School board candidates endorse full ban on cellphones in class

CASPER, Wyo. — Eleven school board candidates who attended a forum at the Natrona County Library on Thursday night were virtually unanimous in calling for a ban on personal cellphones in school classrooms.

There are 12 candidates on the ballot in the Nov. 5 general election for five seats opening up on the Natrona County School District Board of Trustees. Eleven participated in a forum at the Natrona County Library on Thursday, Oct. 3.

Earlier on Thursday, Governor Mark Gordon and Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder sent out a public release calling on Wyoming school districts to modify or more stridently enforce policies limiting the use of cellphones by students during school days, citing growing evidence that unrestricted cellphone use can have a negative impact on academic performance, social interactions and overall mental health.

Candidate and former Trustee Debbie McCullar cited the elimination of cellphones from schools as her number-one priority during her introductory remarks: “I believe that will take care of the biggest part of our distractions.”

She reiterated the position when the question came up for all of the candidates, and the rest agreed with the sentiment, though candidate Sarah Bieber and incumbent Trustee Dana Howie said there should be some exceptions under specific circumstances.

On the surface, there wasn’t much outright disagreement at the forum, which asked candidates their thoughts on the district’s approach to the mental health of students, the role of parents in the education system and state funding for school choice.

Five of the candidates are part of a slate supported by the Public Education Builds Community Political Action Committee. The PAC promotes Thea True-Wells, John Bolender, Alex Petrino and incumbent trustees Kyla Alvey and Dana Howie.

Candidate Renea Redding is vice chair of the Natrona County chapter of Moms for Liberty, and the slate includes herself, Albert Hall, Shianne Huston and Sarah Bieber. Parental rights and fiscal concerns were stated priorities among those candidates. Redding said change in the district was “desperately needed.”

Bieber said her priority was “putting the focus back on academic education and getting away from personal agendas,” and emphasized “learning how to learn” as a key skill to teach kids.

Huston said she was concerned about some of the proposed spending, including the board’s recent 7–2 decision to start shopping for preliminary engineering designs on an expanded Kelly Walsh Athletic Complex, which Chairman Kevin Christopherson said was always part of the redesign plan and budget.

“There are other schools out there begging for money and they feel like they are ignored,” Huston said. “The way they are spending the money, it should be more evenly dispersed.”

McCullar taught for 37 years and had served two terms as trustee but lost the last election. “I’m back,” she said, saying there was still more work to be done in bringing a rigorous learning environment back to classrooms. She and Elizabeth Mahoney aren’t part of a slate. Mahoney said she had served three terms on the Hot Springs County school board. Candidate Melanie Connell was not in attendance.

The most noticeable split in opinions was on the question of the Wyoming legislature’s creation of the “Education Savings Account,” which gives families at or below 150% of the federal poverty level $6,000 per year for education, even if they choose private schools. Critics of the bill cited a prohibition in the Wyoming Constitution against public money going to private and parochial institutions.

Redding, Bieber and Houston all said they supported the idea of “the money following the child.” The Public Education PAC candidates were against it.

The question as posed elicited responses about charter schools, though they are also public schools, as candidate Redding noted. There are five in the state, including the Wyoming Classical Academy in Mills.

Local school boards used to approve charters, but that authority now lies with a new state board due to legislation in recent years. Trustee Howie noted her disapproval of that change.

McCullar lamented another state policy that became law this year and which all districts were compelled to adopt: the Parental Rights in Education Act.

The policy compels teachers with any knowledge of a change in a student’s “educational, physical, mental or emotional health or well-being” to report the change to the principal or designated administrator. It also mandates that parents be notified of any instruction related to sexual orientation and gender identity.

“If it doesn’t instill fear in teachers, it should,” McCullar said. “It goes a long way towards creating animosity between parents and teachers when it comes to kids.”

Bieber also questioned it. “It wasn’t written by our board or district,” she said.

School Board Meetings

Candidates expressed their approval of the trustees’ practice under Chairman Christopherson to make celebrations and achievement recognition a fixture of every meeting. Bolender said they were “always fun and enlightening.”

Bolender and True-Wells said some current boards sometimes acted divisively, seemingly for their own sake.

“When the board questions anonymous donors, it’s insulting,” True-Wells said. “I think we need to be gracious to our community that donates.”

Mental Health in Schools

The previous school year saw the death of two students at the hands of a peer in separate off-campus incidents, and the role of the school board in promoting mental health and addressing bullying has been a frequent topic of public comment at board meetings.

The district has recently renewed a contract with the Central Wyoming Counseling Center to bolster the district’s ranks of social workers and clinical professionals, and was awarded a grant to secure a suicide-prevention program for the district. The district is also refining its comprehensive safety plan, which includes behavioral remediation policies, mental health training and awareness and school security. Petrino and Howie said the plan was a solid foundation going forward.

There was broad agreement among candidates that the school board has some role to play in mental health, that teachers are well-positioned to recognize students in crisis and that connecting students and parents with the various community resources was where the ongoing focus should be.

“You can’t educate a child if they are in stress,” True-Wells said, emphasizing social-emotional skills as a critical lesson for kids. Those lessons would include “showing kids how to identify when they are stressed, when they need to talk to somebody, and opening that door so they can self-advocate,” she said.

‘What is the role of parents in education? How do we encourage parents to become actively involved?‘

The candidates broadly advocated for open lines of communication between the schools and parents. Active involvement by parents through volunteering and attending conferences was emphasized, though it was acknowledged that many parents are overworked and limited in what they can attend.

Sarah Bieber: “PTOs aren’t always possible. What about informal meetings? What about town halls where parents get to sit and talk? Those lines of communication are just as important as the formal ones at board meetings.”

Elizabeth Mahoney: “The district really needs to be nimble in terms of meeting parents where they’re at to elicit involvement in their children’s education.”

Thea True-Wells: “Parents should also know that it’s their responsibility to not assume things about other people’s children. And they should not gossip or bully other people’s children.”

Alex Petrino: “I always encourage parents to hold curiosity with their child and ask questions and be interested in what they are talking about and learning. And also hold their own children accountable.”

Debbie McCullar: “Their real role is sending their kids to us prepared to learn. That means making sure they have a good place to study, and that they get to bed at a decent hour … and that they have a good breakfast before they come to school, and maybe not a fight with you on the way out the door.”

Free and reduced-price meals

Support for the district’s free and reduced-price meals through federal funds was universal among the candidates, but some noted that it was difficult to cater to kids’ tastes.

Petrino said that wasn’t a problem for her kindergartner: “He said ‘Mom, the chefs at my school make the most delicious food!’ So, kudos to Southridge.”