schoolsbycounty

State district guide

Alaska public school districts

Compare district systems across Alaska by enrollment scale, school count, county context, generated guide coverage, and the parent checks that matter before choosing where to live.

View county rankingsFind a school

Direct answer for parents

What this district ranking can and cannot tell you

If you are searching for the best school districts in Alaska, start with the largest and most data-rich district systems below, then verify the specific school assigned to each address. SchoolsByCounty orders districts by reported enrollment and school count because those fields are consistent in NCES. It does not convert district size into a quality rating.

Start with scale

Anchorage School District

43,727 reported students

Check county context

Chugach Census Area

93/100 county score

Verify locally

Address fit

Attendance boundaries and transfers are not in NCES

District table

Largest public school districts in Alaska

The first 60 rows show the largest district systems by reported enrollment. Open district guides where available, or use the county profile when a detailed district page is not generated yet.

54 districts in state file

Alaska public school districts ranked by reported enrollment.
RankDistrictStudents
1
Anchorage School District

LEA ID 0200180

Anchorage Municipality96 schools
43,727
2
Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District

LEA ID 0200510

Matanuska-Susitna Borough47 schools
19,570
3
Fairbanks North Star Borough School District

LEA ID 0200600

Fairbanks North Star Borough33 schools
12,703
4
Kenai Peninsula Borough School District

LEA ID 0200390

Kenai Peninsula Borough42 schools
8,528
5
Galena City School District

LEA ID 0200130

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area4 schools
7,177
6
Juneau Borough School District

LEA ID 0200210

Juneau City and Borough15 schools
4,338
7
Lower Kuskokwim School District

LEA ID 0200001

Bethel Census Area29 schools
3,970
8
Yukon-Koyukuk School District

LEA ID 0200862

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area10 schools
3,100
9
Kodiak Island Borough School District

LEA ID 0200480

Kodiak Island Borough12 schools
2,228
10
Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District

LEA ID 0200150

Ketchikan Gateway Borough9 schools
2,074
11
North Slope Borough School District

LEA ID 0200610

North Slope Borough11 schools
2,044
12
Lower Yukon School District

LEA ID 0200003

Kusilvak Census Area11 schools
2,035
13
Northwest Arctic Borough School District

LEA ID 0200625

Northwest Arctic Borough13 schools
1,911
14
Nenana City School District

LEA ID 0200540

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area2 schools
1,858
15
Bering Strait School District

LEA ID 0200020

Nome Census Area15 schools
1,830
16
Sitka School District

LEA ID 0200240

Sitka City and Borough6 schools
1,120
17
Delta/Greely School District

LEA ID 0200100

Southeast Fairbanks Census Area5 schools
938
18
Denali Borough School District

LEA ID 0200770

Denali Borough4 schools
912
19
Nome Public Schools

LEA ID 0200570

Nome Census Area4 schools
719
20
Craig City School District

LEA ID 0200090

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area4 schools
668
21
Valdez City School District

LEA ID 0200780

Chugach Census Area4 schools
653
22
Chugach School District

LEA ID 0200800

Chugach Census Area4 schools
637
23
Southwest Region School District

LEA ID 0200710

Dillingham Census Area8 schools
631
24
Yupiit School District

LEA ID 0200004

Bethel Census Area3 schools
471
25
Petersburg Borough School District

LEA ID 0200660

Petersburg Borough3 schools
438
26
Dillingham City School District

LEA ID 0200120

Dillingham Census Area2 schools
420
27
Mount Edgecumbe

LEA ID 0200006

Sitka City and Borough1 school
407
28
Copper River School District

LEA ID 0200070

Copper River Census Area5 schools
400
29
Alaska Gateway School District

LEA ID 0200050

Southeast Fairbanks Census Area8 schools
386
30
Unalaska City School District

LEA ID 0200720

Aleutians West Census Area2 schools
346
31
Cordova City School District

LEA ID 0200060

Chugach Census Area3 schools
340
32
Kashunamiut School District

LEA ID 0200005

Kusilvak Census Area1 school
339
33
Lake and Peninsula Borough School District

LEA ID 0200485

Lake and Peninsula Borough13 schools
334
34
Kuspuk School District

LEA ID 0200760

Bethel Census Area9 schools
318
35
Annette Island School District

LEA ID 0200525

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area3 schools
311
36
Iditarod Area School District

LEA ID 0200520

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area8 schools
306
37
Wrangell Public School District

LEA ID 0200810

Wrangell City and Borough3 schools
264
38
Haines Borough School District

LEA ID 0200270

Haines Borough3 schools
262
39
Aleutians East Borough School District

LEA ID 0200007

Aleutians East Borough4 schools
211
40
Saint Mary's School District

LEA ID 0200680

Kusilvak Census Area1 school
203
41
Yukon Flats School District

LEA ID 0200775

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area6 schools
197
42
Southeast Island School District

