10/29/24
In Defense of Lander’s Teachers and Schools
10/13/24
Veterans for Scott Jensen and Taylor Jacobs
10/11/2024
A Response to Negative Campaigning
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9/26/2024
IS IT WRONG FOR A SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATE TO BE CONSERVATIVE?
In Wyoming, school boards are non-partisan bodies. When candidates run for positions on school boards they do not run as Democrats or Republicans. Does this mean candidates or current board members do not have political leanings or ideological beliefs. Of course not!
Across our country we have seen school boards that espouse extreme far left political views. Even in our own community there are some who have advocated for the inclusion of sexually explicit material in our schools, demanded policies should NOT require parental notification about a child’s wellbeing, demanded our schools remain closed during the Covid pandemic, and they have opposed common sense security measures like conceal carry for qualified staff. While serving on the school board and as conservatives, Taylor Jacobs and I (Scott Jensen) have successfully stood firm against these leftist demands.
As candidates for Fremont County School District #1 School Board, Dr. Virginia Arbery, Taylor Jacobs, and I (Scott Jensen) are NOT running partisan campaigns. But we are being honest candidates when we let you know we are conservative, because conservatism is a way of thinking, not a political party. If elected, voters can be confident all three of us will stand true to our conservative principles as we work to improve the quality of education offered in our schools in Lander. Candidates who claim their worldview doesn’t enter into how they would vote on the school board are being dishonest with themselves and voters.
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June 21, 2024
Lander Schools for Lander Families
Parental Rights
Do schools have a duty to report to parents changes in their child’s educational, physical, mental, or emotional wellbeing? Should this even be a question? Of course they do. Recently, Lander’s Fremont County School District #1 passed a policy affirming these parental rights. However, several people spoke in opposition to this policy, claiming to be concerned for the safety of “queer” students. The main argument against the policy seemed to be that parents will become a danger to their own children when this type of information is shared with them. Does child abuse exist? Absolutely. Is it pervasive in our community? Absolutely not! If there is evidence that a child is truly in danger, then mandatory reporters in our schools must report this to the police or DFS. Outside of these rare circumstances, any adult making unfounded accusations about parents being a danger to their own children should be looked at with suspicion. Those driving a wedge between children and parents by smearing parents do not have the best interest of children in mind. For these people, politics seems to trump the wellbeing of children. A child’s parents have their best interest at heart and a parent’s care is vital, precious, and irreplaceable. Parents are the ones who love and support their child more than anyone else. All children deserve and need this support. Our schools should be partnering with parents rather than hiding information about a child who is struggling with difficult issues. Fortunately our Lander Schools are full of educators that value parents and recognize the vital role parents play in the lives of their children.
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June 29, 2023
Why Drug Test Students?
Over the last several years drug and alcohol abuse amongst students in Lander’s schools has increased dramatically as evidenced by the increase in the number of students found intoxicated at school or caught with drugs or alcohol in their possession at school. As a school district we are limited in how we can respond to this growing epidemic, but one thing is clear to me: we cannot continue to stand by and allow this trend to continue unabated.
Recently the school board has been discussing a potential drug testing policy originally proposed by Board Chairman Jared Kail as one way to address this problem. I have spoken in support of this policy and will likely vote for it when it is up for first reading at our July 18, 2023 meeting. The policy, as it is currently proposed, will require all students who wish to participate in extracurricular activities to submit to drug testing. The testing program will be limited to this population of students because these are the students the law will permit us to test. Here are the benefits as I see them:
- Students will be able to participate in activities in an environment free from substance abuse
- A student who might have used drugs will choose activities instead
- Students will have another reason to say no to drugs
- A positive test means a student will be able to get the help they need
Once implemented, how will we know if the drug testing policy is working? I suggest the following metrics will help measure success or failure:
- Number of expulsions for drug use or possession in school
- Survey of student mental health and substance abuse
- Number of positive tests
- Number of students who test positive that successfully return to activities
- Percent of students participating in activities and how many seasons they participate in
I am hopeful that we will be able to compare the results of these measures year over year and will see indications that drug use amongst students starts to decrease.
