WEDNESDAY, June 17, 2026 |
Photo – Elk Mountain school’s gymnasium – Bigfoot99 file photo
The Carbon County School District Two Board is considering alternative uses for the Elk Mountain School.
For the fourth year in a row, no students are enrolled at the Elk Mountain School. Last year, the district allowed the Elk Mountain government to use the building as a town hall and community center. The school also remained open as an attendance center when weather prevented students from reaching the Hanna schools. However, with no new students, the district is considering other options for the facility.
During Monday’s Carbon County School District Two Board of Trustees meeting in Elk Mountain, Superintendent Darrin Jennings said the state will allow the district to close the school, take the building out of active service, or find another use for it. Jennings said he appreciates the school being open for the community but acknowledged that it creates added costs for the district.
School District Two Business Manager Sally Wells said that because of how the state allocates funding, the Elk Mountain School was still receiving state money. With no students for a fourth year, that support will end.
In addition, Wells said the district paid nearly $11,000 in utility bills in May. She said those costs are evenly split with the town, which also donates water and sewer service.
Wells said she reached out to the Wyoming School Facilities Commission for guidance on what the district can legally do with the Elk Mountain School. The business manager said the best option appears to be taking the building out of service until there are students again, called mothballing. Wells said the state is unclear if the building can be used while out of service, but it appears it can.
Wells said the district would need permission from the Wyoming School Facilities Commission to mothball the Elk Mountain School. She said state guidelines allow a facility to be out of service for up to six years, but the Facilities Commission has not clarified what happens after that period ends.
Earlier in the meeting, the Board of Trustees heard from BOCES Five Deputy Executive Director of Programming Ted Hanson, who outlined a proposal to use the Elk Mountain School as a day school for students needing emotional, behavioral, or mental‑health support.
BOCES stands for the Board of Cooperative Educational Services. BOCES 5 operates the state’s network of accredited therapeutic and alternative‑education programs for K‑12 students.
Deputy Executive Director of Programming Ted Hanson said the Elk Mountain School is a good fit for BOCES use.
Hansen said they could accept students from both Carbon County school districts and Albany County School District One, with BOCES covering the transportation costs.
Because BOCES 5 delivers legally mandated special‑education programs, the Wyoming Department of Education fully reimburses the districts for their participation costs.
Superintendent Jennings said he would like to keep the school open only for the town of Elk Mountain to use, but the district’s finances won’t allow it. He said the building was designed to be a school, and he wants to see students attending classes there again.
Jennings said the Elk Mountain School could be used to keep students with severe emotional, behavioral, or mental‑health needs in the community, close to family and friends, instead of sending them to a full‑time residential facility such as the C‑V Ranch School in Jackson.
Later in the meeting, the superintendent said that as a BOCES day school, the state would help cover the district’s day‑to‑day upkeep of the Elk Mountain School.
Board of Trustees member Paul Clark asked if the district could take the facility out of service and still run a BOCES program in the building. Superintendent Jennings said yes, adding that the state program operates in many mothballed locations.
Business Manager Sally Wells said districts are allowed to use state funding to preserve mothballed schools, but the state construction department limits how much money can be spent on out‑of‑service facilities. Superintendent Jennings said lawmakers claim to stand behind rural schools while restricting needed financial support.
The Carbon County School District Two Board of Trustees was simply considering alternative uses for the Elk Mountain School, and no decision was made during Monday’s meeting.
