Wyoming – Wyoming is putting new emphasis on the ACT. Last year, for the first time, the state administered the test during the school day. It was mandatory for all students, unless they took another test called WorkKeys. Unfortunately, Wyoming's average score on the ACT dropped. As Wyoming Public Radio's Renny MacKay reports, it's again time for students to take the ACT - and people around the state are looking for ways to increase scores.

Wyoming – The cost of education continues to rise, and some fear that as the economy spins downward, lawmakers will not be able to afford reforms that have taken place. Wyoming Senate Education Committee Chairman Hank Coe is more optimistic. Bob Beck spoke with Coe this week.

Wyoming – The recession is hitting more than banks and homes. State budget cuts and flat funding from the federal government are straining scientists and research labs. Adam Allington reports that the effects might not be as obvious or immediate as the house foreclosures and the credit crisis, but the future for science jobs and innovation might be just as bad.

Wyoming – Climate change researchers are asking people in Wyoming to keep a close eye on local plants - everything from aspens to alfalfa to switchgrass. It's part of a national effort called the Phenology Network, where regular people gather data on the natural world to help scientists understand how the earth is changing. Jake Weltzin is a US Geological Survey scientist and directs the Phenology Network. Wyoming Public Radio's Addie Goss spoke with him this week.

Wyoming – A deadline is fast approaching for about a thousand members of the Wyoming Army National Guard. In mid-April they will leave for Fort Hood, Texas. Soon after, they'll go to Kuwait and Iraq. There is a lot to do before they go: draft a will, set up auto-pay on their utilities, and find people to care for their children, their aging parents, or their pets. There's more training, too. Wyoming Public Radio's Addie Goss has this story.

Wyoming – Wyoming Public Radio's Bob Beck talks to Andrew Schenkle of KCWY, Jared Miller of the Casper Star-Tribune, and Bill McCarthy of the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle in this week's reporter's notebook.

Wyoming – This session, the Wyoming legislature came close to letting more kids get coverage under the State Children's Health Insurance Program. The measure failed late in the session, after strong support in the Senate. Wyoming Public Radio's Molly Messick looks at how the bill's failure affects one Wyoming family.

By Addie Goss

Laramie, WY – National media outlets are pointing to Wyoming as a possible recipient of pork-barrel spending. The House version of the federal budget bill set aside $190,000 for the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody to edit and digitize its collection. People from Sean Hannity of FOX News to Senator John McCain have said it's an obvious example of pork.