What you need to know:

• Mat-Su residents can now preregister for a free gun safety and live-fire training program funded by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. The program, run by the Anchorage-based Phalanx Academy, is open to residents ages 16 and up.
• Nearly a quarter of the 300 available slots were filled over the first 24 hours of preregistration. Those interested can register via email by sending their name, phone number, email address, and preferred training location — Talkeetna, Meadow Lakes, or Palmer — to joe.kim@phalanx-academy.com.
• Funded by a $75,000 borough grant, the program was created by the Borough Assembly to encourage self-defense and promote community safety in Mat-Su.

PALMER – A free gun safety and live-fire training program for Mat-Su residents is now open for preregistration, with about a quarter of the available slots already filled, officials said.

The program, funded by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, is designed to provide free safety, use-of-force, de-escalation, and shooting training to 300 Mat-Su residents on a first-come, first-served basis. It will be conducted in Mat-Su by Anchorage-based Phalanx Academy.

Mat-Su residents can sign up for one class each and must be at least 16 to participate, said Phalanx Academy owner Joe Kim.

Individuals can preregister by sending their name, phone number, email address and preferred training location to Kim at joe.kim@phalanx-academy.com. They will receive a confirmation email and be placed on a call list to select a class date and location by next week, he said. 

Anyone who registers after all slots are filled will be placed on a waiting list, he said. Residents can find more details on the Phalanx website, he said.

Preregistration opened Tuesday morning, and nearly a quarter of the slots had been claimed by early Wednesday, he said.

“The goal of this is to reach full capacity and show the Mat-Su Borough this is something the community enjoys, so they do it again,” he said. “We have to show them there is interest.”

The one-day classes will be held on weekends in Talkeetna, Meadow Lakes, and Palmer, with dates ranging from later this month through May, he said.

Kim said the free training will have two components: classroom instruction, which will include de-escalation tactics, and live-fire training at a shooting range. Classes will have a teacher-to-student ratio of about 5-to-1 during the live-fire portion, with total class sizes capped at about 20 students, he said.

Training sessions are expected to last about eight hours each, and ammunition will be provided, he said. Students can bring their own guns or use ones provided during the training, borough officials said.

Funded by a $75,000 grant approved by the Mat-Su Assembly in May, the program is designed to encourage self-defense and help residents protect their communities, Assembly member Ron Bernier said at the time.

Alaska State Troopers provide law enforcement for most of Mat-Su, an area the size of West Virginia. About six troopers patrol the entire region at any given time, state public safety officials said earlier this year.

While the training will not be equivalent to a concealed carry class, it will teach students how to protect their personal safety, Kim said.

“What they are going to get out of this is a better understanding of how to build a safer lifestyle,” he said. “We’re going to talk about that it’s not just ‘hey, this is how you load and shoot a gun,’ it will be “this is how you create a safer environment for you and your family.’”

-- Amy Bushatz can be contacted at abushatz@matsusentinel.com.