Recently, Rep. Rodriguez-Williams wrote a guest column mischaracterizing the Wyoming Education Association (WEA) and the educators we represent.
It’s time to set the record straight.
To begin, WEA is not some outside bureaucracy or national machine. We are a Wyoming 501(c)(6) nonprofit, funded by and run by Wyoming educators.
We answer only to our members: the teachers, education support professionals, bus drivers and staff who dedicate their lives to the students of our state.
To suggest otherwise isn’t just wrong, it’s an insult to the thousands of education professionals who are the backbone of this state.
The representative further attacks WEA for filing a lawsuit against the new Education Savings Account (ESA) bill but conveniently leaves out a key fact: the legislation is unconstitutional, and lawmakers themselves admitted this during debate.
WEA filed suit because Wyoming deserves policies that are legal, stable, and sustainable, not reckless experiments destined to collapse under judicial scrutiny.
And let’s be clear: Wyoming parents already have choices when it comes to education. Families can access dual-language programs, project-based learning, gifted and talented programs, district charter schools, and state charter schools.
All these options are free, public, and constitutional. Parents should absolutely be able to decide what’s best for their children, and they already can.
Homeschooling and private schools are also options, but those are family-funded choices, not ones that should be subsidized with taxpayer dollars. Public funds belong in public schools, accountable to Wyoming communities.
What parents should not be asked to support is the siphoning of Wyoming tax dollars into private entities. That’s not just unconstitutional, it’s not the Wyoming way.
In fact, in a survey conducted by a Republican polling firm, more than 70 percent of Wyoming residents oppose this misuse of public dollars for voucher programs.
On the contrary, the push for ESAs is being driven by well-funded outside groups, not by the families and educators who live and work here. Wyoming families deserve solutions that are legal, local, and sustainable.
Rep. Rodriguez-Williams also tries to tie WEA to rhetoric and resolutions from other states or the national association.
Here are the facts: WEA is about Wyoming, period.
When the National Education Association adopted a controversial new business item with offensive language, Wyoming delegates voted unanimously to oppose it. I personally released a formal statement denouncing it.
Those words do not represent Wyoming educators, and we made sure that was clear.
For 133 years, WEA has been the trusted voice of Wyoming’s educators. We’ve stood up for students, defended our Constitution, and worked to strengthen our schools.
Politicians like Rep. Rodriguez-Williams may want to silence educators by calling for a “new” organization, but the truth is simple: Wyoming already has a strong organization: it’s called the Wyoming Education Association.
The real threat to public education in this state isn’t the WEA, it’s the political games that distract from the real challenges facing our schools.
We need to recruit and retain high quality teachers and support staff, address declining resources, and support students’ mental health. Educators show up every day to do this difficult work. What we don’t need are politicians attacking the very people on the frontlines of Wyoming classrooms.
The representative is right about one thing: Wyoming students and families deserve better.
But better doesn’t mean unconstitutional voucher schemes or outside agendas dressed up as “choice.”
Better means strong public schools, dedicated educators, and honest leadership that puts ALL Wyoming children, families and communities first.
That’s what the WEA will continue fighting for — because at the end of the day, we are Wyoming.
By Kimberly Amen, President, Wyoming Education Association
