The 802 Ed
What's going on in Vermont's education policy and practice
Welcome back! October has again been proclaimed Principals Month by Vermont’s Governor in celebration of their role as “educational visionaries, instructional leaders, assessment experts” and so much more.
This issue covers many topics that are immediately useful like updates on the search for the next Secretary of Education, a free workshop on writing op-eds, and the latest on likely program cuts at Vermont State University. Be sure to check out the worrying upward trend in job postings for substitutes!
New to the lingo? At the suggestion of a reader we now include a guide to common abbreviations after all the news.
- Steven Berbeco, Editor
School Leadership
How Do You Deal with Stressful Situations? In a recent Harvard Business Review article an experienced career coach offers tips on answering common interview questions.
Vermont’s Most Expensive Mascot? The Green Mountain Unified School District Board recently voted to stop paying the attorney who was representing them in an on-going dispute about the high school mascot, the Chieftains, after learning the cost so far is upwards of $10,000 in legal fees.
“Ready to Throw Down The Gloves And Start Fighting for Steve.” The Other Paper highlights a positive story of students fundraising to support a beloved staff member: “Not all heroes wear capes. Sometimes they drive buses.”
Multimillion Dollar Toothache. VT Digger reports on Vermont State University’s failed efforts to start a dental therapy program despite more than $2.5 million and years of setbacks, according to the state auditor.
Universal Screening for Student Mental Health. AOE recently released guidelines for Vermont schools to develop a screening process for students’ social, emotional, and behavioral needs and strengths. This was a popular item in last issue, so here it is again for readers who may have missed it.
Reconsidering Learning “Loss.” Vermont educator Peter Langella lays out an argument reframing post-pandemic public education from a strengths-based approach instead.
Unlearning Columbus Day. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the Native American offers a half-dozen culturally sensitive resources for teaching about Indigenous perspectives.
Reading Reckoning. Seven Days’ Alison Novak digs deep into the literacy wars, explaining Vermont’s tug between balanced literacy and structured literacy and how this may have led to a significant decline in students’ reading skills.
Accelerated Licensure for Trades. Vermont Public explores conversations underway to decrease the time it takes to become a licensed plumber or electrician at VTSU, where only about a third of students make it all the way through.
Nearly a Dozen Programs on The Chopping Block. VTSU plans to shelve ten programs and consolidate another thirteen, such as discontinuing School Psychology.
Desiderata for the Next Secretary. The VSA, VPA, and VSBA submitted a joint statement in support of hiring a Secretary of Education that can “improve the overall performance of the Agency of Education so that its personnel across the organization play an effective role in supporting school districts,” the “most pressing priority” for these associations.
No Blue Ribbon for Green Mountain State. This year’s coveted National Blue Ribbon School awards have been announced, with more than 350 schools from Alaska to Florida winning the status, although Vermont is one of four states that don’t participate in this national competition.
“My Jaw Dropped.” Maine’s Portland Press Herald reports on a decade-long decrease in child care providers by nearly 20% in the Pine Tree State, and anticipated nationwide loss of 3.2 million child care slots as the recent federal stimulus funds dry up.
Beeping the Board Meeting. The Green Mountain Unified School District was disrupted at the 11:50 mark by a “Zoom bombing” call-in participant who introduced pornographic and racist material.
Next Secretary “Waiting in the Wings.” Political observer John Walters wagers that the interim Secretary of Education is a favored applicant for the permanent position.
Less Carrot, More Stick. Stateline takes a look at a post-pandemic move underway in several states toward stricter, less restorative responses to student discipline issues.
Heads Up, Vermont. Several states are taking innovative steps to support their students. Vermont school leaders and lawmakers should take note:
Some Oregon schools aren’t pre-testing kindergarten students in a pilot intended to reduce implicit bias.
More than 200 early career principals in North Carolina are enrolled in a state-wide program to “to improve their effectiveness, retention and satisfaction while boosting student achievement.”
