NNER S E T T I N G A NN UAL R E P ORT
2013
SETTING NAME WYOMING SCHOOL-UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIP
SETTING CONTACTS— PLEASE INCLUDE NAMES, E-MAIL ADDRESSES, INSTITUTION
AFFILIATION, AND ROLES FOR EACH
SETTING NNER PARTNERSHIP CONTACT
Audrey Kleinsasser, Director
Wyoming School-University Partnership
1000 East University Avenue, Department 3374
Laramie, WY 82071
307.766.6358 (office)
307.766.3792 (fax)
www.uwyo.edu/wsup
partnership@uwyo.edu
dakota@uwyo.edu
Beth Wiley, Office Associate
Wyoming School-University Partnership
1000 East University Avenue, Department 3374
Laramie, WY 82071
307.766.3274 (office)
307.766.3792 (fax)
www.uwyo.edu/wsup
partnership@uwyo.edu
ewiley2@uwyo.edu
Michael Day, Interim Dean
College of Education, University of Wyoming
1000 East University Avenue, Department 3374
Laramie, WY 82071
307.766.3145 (office)
307.766.6668 (fax)
www.uwyo.edu/education/
MikeDay@uwyo.edu
SETTING GOVERNING COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE IF DIFFERENT FROM ABOVE
Dave Barker, Superintendent
Platte County School District #2
555 South Wyoming Avenue
P.O. Box 189
Guernsey, WY 82214-0189
307.836.2735 (office)
307.836.2450 (fax)
http://www.guernseysunrise.org/
dbarker@plt2.k12.wy.us
SETTING TRIPARTITE COUNCIL ARTS AND SCIENCE REPRESENTATIVE
Audrey Shalinsky, Professor of Anthropology, and
Associate Dean, College of Arts & Sciences
Preparation of the 2013 annual report began with a draft prepared by Partnership staff. Executive committee members then contributed to the
document verifying accuracy and completeness. The document was shared with the Governing Board at its January 29, 2014 regular meeting.
University of Wyoming
1000 E. University Avenue, Department 3254
Laramie, WY 82071
307.766.4106 (office)
307.766.2697 (fax)
ashal@uwyo.edu
SETTING TRIPARTITE COUNCIL EDUCATION REPRESENTATIVE
Allen Trent, Professor of Educational Studies
University of Wyoming
1000 East University Avenue, Department 3374
Laramie, WY 82071
307.766.3463 (office)
307.766.2018 (fax)
atrent@uwyo.edu
SETTING TRIPARTITE COUNCIL P-12 REPRESENTATIVE
Diana Clapp, Partnership Chair and Superintendent
Fremont County School District #6
223 North Cherry Street
P.O. Box 10
Pavillion, WY 82523-0010
307.856.7970 x1 (office)
307.856.3385 (fax)
http://www.fre6.k12.wy.us/index.html
dianac@fre6.k12.wy.us
Use this template to enter the information from your setting. The report should be approximately
3 to 5 single-spaced pages that address the setting’s current work to advance the NNER mission.
DESCRIBE SUCCESSES AND CHALLENGES INCLUDING PROJECTS, INITIATIVES,
AND ACTIONS THAT ADVANCE SIMULTANEOUS RENEWAL ACROSS
INSTITUTIONS, DEPARTMENTS, OR OTHER GROUPS. Collaborative grants, reciprocal
professional development, partner school and/or community partnerships, and collaborative
policy work that advance the mission serve as examples. Provide detailed information that will
help colleagues learn from your successes and include descriptions of challenges.
Successes:
Lost in Transition: High School to Higher Education Initiative
The Partnership continues to try to find ways to expand this work. The current initiative provides an avenue of
respectful sharing among colleagues that remains unique and valued, a robust example of simultaneous educational
renewal and democratic practice. Meetings include faculty from high schools, community colleges, and the
university. English/language arts (both writing and literature), mathematics, life sciences, social studies, and world
languages hold Lost in Transition meetings once a year. The gatherings are variously called summits and colloquia,
but not workshops. Language is important and these convenings feature the highest level of collegial sharing and
conversation. To underplay status issues, meetings are not held at the University of Wyoming, but at more neutral
locations around the state. The most successful communities (English/language arts and life sciences) enjoy strong
leadership from the arts and sciences. Planners make professional development renewal credits available to the
participants.
The timeline below illustrates the initiative’s impact.
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Open-ended comments from participants go much further to describe the way simultaneous educational renewal is
practiced. Selected comments are provided below:
* The engagement/involvement of different levels was awesome.
* Communication is the KEY factor to ensure success of our students and faculty.
