The 802 Ed
What's going on in Vermont's education policy and practice
Welcome back, and Ramadan Mubarak to those who celebrate! This week also marks Pi Day on March 14 - or, to write it another way, 3/14. Those math teachers get all the good jokes.
This issue covers many topics that are immediately useful like the latest on the defeated school budget votes, tips on writing a leadership statement, and downloadable lessons plans to teach with music from around the world. Be sure to check out the unique teaching opportunity on the Isle of Rum!
New to the lingo? At the suggestion of a reader we include a guide to common abbreviations, just scroll down past the news.
- Steven Berbeco, Editor
School Leadership
Data-less Decision Making. Harvard Business Review offers advice on how to make strategic decisions when the critical data isn’t available and there’s no Magic Eight Ball handy.
Neither Nor. Vermont’s Senate is considering S.55, which in its current form would require school boards to hold their meetings not as in-person, not as on-line, but instead as hybrid, requiring a physical meeting space that is equipped with technology to allow for on-line participation. Update: The bill was voted out of committee and sent over to Appropriations.
Building A Better Staff Meeting. Education Week offers several tips on making your meetings more focused and meaningful.
Budget Fails, Board Member Quits. VT Digger reports on the sudden departure of a South Burlington school board member and former chair, alleging “enormous amount of disrespect and incivility” from the member’s colleagues.
Responding to Student Burnout. HigherEdJobs has a few suggestions from human-centered design to combat learners’ mental exhaustion, applicable to high school and college students alike.
Fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail, fail. The big news in education policy is the shocking number of school budgets that failed to pass on Town Meeting day, as of publication 29 defeated to 64 approved with more than two dozen more budgets waiting for results or scheduled for a vote at a later date.
Sunscreen for Students. The Senate’s Committee on Health and Welfare voted S.187 out of committee, getting us one step closer to permitting students to apply sunscreen without a doctor’s note. Meanwhile, still no movement on H.816, which would support mental health screenings for school-age youth.
How Old Age Affects Schools. Seven Days VT goes deep into the data to link the Green Mountain State’s aging population, the slowing trickle of flatlanders moving here, and the painful choice to close a community school: “You're writing your town's epitaph, in a way.”
Heads Up, Vermont. States are taking innovative steps to support their students and Vermont school leaders and lawmakers should take note:
Florida’s legislature is considering a bill that would give high school dropouts an extra push to get into college.
Community college students in California are participating in a pilot program that pays an hourly wage for attending classes and doing homework.
School Shootings in 2024. Education Week’s tracker has logged 10 school shootings in 2024. “On March 2, a student and an adult were shot and injured outside a high school basketball game in North Kansas City, Mo.” Total school shootings in 2023: 38. 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 legislative fixes do you anticipate to support school construction? The responses were weakly in favor of New state-subsidized loans and Direct investment through grants, with most readers selecting More deliberation but no action, suggesting a pessimism for finding a workable solution.
This issue’s survey question: How long will it take for all the school budgets to pass? Please indicate your response by clicking a check mark.
✅ Definitely all of them by end of the school year
✅ A few stragglers coming in over the summer
✅ A handful starting the new school year without an approved budget
Thank you to the educator from Bennington county who suggested 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
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 2,200+ readers. Sponsored by 802 Ed
The Big List. Josh Czupryk compiles and publishes a monthly spreadsheet with more than 400 job opportunities for remote work in K-12 education.
Looking for a Change? With so many open positions in education, there are sometimes unusual opportunities. For example, a school in Scotland put out a call for a teacher for their five elementary school students, and two in pre-K, on the “forbidden” Isle of Rum.
Thank The Team
You read it, you love it, and now is a good time to say thanks. 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.
Note from The Editor
More or less every summer for the past decade I have traveled to a small village in Alaska, the sort of place you can reach only by ferry or a bumpy ride on a bush plane. It is beautiful with eagles flying overhead, a tidal river thick with salmon, and a view from the beach of several volcanoes.
It’s those volcanoes that have worried me. Over years of visits I have also given earthquakes and tsunamis a good deal of thought, since the area is seismically active and a large enough wave could wipe out most of the village. Tsunamis are particularly hazardous because they can form deep in the ocean and only show their true size and strength when close to shore.
Vermont may have to worry about tsunamis of a different sort. The surprising defeat of so many school board budgets feels in some way like an undersea earthquake: our sensors detect that it is powerful though the rest is hidden beneath the waves.
More than two dozen school boards now have to trim their budgets further to put together a less expensive and more palatable option for their voting communities. However, a typical school budget is mostly staff salaries and benefits. It’s not like a school can wiggle out of this by ordering less copier paper.
Given the fiscal cliff that many boards are on, they may choose to cut positions to bring down the expenses. Perhaps in anticipation of this, or perhaps just as a coincidence, the number of job postings for paraprofessional positions state-wide has dropped by more than half in the past month and a half. Also, the total number of open positions across all staff categories has dropped by about thirty percent.
This could just be a blip. But it could also be a harbinger of things to come and an alarm call to head to higher ground.
The chart below tracks the number of openings for paraprofessionals in the 90 days prior to publication, presented as data points and a polynomial 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 this school leader who is making a change!
Rhoda McLure, currently principal at Bakersfield Elementary Middle School, will be principal at Lowell Graded School this summer. She is taking over from Anita Gagner.
