Fairbanks mayor proposes waiving school district's pool fee to keep kids learning to swim

The Fairbanks North Star Borough would stop charging the school district $2 a student to use borough pools this school year, as long as the district brings its own certified lifeguards, under a proposal from Mayor Grier Hopkins.

The Assembly's Finance Committee takes it up at 5:30 pm Thursday, Nov. 5.

"Swimming is a critical life skill in Interior Alaska, where residents regularly recreate around rivers, lakes, and other waterways," Hopkins wrote to the Assembly. He said the break would help the district keep teaching students to swim.

Alaska had the highest age-adjusted drowning rate in the nation in 2021, according to a state health bulletin that counted 342 drowning deaths from 2016 through 2021. The bulletin recommends that children be taught to swim and to flip onto their backs.

Hopkins called the waiver a one-time adjustment for 2026-27, not a permanent exemption. It wouldn't be added to borough code.

The proposal doesn't say how many students use borough pools or what the waiver would cost the borough.