If you have concerns for or against this policy please consider coming to the board meeting on July 18, 2023 at 6pm in the district office building on 9th and Sweetwater or you can always email me at sjensen@landerschools.org.
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Banned Book Controversy or Yellow Journalism
By Scott Jensen, Taylor Jacobs, and Mike McConnel – Members of FCSD#1 Board of Trustees
The following are our opinions alone and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the FCSD#1 Board as a whole.
Banned Books
On April 22, 2023 the Lander Journal published an article insinuating there was a controversy during the Fremont County School District #1 Board of Trustees meeting held on April 18. The discussion surrounded a display in the Lander Valley High School Library labeled “Banned Books.” Those familiar with current events in public schools around the country will recognize this type of display in a school library as a common tactic by activist school librarians to inject their personal political views into the libraries they are tasked to oversee. The display was in no way labeled as a student project leaving reasonable people to conclude it had been created by the LVHS librarian. Some of these people notified members of the school board rightfully wondering why the high school was sponsoring such a politically charged display.
FCSD#1 Superintendent Dave Barker was asked to look into the matter. His investigation revealed the display was a student project and thus permissible. The only question to be resolved was why the display remained without attribution. This is an important question because staff of FCSD#1 are required to remain neutral in religious, political, and controversial matters. Unfortunately, in the past some members of staff have not been willing to remain neutral, behavior the district cannot tolerate. Had the display been created by a member of staff it would have violated district policies INB – Teaching Controversial Issues and GBE – Staff Rights and Responsibilities. Leaving the display without attribution risked leaving reasonable observers to conclude some members of staff are above these policies.
Threats of Gun Violence
In the same article the Lander Journal published rumors there had been threats of gun violence that had gone unaddressed, insinuating the district doesn’t care about the group of students that felt they were the target of this rumored violence. In the initial printing of the article the Lander Journal seemed to suggest that a member of staff was responsible for spreading the rumor to the reporter. The Lander Journal has, post publication, modified their article online correcting what they claim was a mistake. The Lander Journal in this modified article makes no mention of the article being an updated or corrected version or that the modification occurred. It is unclear how the Lander Journal will modify and correct the printed publication.
According to the Lander Journal’s update the member of staff did not address the rumored threats of violence specifically, but rather addressed generic concerns expressed by some students. Even though the member of staff did not spread the rumor directly, they were a part of the interview where the discussion of student threats was mentioned. As a district employee this staff member should have clarified any unsubstantiated claims of violence or threats to FCSD#1 students. The rumored threats of any student violence last year during student walk-outs were in fact unfounded . The spreading of this rumor by the Lander Journal and indirectly by staff is particularly egregious behavior as it unnecessarily increases anxiety amongst students and creates fear where none is needed. It also sows the seeds of distrust among students, parents, and the school district. Our community should be able to trust that the students in our community are safe from harm and any substantiated threats to our students will be taken seriously.
A reputable and unbiased news source would fact-check and verify these claims of violence, especially this significant in nature. As a community we should be able to expect a higher standard of journalism, even from a small local paper. Freedom of the press is a pillar of our democracy, but to be worth anything it requires those practicing the trade to uphold rigorous ethical and journalistic standards. We sincerely hope the Lander Journal will take steps to correct these errors and will, in the future, become the trustworthy news source our community needs.
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School Board Thoughts Part II – by Scott Jensen
The following is a letter written and published on County 10 on January 12, 2023, in response to a community member letter published on County 10 on December 22, 2022.
Recently County 10 published an opinion piece full of lies and half truths that accused me specifically and the Fremont County School District #1 Board of Trustees (Lander School Board) as a whole of having “a history of making harmful decisions.” It further accused me personally of playing an “insidious game under the disguise of niceness” and gaslighting, apparently for having the audacity to discuss school governance (library policies and practices) in an open, public meeting. If the school board cannot discuss and be involved in school governance, who can? Unfortunately my service on the Lander School Board has opened me to being a target of both public and private attacks by a vocal minority in Lander who would like to silence me. This won’t work.
