For the first time in years, students in Napakiak are at school under the same roof, in a school building that’s safe from the encroaching erosion of the Kuskokwim River.
Nicholas Mills is the site administrator for Napakiak’s school, which serves more than 80 students from pre-K through 12th grade.
“Super excited for this opportunity to be back to some sense of normal,” Mills said. “And then just safety, convenience, camaraderie, just everything in one building makes it great.”
The community of Napakiak is in the years-long process of what’s called a “managed retreat” away from erosion. The new school site sits more than a mile away from the river.
The Lower Kuskokwim School District laid the foundation for the new school building in 2021, back when the riverbank was around 100 feet from the school. And it kept inching closer.
In 2024, a series of fall storms battered the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta and ate away 35 feet of Kuskokwim riverbank within a matter of weeks. The old school, which sat at the river’s edge, had to be entirely abandoned. Students and staff were scattered throughout the community.
Mills said that sixth through 12th grade students attended classes in the city’s bingo hall.
“There were weeks at a time where the whole staff wouldn't see each other just because they weren't in proximity and worked the hours that they worked,” Mills said.
Mills said that school staff were able to start moving things into the new building on Aug. 15. Within 10 days they’d unloaded seven connexes-worth of furniture and supplies, and the building was set up enough to start school.
While class is in session in the new building, Mills said that there’s still setup to be done – more connexes to unload, and settling in to do. For now, the school building is running on its own water well, water treatment, and generator power supply. Eventually, as the community of Napakiak continues to retreat from the Kuskokwim, the school will become a customer of the new city utilities.
The new Napakiak school will host a community open house and celebration on Friday, Aug. 29.