‘Listening sessions’ scheduled for Gillette College proposal

Wyoming’s Community College Commission will meet in November to decide on a request by Gillette College to form its own, separate community college.

But in the meantime, the state college commission has scheduled two “listening sessions” this month to gather public comments on the request – one on Oct. 10 in Gillette and the other on Oct. 14 in Riverton.

Campbell County Commissioner Rusty Bell, one of those in favor of separating Gillette College from the Northern Wyoming Community College District in Sheridan, is hopeful of winning the college commission’s approval.

What Bell called the “tax thing” is a requirement of Wyoming statute that a community college must levy a property tax of 4 mills in order to get state funding.

If the college commission in November recommends allowing Gillette to form a college independent of the NWCCD, the request then must be acted upon by Wyoming’s Legislature next year.

Bell said the tax question then would go before Campbell County voters. There are only three times in a year that an election could be held – in May, August or November.

Among the issues that is driving the current push to form a separate Gillette College, Bell said, is that the residents of Campbell County have no say in what happens to their community college. All decisions are made by the NWCCD trustees, all of whom are elected in Sheridan County.

The specific issue behind the current move was the NWCCD trustees’ decision to cancel sports at both Sheridan and Gillette colleges this year and not consider an offer by the Gillette College Foundation to fund sports at the Gillette campus.

Bell said there are concerns that, when more budget cuts come down and must be implemented, it would be very easy for NWCCD President Dr. Walt Tribley and the college board to decide to close Gillette College.