Community, industry and trustees spar over cuts as Pathways Innovation Center faces underuse

Community members, business leaders and trustees pressed Natrona County School District #1 on Tuesday over the future of the Pathways Innovation Center, the district’s career and technical education hub, as officials warned declining enrollment will force ongoing budget reductions.

The district has lost about 900 students over the past four years, a drop Trustees said will reduce district revenue by roughly $12,000,000 per year and lead to staffing and scheduling changes. “So for the 25-26 school year, there'll be a reduction of 48 high school sections just in high school,” Chair Kristofferson told the meeting. “That’s not just one year. That’s ongoing funds.”

Pathways drew more than a dozen public commenters who urged the board to preserve CTE offerings and strengthen leadership, coordination and industry partnerships. Rob Hill, a professor of practice in CTE who identified himself as a longtime CTE advocate, said the Pathways Innovation Center was built with a $23,000,000 investment and should be used to its full potential. “There was a $23,000,000 investment. Any community would love to have this facility,” Hill said. “Now is not a good time to divest in CTE.”

Several speakers described students turned away from courses, bottlenecks in introductory classes and long-term staffing gaps. Pat Sweeney, who identified himself as a resident, told the board, “Now is not the time to cut classes or sections at Pick as I believe the demand is greater than ever.” Business and industry representatives — including Adam Gettinger of Austin Engineering, Cody Klein of GW Mechanical and Larry Fodor of the Wyoming Construction Coalition — told trustees local employers need a pipeline of skilled workers and urged continued or increased district support for CTE pathways.

Speakers and trustees gave differing explanations for why Pathways is not serving more students. Multiple commenters said Pathways is operating about 75% of capacity; one legislator and other speakers asked for an accounting of unused Perkins and CTE funds. Trustee Schmidt and other board members stressed the district must align staffing to actual enrollment and course requests. “If the PIC is running at 75%, it's because the kids didn't choose to go there. We can't force them,” Chair Kristofferson said in response to commenters pressing the board to keep every shop fully staffed.

Several attendees urged clearer leadership at Pathways, including a dedicated principal and a full-time district CTE director. Rob Hill and others asked for stronger industry partnerships and more consistent district follow-through on hiring and retaining CTE teachers; Debbie McCullough, a former board chair who said she helped develop a strategic plan for Pathways, recommended restoring that long-term approach to operations.

Board members also said the district has increased dual-enrollment and concurrent CTE courses and highlighted existing supports such as Perkins advisory structures, Hathaway scholarship participation and outreach efforts. Academic steering committee reports included data that Pathways enrollment has grown over the last three years and that 40 of 68 concurrent/dual-enrollment high-school courses next year will be CTE.

Trustees did not adopt new policy or make a binding decision to close or repurpose Pathways at the meeting. Actions taken during the session included acceptance of a separate $14,000 grant for a Destination Imagination team and approval of major maintenance projects; trustees voted unanimously on those consent items. Public commenters called for ongoing public engagement and clearer district communications about how CTE classes are staffed, how students enroll in Pathways courses and why particular sections are or are not offered.

Trustees and community members said they will continue discussions. Several trustees and industry representatives offered to participate in advisory work and outreach to encourage student participation; community members urged the district to share detailed enrollment, course-capacity and funding data in follow-up communications.