This commentary is by 17 Vermont fathers and members of the Rural School Community Alliance. Their names are listed below the text.
As Vermont dads of children attending Vermont schools and members of the Rural School Community Alliance, we’re used to showing up for our kids: on the sidelines, at bedtime, in the school pickup line and around the dinner table. Today, we’re showing up in a different way: to urge lawmakers to stand up for our kids and our communities as they consider final changes to the education transformation bill.
We love Vermont for many of the same reasons we choose to raise our kids here: the tight-knit communities, the open spaces, the chance to know your neighbors and the powerful bond between rural schools and the towns they serve. But right now, that way of life is at risk.
The Rural School Community Alliance represents school districts, supervisory unions and municipal leaders in more than 100 Vermont towns and villages along with numerous supporters from non-member towns throughout Vermont. Rural community schools are not just places of learning; they are cornerstones of civic life, economic resilience and family stability. As the future of public education in our state hangs in the balance, we ask the Legislature to keep five key priorities in mind:
Transparency around the funding formula
Before any new funding system is enacted, Vermonters deserve a clear, honest accounting of how it will affect our communities, property taxes and school budgets. We can’t make decisions in the dark and our lawmakers shouldn’t either.
Protecting democratic engagement
No school should be closed without a vote of the people. Period. Community input is essential to maintaining trust and ensuring decisions are made in the best interest of kids, families and taxpayers. A full educational and community impact study should be required before any closure is even considered.
Guidelines not mandates
Don’t tie the hands of education professionals. Apply guidelines, not mandates for class, school and district size. Especially in rural Vermont, flexibility is needed to maintain optimal learning environments.
Respect for what works in rural governance
Supervisory unions strike a critical balance in Vermont, allowing for collaboration and efficiency without sacrificing local voice and oversight. Any governance changes must build on what works for rural schools, not impose a one-size-fits-all model that erodes accountability, weakens community bonds and likely only costs more money.
Real community voice in redistricting
The redistricting task force must listen to the people. Community-developed proposals should be seriously reviewed and, where possible, integrated into final decisions. The best solutions will come from the ground up, not the top down.
Vermonters asked for tax relief, not a complete transformation of the education system. After years of pandemic recovery, workforce shortages and skyrocketing health care costs, this is not the time for sweeping, untested reforms that put rural kids and families at risk. Proposals to further consolidate our schools, without strong Vermont-based evidence of cost savings or academic gains, are deeply concerning.
Forced consolidation will hollow out our towns, reduce civic participation and make it even harder for young families to stay in, or move to, rural Vermont. For us, this isn’t just policy. This is personal. Because when the local school closes, the town often fades with it.
This Father’s Day, we’re not asking for cards or neckties. We’re asking for leadership that values rural communities and keeps Vermont’s children at the center of every decision.
We urge legislators to do right by our kids and stand with rural families. Let’s build a future where every Vermont child, no matter their ZIP code, has access to a strong, vibrant community school.
Tim Scott, Peacham
Justin Park, Barnard
Ryan Williams, Marlboro
Peter Bent, Peacham
Matt Henchen, Moretown
Jamie Kinnarney, Calais
Seth McCoy, Randolph Center
Isaac Jacobs, Craftsbury
Eric C. Pomeroy, Peacham
Rob Backlund, Lincoln
Stician Samples, Westminster
Neal Yurick, Hardwick
Cameron Thompson, Newport Town
Dan Devine, Peacham
Kyle Landis-Marinello, Middlesex
Dwight Boerem, Wardsboro
Andrew Frost, Marlboro
