Committee advances alternative‑certification bill after hours of debate over accreditation and classroom quality

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — After more than an hour of testimony and questions on Feb. 21, the House Education Committee voted to give Senate File 86 a due‑pass recommendation, advancing a proposal to expand pathways into Wyoming classrooms.

Senate File 86, carried in the House by Representative Strauch, would authorize the Professional Teaching Standards Board (PTSB) to approve alternative certification programs — accredited or non‑accredited — that allow an applicant with a baccalaureate degree to pursue teacher certification after successful completion of a subject‑area examination and a pedagogy examination. The bill would also let applicants who complete an approved alternative program apply for district employment without first receiving a superintendent request under the existing exception authorization described as “Option 7.”

Sponsor Senator Dan Larson told the committee he had tried to get a similar measure through previously and that some alternative programs the bill would permit operate online and cost about $1,900, compared with accredited university programs that he said can cost several thousand dollars. “These programs are not connected to colleges or universities, and they would have a very difficult time getting accredited,” Larson said, arguing the…