Dear Editor: 

I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to the voters of Park County School District 1 for giving me the privilege of serving the kids of the Park 1 school district for the past 16 years. One year ago I decided I would not be seeking my fifth term on the board, and I will be leaving school board service on Dec. 1 when the newly elected terms begin.

Over the 16 years on the board, I have had the honor and privilege to work with 19 other people on the school board, and each of them brought their own thoughts and perspective to the board and for the most part, they all had the student's best interest at heart. I served as treasurer for four years, vice chairman for five years and chairman for five years, stepping down from leadership these past two years. I have seen the district footprint change tremendously the past 16 years, as the district built a new high school, Southside Elementary School, Westside Elementary School, remodeled Parkside Elementary School and built a new middle school. 

Our district administration team has changed several times over the course of my school board tenure, with each new face that came along came new ideas and an enthusiasm for doing what's best for kids. Student performance has changed too. The district adopted the Professional Learning Communities approach to teaching and learning. Teachers now collaborate, principals collaborate and we have seen student test scores steadily increase to where we are now a top performing school district in Wyoming. When I first came on the board, we had three elementary schools each doing their own thing and then sending those kids to the same middle school. Now our three elementary schools collaborate with each other and prepare their kids for one middle school. We truly have the best administrative team in the state of Wyoming and the best teachers also. They all are performing like rock stars and the results in the classrooms are very indicative of that. 

I am, however, concerned about the upcoming election as there is a lot of misinformation being circulated in our community as to what is or isn't being taught in our schools. Most of it comes from people who read stuff on the internet and then repeat it as if it were happening in our schools. Our public schools are not to be politicized, whether it comes from the right or the left, as we represent ALL students. I will say, Critical Race Theory is not being taught in Park 1 and it never will be. Our kids are not being sexualized or brainwashed in our local schools. It is being said that the school board does not want parents at school board meetings, when in fact the opposite is the truth. Many times, the board has had discussions at work sessions on how we can get parents more involved with their children's education and provide the board with feedback. All our school board meetings are held in public, and by state statute only certain topics, i.e.: district personnel, student discipline and legal matters can be discussed in a closed-door session.

With that said, I would like to ask the voters of Park 1 school district to return Trace Paul & Lillian Brazelton to the office of school district trustee. I have had the privilege of working with Trace the past 12 years and Lillian for the past six years and can attest to their honest, hardworking nature. They both have put in the hours required to become excellent school board members by attending professional development for school board trustees. They put the time in that is required to be prepared for school board meetings and they regularly attend the board meetings and help make the decisions that guide our school district. The voters could not ask for better representatives for their kids and grandkids on our school board. 

I would also ask that the voters become well informed on the remaining school board candidates before they cast their votes in the fast-approaching election. There are some very good candidates on the ballot and there are some very misinformed candidates on the ballot. There are some candidates who recognize that we have a top performing district and want to help take the district to the next level academically and then there are those candidates who say we need to make drastic changes in the way the district operates. There are candidates who want to be on the board to learn and grow as a person and put in the time it takes to be a good school board trustee, and there are candidates who feel they have the answers already and they already know what's best for the district. Please become informed voters as this election could possibly change the course of this district for years to come. 

I am not publicly endorsing any of the remaining eight candidates, only Trace and Lillian, because I know where they stand and the job, they will do for the students of Park 1. I will however give anyone who would like to reach out to me, my perspective on the remaining candidates. Again, thank you for allowing me the privilege of serving the students at Park County School District 1 for the past 16 years. 

Greg Borcher

Retiring Park 1 board member