2013 NNER Summer Symposium
The Partnership covered the full registration ($650) for four Wyoming attendees. The participants were: Aurora
Chang, Assistant Professor, Educational Studies, College of Education, University of Wyoming; Kevin Derby,
Lingle-Ft. Laramie high school social studies teacher and concurrent enrollment instructor, Eastern Wyoming
College; Leslie Rush, Associate Dean, Undergraduate Programs, College of Education, University of Wyoming; and
Kathy Vetter, President of the Wyoming Education Association. All four participants reported out on their
experience in the Partnership’s September newsletter. To see their thoughts and insights about the 2013 NNER
Summer Symposium, visit the following website.
http://www.uwyo.edu/wsup/_files/docs/newsletters/partnership/september-newsletter-2013-final.pdf
League of Democratic Schools
The Partnership paid the full school membership fee for four schools participating in this program of the NNER for
2013-2014 ($250 per school for a total of $1,000). The schools are Woods Learning Center and Star Lane Center,
Casper (Natrona #1), UW Prep School, Laramie (Albany #1), and Guernsey-Sunrise High School, Guernsey (Platte
#2).
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Wyoming School-University Partnership Memberships
We continue to gain members. This year, three school districts were unable to join again due to budgetary restraints.
However, three new districts joined the Partnership. Currently, 28 of 48 school districts belong to the Partnership
and pay annual dues. Dues for 2013-2014 totaled $86,000. Dues are used for the general operation of the
Partnership office, including the salary and benefits of the office associate, and to fund the Partnership’s initiatives.
Our goal is to maintain current membership and increase district membership by one or two a year. The Partnership
has a presence in all but four Wyoming counties (23 total) the four being far from the University of Wyoming which
is located in the southeast corner of the state.
Our current school district members include:
Albany #1 - Laramie, Superintendent Brian Recht
Big Horn #1 - Cowley, Superintendent Shon Hocker
Big Horn #2 - Lovell, Superintendent Dan Coe
Campbell #1 - Gillette, Superintendent Richard Strahorn
Carbon #2 - Saratoga, Superintendent Bob Gates
Converse #1 - Douglas, Superintendent Dan Espeland
Fremont #6 - Pavillion, Superintendent Diana Clapp
Fremont #14 - Ethete, Superintendent Terry Smith
Fremont #25 - Riverton, Superintendent Terry Snyder
Fremont #38 - Arapahoe, Superintendent Chantell Denson
Goshen #1 - Torrington, Superintendent Jean Chrostoski
Hot Springs #1 - Thermopolis, Superintendent Dustin Hunt
Laramie #1 - Cheyenne, Superintendent Mark Stock
Natrona #1 - Casper, Superintendent Steve Hopkins
Niobrara #1 - Lusk, Superintendent Jonathan Braack
Park #1 - Powell, Superintendent Kevin Mitchell
Park #6 - Cody, Superintendent Ray Schulte
Park #16 - Meeteetse, Superintendent Jay Curtis
Platte #1 - Wheatland, Superintendent Dennis Fischer
Platte #2 - Guernsey, Superintendent Dave Barker
Sheridan #1 - Ranchester, Superintendent, Marty Kobza
Sheridan #2 - Sheridan, Superintendent Craig Dougherty
Sublette #9 - Big Piney, Superintendent Gerry Chase
Sweetwater #1 - Rock Springs, Superintendent Mathew Neal
Sweetwater #2 - Green River, Superintendent Donna Little-Kaumo
Teton #1 - Jackson, Superintendent Pam Shea
Uinta #1 - Evanston, Superintendent James Bailey
Washakie #1 - Worland, Superintendent David Nicholas
The graphics below illustrate how Wyoming school district membership has increased over the past several years.
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
School District…
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The 2009-2013 Impact Map side by side comparison can also be downloaded at
http://www.uwyo.edu/wsup/_files/images/impact%20map/2009-2013-impact-map-comparison.pdf
Governing Board Development
Each governing board meeting features a specific theme (accompanied by a short advance reading) for discussion.
Session evaluations reveal the importance of the conversations to many governing board members. Some governing
board members report using the readings with principals or their school district board of trustees.
Board members have expressed that Partnership governing board meetings are a place to bring personal and
professional concerns about education to a group of others who can provide wise counsel. And governing board
meetings are often the only place board members have opportunities to discuss important educational issues that
revolve around more than testing and accountability. This is just one more way that we practice Agenda for
Education in a Democracy principles. Feedback from governing board meetings confirms that board members
appreciate this atmosphere and find themselves being renewed at the governing board annual meetings.
Website Presence and Marketing Materials
With total credit to the talents of several exceptional office associates, the Partnership fields an excellent website
which also enables effective and dependable online registration for events. We’ve been very successful distributing
an impact map that shows where the Partnership is in Wyoming and what it does. Far and away, the document
elicits the most comments and questions when we share our materials. The full map is available online at
http://www.uwyo.edu/wsup/_files/images/impact%20map/partnership-impact-map-2013-2014-11-21-13.pdf
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Partnership Newsletters
In 2013, we published four newsletters. The newsletters are available to download on the website and are also sent
electronically to a list of over 1200 people who have signed up to receive email updates from the Partnership. We
also regularly distribute over 100 hard copies of each newsletter.
