Senate committee advances bill to preserve University of Wyoming K–8 lab school after tense testimony

Senate File 126, which would establish the University of Wyoming Public Lab School as a K–8 independent public school located on the UW main campus, advanced out of the Senate Education Committee Tuesday after amendments and a 3–2 committee vote.

The bill’s sponsor, Senator Raufus, told the committee the lab school has existed in one form or another for more than a century and historically supported the UW College of Education’s preservice teacher training, student teaching and research mission. He said recent changes in the Albany County School District’s resourcing and the district’s interpretation of the lab‑school memorandum of understanding left the school “operating as a public school that happened to be on the University of Wyoming campus,” and that the university’s trustees had moved to close it without sufficient public engagement.

The legislation would codify the school’s K–8 status, require it to meet state assessment and accountability standards, set a minimum capacity determined by the State Construction Department (written in the bill as not to be less than 200), and create a governing board composed of a resident district trustee or designee, the district superintendent or designee, the UW College of Education dean (or designee) and an appointee of the dean, the state superintendent of public instruction (or designee), one teacher selected by the school’s teachers, one parent selected by the parents, and the principal serving ex officio as chair. The board would have contracting, budgeting and personnel authority and report annually to the Joint Education Interim Committee on student achievement, placements and university engagement.

Sponsor’s intent and…