School Shootings in 2023. Education Week’s tracker reports 31 school shootings in 2023. “On Sept. 29, a 59-year-old man was killed and four others—two of whom were struck by the suspect’s vehicle—were injured in a shooting that occurred in the parking lot after a football game ended at Dudley High School in Greensboro, N.C.” Total school shootings in 2022: 51. As a reminder, DPS and AOE operate an anonymous school safety tip line for students, school staff, and their community: calling 1-844-SAFE4VT; texting SAFE4VT to 274637; or online at safe4vt.org. For questions about school safety training in Vermont, contact Rob Evans.
Reader Survey
In each issue we ask a survey question to get a sense of what is on our readers’ minds. Then, the following issue, we report back on what we learned. Last issue we asked: What’s the best way to support schools’ goals of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)? The responses were most strongly in favor of School boards should develop policies that set expectations, with very few readers selecting Executive leadership should include a DEI position or Staff professional development should prioritize DEI training.
This issue’s survey question: How should schools address students’ heightened levels of anxiety and depression? Please indicate your response by clicking a check mark.
✅ Schools should refer students out for mental health services
✅ Schools should hire more mental health clinicians
✅ Schools should offer relevant training to staff to support students
Thank you to an education leader from Washington County for that survey question. What’s on your mind? Suggest a survey question to find out how your colleagues respond in an upcoming issue of the 802 Ed!
Job Listings
Superintendent Search. If your district will be experiencing a leadership transition this year, we invite you to connect with us. Human Capital Enterprises (HCE) is a Superintendent Search firm with a commitment to outstanding leadership quality and a track record of assisting School Boards to find the right superintendent who is committed to long-term success. Learn about our success in Winooski earlier this year and reach out to us if you would like to engage in a confidential no-obligation conversation. Sponsored by Human Capital Enterprises
Supercharge the Applicant Pool. The market for school staff in Vermont is fierce and it’s important to stand out when attracting quality candidates. Why get wedged in among thousands of open positions on SchoolSpring? Your opportunity can stand out in an upcoming issue of the 802 Ed, dropping into the Inbox of 2,000+ readers. Sponsored by 802 Ed
The Big List. Josh Czupryk compiles and publishes a monthly spreadsheet with nearly 300 job opportunities for remote work in K-12 education.
Looking for a Change? With so many open positions in Vermont, there are sometimes unusual opportunities. For example, Copley Hospital is recruiting a Sleep Technician, flexible schedule and an equivalent salary that about matches AOE’s Chief Financial Officer but about half what VTSU’s next Chancellor can expect.
Thank the Team
Like what you are reading? Want a creative way to show your support? Cover our coffee budget! Writing, editing, researching… all of that is caffeine driven. Choose this option and the extra energy will go to finding a few more updates to share.
From the Editor’s Pen
With Halloween approaching in just a few weeks, it’s time to revisit one of the frightening topics of school leadership: What to do when there aren’t enough substitutes to cover classes, driving routes, the nurse’s office, and the many other day-to-day functions of a school.
The situation can get dire, unfortunately. Back in February the job market hit a new high of 615 openings for substitutes state-wide. For comparison, that’s more than twice the number of full-time teacher openings that were posted at the time.
Today the job market is slowly heating up for substitutes, with the number of new openings increasing at a rate of about three new openings every two days. This points to a growing need for substitutes and the likelihood of greater competition for a limited supply in the coming months.
The chart below tracks the total openings for substitutes in the 60 days prior to publication, presented as data points and a linear trend line. Data from SchoolSpring.
Pass It On
Like what you are reading? Hit the button below to send a copy to a colleague, friend, neighbor, your boss… whoever!
Colleagues on the Move
Congratulations to these colleagues who have received administrator licensure from AOE since the last issue of the 802 Ed! Data from AOE’s Aithent Licensing System.
Christopher Farrell • Principal
Clara Ripley • Principal
Steven Schels • Principal
Do you know a colleague who has made a recent move? Let us know!
