bartlett from 1973 to May 1996 when he was fired after being charged under the Satch Carlson law with seven felony counts of child sexual abuse involving a student. His victim had been 14 at the time he initiated sexual contact. If found guilty Von Kennen could have received a maximum sentence of 30 years on each count. After the story broke, two other women, former students, came forward with accusations against him, but no further charges resulted. Von Kennen eventually made a plea agreement and pled no contest to one felony charge of sexually abusing a minor. He received a five-year prison sentence.
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in Anchorage
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
, Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. The high school enrolled 1,729 students as of 2007. Construction started in 1971 and the first classes were held in 1974, the school originally housed both Bartlett High School, named after U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Bob Bartlett
Bob Bartlett
Edward Lewis "Bob" Bartlett was an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party.Bartlett was born in Seattle, Washington. After graduating from the University of Alaska in 1925, Bartlett began his career in politics...
, and Begich Junior High School, named after U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
Nick Begich
Nick Begich
Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Begich, Sr. was a Democratic Party member of the United States House of Representatives from Alaska. He disappeared in a plane crash in Alaska in 1972. His son Mark Begich is currently the junior U.S...
.
Bartlett is part of the Anchorage School District
Anchorage School District
The Anchorage School District manages all public schools within the Municipality of Anchorage in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the 93rd largest school district in the United States, serving nearly 50,000 students at over 90 schools. As one of the United States' largest districts, it is often...
and is accredited by the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges. Its attendance area is northeast Anchorage, Fort Richardson, and Elmendorf Air Force Base
Elmendorf Air Force Base
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson is a United States military facility adjacent to Anchorage, the largest city in Alaska. It is an amalgamation of the former United States Air Force Elmendorf Air Force Base and the United States Army Fort Richardson, which were merged in 2010.-Overview:The...
, and approximately 25% of its students are military dependents. The student body is racially and ethnically diverse. About 43.7% of the students are white
White American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
, 18.9% are black, 6.1% are Hispanic
Hispanic and Latino Americans
Hispanic or Latino Americans are Americans with origins in the Hispanic countries of Latin America or in Spain, and in general all persons in the United States who self-identify as Hispanic or Latino.1990 Census of Population and Housing: A self-designated classification for people whose origins...
, 13.5% are Asian
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
/Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander American
Pacific Islander Americans, also known as Oceanian Americans, are residents of the United States with original ancestry from Oceania. They represent the smallest racial group counted in the United States census of 2000. They numbered 874,000 people or 0.3 percent of the United States population...
, and 17.8% are American Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
/Alaska Native.
The school district's 2003-2004 Profile of Performance reported three goals: "Improve school climate" (attained), "increase percentage of students passing HSGQE Math by 5%" (partially attained) and "reduce dropout rate" (attained). The dropout rate in 2003-4 was 7.3%.
Bartlett is classified as a 4A school by the Alaska School Activities Association
Alaska School Activities Association
The Alaska School Activities Association is the regulating body for Alaska high school interscholastic activities and is Alaska's member to the National Federation of State High School Associations.-History:...
.
Name of school
Like other senior-junior school complexes in the Anchorage School District during the 1960s to the early 1970s, the complex housing Bartlett was originally given two names, one for the senior high school and one for the junior high school. In line with this, the complex housing Bartlett was called Bartlett-Begich, denoting Bartlett High School (named after Sen. Bob BartlettBob Bartlett
Edward Lewis "Bob" Bartlett was an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party.Bartlett was born in Seattle, Washington. After graduating from the University of Alaska in 1925, Bartlett began his career in politics...
) and Begich Junior High School (named after Rep. Nick Begich
Nick Begich
Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Begich, Sr. was a Democratic Party member of the United States House of Representatives from Alaska. He disappeared in a plane crash in Alaska in 1972. His son Mark Begich is currently the junior U.S...
). During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Anchorage School Board began to change all of these complexes into high schools and to create separate junior high schools (now known as middle schools) as new facilities could be constructed, in each case moving the original junior high school name as the new junior high school was built. Hence, the complexes formerly known as Chugiak-Gruening became Chugiak High School
Chugiak High School
Chugiak High School is a public high school located in Chugiak, Alaska. Chugiak's mascot is the Mustang and the school colors are blue, black, and white...
and Gruening Middle School, Service-Hanshew became Service High School
Service High School
Robert Service High School is a public high school in Anchorage, Alaska. Serving grades 9 through 12, the school was named for the poet Robert W. Service. Part of the Anchorage School District, the school opened in 1971 as the last of four high schools built by the district within a decade...
and Hanshew Middle School
Hanshew Middle School
Hanshew Middle School is a middle school located in Anchorage, Alaska. It services the midtown and South Anchorage areas. The current school building was constructed in 1985. The school is named after teacher, businessman, and former school board member Ual Strange Hanshew.-Demographics:Hanshew...
