SD1 looks at home school options

At the regular board meeting for Big Horn County School District No. 1 on July 16, with barely a quorum present (Jared Boardman, Thomas Bridges, AJ Rasmussen-Dickson and Wendy Fuller), a zoom presentation was given by Grant Hewitt, VP of Partnerships, from the company OpenEd.

According to their website, OpenEd is an on-line program where parents and students can “design an education experience that reflects each child’s individuality.” Superintendent Matt Davidson had been researching ways that school districts can help support homeschooled students. He found an article about the OpenEd company and called districts in Utah and Minnesota where the program has been used. All of the people Davidson talked to were very positive about their partnership with them. 

Hewitt explained that OpenEd provides a flexible curriculum where students and parents choose classes that interest and inspire their uniqueness. Each class offered will be approved by the Wyoming State Board of Education and will meet graduation requirements. Teachers for the program will be Wyoming certified and, as often as possible, will be hired within the communities they serve. This allows teachers and students to make personal connections. As Hewitt stated it, “We are looking for the guide on the side, not the sage on the stage.” OpenEd is a “clearinghouse of curricular options with Wyoming educators” as instructors, he said.

There would be no expense to parents as the cost would be the district’s responsibility.  Students would be registered as BHSD 1 students, and the student body would come from across the state. OpenEd would be another school within the district. There are no intentions of dropping Connections Academy, only adding another option that can support families looking for alternative education choices.

Davidson explained that the difference between Connections Academy and OpenEd is the curriculum. Connections is a Pearson Company curriculum with teachers from all over the country and sometimes outside the country. OpenEd draws their class offerings from various resources and will only hire Wyoming certified teachers.

The board directed Davidson to continue to pursue discussions with OpenEd and come back in August with a concrete plan for moving forward. 

Davidson presented a draft of the Rules Governing Firearms on School District Property, which came from a joint meeting of the Big Horn County school districts, town and county entities and law enforcement. Each district has agreed to present these rules for adoption to provide consistency throughout the county to aid the public and law enforcement in understanding expectations. Prior to adoption, a public comment period of 45 days will be held. (Look for the public notice in this paper to find the link to read and comment on this proposed policy.)

This policy will not be formally adopted until after the comment period has ended. Each district may make additional expectations if they desire to.

A preliminary budget hearing was held during the meeting. Although the federal government is not clear yet on which, if any, funds will be cut, withheld or done away with in the future, for the coming budget year all federal money should remain stable. The money coming from the county will be different. The legislative cuts to property taxes will impact the amount of money available to the district, however, the state will make up the difference through the State Foundation money. Overall, the budget for next year looks stable and comparable to last year’s budget.

After approving the preliminary budget for next year Richard Parker, Financial Director, presented a proposal for 10¢ to 15¢ increases in the price for school food services. The following are the prices approved by the board for the 2025-26 school year: breakfast – elementary $2.15, MS/HS $2.40, staff $4.25, adult guests $4.75; lunch – elementary $3.40, MS/HS $3.70, staff $5.25, adult guests $5.75; ala carte ­— student entrée $1.45, side $.80, adult entrée $3.90, side $1.60.

District priorities

On June 26, the district’s administrators and board met to do a “data dig.” The scores from student assessments were critically looked at, and new priorities were identified. The board has identified the following priorities for the 2025-26 school year. The first is Implementation of Project-Based Learning. By May 2026, the district will research and pilot at least three effective project-based learning models across elementary, middle and high school level, and will develop an implementation framework to guide district-wide adoption by the 2026-27 school year.

The second priority is Purposeful Goal Setting Students and Staff. By December 2025, 100% of students and staff will set personal or academic/professional goals using a district-approved goal-setting protocol and will track progress quarterly through individual reflections or conferences. The third is Integration of Artificial Intelligence. By June 2026, each certified employee will identify and implement at least two meaningful uses of AI to support learning, instruction or job performance, with additional professional development offered to at least 80% of staff during the 2025-26 school year.

The fourth priority is Parent Communication and Celebration of Success. By May 2026, each school will increase positive parent communication through rooms, newsletters, calls, social media posts or events that highlight student/staff accomplishments and share important information. The fifth is Academic Growth – WY-TOPP Proficiency (Wyoming Test of Proficiency and Progress). By spring 2026, 70% of students in grades 3-10 will score proficient or above in ELA (English Language Arts) and Math on the WY-TOPP assessment, as measured by state-released data, through targeted interventions and instructional improvement strategies.

The sixth and last priority is Career Readiness. By the end of the 2025-26 school year, 100% of high school students will complete two or more career readiness milestones (e.g., resume, mock interview, career interest survey or workplace experience) as tracked in student transitions plans. This list will be taken to the district leadership team for them to consider.

Two new travel buses were approved. The district has a five-year agreement with the state to pay for them. Each bus to be replaced had either aged out or reached the maximum mileage allowed. One new bus will be located at Rocky and the other at Burlington.

New personnel

The following personnel were presented and approved for hire: Heather Pittman, RMMHS Special Education Job Coach and Paraprofessional; Kendall Moore, RMMS Assistant Football Coach (pending certification); Devon Kuecker, Wyoming Connections Academy Elementary Teacher; Emily Quintana, Wyoming Connections Academy Secondary Math. Previously approved were transfers for Kirby and Cassidy Winland from Burlington to Rocky Mountain.

Prior to the regular meeting, the annual Recreation Board meeting was held. Members of that board are Jared Boardman, AJ Rasmussen-Dickson and Craig Jones (attended via phone). Allocations for each community’s recreation board budget were approved. Allocations are based on district enrolled student numbers from each community. Burlington/Otto – 208 students, $34,333.96; Byron – 71 students, $11,719.77; Cowley – 162 students, $26,740.89; Deaver – 59 students, $9,738.96; Frannie – 21 students, $3,466.42.

The Recreation Board meeting adjourned at 7:06 p.m., and the regular school board meeting adjourned at 9:18 p.m.