In front of an overflow crowd Wednesday night, the Albany County School Board voted against signing a ‘letter of commitment’ to sanction girls’ softball as a high school sport in Wyoming.

The question asked of the ACSD No. 1 School Board was whether they wanted to pledge support towards having Laramie High School as a committed member school for the sport to be sanctioned by the Wyoming High School Activities Association (WHSAA).

The vote was split, 4-4.

School Board members Tammy Johnson, Lawrence Perea, Mark Bittner, and Nate Martin supported Albany County School District No. 1 signing a letter in favor.

School Board Chair Janice Marshall and Board members Jason Tangeman, Karen Bienz, and Beth Bear voted against the measure.

The biggest reason given for voting no was due to finances and the current budgetary constraints within the school district.

There was one School Board member absent. It was announced at the meeting that Board member Michele Mitchum has submitted a letter of resignation.

ACSD No. 1 Superintendent Dr. Jubal Yennie opened the discussion on the issue with a recommendation against the proposal.

Board Chair Marshall explained that a majority was needed for ACSD No. 1 to essentially sign-up LHS for sanctioning the sport at the high school level. Since the vote ended in a tie, a majority did not prevail, and the motion did not pass.

KOWB presents videos of a lengthy discussion by the ACSD No. 1 School Board on the topic in three different videos. The first two below encompass a majority of the discussion by Board members. The third video begins with a comment from Board member Tammy Johnson and concludes with the vote.

A total of sixteen adults and girls who are involved in the Laramie Girls Softball (LGS) program spoke to the board during the public comment period at the start of the School Board’s monthly meeting.

School Boards in Cody, Green River, and Rock Springs have already approved their support. The measure is also being presented in Casper, Cheyenne, and Gillette. Eight member schools must be committed in order for the sport to be sanctioned as an activity offered by the WHSAA.

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