, and so on.
At the time the school now named Benny Benson Secondary School (an alternative school originally paired as a junior high with East High School, opened in 1991) was designed and built, it was not anticipated that a junior high school in the northeast Anchorage area would be built. The family of Nick Begich was asked if they would like the new facility named after Begich (rather than Benny Benson
Benny Benson
John Ben "Benny" Benson, Jr. was the Aleut boy who designed the flag of Alaska. Benny was 13 when he won in a contest in 1927 to design the flag for the territory of Alaska, which became a U.S. state in 1959.-Biography:...
), but the family asked rather that the Begich's name remain on the Bartlett High School building until a new junior high could be built in the area, with the assumption that Begich's name would be transferred to that school. Thereafter, Bartlett-Begich remained technically associated with the school building, but Begich's name was not used on Bartlett High School diplomas, in official documents, or in Anchorage School District communications regarding the school; it was retained only in the words "Bartlett — Begich" painted on the southeast wall of the high school building.
In November 2006, the Anchorage School Board made official that the name of a new middle school in Anchorage would be named after Begich. Nicholas J. Begich Middle School
Begich Middle School
Nicholas J. Begich Middle School is a middle school located in Anchorage, Alaska, belonging to the Anchorage School District. It consists of several hundred students and services the East Anchorage area. . The school was first opened to students in 2007...
opened for classes on August 22, 2007.
Vandalism
Like other Anchorage School DistrictAnchorage School District
The Anchorage School District manages all public schools within the Municipality of Anchorage in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the 93rd largest school district in the United States, serving nearly 50,000 students at over 90 schools. As one of the United States' largest districts, it is often...
schools, Bartlett High School has occasionally been the target of vandalism. In May 1999, six Bartlett seniors were suspended and their right to march at commencement with their class revoked after they carved their names into acoustic ceiling tiles in the senior hallway. The Anchorage School Board later relented and permitted the six students to participate in graduation ceremonies.
A more serious case occurred on November 2, 2003 when a stand-alone relocatable classroom was destroyed by fire, causing an estimated $89,500 in damage. Two Anchorage
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
teenagers — an 18-year-old former Bartlett student and a 16-year-old Steller Secondary student — were arrested a week later and charged with tampering with evidence, criminally negligent burning and criminal mischief. The adult defendant in the case was ultimately found guilty on an amended charge of Criminal Mischief 3 (Damage $500+) after a no-contest plea.
Sex scandals
Teacher Gordon "Satch" Carlson was fired in disgrace for having sexual relations with a female student. Teacher Richard Von Kennen retired prior to taking a plea agreement to consent with a minor in 1997.Carlson, an English, journalism and film teacher, and columnist for the Anchorage Daily News
Anchorage Daily News
The Anchorage Daily News is a daily newspaper based in Anchorage, Alaska, in the United States. It is often referred to colloquially as either "the Daily News" or "the ADN"...
and AutoWeek
AutoWeek
AutoWeek is a fortnightly automotive enthusiast publication based in Detroit, Michigan. One of 32 titles published by Crain Communications Inc, its parent company, AutoWeek is unique as the only consumer title among its sister publications....
in the 1980s (and one-time editor of the school newspaper, then called the Toklat Ledger), faced three felony criminal charges in August 1989 involving his sexual relationship with a 17-year-old Bartlett senior that could have sent him to prison for eight years. At least four female students made allegations about Carlson, but only one student's allegations resulted in charges. The charges were dismissed in January 1990 because the student was above the age of 16, the age of legal consent in Alaska; the judge also found that a law raising the age of consent to 18 in cases in which a child is entrusted to an adult's care "by authority of law" applied to court-ordered guardians, but not to teachers. The student sued Carlson in civil court in 1991.
