Wyoming
No More “Snow Days” In Wyoming Schools? Technology Is All But Killing Them.
Snow days could soon become something kids only hear about as hyperbole from their parents: “When I was your age, when it snowed too much, we got a day off to play.” With the rise of technology and growth of virtual learning that can reach even the most remote corners of Wyoming, snow days may be on the decline.
That’s because of a holdover COVID-era rule from the Wyoming Department of Education that allows school districts to call “temporary virtual education days” during events of inclement weather.
Although the rule changes were primarily brought in response to quarantine situations during the height of the pandemic, they also provide flexibility for districts to call for virtual learning classes instead of snow or “cold” days.
A virtual school day happens when class is taught to students by their teachers via computer at home.
Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder told Cowboy State Daily that 75% of Wyoming’s school districts already participate in the temporary virtual education policy requirements that allow them the discretion to determine when or if temporary virtual education days will be used.
A district must develop a board policy that meets the requirements of the Department of Education’s Virtual Education Rules. No school district is allowed to use more than 50% of their total days as virtual days.
“I think this is just another tool for districts to use to make sure that those needs of their students are met in their communities,” Degenfelder said. “It really provides a vast amount of flexibility for them to provide these temporary education days.”
Fewer Snow Days?
Clark Coberly, superintendent of Weston County School District 7, said the new rules allow his school district the flexibility to call for virtual days when it appears there will be multiple days of school canceled.
But they still didn’t stop his school district from canceling school Monday because of frigid wind chills that were as low as minus 45 in some parts of the district.
“First and foremost, on our minds is the safety of our students and staff,” Coberly said.
Weston District 7 serves communities in rural northeast Wyoming and operates on a four-day-a-week schedule. Coberly said his school district has no extra days built into the schedule this year, so every snow or cold day has to be made up at some point later in the year. Virtual days, however, count as a normal learning day.
“It gives us the extra option to still stay engaged with kids,” he said.
Park County School District 6 in Cody hasn’t called any snow days or virtual days this school year, but has one snow day built into its schedule.
Superintendent Vernon Orndorff said the district will have zero snow days built into its schedule next year and plan to lean on virtual learning days for most future inclement weather events to avoid extending the school year into late May or early June.
“It allows us to always keep our doors open next year and leverage that learning option,” he said.
But for many adults, the snow days they experienced as children represent some of their fondest memories. Orndorff said the district will take parental input into account when deciding which days to call for virtual learning, and he wouldn’t rule out the possibility that snow days could still be called at some point.
In Person Still Preferred
Orndorff and Coberly said their districts will always prefer in-school learning and want to avoid virtual education days if possible.
“We feel that the best learning happens in school when students are face-to-face with their teachers,” Coberly said. “Virtual days are not a universal thing.”
Coberly also said his school district will still call for snow days and other weather-related cancellations if they appear to be short-lasting events.
But during longer storms and cold snaps, events in the past where Coberly said they “might not otherwise have any student contact” for long stretches of time, virtual days will now likely be the No. 1 option.
“Now, we have this flexibility to bridge the gap,” he said.
During the 2022/2023 school year, Weston 7 called two snow days and two virtual days, the latter of which Coberly said were well attended and successful.
Other Impacts
Also impacted by the closures are school employees, many of whom have to take paid days off to receive compensation for a virtual or snow day.
Orndorff shares the same preference for in-school over virtual learning, but also stresses that virtual work will be growing within the future workforce.
“In the future, there will be more and more situations where people will be working virtually and we want to prepare our students for those opportunities,” Orndorff said.
Leo Wolfson can be reached at Leo@CowboyStateDaily.com.
Today’s Wyoming sunrise was captured by Tom Boatman. Tom writes, “I took this at Goldeneye Reservoir. Pelicans enjoying the morning…”
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Chance of rain in parts of Wyoming on Sunday with some sun in the south. Breezy overnight with a chance of rain early. Highs from the mid 50s to near 80. Lows from the mid 20s to upper 40s.
Central:
Casper: Chance of rain, otherwise partly sunny and breezy today with a high near 71 and wind gusts as high as 34 mph. Partly cloudy and breezy overnight with a slight chance of rain before 8 p.m., a low near 43 and wind gusts as high as 31 mph.
Riverton: Chance of rain, otherwise mostly sunny and breezy today with a high near 72 and wind gusts as high as 33 mph. Mostly clear and breezy overnight with a slight chance of rain before 7 p.m., a low near 41 and wind gusts as high as 25 mph.
Shoshoni: Chance of rain, otherwise partly sunny and windy today with a high near 70 and wind gusts as high as 37 mph. Mostly clear and windy overnight with a slight chance of rain before 7 p.m., a low near 43 and wind gusts as high as 36 mph.
