Eight Wyoming Districts to High Court: The School-Funding Model Is Failing Kids

Eight Wyoming school districts just dropped a 103-page brief at the state Supreme Court, urging justices to uphold a February ruling that blew up Wyoming’s public-school funding formula as unconstitutional. The state is appealing that lower-court decision, Gillette News Record reports.

Their message: the current system shortchanges students and violates the Wyoming Constitution’s promise of a thorough, uniform, quality education.

The case started with a 2022 lawsuit from the Wyoming Education Association, later joined by districts in Albany, Campbell, Carbon, Laramie, Lincoln, Sweetwater, and Uinta counties. In February, Judge Peter Froelicher sided with educators, finding the Legislature came up short in six key areas. The state appealed. A request to pause the ruling was denied, signaling fixes can’t wait.

The districts’ core arguments

• Inflation math is broken: The state hasn’t applied External Cost Adjustments (ECAs) cumulatively since 2010. Result: pay that no longer competes.
• Pay that can’t recruit: The model’s base salary for a certified teacher was about $37,540 at trial—and the model hasn’t been updated since 2005 (beyond ECAs). Districts say they’re stuck at ~75% of comparable wages, forcing unfilled jobs, lower qualifications, and more alternative certifications.
• Losing the edge: Economist Christiana Stoddard reports Wyoming teacher pay is now 3% below the regional average, with the state’s competitive advantage halved since 2018.

What’s missing from the model

• Mental health counselors (elementary): Needs have spiked; even the state’s consultants recommended adding them. No dedicated funding.
• School resource officers: “Appropriate for the times,” but districts must raid general funds to pay for them.
• Student nutrition: “Hungry students cannot learn.” There’s still no dedicated state funding, leaving districts to juggle limited federal aid and general funds.
• Technology: A 3:1 student-to-device ratio isn’t cutting it. COVID relief temporarily enabled 1:1 access; that money is gone. (Sen. Bo Biteman questions whether 1:1 improves outcomes, citing cost concerns.)

The brief says the state hasn’t evenly assessed buildings for educational suitability, creating unequal and inadequate facilities—naming Campbell County High, Rock Springs High, and Arp Elementary for outdated designs, security gaps, and poor infrastructure.

Districts cite “overwhelming and undisputed” evidence of harm: cutbacks to AP, gifted/talented, and electives; fewer resources for teachers; slipping performance.

“We are delivering the bare minimum,” said Kelly McGovern, superintendent of Sweetwater County School District 1.

The districts say the court rightly applied strict scrutiny, because education is a fundamental right under the Wyoming Constitution. They argue strict scrutiny covers both equity and adequacy, rejecting the state’s push for a looser “good-faith” standard.

As the state’s mandated recalibration of school funding crawls on, the brief will anchor the Supreme Court’s review. Teresa Chaulk, Lincoln County SD 1 superintendent, says the goal is simple: lock in the ruling so the Legislature funds education appropriately—facilities, mental health, nutrition, and top-tier staff included.

Trust between districts and the state? Still shaky.

“Hence the lawsuit,” Chaulk said. “We’ve got to rebuild trust and keep moving—for the good of Wyoming’s schools.”