Education can help put Alaskans to work in Northern Resources, Begich says.

Senator Mark Begich focused on development of Alaska’s resources for most of his speech to the Alaska Legislature today, focusing on Oil Production in ANWR and on the north slope. He said that with advances in resource development industry, Alaska needs to be ready to meet the demands for production.

Begich spent a portion of his speech emphasizing Math and Science Education in Alaska’s elementary, middle and high schools, saying that today’s students “are the Alaskans who will fill the engineering, construction, science, accounting and management jobs created by opening Alaska’s Arctic.”

He pointed to teacher Lorrie Heagy, who had incorporated Art in to the Science, technology, engineering and math curriculum. Heagy integrates music into math instruction for kindergarteners at Glacier Valley Elementary.

During the speech Begich also said he encouraged Governor Parnell to seek a waiver to No Child Left Behind, saying 37 states have already made the move to opt-out of the education law he says doesn’t work for urban or rural schools in Alaska.