This commentary is by state Rep. Michelle Bos-Lun, D-Westminster, who also represents Rockingham and Brookline. She is a former teacher at Okemo Mountain School and works with Vermont high school students in summer programs.
As a parent and a teacher, I know that one size does not fit all when it comes to our children and the educational and social environments that help them thrive.
H.483, as passed in the Vermont House last week, has policies that will damage small, independent schools and the students they serve. Some independent schools will not survive the changes and will no longer be available to serve any students.
Recently I have heard from many constituents concerned about the consequences of this bill. I voted against it. It passed on a voice vote, and is now with the Senate education committee.
H.483 lacked input from independent schools. VTDigger reported the day after the bill passed that “Mill Moore, the executive director of the Vermont Independent Schools Association, said that his organization had largely been shut out of testifying about the legislation. Moore said he had reached out to the committee ‘over and over”’ asking to testify, to no avail. ‘We have been excluded all the way down the line.’”
Eric Rhomberg, director of the Compass School, an independent school in my hometown of Westminster, told me some policies in the bill would be “exceedingly challenging and potentially crippling” to his school and the diverse, and majority lower-income, students they serve. Compass and other independent schools offer a valuable alternative to students who for various reasons found public school did not meet their needs.
I want Vermont to continue to support our public schools, and to continue to support a system that provides choices for students in town-pay situations that enable students to find the environment that is the best for their social, emotional and educational needs.
The bill includes some valuable and important provisions that require private schools taking state funds not to discriminate. Schools that won’t enroll students or discriminate in hiring because of identity issues should not get public dollars. If amended, H.483 could address this kind of blatant discrimination without some of the other broad changes that would close small schools.
A clinic can’t treat every health issue that a large hospital can; should we close clinics for discrimination if they can’t meet every medical need? To comply with the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carson v. Makin, change in Vermont law was needed, but H.483 goes too far and will have damaging results for Vermont students.
My hometown of Westminster does not have a middle school. Students in our town for decades have chosen from a variety of school options for seventh and eighth grades. This model works well for us, as it works well in many communities around Vermont. Students can find the school that best meets their needs.
For many students, the two years with a town-pay tuition option enables them to experience a smaller, more intimate learning environment that works especially well for them during the important tween/early teen years.
Public schools serve many students effectively, but sometimes an alternative is what is the best for a given student. If we make it more difficult for schools to be able to accept public funds, students from families who can afford private school tuition will still find options for their children, but those from more challenged socioeconomic circumstances will not have the same opportunity.
Some schools will not survive the changes that will come with H.483. I want the best for all of Vermont’s children.That means supporting a diversity of education options, not making it more difficult for schools to continue to function, and also to provide tuition reductions for low-income students.
We need to support both our public schools and the independent schools that can provide optimum supportive opportunities for our younger generation.
