Steller Secondary School is an

alternative school An alternative school is an educational establishment with a curriculum and methods that are nontraditional. Such schools offer a wide range of philosophies and teaching methods; some have political, scholarly, or philosophical orientations, wh ...

located in

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the List of cities in Alaska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of ...

. Steller Secondary was previously a seventh through twelfth grade school, but starting in August of 2024, the

Anchorage School District The Anchorage School District (ASD) manages all public schools within the Municipality of Anchorage in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the 107th largest school district A school district is a special-purpose district that operates local p ...

conjoined sixth grade with middle school, therefore having Steller Secondary adopt sixth grade into the grade range of students attending. The

established the school in 1974 as a response to a proposal by the Committee of Alternative Secondary Education. Steller was named after

Georg Wilhelm Steller Georg Wilhelm Steller (10 March 1709 – 14 November 1746) was a German-born naturalist and explorer who contributed to the fields of biology, zoology, and ethnography. He participated in the Great Northern Expedition (1733–1743) and his ob ...

, a naturalist from Germany who traveled with

Vitus Bering Vitus Jonassen Bering ( , , ; baptised 5 August 1681 – 19 December 1741),All dates are here given in the Julian calendar, which was in use throughout Russia at the time. also known as Ivan Ivanovich Bering (), was a Danish-born Russia ...

on an exploratory voyage to Alaska.

History

For the first nine years of its existence, Steller was located in the old North Star Elementary School building. After much political activity by Steller parents, the

Alaska Legislature The Alaska State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is a bicameral institution consisting of the 40-member Alaska House of Representatives (lower house) and the 20-member Alaska Senate (upper house). There a ...

approved funds to remodel the school and add a new gym as well as a drama facility/

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoriums can be found in entertainment venues, community halls, and t ...

. In 1992, the auditorium was rebuilt after a structural failure caused the roof to collapse, leaving nearly everything ruined except for the stage's curtains. The voters of Anchorage approved a school bond in 2003 to provide funding for the addition of a new science lab and relocation and renovation of the staff lounge, offices surrounding the gymnasium, and the special education office. This construction was completed in October 2004.

Notable alumni

* Marty Beckerman, author, humorist, journalist, and features editor with ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

'' magazine *

Mark Begich Mark Peter Begich ( ; born March 30, 1962) is an American politician and lobbyist who served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Alaska from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he ...

, former mayor of

and former U.S. Senator from Alaska *

Mario Chalmers Almario Vernard Chalmers (born May 19, 1986) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Zamboanga Valientes of the Asian Tournament (TAT). He was selected as the 34th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft by the Minnesota ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player (7-9th grades) * Gretchen Guess, member of

Alaska House of Representatives The Alaska House of Representatives is the lower house in the Alaska State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. The House is composed of 40 members, each of whom represents a district of approximately 17,756 people pe ...

2000–2002 and

Alaska Senate The Alaska State Senate is the upper house in the Alaska State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It convenes in the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau, Alaska and is responsible for making laws and confirming or reje ...

2002–2006,

School Board A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...

Chair, 2011–2013 * Lindsey Holmes, member of

2006–present (9th through 11th grades) * Jewel, singer (9th & 10th grades)Steller website blog post
Retrieved July 19, 2011 *

Trajan Langdon Trajan Shaka Langdon (born May 13, 1976) is an American basketball executive and former professional player. He is the current president of basketball operations for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A and shooti ...

player * Balin Miller, climber

References

External links

Steller Secondary School website (Old)
{{authority control 1974 establishments in Alaska Alternative schools in the United States Anchorage School District Educational institutions established in 1974 High schools in Anchorage, Alaska Magnet schools in Alaska Public high schools in Alaska Public middle schools in Alaska