LEA ID 0200700

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area8 schools
170
43
Skagway School District

LEA ID 0200690

Skagway Municipality1 school
152
44
Chatham School District

LEA ID 0200730

Hoonah-Angoon Census Area4 schools
147
45
Klawock City School District

LEA ID 0200450

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area2 schools
124
46
Bristol Bay Borough School District

LEA ID 0200030

Bristol Bay Borough3 schools
121
47
Hydaburg City School District

LEA ID 0200330

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area2 schools
121
48
Hoonah City School District

LEA ID 0200300

Hoonah-Angoon Census Area1 school
112
49
Kake City School District

LEA ID 0200360

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area1 school
111
50
Yakutat School District

LEA ID 0200840

Yakutat City and Borough2 schools
92
51
Pribilof School District

LEA ID 0200670

Aleutians West Census Area2 schools
57
52
Tanana City School District

LEA ID 0200715

Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area1 school
29
53
Aleutian Region School District

LEA ID 0200010

Aleutians West Census Area2 schools
16
54
Pelican City School District

LEA ID 0200630

Hoonah-Angoon Census Area1 school
12

— = enrollment not reported in the district record. District rows are informational and must be paired with local assignment tools before a housing decision.

Methodology

How to use district rankings without overreading them

District-level data is useful because it shows the operating system around a public school search: how many schools exist, which county record anchors the district, how much enrollment is reported, and whether a detailed district guide is available. It is not enough to decide where a student should enroll.

Ranking basis

Rows are ordered by reported enrollment, then school count. The method favors broad, data-rich systems because those are the districts parents most often need to research before relocation.

County context

Each district is attached to a primary county record when available. County school scores are context signals, not district ratings, and nearby counties can still matter for commute and housing decisions.

Grade pathway

Elementary, middle, and high school counts help parents spot whether a district looks like a full K-12 pathway or a narrower operating unit. Feeder patterns still require local verification.

Address verification

The final decision happens at the address level. Confirm attendance zones, open-enrollment rules, magnet admissions, charter lotteries, and transfer windows with official district sources.

County context

Districts anchored in higher-scoring county contexts

These rows pair district records with the county-level SchoolsByCounty score. Treat this as a shortlist for deeper research, not a district quality ranking.

Valdez City School District

Chugach Census Area

93

Students
653
Schools
4

Chugach School District

Chugach Census Area

93

Students
637
Schools
4

Cordova City School District

Chugach Census Area

93

Students
340
Schools
3

Petersburg Borough School District

Petersburg Borough

92

Students
438
Schools
3

Unalaska City School District

Aleutians West Census Area

91

Students
346
Schools
2

Pribilof School District

Aleutians West Census Area

91

Students
57
Schools
2

Parent checklist before relying on a district ranking

Use this page to narrow the field, then answer these local questions before treating any district as a fit for a specific home.

Which school does this address actually feed into?

Use the district address lookup and confirm edge cases near attendance-zone borders.

What happens at transition grades?

A strong elementary fit can split into several middle or high school paths.

Are choice programs realistic for this student?

Magnet, charter, virtual, and transfer options can involve lotteries, applications, or deadlines.

Is the county context aligned with housing tradeoffs?

Pair school research with taxes, commute, home prices, and safety before choosing where to live.

Frequently Asked Questions About Alaska School Districts

What are the best school districts in Alaska?
Anchorage School District, Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, Fairbanks North Star Borough School District are the largest Alaska district systems by reported enrollment in the NCES file. SchoolsByCounty does not call them the best districts; use this page to find data-rich district systems, then verify assigned schools, program rules, and local fit.
How are Alaska districts ranked here?
Districts are ordered by reported student enrollment, then school count, using NCES public school district records. This is a research-priority ranking, not a quality rating.
Why do only 7 Alaska districts have district guide links?
SchoolsByCounty statically generates detailed district guides for the largest district systems nationally so the pages stay fast and substantive. Districts without guide links remain represented through county and state context pages.
Do these district pages show attendance boundaries?
No. Attendance zones, transfer rules, magnet eligibility, charter admission, transportation, and program availability must be verified with official district or local assignment tools before choosing a home.
Does a large district mean better schools?
No. Larger districts usually have more school options and more public data, but enrollment size is not a school-quality measure. Compare school-level records and official local sources before treating a district as a fit.
How many districts are included for Alaska?
This page includes 54 Alaska public school districts from the current NCES district file, alongside county context and generated district-guide availability where available.
By Evan Brooks, Data EditorPublished

Data Sources

Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.

Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.

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