Author

Claire Stremple

Claire Stremple

Claire Stremple is a reporter based in Juneau, Alaska. She got her start in public radio, first at KHNS in Haines and then on the health and environment beat at KTOO in Juneau. Her focus for the Beacon is education and criminal and social justice.

The Boney Courthouse building in Anchorage holds the Alaska Supreme Court chambers. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Project to increase access to justice in rural Alaska receives $1M boost from National Science Foundation

By: - September 26, 2023

Alaska Legal Services Corp. was awarded a million dollar grant from the National Science Foundation to expand a program that aims to increase access to legal services for people who live in remote areas. The group has been training nonlawyers, called “community justice workers,” to represent Alaskans in court for some lower level legal issues. […]

(Photo by Eyecrave Productions/Getty Images)

Alaska schools stay open after bomb threat email

By: - September 19, 2023

Alaska schools are not closing their doors after multiple districts received a bomb threat by email on Tuesday. Authorities have determined the threat is not credible, but its source is under investigation. Austin McDaniel, communications director for the state’s Department of Public Safety, said Alaska State Troopers and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Anchorage field […]

A nurses station is seen in an undated image. (Photo by FS Productions/Getty Images)

As Alaska works through post-pandemic Medicaid renewals, only about a third of people stay covered

By: - September 19, 2023

When Brandy Barnes got the first notice that she might be dropped from Medicaid, she was worried. One of her teenage sons is autistic and needs significant care to lead a full life. “My main concern is that my son is disabled,” she said. “He has therapies, medications, doctor appointments that cannot be dropped. I […]

Fruit is displayed at an Anchorage grocery store. Overall consumer prices in Alaska's largest city were up by an annual rate of 7.5% as of April, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Food prices were up by 11.3%. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska’s Health Department works through one food stamp backlog only to confront another

By: - September 12, 2023

Officials from Alaska’s Division of Public Assistance said its staff worked through the backlog of applications for food aid that stressed Alaska families for more than a year. But that success came at the cost of what officials are calling a “new” backlog. Division Director Deb Etheridge took over leadership in the midst of the […]

This symbol is inside of the Alaska Department of Corrections office on Sept. 7, 2022, in Douglas, Alaska. (Photo by Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska Department of Corrections seeks to lower hiring age from 21 to 18 years old 

By: - September 8, 2023

The council that sets and enforces standards for employment, training and certification of law enforcement officers in the state approved a proposal to lower the minimum age of state corrections officers from 21 to 18 years old on Thursday. The proposal will go out to public comment before any regulation change takes effect. Alaska’s Department […]

The entrance to the Anchorage Correctional Complex is seen on Aug. 29, 2022. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Anchorage inmate dies after two days in custody in 7th Alaska inmate death this year

By: - September 7, 2023

An Anchorage inmate died after two days in custody, the Alaska Department of Corrections reported Thursday. It is the seventh inmate death the department has reported this year. Tristan Andrews was housed at the Anchorage Correctional Complex when he was pronounced dead on August 29th. He was 29 years old. The cause of death has […]

A statue of Charles Bunnell, the first president of the Alaska Agricultural College and School of Mines, as the University of Alaska Fairbanks was once known, is seen on Sept. 18 on the UAF campus. An administrative order issued by Gov. Mike Dunleavy removes college-degree requirements for most state jobs. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Gov. Dunleavy appoints new regent to University of Alaska board 

By: - September 6, 2023

Gov. Mike Dunleavy appointed Stephen Colligan to the board that guides policy and appoints the president of the state’s university system on Tuesday. Colligan is the governor’s third attempt to fill the seat on the state university system’s board of regents. His appointment comes a month after the governor’s last pick, his former chief of […]

A sign at the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus, seen on Sept. 20. 2022, uses the Lower Tanana name Troth Yeddha'. The name translates roughly to "potato ridge" and refers to the tradition of harvesting wild potatoes on the Fairbanks ridge that now holds the heart of the campus. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Fundraising effort for Alaska Indigenous studies center OK’d by UA board 

By: - September 5, 2023

The state board of regents unanimously approved a fundraising effort at University of Alaska Fairbanks to raise $53 million over three years to build the Troth Yeddha’ Indigenous Studies Center. The goal is to create the first university space in the nation that is designed with Indigenous education models in mind, Samara Taber, who leads […]

The University of Alaska Anchorage sign, seen on May 29, stands at the eastern edge of campus. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

University of Alaska system boasts overall enrollment growth after financial challenges

By: - September 2, 2023

Student enrollment is up at University of Alaska campuses overall, chancellors told the board of regents at their meeting Thursday. The news of overall 4.7% growth systemwide comes after a five-year downward trend in student enrollment. College enrollment has declined nationally over the last decade, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Regent Karen Purdue said the […]

This symbol is inside of the Alaska Department of Corrections office on Sept. 7, 2022, in Douglas, Alaska. (Photo by Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon)

Civil rights group sues Alaska Department of Corrections, seeks investigation into deaths

By: - September 1, 2023

A national civil rights organization filed a lawsuit against the Alaska Department of Corrections on Thursday. The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska is asking for an independent review of deaths in Alaska Department of Corrections custody. The organization does not usually join wrongful death suits, said Megan Edge of the ACLU of Alaska. But […]

An outdoor basketball hoop is seen in Bethel in October 2022. (Photo by Claire Stremple)

Alaska board of education votes to limit trans girls’ participation in high school sports

By: - August 31, 2023

The state’s governor-appointed board of education voted to limit transgender girls’ participation in school sports at a special meeting on Thursday. The regulation requires the Alaska School Activities Association Inc. to authorize a division limited to students assigned female at birth. Lorri Van Diest introduced the first non-binding resolution related to the issue in March […]

AmeriCorps to increase investment in rural Alaska, with tribes 

By: - August 29, 2023

On a visit to Alaska last week, the leader of the national community service agency AmeriCorps said the group plans to increase its investment in the state. AmeriCorps received an additional billion dollars added to its budget as part of the American Rescue Plan in 2021. Last year, more than 400 people worked or volunteered […]