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United States Department of Education to Dave Barker, Superintendent — Fremont County School District (January 31, 2023)

Summary

A letter dated January 31, 2023 from the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, United States Department of Education, to Dave Barker, Superintendent of Fremont County School District #1. It responds to the district's request for an exception to local maintenance of equity requirements under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for Pathfinder High School in FY 2023. The letter states that the Department concurs that the small size and volatility of enrollment at Pathfinder constitute an exceptional or uncontrollable circumstance, and that the district is excepted from the local maintenance of equity requirements for FY 2023. It states that Pathfinder High School has 50 students.

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Cite this document

“United States Department of Education to Dave Barker, Superintendent — Fremont County School District (January 31, 2023).” Original at www.ed.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/department-of-education-pdf-2023-www-ed-gov-5b6f86de7c-38fc59d990/, SHA-256 cc409990fe3b4c72cf59a859e88ee127876fc8e48984fe0f3f42e4d3d0b7d346.

Full text

                      UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
                          OFFICE OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION




                                        January 31, 2023

Dave Barker
Superintendent
Fremont County School District #1
863 Sweetwater
Lander, WY 82520

Dear Mr. Barker:

Thank you for submitting to the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) Fremont
County School District #1’s request for an exception to local maintenance of equity requirements
under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP Act) for Pathfinder High School in FY 2023.

Section 2004(c)(2) of the ARP Act specifies that a local educational agency (LEA) may be
excepted from maintenance of equity requirements if the LEA “demonstrates an exceptional or
uncontrollable circumstance, such as unpredictable changes in student enrollment or a
precipitous decline in the financial resources of [the LEA], as determined by the Secretary.”
Examples of an “exceptional or uncontrollable circumstance” include increased one-time
expenditures in the baseline year (school year 2020-2021) due to the pandemic, a very small
school where maintenance of equity calculations do not result in meaningful information about
resource availability, or a significant change in the expenses of a school that no longer serves a
student whose educational and support needs required services that have a particularly high cost.
Each request for an exception requires a case-by-case review by the Department.

According to the materials provided on November 22, 2022, Fremont County School District #1
is a small LEA that includes six schools; four schools serve a unique grade span (PreK-3, K-5, 4-
5, and 6-8) with different funding and staffing needs, and two schools serve grades 9-12. Of the
two high schools, Pathfinder High School has 50 students and Lander Valley High School has
nearly 600 students. You note that enrollment at Pathfinder increased to 50 students in the 2022-
2023 school year from 49 in the 2021-2022 school year and 38 in the 2020-2021 school year, and
that small changes in enrollment at Pathfinder can dramatically change per-pupil funding.

After reviewing your request, we concur that the small size and volatility of enrollment at
Pathfinder constitutes an exceptional or uncontrollable circumstance that prevents Fremont
County School District #1 from meeting the maintenance of equity requirement at Pathfinder in
FY 2023. The volatility of student enrollment at Pathfinder and significant difference in size of
each high school mean that comparisons between the two do not result in meaningful
information about resource availability when evaluating whether equity was maintained. As a
result, Fremont County School District #1 is excepted from the local maintenance of equity
requirements for FY 2023.

Thank you again for reaching out to the Department and for your ongoing commitment to
maintaining equity. If you have any questions, please contact the Wyoming state mailbox
at: Wyoming.OESE@ed.gov.

                                              Sincerely,

                                              Laura Jimenez

                                              Laura Jimenez
                                              Director, Office of State and Grantee Relations
                                              Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
                                              United States Department of Education


CC:    The Honorable Megan Degenfelder
       Superintendent of Public Instruction
       Wyoming Department of Education

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department-of-education-pdf-2023-www-ed-gov-5b6f86de7c.pdf
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181,136 bytes
SHA-256
cc409990fe3b4c72cf59a859e88ee127876fc8e48984fe0f3f42e4d3d0b7d346
Our copy
department-of-education-pdf-2023-www-ed-gov-5b6f86de7c.pdf
Original
www.ed.gov
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