Schneider: School consolidation would hurt communities and students
Bigger and better factories may build bigger and better cars, but it will take direct human touch on an individual scale to meet the modern day educational needs of our nation’s youth.
Mathis: Poverty is No. 1 driver of education achievement gap
Our greatest short-coming is that Vermont has not done much about closing the poverty gap. Unfortunately, our efforts are inadequate and tokenistic.
Zenie: Voluntary local participation in statewide teachers’ contract could be beneficial
Editor’s note: This op-ed is by John Zenie, a former lawmaker from Colchester. Parts of the following article are taken from Zenie’s testimony to the Vermont Senate Finance Committee on Feb. 16, 2011. The most recent approaches to address education finance issues have been legislation that required voluntary spending cuts and voluntary consolidation. Most observers [...]
Cross: Should have listened to Willie Sutton
It is time for the legislature and the Department of Education to stop taking the easy way out. It is time to conduct a detailed study of school expenditures community-by-community to determine why we still have these great differences in costs and determine the best places to enact reductions, if such makes educational sense.
Nelson: Education success depends on partnership
Editor’s note: This op-ed is by John A. Nelson, executive director of the Vermont School Boards Association. Governor-elect Shumlin can successfully manage the state’s role in ensuring a quality education for Vermont’s next generation if he understands three things. First, he must understand the unique standing of education as the only constitutionally required function of [...]
Vermont schools come up $15.8 million short on Challenges target
“I never really believed school boards could have gotten there as quickly as we hoped,” Shumlin said. “We have this bridge money … let’s use it as a bridge, not a security blanket.” DOWNLOAD SCHOOL SPENDING SPREADSHEETS
Schneider: Mandates are pushing schools over the edge
Over the course of two years, Williamstown will have had to redirect $540,000 or 5.5% of its total school budget away from regular education and into special education.
Shumlin asks Vermont school boards to keep spending level
Shumlin: “I remain supportive of using the $19 million in additional one-time federal funds as bridge financing over one or two years to accomplish the necessary cost savings.”
Vermont Board of Ed approves first school district merger
In a 5-0 vote held at its November 16th meeting, the Vermont State Board of Education granted a waiver to the towns of Fairfax and Fletcher, allowing them to proceed with the merger process. Both towns will now begin a formal merger study pursuant with Act 153, to consider forming a Regional Education District (R.E.D.). This is the first waiver granted by the State Board.
Peltz: Regional education district redux
Last December I hosted a facilitated gathering of educators to answer the question: how can we preserve and improve the quality of education with continued cutbacks and likely consolidation? What emerged from this group became the core principle of H.66 and Act 153: provide incentives for local voluntary mergers.