Southwest:
Evanston: Sunny today with a high near 61 and mostly clear overnight with a low near 33.
Green River: Sunny and breezy today with a high near 66 and wind gusts as high as 28 mph. Mostly clear and breezy overnight with a low near 38 and wind gusts as high as 24 mph.
Kemmerer: Breezy, gradually becoming sunny today with a high near 61 and wind gusts as high as 29 mph. Increasing clouds and breezy overnight with a low near 33 and wind gusts as high as 23 mph.
Western Wyoming:
Pinedale: Slight chance of rain, breezy, gradually becoming sunny today with a high near 59 and wind gusts as high as 28 mph. Mostly clear and blustery overnight with a low near 29 and wind gusts as high as 25 mph.
Alpine: Chance of rain, gradually clearing today with a high near 64 and wind gusts as high as 20 mph. Mostly clear overnight with a low near 35.
Big Piney: Breezy, gradually becoming sunny today with a high near 62 and wind gusts as high as 29 mph. Mostly clear and blustery overnight with a low near 27 and wind gusts as high as 25 mph.
Northwest:
Dubois: Chance of rain mainly after 1 p.m., otherwise mostly sunny and breezy today with a high near 57 and wind gusts as high as 37 mph. Mostly clear and windy overnight with a low near 34 and wind gusts as high as 40 mph.
Jackson: Chance of rain, gradually becoming mostly sunny today with a high near 62 and wind gusts as high as 20 mph. Mostly clear overnight with a low near 33.
Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park: Rain likely today with a high near 50 and wind gusts as high as 24 mph. Gradually becoming mostly clear overnight with a chance of rain before 11 p.m., a low near 29 and wind gusts as high as 21 mph.
Bighorn Basin:
Thermopolis: Rain likely today with a high near 66 and mostly clear overnight with a slight chance of rain before 9 p.m. and a low near 43.
Cody: Rain likely, cloudy and breezy today with a high near 63 and wind gusts as high as 24 mph. Gradually becoming mostly clear overnight with a chance of rain before 10 p.m. and a low near 43.
Ten Sleep: Rain likely, breezy today with a high near 65 and wind gusts as high as 23 mph. Gradually becoming clear overnight with a slight chance of rain before 9 p.m., a low near 45 and wind gusts as high as 21 mph.
North Central:
Buffalo: Rain likely, breezy today with a high near 61 and wind gusts as high as 22 mph. Partly cloudy overnight with a slight chance of rain before 8 p.m., a low near 44 and wind gusts as high as 21 mph.
Sheridan: Rain likely, mostly cloudy today with a high near 64 and wind from 16-21 mph. Gradually becoming mostly clear overnight with a slight chance of rain before 9 p.m., a low near 38 and wind from 11-16 mph.
Big Horn: Rain likely today with a high near 62 and wind from 11-16 mph. Gradually becoming mostly clear overnight with a slight chance of rain before 9 p.m. and a low near 42.
Northeast:
Gillette: Rain likely today with a high near 63 and wind gusts as high as 26 mph. Partly cloudy overnight with a slight chance of rain before midnight, a low near 39 and wind gusts as high as 26 mph.
Newcastle: Rain likely today with a high near 69 and wind gusts as high as 23 mph. Partly cloudy overnight with a chance of rain before midnight, a low near 43 and wind gusts as high as 23 mph.
Upton: Rain likely today with a high near 67 and wind gusts as high as 22 mph. Partly cloudy overnight with a chance of rain before midnight, a low near 39 and wind gusts as high as 23 mph.
Eastern Plains:
Torrington: Sunny and breezy today with a high near 81 and wind gusts as high as 35 mph. Mostly clear and breezy overnight with a low near 48 and wind gusts as high as 30 mph.
Lusk: Chance of rain after noon, otherwise mostly sunny and breezy today with a high near 71 and wind gusts as high as 30 mph. Partly cloudy and breezy overnight with a slight chance of rain before 9 p.m., a low near 40 and wind gusts as high as 30 mph.
Midwest: Rain likely, otherwise partly sunny and breezy today with a high near 68 and wind gusts as high as 29 mph. Breezy, gradually becoming clear overnight with a slight chance of rain before 8 p.m., a low near 40 and wind gusts as high as 25 mph.
Southeast:
Cheyenne: Sunny and breezy today with a high near 75 and wind gusts as high as 40 mph. Mostly clear and breezy overnight with a low near 46 and wind gusts as high as 30 mph.
Laramie: Sunny and windy today with a high near 67 and wind gusts as high as 45 mph. Mostly clear and breezy overnight with a low near 38 and wind gusts as high as 40 mph.
Medicine Bow: Mostly sunny and windy today with a high near 68 and wind gusts as high as 50 mph. Mostly clear and windy overnight with a low near 37 and wind gusts as high as 45 mph.