Congratulations also to these colleagues who received administrator licensure from AOE since the last issue of the 802 Ed! Data from AOE’s Aithent Licensing System.
Scott Sivo • Superintendent
Laura Witman • Superintendent, Principal
Jenna Bartow • Principal
Cathrine McGinnis • Principal
Joby McGowan • Principal
Caroline Rooney • Principal
Margie Salvante • Principal
Tara Sharkey • Principal
Do you know a colleague who has made a recent move? Let us know!
802 Ed in The News
The 802 Ed got a shout out in the annual State of Vermont’s Children, published by Building Bright Futures.
Grants & Opportunities
UVM’s Master of Education in Special Education Program. Elevate your career in education with the University of Vermont's Master of Education in Special Education degree program. With opportunities for licensure and non-licensure routes, this nationally accredited and 100% online program allows you to customize your learning journey to match your career goals. Benefit from real-world preparation through internships and mentorship, and gain guidance from UVM's renowned faculty and local professionals. Full funding opportunities are available in addition to scholarships. Applications for the fall semester are accepted until March 15. Connect with an enrollment expert from our College of Education and Social Services to get started today. Sponsored by the University of Vermont, Professional and Continuing Education.
Opioid Overdose Prevention. VDH is offering narcan (naloxone), which can be used in response to a suspected opioid overdose, to schools in Vermont. Training is available 3:30 - 5 pm, March 11.
Vermont Folklife Archive. Learn how to use sound recordings as primary sources in an online workshop for educators. 3:30 - 5:30 pm, March 12.
Experience College Life at UVM this Summer. UVM Summer Academy is an immersive, 4-week, for-credit academic program designed for high school students who have completed 10th, 11th, or 12th grade. Our program offers high school students the incredible opportunity to experience what it’s like to be in college during the summer, living on campus for two weeks while they learn. Participants will study alongside high school students from across the country, learn from renowned professors, and earn three transferable college credits. Students can choose from Health and Medicine courses taught by Larner College of Medicine faculty, as well as a new Intro to Forensics and Crime Scene Investigation course. A commuter option is also available for students who do not require on-campus housing. Applications are being accepted now. Sponsored by the University of Vermont, Professional and Continuing Education.
Writing A Leadership Statement. CalWest is offering a webinar on writing a compelling educational and leadership philosophy for job applications, and useful also for school leaders to share with their staff and community. 7 - 8 pm, March 13.
Superintendent of the Year. VSA has opened nominations for the annual competition, with the update that this year anyone can nominate a superintendent. Deadline is March 15.
Peer Review Panelists. AOE is looking for licensed educators willing to serve as panelists for the agency’s peer review program, evaluating a candidate portfolio (2-4 hours) with possible follow-up. Deadline is March 15.
Supporting Afterschool Programs. AOE has published an RFP seeking assistance with the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program. Deadline is March 18.
Refugee Youth in Schools. Harvard Medical Schools is offering a webinar on creating welcoming school communities for refugee and immigrant youth and families. 3 - 5 pm, March 19.
Educator Fair. University of Vermont, AOE, VPA, and many others are sponsoring an event to match schools and educator preparation programs with interested teachers, future teachers, paraprofessionals, and administrators. Middlebury High School, 1 - 5 pm, March 22.
Building The Better Bridge. VTSU is hosting an engineering competition for middle school students who use popsicle sticks, glue, tooth picks, and dental floss to construct - and destroy! - a bridge. 8:30 am - 1 pm, March 28.
Millions for Mental Health. The U.S. Department of Education recently announced a grant competition for schools to support school-based mental health with awards ranging from $500k to $3 million. Deadline is April 30.
If You Missed It
Teaching with Music. The Smithsonian Museum offers an interactive map to find world music curricular experiences and downloadable lesson plans for preK-12.
Where Is Your SMOB? Vermont has a small SMOB mob, only 36 student members of the board (SMOBs) statewide, and VSBA offers resources to school board members to further promote this mutually beneficial role. This was a popular item in last issue, so here it is again for readers who may have missed it.
Shared Struggles. VREC recently published a reflection by a Vermont educator who traveled to Finland on a Fulbright Fellowship and admired the “collective efficacy” of the Nordic country’s education system.
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, AHS Agency of Human Services, AOE Agency of Education, CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDD Child Development Division, CVTSE Coalition for Vermont Student Equity, DAIL Department of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living, DCF Department for Children and Families, DMH Department of Mental Health, DPS Department of Public Safety, ED U.S. Department of Education, FERPA Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act, NAEYC National Association for the Education of Young Children, NEASC New England Association of Schools and Colleges, PBIS Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, RFP Request for Proposals, SBE State Board of Education, VEHI Vermont Education Health Initiative, VPA Vermont Principals Association, VREC Vermont Rural Education Collaborative, VSA Vermont Superintendents Association, VSBA Vermont School Board Association, VTCLA Vermont Curriculum Leaders Association, VTSU Vermont State University.
Special bonus for making it to the bottom: For those who want to immerse themselves even more fully in the coming eclipse, consider building a LightSound device to listen to the darkness and return to daylight. Thanks, Daybreak!
And an extra Dad joke for good measure: Q: How do you organize a solar eclipse party? A: You planet.