The Casper College Board of Trustees is reaching out to the Casper community with a letter outlining the college’s plans to address critical needs in Natrona County and Wyoming at large. That letter appears below.
Open Letter to the Casper Community:
The Casper College Board of Trustees, Casper College President Dr. Brandon Kosine, and the deans of our schools in health science and career and technical education, have been discussing how best to grow our capability to fill future workforce needs in the health sciences and construction trades. These schools are currently at or near capacity, and the opportunity for careers in these fields is rapidly developing.
The college trustees have directed Dr. Kosine to analyze and evaluate these college programs, staffing, equipment, technology, partnerships and facilities, to develop a deeper understanding of the challenges we face in growing these programs to adequately provide for the people we serve.
We want the community to know about these discussions, and that the college is making plans to address critical needs in Natrona County and Wyoming at large.
Career and Technical Education
For example, projects like the proposed Prometheus Hyperscale Data Center and others as they develop will require significant numbers of electricians, operators, mechanics, and technical employees. Training in these fields is currently available at Casper College, and our technology is adequate. However, future needs will require additional space and up-to-date tools, including technology and relevant educational environments.
Healthcare
Rural healthcare has long been a focus at Casper College. Many of the front-line healthcare professionals in Casper trained at Casper College. As the field grows and changes, Casper College responds. Currently, we are at or exceeding capacity, and demand continues to grow.
The Wyoming Rural Health Transformation Program demonstrates that state and federal leaders understand the need for workforce development in healthcare and are responding by making resources available.
It is the opinion of the Casper College trustees that this is the time to further invest in these programs, and we believe Casper is the most logical place to meet these workforce needs. Here’s why:
- Our central location to serve the rest of the state .
- Our ability to collaborate and access multiple clinical sites across numerous hospitals, clinics, healthcare providers, and vendors.
- The proven ability of Casper College to partner with other key constituencies.
- The college’s history of adapting and growing to meet current and emerging needs, and the buy-in of current staff to expand the substantial existing health-related programs at Casper College as well as initiating new opportunities.
- The fact that the University of Wyoming at Casper is already on our campus presents the possibility of a partnership with UW-Casper to offer bachelor’s and graduate-level courses that would benefit all of Wyoming for the above-stated reasons.
The Wyoming Rural Health Transformation Program presents a unique opportunity to access funding to refurbish and support existing programs like ours, and we will apply for that funding.
We are considering all aspects of support, including the construction of new buildings and additional staffing to accommodate the growth of the CTE and health science workforce programs. In addition to the Rural Health Transformation Program dollars, we will carefully consider all available avenues to fund these necessary initiatives, including state appropriations, our local bonding capacity, and philanthropic efforts.
Casper College is healthy and constantly looking for ways to best serve students, business, industry, and you.
We will keep you posted on our progress and appreciate your support.
Sincerely,
Chair David Applegate
Vice Chair Todd Milliken
Treasurer Dale Bohren
Secretary Jay Swedberg
Kim Byrd, Trustee
Brad Cundy, Trustee
Kathy Dolan, Trustee
