For many years, education in Wyoming has enjoyed generous support from mineral tax revenues. Schools were built. Teachers were hired. The average teacher in Wyoming earns $68,793 -- $14,883 more than the national average.

Wyoming spends the fifth most money per student -- $14,932 -- and the most after regional adjustments -- $18,443 -- in the nation.

The state system for funding K-12 public education changed dramatically in 1997, after the Wyoming Supreme Court ruled the funding system unconstitutional. The state was charged with offering the same opportunities to all students in the state out of a communal "basket" of goods and services.

The Legislature set the current funding model in 2005, based on research from Lawrence O. Picus and Associates. Each district receives an amount based on school and district resources through a "block grant." Districts are not obligated to spend according to the model. The Picus report recommended small class sizes, full-day kindergarten, curriculum resources, higher teacher pay and instructional facilitators, experienced teachers who train and assist teachers.

The flow of revenues into education promised big results. But test scores haven't improved greatly. The state graduation rate has hovered below the 80 percent mark for years.

Falling short

In follow-up studies, Picus and Allen Odden found discrepancies between the funding model and what was actually in place in schools. They sought out "improving schools" -- schools that monitor and analyze data, set ambitious goals, align curriculum, provide intensive professional development, make use of interventions and promote a "professional culture."

The task proved more difficult than they thought. The Proficiency Assessment for Wyoming Students, or PAWS, replaced the Wyoming Comprehensive Assessment System, or WyCAS, in spring 2006. All students in grades 3 though 8, as well as students in 11th grade, take the PAWS in reading, writing and math. Students in fourth, eighth and 11th grades are also tested in science.

In 2007, schools were able to take the test twice and accept the better scores. Instead of seeing a gradual increase in scores, many schools peaked in 2007. These inconsistencies make it hard to identify schools that have drastically improved over time.

Picus and Odden looked for increases in test scores, talked to staff members at the state Department of Education and educators around the state, and confirmed choices with district superintendents.

They chose six schools in large districts, seven schools in small districts and two non-improving schools to see how closely they aligned with the state funding model. They interviewed administrators, teachers and instructional facilitators. They observed classrooms and meetings.

Their conclusion: There weren't strong differences between "improving" schools and the rest, mainly because the improvement isn't too great.

"We're not seeing much in the way of gains in student performance," Picus said. "We're seeing a fair amount of money go into the schools, and there's evidence it should work."

They didn't see much change since before the 2005 recalibration of the state funding system, but Picus sticks by the evidence-based model.

"In Wyoming, I'm fairly confident there's enough dollars in the system for that model," Picus said.

When they weren't following the model, schools had found other solutions for their needs.

Interventions

Many schools adopted the "response to intervention" model, a data-based process to catch children having difficulty with specific skills. For example, if a student tests below his or her expected score on reading, the student might then be grouped with a handful of students reading at the same level.

A short time later -- sometimes just one week later -- the student is retested to find out if the "intervention" helped. If not, the student might change groups or receive a one-on-one intervention to target a specific skill.

The model comes from special education, where multiple, early interventions are used to determine whether children have learning disabilities. Intervention models are usually tiered: The largest group is classroom instruction, middle tiers cater to small-group learning, and the smallest tier is one-on-one assistance -- for when previous interventions have not worked.

Implemented schoolwide, tiered interventions aid every student -- not just those classified for special education. In some situations, the students who excel benefit from interventions more, said one principal. A student reading at a higher level can easily move to a higher-level reading group because the system is in place.

State relationship

Especially to those who have experienced education systems outside of the state, Wyoming is a great place to work, said Jon Abrams, superintendent of Lincoln County School District 2 in Star Valley.

Abrams and leaders of other excelling districts contacted by the Star-Tribune wouldn't speculate why other districts aren't doing as well. They're focused on what's happening in their own districts and whether they're doing a good job there.

Complaints about state government were few and far between. The districts were thankful for the financial support from the state, and superintendents said they couldn't do it on their own.

There were worries about the future. Asked about the district's biggest weakness, one superintendent answered, "Relying on state resources."

Diminishing mineral revenues and state budget cuts have some educators worried what effects will trickle down. Education has been largely left alone, but legislative committees have proposed reductions. One idea is to stall or stop capital construction projects, cutting the capital construction budget from $162 million to $82 million in the next biennium.

Gov. Dave Freudenthal does not approve of that plan. He said the state should be able to fund $300 million of projects each biennium.

But the governor also said that money cannot dictate outcome. Educators need to make sure they're doing the best they can to prepare students for the world they enter -- whatever that world is.

"As a state, we made a commitment," Freudenthal said. "The other half of that is to make sure that the product we get is a product we can be proud of."

Reach education reporter Jackie Borchardt at (307) 266-0593 or at jackie.borchardt@trib.com. Read her education blog at tribtown.trib.com/reportcard

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