Co-sponsor, 5th Annual UW College of Education Fall Literacy Conference, October 4-5
The Partnership co-sponsored the 5th Annual UW College of Education Fall Literacy Conference by providing
marketing, a website for the conference, and online registration. Approximately 80 educators registered for the
conference that took place at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, October 4-5.
Challenges:
Funding
Lost in Transition: High School to Higher Education Initiative
The Partnership has plans to expand the initiative during 2013-2014 to possibly include shorter online sessions that
would encourage faculty to continue talking about the larger issues discussed during the symposia and colloquia.
This might involve contracting out a coordinator for these sessions. The Partnership has received several very
generous donations from the University of Wyoming President’s Office, the Qwest Foundation, and the Wyoming
P-16 Education Council to help convene these Lost in Transition meetings. Those funds are nearly exhausted, and
we would need to seek funding to continue expanding.
We also continue searching for ways to combine current education concerns, such as the Common Core State
Standards and issues around dual and concurrent enrollment, with our Lost in Transition meetings.
School Community Engagement Initiative
The Partnership received generous donations from the University of Wyoming’s Office of Student Affairs and the
NNER to pilot the school-community engagement initiative. Each school also contributed funds for the project.
This seed money has now been spent with good results. There are several other Partnership member school districts
that are interested in starting similar projects. The Partnership is currently looking for ways to continue providing
some funding for the initiative to encourage those interested to find ways to involve their students in projects for the
schools and the communities.
Marketing
The Partnership continues to try to find ways to get the word out about our initiatives. While the web presence, the
newsletter, and word of mouth continue to expand, the Partnership is thinking about new ways to reach the
educators in the state of Wyoming.
Expansion
The Partnership has a goal of recruiting at least one school district from each of Wyoming’s counties. The counties
that do not currently hold Partnership membership all come from areas that are located quite far away from the
University of Wyoming in Laramie, the host site for the Partnership. The Partnership would also like to explore
inviting other entities, such as the Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board, the State School Board, and
the Facilities Commission, to join.
PLEASE NOTE THAT AT THE OCTOBER MEETING THE GOVERNING COUNCIL ASKED THAT COMMUNITY
ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS AND PROGRESS BE INCLUDED IN EACH REPORT THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO
FOCUS ON THIS AND LEARN FROM ONE ANOTHER AS SETTINGS CONTINUE TO DO INNOVATIVE AND
EFFECTIVE COLLABORATION.
DESCRIBE SUCCESSES AND CHALLENGES RELATED TO ANY OF THE FOLLOWING
NNER PRIORITIES THAT HAVE BEEN A FOCUS FOR THE SETTING AND ARE NOT
INLCUDED ABOVE.
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Advancing equity
Promoting the democratic purposes of schooling in the current political environment
Stewardship of the profession and quality teacher preparation
Research related to NNER mission and its implementation,
OTHER SETTING INFORMATION:
(Provide any additional information including celebrations, acknowledgements, awards,
accomplishments, challenges at the setting, changes in personnel, etc. that provide additional
background.)
DESCRIPTION OF WORK:
2013 NNER Annual Conference Presence
The Partnership was happy to report that sixteen Wyoming presenters contributed to the 2013 NNER annual
national conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Partnership was able to assist with travel costs for some of
the presenters, including a few students. We had follow-ups on a few of the presentations in the Partnership’s
December newsletter, http://www.uwyo.edu/wsup/_files/docs/newsletters/partnership/december%202013/decembernewsletter-2013-final.pdf
Co-sponsoring the 17th Annual Shepard Symposium for Social Justice/League of
Democratic Schools Teacher Tea
In conjunction with the 17th Annual Shepard Symposium for Social Justice, April 4-6, the Partnership helped
sponsor the annual teacher tea.
Involvement in the Wyoming P-16 Education Council and Other Wyoming Education
Organizations
Audrey Kleinsasser continues to be a supportive part of the Wyoming P-16 Council. The council is currently
discussing the possibility of disbanding or reimagining their current set-up. Kleinsasser continues to offer the
Partnership’s assistance in ways to help this organization find a successful format for operation and a focus in the
current charged political atmosphere of Wyoming.
Kleinsasser also remains involved with other education organizations in Wyoming, such as the Wyoming Foreign
Language Teachers’ Association, the Wyoming Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships, and the Advisory Board for
Wyoming’s National Board Certification of Teachers, and consulting with state legislative and educational
accountability advisory committees looking at teacher and administrator accountability systems in the state.
Kleinsasser seeks to foster relationships to encourage these educational organizations to work with the Partnership in
keeping democracy a vital part of education. We also encourage Wyoming education organizations to help the
Partnership see where we could be useful in stewardship of the profession within the state.
Office Associate position moved to full-time
The Partnership was able to financially support the office associate position as a full-time position beginning in
October of 2013.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Submitted by the Wyoming School-University Partnership’s executive committee with formal acceptance from the governing
board at its regular meeting, January 29, 2014.
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