Natrona trustees vote to close two elementary sites as district warns of $15 million shortfall

The Natrona County School District #1 board of trustees voted to vacate Barnard Elementary and Woods Learning Center, decisions trustees said were driven by falling enrollment and looming state funding changes that could increase the district's required budget cuts to about $15 million.

Chair Kristofferson moved to approve the infrastructure committee's recommendation to "vacate and mothball" Barnard Elementary beginning with the 2026'27 school year. Trustee [speaker 17] seconded the motion; the board voted 6'to'3 to approve it. Later, the board approved vacating Woods Learning Center after discussion and a second; the meeting record notes the motion passed but does not record a roll-call tally for that vote.

Board members and public speakers framed the decisions as painful but necessary steps to align operations with projected funded student counts. Director Flett warned earlier in the meeting that proposed changes from the state recalibration process ' including removing the three-year rolling average and increasing student'teacher ratios ' could raise the district's projected FY27 savings target from about $5.8 million to approximately $15 million. "We need to find and save $15,000,000 on an ongoing basis as a school district," Director Flett said during the budget update.

Several parents and longtime staff urged trustees to preserve programs rather than close buildings. "School closures are devastating," teacher Patty Arner told trustees during public comment, describing the disruption closures bring to students, staff and neighborhoods. Trish Nix, a retired district music educator, asked whether the district had explored relocating programs instead of ending them. Trustee Petrino and others described Woods as a "gift to this district" for its project-based learning and strong parental involvement.

Trustees who supported the closures cited demographic and financial criteria used in the district's facility review. Trustee Schmidt said Barnard did not meet multiple criteria used in recent configuration studies; trustees also cited the district's estimated 1,400 open elementary seats and the need to move toward a structurally balanced budget. The administration said staff impacted at Woods number about 22 and that roughly 170 students would be affected by that closure.

While several trustees and speakers blamed state funding decisions for forcing the choices, Trustee Hopkins challenged that framing during trustee comments, saying the block-grant funding model requires the state to fill local property tax shortfalls and that Natrona County's overall population has not fallen. Trustee Howie, addressing broader policy, asked the public to press the state recalibration committee and legislature for fixes.

The board's superintendent, Mike Hensley, said staff were "deeply saddened" and pledged support during the transition. The district scheduled next steps and transition planning to follow; the board set its next meeting for Nov. 24, 2025.

The motions recorded in the meeting packet and transcript form the formal basis for next steps; details on staff reassignments, student reassignment plans, and any mitigation (transportation, wraparound services) were discussed as follow-up tasks to be handled by district staff and are pending further board review.