Please let me share a bit about my background and how I came to serve on the Lander School Board. I was raised in Wyoming and have lived in Lander for almost 8 years. I have spent a majority of my adult life in public service. I am a veteran of the U.S. Army and have spent the last 17 years as a law enforcement officer. I am a husband and father. I have seven children. Two of those seven children were first fostered and subsequently adopted. I am a man of faith and actively attend and serve in my church.
A little over three years ago I started serving our community as a member of the Lander School Board. I was first appointed and then elected to this volunteer unpaid position for which I sacrifice my time and energy. I do this because our schools are of vital importance, both to me personally and to our community. My children have attended all of our schools except Pathfinder and Jeffrey City. My wife and I have been pleased with the educational experience our children have received.
Lander’s schools are full of dedicated and excellent teachers and staff. But still there is room for improvement. I doubt you could find anyone working in our district who would say everything is perfect and nothing should change. Make no mistake, I am looking for incremental changes that can be made that will improve on the already excellent education offered in Lander.
What are my “insidious” plans? Simply this, adhering to the principle of parental rights in school. I believe that parental rights and involvement are critical to the success of children in our public schools. Policies and procedures should be crafted and implemented in a way that respects the natural right of parents to act as the guardians of their children. Our schools need to recognize (and usually do) that parents are the most invested and able to make the best decisions about the education of their children. Our schools should support parents in educating kids, not undermine them. It is through this lens that I view the policies that govern our school district. I have been and will continue to be a voice for parents and I will advocate for policies that recognize parental rights.
I would love to discuss our schools with any concerned member of our community. You can find my contact information on the district website.
Scott Jensen
Vice-Chairman
Fremont County School District #1 Board of Trustees
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2022 Election
Dear Reader,
Below is an email that I have written in response to many inquiries and conversations regarding the upcoming 2022 election. It was originally addressed to individuals who have communicated with be during my time as a school board member. I am sharing it in the hope that you will find it informative and useful.
Respectfully,
Scott Jensen
In the past you have supported my efforts as a member of the school board. I am writing to you concerning the upcoming election, as it will be critical for our schools. There are 4 school board seats up for election out of 7 total. A small change in the ideological composition of the board will have disastrous consequences for our district. For example, over the last several years there has been a slim majority on the board, often only 1 vote, willing to fight against federal and state overreach in regard to school closures and mask / vaccine mandates. Although we are unlikely to be confronted again in the near future with anything like COVID, there are other issues of significant importance facing our schools that currently barely have majority board support, often by only 1 vote. These issues include:
– Parental rights / community values in our schools
– Equal treatment for all students and staff
– School security
Having watched candidate forums and having spoken with many of the candidates, I believe there are 5 candidates that will support policies that will strengthen the district’s stance on these issues. I strongly encourage you to vote for 4 of these 5 candidates and to spread the word to people you know. Our schools need the support of all concerned parents and community members.
Please consider voting for 4 of these candidates:
Jared Kail
Jennifer Butler
Mike McConnell
Todd Sutton
Ralph Vinci
SUMMARY OF ISSUES
Parental rights / community values in our schools
Parents should have a right to be fully involved in the education their child receives in our schools. When a parent sends their child to school they should be able to trust that the content of the curriculum, the instruction in the classroom, and the books in the library will generally align with our community’s values. They should be able to trust that no attempt will be made by anyone in the school to indoctrinate their child with sexual, political, or religious ideologies behind their back.
Equal treatment for all students and staff
All students deserve equal access to the highest quality education our district can provide. All members of our staff deserve to be held to the same standards and treated equally in their employment with the district. There should not be any favored sub-groups that are singled out for special treatment or consideration. Our non-discrimination policies should align with those defined in federal and state law.
School Security
For several years the district has had a common sense approach to school security which includes having competent, capable, vetted, and trained staff, who have volunteered, be armed in our buildings. This is part of a layered defense strategy that helps ensure the safety of our students in the very unlikely event that a school shooter was to enter one of our buildings.
Thank you for staying informed about our schools and the support you have given me in the past.
Scott Jensen
Scott Jensen 