Administrators bar homeschool activity participation below high school level

WORLAND — Washakie County School District No. 1 Superintendent Tawn Argeris is proposing that homeschool students below high school level be disqualified from participating in district activities. 

At the board of trustees meeting on May 27, Arges said he intends to make the change effective the next school year. 

The district’s administrators unanimously support the measure, he said. 

Argeris has chosen to enact this change without approval from the school board. 

“What this change means is that we would align with the policy of the Wyoming High School Athletic Association. They have established guidelines for home school students to participate in our activities, and we will follow those exactly,” he said. 

WCSD1 is a member of the WHSAA, and must follow all guidelines that appear in the association’s handbook to compete in activities with other WHSAA members. 

The handbook provides conditions that homeschool students can meet to participate in district activities. These include applying for an affiliate WHSAA membership each year; paying a membership fee; paying their district’s enrollment fee; an insurance fee; and either paying an activity fee or entering a combination school agreement with their host school. 

The WHSAA provides these guidelines only at the high school level; the Worland school district is not enrolled in any regulating body for activities below the high school level, and up until now it has provided additional opportunities for homeschool students to participate in activities and take classes before high school. 

This decision would do away with the additional opportunities for homeschool students to participate in activities until they reach high school. 

Although Argeris stated that district administrators overwhelmingly support the change, several board members took issue with the superintendent’s decision to bypass their approval. 

“These discussions and decisions, to me, are bordering on being policy, and I wonder if they don’t need to be presented to the board as a proposed policy for our discussion and approval,” said Board Trustee Kathy Mercado. “I truly believe that it shouldn’t necessarily be a decision that the administrators make on their own — that the Board should be involved in that discussion. We are potentially targeting a small handful of individuals who many of us know, and worship and coach with.” 

Trustee Sarah Lungren added, “I would like to discuss this further as a team — procedure, policy, either way — discuss the ins and outs about what this looks like, so we’re all fully aware. I’m already fielding phone calls about this, and I think it would be helpful if we were more informed.” 

The general sentiment of those board members who spoke against the change is that this decision should involve the board’s oversight, as officials elected by the community. 

While parents were not in attendance at the board meeting, many parents took to social media to express concerns. 

The Northern Wyoming News reached out to some parents who expressed concern. 

“What I see right now are decisions being made behind closed doors, by a handful of people with authority but seemingly little desire to collaborate. Our teachers — many of whom are amazing and deeply committed — are caught in the middle. And our children? They’re becoming collateral damage in a system that sometimes seems to value enrollment numbers over real opportunity,” said homeschool parent Caryn Harding. “Where was the outreach to families and the community before these changes were enacted? Where was the transparency? Where were the conversations about solutions instead of just shutdowns?” 

“In our minds, continuing to allow homeschool kids to participate does a few things. First, it promotes community inclusion and goodwill. Allowing more children to participate strengthens homeschool family and public-school relations,”said Laura Barthelmess. “Closing the doors to homeschool children, who are unsure about returning to the public system, will not provide them with an opportunity to test out if they like it and possibly return. 

“Second, it increases the talent pool sports teams can draw from resulting in more competitive teams,” she added. “Anyone paying attention to the amount of kids going out for sports knows it certainly isn’t what it used to be. Why would we want to cut the teams further? While learning about House Bill 166 we read, ‘Money would also be made available to reimburse public schools that offer limited services and classes to students who are otherwise primarily homeschooled.’ 

“Our third point is that if money is the issue, there are funds available for public schools to compensate for any classes taken by homeschool kids,” Barthelmess said. “Lastly, if we say as educators our goal is to educate our students to their fullest potential, continuing to offer these classes and sports will provide holistic development and a bridge to future opportunities for all Washakie County students.” 

Argeris ended the discussion on May 27 hinting at a special meeting to hear district administrators’ reasoning behind their votes, saying, “You’ve heard from parents. You haven’t had an opportunity to hear the district’s side, and why a team of administrators came together with a unanimous decision on why they are choosing to only follow WHSAA guidelines. If we need to have a work session in which the administrators can explain to you what they have to deal with on a day-to-day basis and the difficulties it provides them, you will have a better understanding of why we came together as a team and said, ‘we need to make some tougher decisions for the betterment of all.’” 

This story was published on June 5, 2025.