SWEETWATER COUNTY — Sweetwater County School District #1 issued the following statement on the removal of the proposed Rock Springs High School satellite campus from the list of approved projects by the Joint Appropriations Committee.

The full text of the statement follows:

On Saturday evening, February 6, 2016, for the first time in 22 years, the Joint Appropriations Committee (JAC) convened on a weekend prior to the start of the Legislative Session to discuss the upcoming budget.

Sweetwater County School District #1 Board of Trustees Chairman, Brady Baldwin stated, “Outcomes from this meeting may have far-reaching negative consequences affecting the education of students in Sweetwater County School District #1.”

At the Joint Appropriations meeting, the Rock Springs High School Satellite Campus was removed from the list of approved schools to receive funding in the capital construction process in the next biennium budget.

However, the design of the building has been previously approved and will continue. Unless the delay in funding the construction of the Satellite Campus is reversed, it will have negative implications on the District as student capacity issues at Rock Springs High School increase. School District officials have long been aware of the need for a Satellite Campus to relieve the current student capacity issue, lack of instructional space, and parking deficits at the current location.

Superintendent Kelly McGovern stated, “The District has taken appropriate steps to ensure the process moves forward and will exhaust every effort in getting this school built.”

Local legislators also advocated on the District’s behalf at the Saturday evening meeting, even correcting inaccurate information made by Select Committee members about the District’s state of project readiness.

Sweetwater County School District #1 has been in a long period of constant growth and has been preparing for new schools as needed.

In 2013, the District received funds from the School Facilities Department to conduct a feasibility study at Rock Springs High School. This study led to a 2014 presentation by MOA Architects noting the most cost effective means to remedy the student capacity issue at Rock Springs High School. This report, as approved by the School Facilities Commission, indicated a new satellite campus was the most cost effective remedy.

The School District developed a long-range facilities plan back in 2006. The land for the future site was obtained from the Bureau of Land Management. This is the current site of Sage Elementary, Pilot Butte Elementary, and Stagecoach Elementary. The site was procured with the idea of housing multiple schools including a future high school.

The Wyoming School Facilities Department prioritizes capital projects within State approved Statutes, policies, and guidelines. Then, once the list is generated by the SFD, the School Facilities Commission approves the list and recommends moving it forward to the Governor’s Select Committee for school capital construction projects. Dan Selleroli, School District Director of Facilities stated, “The District followed the careful process for the last 5 years, demonstrating the need for the school, and the Legislative action has the potential to arbitrarily change the outcome.”

Present at the Joint Appropriations meeting were Senator John Hastert and Representative John Freeman who advocated on behalf of the Satellite High School and Sweetwater County. For further information, please contact the Central Administration Building at (307) 352-3400.