David Applegate (Not Applicable)

821 S Beech St
Casper, Wyoming 82601-3701
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My name is Dave Applegate. I was raised in Glenrock, attended the University of Wyoming, and have lived in Casper since 1998. I am a civil engineer who moved to Casper to work on the Former Amoco refinery cleanup project. After the Three Crowns golf course opened in 2005, I changed career direction and went to work for Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (now Occidental) where I have worked over the last 15-plus years facilitating the environmental planning and advocating for the federal approval of large oil and gas projects, such as the ongoing play in Converse County. I have three adult children. I enjoy sports, reading American history, and traveling with my high school sweetheart and wife of 36 years, Diana.

I have worked 34 years as a project engineer/project manager/regulatory advisor. I spent the first half of my career working on remediation projects, including a number of projects in Colorado, Laramie, and the former Amoco Refinery Project in Casper. I changed career direction in 2005 and have since focused on environmental planning for Anadarko Petroleum (now Occidental). I served three terms – a total of 12 years – on the Natrona County School Board.

I started elementary school and completed high school in Glenrock. I attended the University of Wyoming and received a degree in Civil Engineering. I then attended graduate school at Duke University and graduated with a Master's of Science in Environmental Engineering. I continue to maintain a Professional Engineering license in Wyoming thru continuing education.

I served three terms on the Natrona County School Board where I championed the establishment of a financial literacy course requirement for graduation, a renewed focus on civics in the social studies curriculum, and policies that support career and technical education opportunities at district high schools and the Pathways Innovation Center. I strongly supported the creation of dual language immersion programs in the district. I have often spearheaded Board support to fund infrastructure needs.

I believe in the value of education and public service. I believe Casper College is incredibly important to this community and an outstanding institution. My wife and two of my children graduated from Casper College, and all benefited from the opportunities the College provided. One of my sons was on the T-bird basketball team while attending CC. I want to support the College’s ongoing excellence and growth into the future.

I plan to study and understand the issues that come before the board and to better appreciate the challenges facing Community Colleges in Wyoming. I plan to build rapport with fellow trustees, if elected. I intend to listen closely to the Casper College faculty, staff, and administrative leadership; CC students and alumni; and the public at large when they share their insights on how institutional excellence can be maintained and adaptions made as needed in policy, infrastructure or degree offerings to best serve the needs of students and the State of Wyoming. Finally, I will enthusiastically support the ongoing recognition and celebration of the many accomplishments of faculty, students, and alumni.

My top priorities are:
1) Serving Students – it's the prime reason I am running for the board.
2) Engaging with the community and listening to stakeholders
3) Supporting sustained excellence for Casper College

I am fiscally conservative and in my time on the School Board I have served multiple times as the treasurer. I am good with numbers and believe that public monies need to be spent wisely. Education funding is complex and requires attention to detail. I also strongly believe the public should get high value for all public expenditures. Over the last decade the school district has spent less than the budgeted amount every year, and thereby created savings to address future infrastructure needs in the district. At the same time, over the last several years I have also been a vocal advocate for increasing compensation to recruit and retain high quality employees within our district. I would bring these skills and values to the Casper College Board.

Boards should be transparent in their decision-making. I have a history of closely studying the issues, asking detailed questions during work sessions, and providing explanation for my votes during public meetings. If elected to the College Board I will continue this practice. Transparency encourages public participation, and I believe public boards make better decisions when the public is engaged on issues.

I do not approach this opportunity with an agenda and will work diligently to address challenges that arise.