CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The Wyoming School Facilities Commission voted in November to close eight Cheyenne elementary schools. Two Cheyenne parents are challenging this decision in court.
The decision to close the schools came about after the Wyoming State Construction Department completed its most-cost-effective remedy study, or MCER, earlier in fall. Over the course of the study, the construction department and contractor FEA reviewed potential options to address the needs of the 30 elementary schools throughout Laramie County School District 1. Those helming the study ultimately moved forward with its “Remedy 4c” option. The remedy will result in the following outcomes:
- Closures of Miller, Deming, Jessup, Hebard, Bain, Fairview, Lebhart and Henderson elementary schools.
- Replacements of Arp, Hobbs and Cole elementary schools.
- Creation of a new 5–6 South Triad school and a second Coyote Ridge.
- Additions to Meadowlark and Coyote Ridge elementary schools.
Over the past several months, parents have publicly expressed ire toward the decision to close the elementary schools. The Cheyenne Parent Alliance, a collective of parents created in response to the MCER study, has garnered over 1,000 signatures from residents to display their disapproval of the MCER. Two of the group’s founding members are now going to the next level to fight back.
On Dec. 6, parents Katie Dijkstal and Franz Fuchs with the Cheyenne Parent Alliance filed a lawsuit in Laramie County District Court against the Wyoming State Construction Department and the Wyoming School Facilities Commission. The duo allege in the suit that the decision to close eight neighborhood schools is “arbitrary and capricious in nature.” The two filed the petition separately from the alliance.
“It’s not like we jumped to a lawsuit,” Dijkstal told Cap City News. “We have exhausted every single outlet to try to get this to be done in a way that was lawful. … We didn’t want to have to do this, and now we really are forced [to].”
The suit alleges that the SFC and construction department did the following:
- Unlawfully circumvented rules and regulations
- Violated student’s constitutional rights to equal and quality education
- Exceeded their statutory authority by deciding to close eight schools that otherwise are meeting educational needs
In the court petition, Dijkstal and Fuchs are requesting the court to review and overturn the SFC’s and state construction department’s actions in carrying out and adopting the findings of the MCER.
Dijkstal said the MCER is not in the best interest of parents nor students. The MCER is going to adversely impact LCSD1 families and displace one in six students from their neighborhood schools, she added.
“These are permanent closures with no replacements,” Dijkstal said. “You’re removing their education period and farming them out all over town. … [Parents and students are] not getting anything from it. They’re not getting a new building out of it. It’s just being taken from them.”
Dijkstal and Fuchs, as well as the entirety of the Cheyenne Parent Alliance, are adamant that the state should have landed on Remedy 1b, which does not close any schools and still provides much-needed improvements to facilities such as Arp, Hobbs, Jessup, Miller and Sunrise elementary schools.
Another point of contention for Dijkstal is that the state failed to perform a cost analysis on all 18 potential remedies brought forward in the MCER study. She noted that any remedy that didn’t include LCSD1’s desired fifth- and sixth-grade schools were immediately disqualified for consideration.
Ultimately, Dijkstal is hoping her petition will result in accountability.
“We feel very strongly that this will set a precedent in Wyoming that we cannot turn back from,” Dijkstal said. “[The lawsuit] comes from a true belief that all kids matter. And by circumventing their own policies and rules, [the SFC and construction department] have inherently made some kids matter more than others and haven’t cared at all about what this does to our community.”
The SFC held a special virtual meeting Tuesday afternoon to review a presentation for Campbell County’s MCER study. At the end of the meeting, just after commissioners voted to adjourn, School Facilities Commission Chair Jack Tarter took a jab at the petition.
“We may not have any more meetings before Christmas,” Tarter said. “If we don’t, everyone have a merry Christmas, and enjoy being sued.”
The comment elicited laughs from other commissioners. “Such a great gift,” Commissioner Jackie Van Mark said.
A copy of the court filing can be viewed below.
Approving the MCER study
Parents spoke out against the MCER study, published in late September, at an October LCSD1 board meeting. The feedback didn’t sway board members, however, as trustees reluctantly approved the study. Brittany Ashby, for instance, said the decision “sucks,” and current chair Alicia Smith said her vote to approve the study was the hardest decision she had to make in her four years on the board.
“I hate this,” Smith said. “I hope you understand, we did not choose this. We did not ask for this.”
Dijkstal and her husband, Dirk, spoke out at the October meeting. Katie Dijkstal said the “human cost” would be too steep. Meanwhile, Dirk, a Cheyenne attorney, spoke during public comment at other board meetings throughout fall to tell trustees they could have postponed a decision and they could have explored their options.
The state’s construction department and FEA brought forward their findings and proposal to adopt Remedy 4c at the Wyoming School Facilities Commission meeting Nov. 6 and 7. At the Nov. 6 meeting, Fuchs and Dirk Dijkstal were allowed 30 minutes to give a presentation refuting the MCER Remedy 4c. Fuchs and Dijkstal alleged that the MCER’s methodology was flawed all around. They specifically called out a math error leading to an improper calculation, noted how the study didn’t follow state statute and pointed out that the state failed to meaningfully collect public feedback. The presentation was then followed by extensive public comment from parents pleading with commissioners to choose an option that won’t close schools.
The SFC adjourned its Nov. 6 evening meeting after public comment and picked up again the morning of Nov. 7. The commission unanimously voted to adopt the study. Parents and residents again stepped forward, this time to condemn the board members’ decision.
“My son is in third grade at Deming,” Susan Wolf said. “This is concerning, because we picked this neighborhood so that my son could be heard and seen in his school. He does best in a small learning environment. … I’m afraid that kids like my son are going to fall through the cracks, because he’s a really quiet soul. He doesn’t do well in large crowds. So I am exceedingly disappointed that you are closing down such a fantastic family school.”
Another parent, Will Jones, alleged that the MCER was, in effect, a bill of goods.
“The rhetorical tool you’ve fallen victim to is called a false dichotomy,” Jones said. “You had another choice, but you were told ‘all or nothing.’ And that’s a pretty devious thing to do. It’s very upsetting that the district that put Arp in this situation is now telling you to close other schools, and you feel like you have to.”
Others have taken to public forums to express their disdain. Local parent and alliance member Murphy Booth writes in a December letter to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle that Arp Elementary has been used as a “political pawn” to compel LCSD1 board trustees and state commissioners to pass the MCER.
Heather Webb Springer, another alliance parent, told Cap City News she also believes Arp was utilized to guilt-trip commission members. She said in November her children would no longer be going to LCSD1 following what she said was poor decision-making from district and state officials.
A copy of the MCER study can be viewed below.
