Lander Teacher Wins Statewide Honor for Bringing Wyoming’s Outdoors Into the Classroom

Baldwin Creek Elementary’s own Neil Long got a big shoutout this week — and a $2,500 check — for being named the 2025 Wyoming Agriculture in the Classroom Educator of the Year.

The award was presented at Tuesday night’s Lander School Board meeting, where WAIC’s Director of Education Dallas Myers praised Long for going above and beyond.

“Neil has gone above and beyond in bringing stewardship to life for his students,” Myers said. “He doesn’t just teach about Wyoming’s heritage industries — outdoor recreation, tourism, hospitality, natural resources, and agriculture — he shows kids how these things shape the future of our state.”

Long teaches fifth-grade writing and science, but he’s made his lessons more than just worksheets and textbooks. After discovering WAIC’s Wyo Wonders curriculum during his first year on the job, he started weaving it into writing assignments, connecting local science, social studies, and the outdoors to help kids better understand the community around them.

“When I started at Baldwin Creek, we were looking for ways to connect our writing standards to science and social studies, and the Outdoor Recreation unit seemed like a great fit,” Long said.

Turns out, it was. Students in Lander — a town surrounded by public lands and recreation opportunities — could see themselves in the lessons. That boosted engagement, especially for kids who aren’t always excited about school.

“By teaching standards using content that kids are familiar with, I get a lot more student engagement,” Long explained. “They already understand the importance of sustainable care and use of these resources. My role is to show them how the systems work using examples that actually connect with their lives.”

WAIC officials said Long’s mix of passion, creativity, and real-world connections makes him stand out — not just for his students, but for the broader community, too.

So yes, Long’s students are still writing essays. But they’re also learning how Wyoming’s economy ticks, why stewardship matters, and how their backyard is tied to bigger issues in the state.

Not a bad legacy for a fifth-grade classroom.

The original story by Katie Roenigk for County 10.