Meanwhile, Anchorage School District
Anchorage School District
The Anchorage School District manages all public schools within the Municipality of Anchorage in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the 93rd largest school district in the United States, serving nearly 50,000 students at over 90 schools. As one of the United States' largest districts, it is often...
filed a lawsuit against the Anchorage Police Department
Anchorage Police Department
The Anchorage Police Department is the police department of the Municipality of Anchorage in Alaska. It is the largest police force in Alaska.-History:...
and local prosecutors after a two-day police raid on the Anchorage School District Headquarters—its legality disputed by the school district—found documents showing that the school district had given Carlson a 2.5% bonus and a promise of secrecy in exchange for his resignation. The school district argued that as the age of consent in Alaska was 16, the district had no legal obligation to report Carlson's behavior to law enforcement. The agreement between the school district and Carlson specified that he wouldn't seek a teaching job while his current Alaska teaching license remained in effect and that he wouldn't seek to renew his Alaska license. Only if Carlson violated the agreement would the school district report him to the Alaska Professional Teaching Practices Commission (PTPC) and seek to have him officially barred from teaching. Thus, if Carlson adhered to the agreement, there were no safeguards to prevent him from seeking a teaching position outside the state. All but one of the allegations by the school district against Anchorage Police Department were dismissed in the summer of 1990, and ultimately the school district and police department settled, ending 10 months of litigation that cost the two Anchorage city departments a total of over one million dollars. A grand jury report in the civil case heavily criticized Bartlett and school district administrators for their handling of the Carlson case and exonerated the police department of any wrongdoing in the October 1989 search at school district headquarters.
In reaction to the Satch Carlson case, the Alaska State Professional Teaching Practices Commission adopted a new regulation that specifically prohibited any sex at all between teachers and students. The Alaska Legislature
Alaska Legislature
The Alaska Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is a bicameral institution, consisting of the lower Alaska House of Representatives, with 40 members, and the upper house Alaska Senate, with 20 members...
passed the so-called "Satch Carlson law," making sex between an adult and any person under age 18 illegal if the adult occupied a position of authority over the minor. The law also made sex with a minor under age 16 a more serious felony if the adult offender was a teacher.
Richard Von Kennen was a music teacher at Bartlett from 1973 to May 1996 when he was fired after being charged under the Satch Carlson law with seven felony counts of child sexual abuse involving a student. His victim had been 14 at the time he initiated sexual contact. If found guilty Von Kennen could have received a maximum sentence of 30 years on each count. After the story broke, two other women, former students, came forward with accusations against him, but no further charges resulted. Von Kennen eventually made a plea agreement and pled no contest to one felony charge of sexually abusing a minor. He received a five-year prison sentence.
Notable Graduates
- Tui AlailefaleulaTui AlailefaleulaTui Alailefaleula was an American football defensive tackle in the NFL. He played college football for the Washington Huskies, and was signed as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Washington, where he played mostly offensive line, by the New York Giants...
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, former player for the University of WashingtonUniversity of WashingtonUniversity of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
, currently an assistant football coach at the school. - Tom AndersonTom Anderson (politician)Thomas T. "Tom" Anderson is a consultant and former Alaska state representative for District 19 representing northeast Anchorage, Alaska...
(class of 1985), attorney, consultant, politician, key figure in the Alaska political corruption probe. - Blaackbottom (class of 2002), Rapper
- Zackary BowmanZackary BowmanZackary Bowman is an American football cornerback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Bears in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft...
(class of 2003), current NFL player for the Chicago BearsChicago BearsThe Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, former player for the Nebraska CornhuskersNebraska CornhuskersThe Nebraska Cornhuskers is the name given to several sports teams of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference...
. - Mario ChalmersMario ChalmersAlmario Vernard "Mario" Chalmers is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the NBA. He was selected 34th overall in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves...
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. - Johnny EllisJohnny EllisJohnny Ellis is a Democratic member of the Alaska Senate, representing District L since 1992. He currently serves as the Senate Majority Leader. Previously he was a member of the Alaska House of Representatives from 1986 through 1992....
(class of 1978), Majority Leader and also senior member of the Alaska SenateAlaska SenateThe Alaska Senate is the upper house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. The Senate consists of twenty members, each of whom represents an equal amount of districts with populations of about 31,347 people . Senators serve four-year terms, without term...
. - Delvin MylesDelvin MylesDelvin Myles is an Intense Football League player-coach for the Alaska Wild.-High school years:Myles attended Bartlett High School in Anchorage, Alaska and was a student and a letterman in football...
, former football player in the Arena Football LeagueArena Football LeagueThe Arena Football League is the highest level of professional indoor American football in the United States. It is currently the second longest running professional football league in the United States, after the National Football League. It was founded in 1987 by Jim Foster...
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. - Amerie Mi Marie Rogers (class of 1996), singer popularly known as "Ameriie".
- Brian P. SchmidtBrian SchmidtBrian L. Schmidt is a music composer for various video games and pinball games. He began in the video game music and sound industry in 1987 as a composer/sound designer and programmer for Williams Electronic Games in Chicago writing music and creating sound effects for pinball machines and coin...
(class of 1985), Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
Laureate (Physics), astronomer, vineyard owner.
External links
- School website
- School report card (from Profile of Performance) (PDF file)
- History of the school building