South Central:
Rawlins: Mostly sunny and windy today with a high near 67 and wind gusts as high as 45 mph. Mostly clear and breezy overnight with a low near 40 and wind gusts as high as 40 mph.
Saratoga: Mostly sunny and windy today with a high near 68 and wind gusts as high as 45 mph. Mostly clear and breezy overnight with a low near 38 and wind gusts as high as 35 mph.
Hanna: Mostly sunny and windy today with a high near 66 and wind gusts as high as 50 mph. Mostly clear and windy overnight with a low near 38 and wind gusts as high as 40 mph.
Wyoming
Children’s Hospital Colorado hosts Wyoming Pediatric Mental Health Symposium in downtown Casper
CASPER, Wyo. — Children’s Hospital Colorado hosted the Wyoming Pediatric Mental Health Symposium, a first-of-its-kind event designed to shine a light on adolescent mental health in Wyoming and beyond.
The event, which took place over a two-day period May 13 and 14, was “designed for mental health, school, and healthcare professionals seeking to deepen their expertise in pediatric mental health,” according to a brochure from the hospital.
According to the FDA, pediatrics cover those ages 0-21, and that’s exactly who mental health professionals who attended the symposium wanted to reach. Professionals across a wide spectrum gathered at the Best Western Downtown to learn more about counseling and crisis centers, schools, hospitals, primary care practices and outpatient services. They received clinical updates and engaged in discussions regarding current, evidence-informed issues that impact the care of pediatric patients and mental health needs.
And, according to the professionals, there are a lot of mental health needs in Wyoming.
“We’re here to work with folks in Wyoming about pediatric mental health concerns,” said Sandra Fritsch, MD, MSEd, DFAACAP. “May is mental health awareness month, so what a great two days to be here to talk about that during this time, as well as the challenges for access to care for pediatric mental health that exists nationally.”
Fritsch said the goal she and her peers had was to increase knowledge and awareness for everyone who attended the conference, whether they work at a school or a hospital or are a community health worker. She said she wanted to foster a commitment in the community to have real, open conversations about pediatric mental health.
Geographic densities are big reasons that mental health assistance is so hard to find in Wyoming, Fritsch said. However, they’re not the only reasons.
“I think awareness and then knowing the resources you can tap into is really important when it comes to pediatric mental health,” she said. “I do think that we need to have a dedicated approach to increasing the workforce, and that’s the workforce of everyone, whether it be a community health worker who can do screenings, therapists who can be in schools, traditional therapists, child psychiatrists or psychiatric nurse practitioners who can help assess and treat. I think building workforce is something that’s really essential.”
Fritsch said that the suicide rate in Wyoming is staggering, especially for youth, but the pandemic reminded people about the notion of mental health and its importance among the community.
“It actually created awareness and opportunities for a conversation that more people are willing to engage in,” she said. “And the other thing, too, is the notion of putting the head back on the body. Looking at the whole being is really important, and seeing more of that from a prevention and early intervention standpoint, that’s what I would love to see a lot more of.”
Early prevention in adolescence, Fritsch said, begins with parents.
“How are we working with families before they’re even having kids?” she asked. “Being a parent is the hardest job in the world. It’s an apprenticeship program. It’s trial by fire. You think you’ve got it straight with one kid and then you get the next one and it could be completely different. So how do we help support that as well?”
Fritsch said there are no simple solutions, but there there are things people can try.
“One thing I would want is for families to have plans for how they’re together and when they’re together, how they’re off screen, etc.,” she said. “So family meal times, family activity times, things like that. And working on ensuring good, quality sleep I think is really important for all concerned, from that standpoint.”
She also said it’s important to help caregivers meet kids where they’re at developmentally.
“It’s about understanding that and promoting positive success and celebrating those successes and moving forward from that standpoint,” she said. “The other thing, too, is earlier identification and treatment for mild to moderate conditions. You can have anxiety as a preschooler. It’s different than what it looks like as an adult, but being able to address that may offset that depression you would otherwise have when you’re a teenager.”
Fritsch herself spoke at the symposium, heading a talk called “Assessment and Treatment of Depression in Pediatric Primary Care.” The following day, she gave a talk called “Putting Evidence Into Practice: Approaches for Pediatric Anxiety and Trauma Related Disorders.”
Both of these presentations offered insight into mental health needs across Wyoming, Colorado and the entire country.
“I just want people to have an awareness of the breadth of what our understanding of mental health is for the youth population,” she said. “How it can play out in the school setting, how it can play out in the primary setting, how it can play out in the community. And then I want to bring that information back to where they’re at and come up with some commitments to how they way want to do things differently based on what they’ve learned.”
For more information on pediatric mental health, visit www.childrenscolorado.org/.
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