Wyoming school districts say they are pleased that state lawmakers voted to approve inflation adjustments for school funding during the legislative session that wrapped up last week.
On Wednesday, Governor Matt Mead signed the legislation approving those cost of living adjustments for schools.
Sublette County School District One’s Superintendent Jay Harnack was part of a coalition that lobbied for the funding. State law requires these adjustments, but districts haven’t seen them in recent years. Harnack says this will allow his district to get back on track.
“We’ve lost teachers,” Harnack says. “We’ve lost a curriculum coordinator. So I think our goal is going to be, ‘what can we do to replace the services to students that we’ve lost during the budget-cutting process that we’ve gone through over the past two years.”
Harnack says the coalition is now focused on advocating for school districts during the recalibration process beginning this year. That’s where lawmakers rework the state’s school funding model to reflect current needs.
