The Department of Education & Early Development (EED) is pleased to be able to offer this website which is entirely devoted to providing Alaskan educators with easy access to: FASD resources, state of the art on-line FASD training opportunities, the most current FASD Alaskan statistics available, relevant upcoming conferences, FASD grant opportunities, contact information for FASD diagnostic assessments in your region, and more…

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) is an umbrella term describing the range of effects that can occur in an individual whose mother drank alcohol during pregnancy. These effects may include physical, mental, behavioral, and/or learning disabilities with possible lifelong implications. The term FASD is not intended for use as a clinical diagnosis.

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Why is it Important for Alaska's Educators to Understand Alcohol Related Disabilities?

There are many reasons. Here are a few:

1. Alaska has the highest known incidence of FAS in the nation. (Alaska Department of Health and Social Services [DHSS]). Analysis of the Alaska Birth Defects Registry for the birth years 1995-1999 indicate the following: 1.5 per thousand births met the case definition for FAS, and 16.3 per thousand births were reported born affected by prenatal exposure to alcohol. (Alaska Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Surveillance Project 2004)
2. Alcohol is Alaska’s #1 health concern.
3. Alaskans purchased enough alcohol in 1999 to provide every man, woman, and child with 516 drinks and approximately 30 percent of Alaskans do not drink. (State of Alaska Departments of Labor and Revenue).
4. FAS is only the tip of the iceberg. An analysis of the Alaska’s diagnostic data indicates that for every 1 person who has FAS, there are 8-9 additional individuals with significant brain damage from prenatal exposure to alcohol. (FAS Update/Spring 2003 Alaska DHSS)
5. FAS is the leading cause of mental retardation in the Western World.
6. Alaska is among the top 5 states for the highest prevalence of binge drinking (5 or more drinks on an occasion or 30 or more drinks per month) among women of reproductive age. (Center for Disease Control and Prevention 1994)
7. Results of a study conducted in 1995 at an Anchorage hospital indicated that 16.2 percent of urine samples obtained from pregnant women in labor were positive for drugs or alcohol. (Jacob J., Harrison H., and Tigert, AT. 1995)

It has been three decades since FAS was formally recognized as a medical condition in the United States. In this short time, we have learned much about both preventing FAS and about providing meaningful supports for individuals who have been affected by prenatal exposure to alcohol. It has become absolutely clear that Alaskan schools play a critical and central role in both prevention and intervention of alcohol related disabilities.

This website, and the resources on it, represent part of a gigantic statewide initiative currently underway to improve the lives of individuals affected by fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and to work toward eliminating this 100 percent preventable condition. This website, and the resources it links to, have been constructed specifically for educators.

THE GOOD NEWS AND THE BAD NEWS
The Office of FAS conducted an extensive statewide survey of professionals’ knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes regarding FAS. Corrections Personnel, Educators, SA Workers, Family Physicians, OB/GYNs, Pediatricians, and Public Health Nurses were all polled on FAS. While the data is still being interpreted, all of the respondents’ answers have been tallied, and they provide some interesting information. The good news is that educators (1,346 Alaskan educators completed the survey) demonstrated an above average understanding of how damaging alcohol can be to fetal development. For example, almost 91 percent of educators surveyed responded that they believed it was not okay for a pregnant woman to have an occasional alcoholic drink (this response highlights an understanding of the Surgeon General’s declaration that there is no known safe amount of alcohol to consume during pregnancy). The bad news is 46 percent of educators indicated they did not possess appropriate skills and knowledge to deal with students with FAS, and another 46 percent felt they had only somewhat appropriate skills and knowledge. Only 5.74 percent of the educators polled answered that they strongly agreed that they had the skills and knowledge they needed to deal with students with FAS. These findings strongly indicate teachers’ need for more FASD training and resources.

Last Updated 9/21/05