Short answer
How do Wyoming teachers renew a license and move up the salary schedule?
A Wyoming Educator License is valid for up to five years. For most teaching fields, Wyoming requires five Professional Development/Renewal Credits to renew it. Credits can come from accredited college courses, including community colleges, from workshops approved by the Professional Teaching Standards Board (PTSB), or from work toward national board certification. Lane changes are governed by each district's salary schedule and policy.
Sources: Wyoming PTSB, Renewing a License or Permit; PTSB Rules Chapter 8. Checked .
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How do you renew a Wyoming teaching license?
The board's renewal page says every educator completes Professional Development/Renewal Credits, and that the requirement for a given license is printed on "the reverse side of the license or permit itself." For the common case it is specific: "For most teaching & administrative fields, five (5) Professional Development/Renewal Credits will be required to renew."
The cycle itself is set in the board's Rules Chapter 8, Renewal Requirements for Educator Licenses and Permits. Section 6 says the Educator License is "Valid for up to five years," and that "Five (5) semester hours of university/college credit and/or 75 contact hours are required to renew the Educator License." All endorsements on the license renew with it. Section 3 adds that "All renewal credits must be earned within the validity dates of the License or Permit," so credit earned before your current license began does not carry forward. Permits follow their own validity periods, printed on each permit.
Three kinds of activity earn those credits:
- College coursework. Courses from an accredited college or university, community colleges included.
- PTSB-approved workshops. Workshops offered by a district, a community group or an education organization that the board has approved for credit.
- National board work. Credits earned while pursuing national board certification.
The board also allows micro-credentials. Its micro-credentialing policy awards half a renewal credit for each completed micro-credential "per PTSB Rules Chapter 8," as long as the program is PTSB-approved.
Timing is strict at one end. The renewal page says a complete application must be received before the current license expires, and the board accepts renewal applications up to six months before the expiration date. Look at the back of your license for your own credit total and expiration date before you plan coursework.
How workshop hours become credits
The board's Attending a Workshop page sets the conversion: 7 contact hours equal half a credit, 14 hours equal one credit, and so on up to 70 hours for five credits. The credit awarded also depends on the content and the instructor's credentials, and some types of training are not accepted. Our article on clock hours, CEUs and semester credits compares this with other states' conversions.
Workshops that were not approved in advance can still count. The Not Pre-Approved for Credit page explains that a teacher submits an Individual Workshop Request for training of at least 7 contact hours, within 30 days of finishing it. For approved workshops, the renewal credit notice says facilitators enter the credits, instructors do not earn credit for workshops they teach, and teachers should check that their credits were recorded well before renewal. The board's professional development section collects these pages.
A PTSB credit is not a semester credit. Workshop credits renew a license, but districts decide what moves a teacher across the salary schedule. Campbell County, for example, caps district and PTSB credits at six per lane change and requires most of each move to be graduate-level, and LCSD1 counts hours from accredited institutions.
How is teacher pay set in Wyoming?
Wyoming has no state salary schedule. Under W.S. 21-3-111(a)(vi), each district board has the power to "Employ and determine the salaries and duties of" its teachers and other staff. W.S. 21-3-110(a)(ii)(A) has each board publish salary information every year, including "the district salary schedule," so the current grid is a public document.
State law does add one payment on top of local schedules. W.S. 21-7-501 provides an annual payment to teachers with national board certification, paid by the district and reimbursed by the state; for teachers certified on or after January 1, 2021, it is limited to 15 payments.
Because each board writes its own rules, the lane names, the number of credits per move and the filing dates differ across the state. Our guides to reading a salary schedule and how lane changes work explain the common patterns.
What do the largest Wyoming districts require?
The cards below cover Laramie County School District #1 (LCSD1) in Cheyenne, Natrona County and Campbell County. LCSD1's own salary pages need a district sign-in, so its card uses the negotiated agreement posted with the board's public meeting agenda.
Laramie County School District #1
Cheyenne teachers are paid under the 2026-2027 negotiated agreement between the board and the Cheyenne Teachers Education Association (CTEA), which the board ratified on May 18, 2026. Its CTEA salary schedule has RN/ROTC, BA, BA+15, BA+30, BA+45, MA, MA+15, MA+30, MA+45 and DR columns, with experience steps 1 through 25.
- Credits: Section VI, Article 1 gives credit "for hours or degrees earned in a field applicable to their current teaching assignment," earned at accredited institutions after the degree you were placed on; hours used for an earlier placement do not count again.
- Pre-approval: written notice of the anticipated change, and coursework "approved by the employee's principal or immediate supervisor," with official transcripts sent to the Executive Director of Human Resources, who approves every placement.
- Deadlines: column shift requests are due "by January 31" (pay effective February 1) or "September 30" (pay effective October 1).
- 2026-2027 terms: one step advancement, and "Approved column advancement shall be permitted for eligible employees."
