District overview
Funding structure, how it compares to peers, and where major projects stand.
Like other Alaska districts, Dillingham gets most of its money from a state formula that pays per enrolled student -- so it falls when enrollment falls. On top of that, the City of Dillingham (the district is not its own separate taxing area; the city itself funds it) chips in a discretionary appropriation, capped by state law at a share of the city's tax base. That city money is the one lever local officials can actually turn. After a rough 2024-25 budget year emptied the district's savings, the district is now asking the city to raise that appropriation by $542,000 for 2026-27 -- close to a third more than the city currently gives.
Enrollment-driven state aid; the FY2025 audit shows it came in $633,852 under budget, consistent with declining enrollment.
$1,700,000 in both FY2025 and FY2026 -- the only funding source the district can lobby to change. The district is asking the city to raise it to as much as $2,242,606 for FY2027, the maximum allowed under Alaska's municipal mill-rate cap.
$520,212 in direct federal Impact Aid in FY2025, plus restricted federal grants (E-rate broadband, literacy and family-engagement grants) that can only be spent on their specific programs, not general operations.
Dillingham is not a separate taxing school district; it depends entirely on what the city and state each choose to appropriate for the year, not a tax rate it sets itself.
None of this means district leadership mismanaged funds -- the FY2025 audit gave the district's financial statements a clean, unmodified opinion with no fraud or going-concern finding. The shortfall traces to a combination of underbudgeted costs (heating fuel alone came in 73% over budget) and a state formula that pays less as enrollment declines, not to any irregularity the auditors flagged.
Reported to the board in January 2026.
Down from $1,705,404 at the start of the year -- a drop of $1,320,069 in a single year.
At June 30, 2025; the rest of the ending balance was already committed to specific purposes like the health insurance reserve, leaving nothing free for day-to-day operations.
Up from an initial $821,000 estimate as the true size of the gap became clear.
Per year in FY2025 and FY2026. The district has asked the city for a $542,000 increase for FY2027.
Context: $11,447,424 in FY2025 general fund spending divided by 410 students. This is operating-fund spending only, not a full cost-per-student figure.
All five voting board seats are elected at the City of Dillingham's regular October municipal election, not a standalone school district election.
A district-authored plan to close the deficit the FY2025 audit exposed: hold FY2026 spending to realize a projected $462,695 surplus, ask the City of Dillingham for a $542,000 FY2027 appropriation increase, and liquidate $100,000 from district investments for urgent capital and audit-cost needs.
Requested $542,000 increase in the City of Dillingham's FY2027 appropriation, plus $100,000 liquidated from the district's AMLIP investment account
The board voted to end the district's preschool program starting in the 2026-27 school year, as part of its FY2027 budget reductions, after a parent spoke against the cut in public comment.
Budget cut -- part of the FY2027 reduction plan
After an initial HVAC system purchase was scaled back to portable room filter units, the district's financial recovery plan sets aside money for an HVAC insurance deductible and a required fire-suppression system replacement at the elementary school.
Insurance (HVAC) plus $76,000 from the AMLIP investment liquidation: $20,000 HVAC deductible, $56,000 fire suppression
Dillingham
Two of the school board's five at-large seats (Seat B, held by President Heather Savo, and Seat C, held by Vice President Nick Schollmeier) are up for three-year terms at the City of Dillingham's October 6, 2026 regular municipal election. No school bond, override, or other school-related ballot proposition is listed for this election.
Official source · verified Aug 20, 2026
Dillingham
Facing a negative general fund balance after FY2025, the school district's board-adopted financial recovery plan directs the superintendent to formally ask the Dillingham City Council for a $542,000 increase in the city's FY2027 school appropriation, from $1,700,000 to as much as $2,242,606 (the maximum allowed under Alaska's municipal mill-rate cap, AS 29.60.030). The plan's own milestones call for the request to be submitted to the city by April 2026, with no city council vote date confirmed in district records collected here.
Official source · verified Aug 20, 2026
Built from 59 official board documents (agendas, packets, two sets of approved minutes, and meeting summaries) covering every board meeting from August 25, 2025 through May 18, 2026, retrieved from the district's official Google Drive links via Wayback Machine snapshots of its board page, plus the City of Dillingham's public elections page.
We read every agenda, packet, and set of minutes, and write up the decisions that affect families — each one linked to the document it came from.
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