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Save Our School

Updates

Nov. 23, 2010: Thanks to quick thinking and decisive action by the parents and others in our community, our voices have been heard!

Email, November 23, 2010

Cindy,

At the Recalibration meeting last week, the committee left the funding model unchanged with a few minor exceptions. There is still a chance that a last minute amendment could affect the model, but for the time being, the small school funding is intact.

We will continue to monitor at this at the December Recalibration Committee meeting. If there are any changes, we will contact you immediately and ask for your advocacy.

- Jay Harnack, Superintendent
Jay Harnack, School Superintendent for Sublette County School District #1

Email, November 23, 2010

Cindy,

The Select Committee last week worked the recalibration bill on Thursday afternoon. The bill included Dr. Picus' recommendations and language that would leave funding the same as it is today. Neither included a change for small schools. At the end of the day they moved the bill to the next meeting by leaving school funding the same as it is today. That is the best of all possible outcomes.

So far we do not have to face the losing funding for schools like Bondurant nor do we have to face the lost funding for other areas where Dr. Picus was proposing cuts.

We expect to see some small changes next month at their next meeting, but we do not expect to see any major changes.

- Vern
Vern McAdams, Business Manager for Sublette County School District #1

Thanks to Cindy for carrying the torch. She will let us know if any further action need be taken. Thanks to the Bondurant Community for stepping up on this issue!

Nov. 15, 2010: "We (the Mom's) sent out packets of letters and our petition to Legislators today. They have their meeting on Thursday and Friday. We also gave a packet of letters to our Superintendent/school board.

"We still ask the everyone email their letters to the list by Thursday.

"We have a lot of momentum now, the committee definitely knows how this community feels about our school!"

- Cindy Peters

Nov. 2, 2010: The Department of Education is looking into changing Bondurant School to be a Satellite school. This may have serious ramifications for the future of Bondurant Elementary.

Summary

Against the direction from the School Finance Data Advisory Committee, the Department of Education (WDE) has changed the rules beginning next year, so schools like Bondurant would not be counted as a separate school, but would be treated as a satellite school to calculate funding.

Read the article Wyoming Recalibrating its Funding Formula by The Rural School and Community Trust for a good analysis of the situation.

The entire purpose of this rule, as stated by Fred Hanson, director of the Financial Unit of the WDE, was to direct the recalibration process. This would directly reduce funding for any school district with schools like Bondurant.

We believe this rule is a direct contradiction of the Wyoming Supreme Courts directions in the Campbell cases. Those four cases are the latest court cases about school funding in Wyoming.

Drs. Picus and Odden have been contracted by the LSO for the recalibration of school funding again this year. They are on record as against this rule. Publicly many lawmakers in Wyoming cannot support this rule and are willing to vote against it. However, they cannot override any duly adopted rules except to make laws where this is not allowed.

We need for the WDE and the Select Committee on School Finance Recalibration to remove the rule concerning Satellite schools from the Recalibration Plan and keep the current State funding for Bondurant Elementary School.

Plan of Action

We plan to address the issue at the State level. Click Action Steps to find out how you can help.

Contact Cindy Peters for more information.

Last updated November 23, 2010.
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