Grants & Opportunities
Getting The Word Out There. The Harvard Kennedy School is offering a virtual workshop on writing opinion columns, open to the public and facilitated by a former high school teacher turned author. Noon - 1pm, October 10.
Anxious Nation. NAMI Vermont and the Mental Health Initiative are presenting free screenings of a recent documentary that explores teen anxiety, with opportunities to attend coming up in Brattleboro on October 11 and Montpelier on October 18.
Benchmark Assessment Grant Application: Round 3. AOE announced a new round of applications for the ARP ESSER Benchmark Assessment Grant for supervisory unions and districts to purchase benchmark assessment systems for lexile and quantile measures, as well as supporting professional development costs. Deadline is October 12.
Evaluation of Child Care Apprenticeship Program. DCF released an RFP for a contractor to recommend changes to the Vermont Early Childhood Education Apprenticeship Program. Deadline is October 13.
Tutoring Elementary Math Tutors. AOE released an RFP for a six-month contract to provide instructional coaching in mathematics to schools participating in the State Systemic Improvement Plan. Deadline is October 16.
Making the Most of Lexile Measures in the Classroom. Demonstrated Success is presenting a webinar on using lexile measures to guide book selection, differentiate instruction, and more. 3:15pm - 4:15pm, October 18.
Project AWARE Evaluation. DMH released an RFP for a five-year, potentially million-dollar contract to evaluate implementation of Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resiliency in Education), a school-based mental health services program. Deadline is October 20.
Educator of Color Symposium. Susan Yao and Esther Charlestin present on how to better support and sustain educators of color at the Upper Valley Educators Institute in Lebanon, NH. Registration deadline is October 16. 10am - 2:15pm, October 27.
Set the Report Card. The National Assessment Governing Board is seeking a local school board member among others to serve a four-year term and help innovate ways to make national testing results relevant to all stakeholders, including their use to inform education policymaking. Deadline is October 31.
Deutsch for Free. The Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange program offers fully-funded scholarships for high school students to spend an academic year in Germany. No previous knowledge of German is required. Deadline is November 1.
In Case You Missed It
Streamlined FAFSA. The U.S. Department of Education recently announced updates to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, scheduled for release in December.
Third Space Guidelines. AOE, DCF, and Vermont Afterschool recently released new guidelines for afterschool, summer, and youth development programs.
Miles of Smiles. AOE sent out a reminder recently about the 802 Smiles program, which connects schools with dental care for their students. According to a map of the programs, it seems like there are stronger supports in place in some parts of the state than others.
G6, Go! After many false starts, ED’s grants management system upgrade is ready for primetime as of October 30.
Turning It Into A Page-Turner. Oxbow High School principal Kenneth Cadow’s upcoming novel is being honored by the National Book Awards: “A resourceful teenager in rural Vermont struggles to hold on to the family home while his mom recovers from addiction in this striking debut novel.” Update: Now a finalist! The winner will be announced by Oprah on November 15.
The 802 Ed brings together the latest from Vermont's associations for principals, superintendents, and school board members, as well as state and national education agencies. We hope that you'll find something useful in each issue and welcome comments or suggestions for upcoming issues: editor@802ed.com.
Abbreviation list: AASA School Superintendents Association, ADM Average Daily Membership, AOE Agency of Education, CDD Child Development Division, DAIL Department of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living, DCF Department for Children and Families, DPS Department of Public Safety, ED U.S. Department of Education, RFP Request for Proposals, NAEYC National Association for the Education of Young Children, NEASC New England Association of Schools and Colleges, PBIS Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, SBE State Board of Education, VPA Vermont Principals Association, VSA Vermont Superintendents Association, VSBA Vermont School Board Association, VTSU Vermont State University.
Special bonus for making it to the bottom: The internet has given us a step-by-step guide to making a Super Mario Bros. game out of cardboard, no electronics required.