Dear Editor,
I am a lifelong resident of the Northeast Kingdom. Like many who choose to call this place home, my husband and I weighed the trade-offs of raising a family in a small town with limited resources. We knew our children might have fewer local extracurricular activities, but we traded those for a close-knit community, with the promise that when they reached ninth grade, the world would open up to them through high school choice. This is the experience I had growing up in Lunenburg and attending St. Johnsbury Academy, and it is what I wanted for my kids as well.
Now, proposed redistricting and education reforms threaten to sever that lifeline. Removing high school choice — and specifically our town’s access to St. Johnsbury Academy — wouldn’t just break a longstanding tradition; it would jeopardize the well-being of our students and the viability of our towns.
There are no local public high schools in our area. The closest is Danville, which is 45 minutes away. Most students in our town choose St. Johnsbury Academy or Lyndon Institute, depending on their family’s logistics and personal preferences. The proposed legislation may prevent families from choosing either of these options, but it hasn’t nailed down how the new system would work or where our kids would go.
We saw the impact of consolidation firsthand when our local middle school in Lunenberg was shuttered in 2021. My oldest son, who had thrived in a tiny K-4 environment, was suddenly thrust into a larger, merged middle school. Between the lingering social effects of the pandemic and a sudden jump in class size, he began to shut down. We spent three years battling overwhelming social anxiety and navigating a system where frazzled teachers simply didn’t have the resources to help him.
The transition to high school changed everything. Because we have a choice, my son was able to choose the environment that best suited his needs, which in his case was St. Johnsbury Academy. With built-in supports, dedicated conference time, and a diverse array of clubs, my son found a place where he could finally breathe.
In just a few months, he has begun to flourish. He found friends who share his interests and teachers who took the time to break through his defenses. He gained autonomy over his education, and with it, his confidence.
I see history repeating itself with my younger son, currently a seventh grader. This past summer, while interning at the Fairbanks Museum, he met like-minded peers who shared his passion for science. He came home and said, “Mom, I didn’t know there were other kids like me!” I was able to tell him that those kids are out there, and that when he reaches high school, his world will expand just as his brother’s did.
But that promise only holds if choice remains.
The logistical reality of the Northeast Kingdom is something that can be hard to grasp from a desk in Montpelier. We already leave the house before 7 a.m. to carpool 30 minutes to St. Johnsbury before heading to our own jobs 20 minutes in a different direction. Any further restriction on where our children can go doesn’t just add miles to a commute; it adds an impossible burden to families already stretched thin.
We believe strongly in the public school system, but we also know that for many families in the Northeast Kingdom, choice is the only thing keeping them here. We don’t have the means to move or pay private tuition out of pocket. We rely on school choice to ensure our children receive an education that matches their potential.
If you take away high school choice, you take away the primary incentive for young families to settle in these small towns. Our communities are resilient and resourceful, but parents will always put their children first. If the educational horizon shrinks, the population will follow.
We owe it to our children to provide the best possible opportunities while upholding the traditions that make Vermont special. Let’s keep the world open for our students. Let’s keep high school choice.
Angela Marchetti
Lunenburg, VT
