A Wyoming resident, Matt Johnson, is calling for an expansion of the state’s Hathaway scholarship program, saying broader eligibility could improve access to higher education and workforce training within the state.

In a press release issued Tuesday, Johnson said education is “one of the most important economic drivers” and argued that Wyoming should widen the scholarship’s benefits to reach more students and support more forms of postsecondary education.

According to the release, Johnson’s proposal would add an extra year of eligibility to the Hathaway program. He said that change would give students more time to explore different career paths and pursue additional training before entering the workforce.

Johnson also said he wants trade schools to be included as part of the scholarship’s eligible options. In the release, he framed that change as a way to build technical expertise in Wyoming and support infrastructure development in the state.

He further argued that expanding the program could help attract businesses and create new opportunities for residents. Those economic claims were presented in the press release as expected benefits of stronger educational access and a larger pool of skilled workers.

The release did not include legislative language, cost estimates, or details on how eligibility would be expanded in practice. It also did not specify what standards trade schools would need to meet under the proposal or how any additional year of scholarship support would be funded.

Johnson does not currently hold public office, according to the information provided. His background summary describes him as politically interested from a young age, including service as a student council president, and says he is beginning to enter politics upon reaching adulthood.

Because Johnson holds no office, the statement amounts to a policy pitch rather than a formal government action. Any change to a Wyoming scholarship program would ordinarily require action through the state’s political process. No bill or official state response was included in the material provided.

Even so, education and workforce development can carry political weight at the state level, particularly when tied to economic growth, skills training, and efforts to retain students in-state. In Wyoming, Johnson’s emphasis on trade schools and infrastructure-related training places his message alongside broader debates over how states prepare workers for both college-based and technical careers.

His framing also reflects a practical argument likely aimed at local concerns: keeping more students in Wyoming, broadening pathways after high school, and aligning education policy with employment needs. The release presents those goals as connected, though it offers no outside data to support the projected effects.

The announcement arrives without any listed opposition, endorsements, or related issue context. No recent articles provided alongside the release addressed Wyoming education policy directly, and the release itself did not mention coordination with lawmakers, educators, or existing scholarship administrators.

For now, the proposal stands as an early public statement from a new political entrant outlining a position on education. Johnson’s release presents the expansion of Hathaway benefits as an investment in students, technical training, and long-term state growth, but the specifics of implementation remain undefined.