Natrona County School District #1
Natrona's 2026-2027 certified salary schedule has ten education columns, from BA through BA+15, BA+30, BA+45, MA, MA+15, MA+30, MA+45 and MA+60 to DR, plus a separate speech-language pathologist column, with steps 1 through 25.
- Column caps: the BA and BA+15 columns stop at step 10, MA at step 14, MA+30 at step 17, and MA+60 and DR run to step 25, so added credit also lengthens the schedule.
- Contract: "Certified professionals are a 185 day contract."
- Incentives: the district's compensation and benefits page lists "education incentives for continuing education and professional development" and national board incentive requests.
Campbell County School District #1
Campbell's 2026-2027 certified salary schedule has BA, BA+15, BA+30, BA+45, MA, MA+15, MA+30, MA+45 and DR columns. Policy 4060-R sets the rules for each move.
- Credits: 15 per horizontal move, at least 9 of them graduate-level, from a CHEA-accredited institution, earned after initial placement and after the most recent advancement.
- Pre-approval: graduate-level credits must be approved through the district's professional learning platform before enrolling; undergraduate credit needs administrator and committee approval, with a 15-credit career limit.
- District and PTSB credit: at most 6 per lane change; 15 professional development hours make one credit, converted in December and May.
- Deadline: requests to Human Resources "no later than September 10" of the contract year, under Policy 4060.
Full district guides for Wyoming
Before you enroll
- Read the back of your license. The PTSB prints each license's renewal requirement there; five credits within a license term of up to five years is the common case.
- Separate renewal from lanes. A PTSB workshop credit renews a license but may count only in part, or not at all, toward a district lane move.
- Get district approval first. Campbell requires graduate-level coursework to be approved before enrolling, and LCSD1 asks for written notice and your principal's or supervisor's approval of the coursework; see our pre-approval forms article.
- Keep workshop records current. File an Individual Workshop Request within 30 days for training that was not pre-approved, and check that facilitator-entered credits appear.
- Mind both clocks. Renewal applications open six months before expiration; Campbell lane requests are due September 10, and LCSD1 column shifts are due January 31 or September 30.
The provider directory groups semester-credit providers by need, and the comparison table shows their costs and formats side by side.
Wyoming questions teachers ask
How many credits do I need to renew a Wyoming teaching license?
For most teaching and administrative fields, five Professional Development/Renewal Credits. The exact requirement is printed on the back of your license or permit.
How long is a Wyoming teaching license valid?
PTSB Rules Chapter 8 makes the Educator License valid for up to five years, and the renewal credits must be earned within those validity dates. Permits have their own validity periods.
How many workshop hours equal one PTSB renewal credit?
Fourteen contact hours equal one credit and seven equal half a credit, up to 70 hours for five credits, subject to the board's review of content and instructor credentials.
Can a workshop that was not pre-approved count?
Yes, if it was at least 7 contact hours and you submit an Individual Workshop Request within 30 days of completing it.
When can I submit a Wyoming renewal application?
Up to six months before the license expires. A complete application must reach the board before the expiration date.
Is there a state salary schedule in Wyoming?
No. Each district board sets salaries under W.S. 21-3-111 and publishes its schedule each year. State law adds an annual national board payment.
How many credits does Campbell County require for a lane change?
Fifteen per horizontal move, at least nine of them graduate-level, with no more than six district or PTSB credits counted toward any one move.
When are Laramie County School District #1 column changes due?
Under the 2026-2027 CTEA agreement, column shift requests are due January 31, with pay effective February 1, or September 30, with pay effective October 1.
Sources
- Renewing a License or Permit, Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board. Checked
- Rules Chapter 8, Renewal Requirements for Educator Licenses and Permits (019.0001.8.05122010), Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board, Wyoming Administrative Rules. Checked
- Professional Development, Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board. Checked
- Attending a Workshop, Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board. Checked
- Not Pre-Approved for Credit, Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board. Checked
- Workshop or Renewal Credit Notice, Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board. Checked
- Micro-Credentialing Policy, Wyoming Professional Teaching Standards Board. Checked
- Wyoming Statutes Title 21, Education (W.S. 21-3-110, 21-3-111, 21-7-501), Wyoming Legislature. Checked
- Negotiated Agreement, July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 (CTEA), Laramie County School District #1. Checked
- Board of Trustees Regular Meeting, May 18, 2026: agenda and minutes, Laramie County School District #1. Checked
- Certified Salary Schedule 2026-2027, Natrona County School District #1. Checked
- Compensation and Benefits, Natrona County School District #1. Checked
- Salary/Pay Schedules, Campbell County School District #1. Checked
- Certified Salary Schedule 2026-2027, Campbell County School District #1. Checked
- Policy 4060, Salary adjustments for additional education, Campbell County School District #1. Checked
- Policy 4060-R, Salary adjustments for additional education, Campbell County School District #1. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error