The 802 Ed
What's going on in Vermont's education policy and practice
Welcome back! We are celebrating a lot with this issue: the lunar new year, Valentine’s Day, and Black History Month. February is also School Board Recognition Month with a resolution honoring boards’ work scheduled to be read at the State House on February 15 at 3 pm.
This issue covers many topics that are immediately useful like a bill to ban cell phones in class, a free workshop on better storytelling just in time for the extended budget season, and several resources and legislative links about youth mental health in schools. Be sure to check out the great job openings for school leaders!
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
Small Habits, Big Results. Harvard Business Review offers up an approach to dealing with professional and life challenges that restores the batteries in all us.
Strong Stories in Unexpected Places. Higher Ed Jobs gives good advice on how to highlight nontraditional experience on your resume and in job interviews.
Innovative Solutions for Mental Health in Schools. Thank you VTDigger for publishing the 802 Ed editor’s op-ed about the current crisis in schools and several projects underway to help our youngest Vermonters!
Put Away The Cellphones for Good. WCAX covers the introduction of S.284, which would prohibit the use of phones and social media in schools and private preK programs. Check out the hearing in the Senate Committee on Education, 2 - 2:30pm, February 14, with planned testimony on the bill by VDH Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine.
Automating The Application… Too Much. School Administrator asks a panel to respond to the case of a newly hired principal who brags to others that he used ChatGPT to create his writing sample.
“A Very Dark Time on Campus.” The New York Times takes us through the experience of a New England college with several student suicides, including the systems that were implemented in response. Gift link
Scheduling Wizardry. EdWeek offers advice from principals on how to work magic and create space in a master schedule for tutoring and other high-yield interventions.
Title I Funds at “High Risk Status.” Seven Days’ Alison Novak drops the bomb on the U.S. Department of Education’s allegation of a “significant violation of [federal law]” in AOE’s handling of a grant’s administrative requirements.
“Detrimental And Dangerous” Education Spending. VTDigger picks up the story of the dozens of education officials who are calling foul on Act 127, intended to promote funding equity across the state but in actuality incentivizing spending: “It is a miracle if we’re going to pass school budgets this year.” This was a popular item in last issue, so here it is again for readers who may have missed it.
Leading Instruction in Reading. Edutopia offers several suggestions for school leaders so they can support teachers and students in structured literacy.
Literacy Wars Come to Vermont. Seven Days reports on debate around S.204, a bill to screen students for dyslexia that, according to the teachers’ union, may make the state “beholden to one particular instructional practice because it happens to be politically popular or touted by the press.”
More Millions for Mental Health. The federal government recently announced $50 million in discretionary grants for states to connect children to mental health and other services at school, though no word yet whether Vermont will apply.
Heads Up, Vermont. States are taking innovative steps to support their students and Vermont school leaders and lawmakers should take note:
Almost half the states in the country have laws that permit cameras outside school buses to catch drivers who zoom by when they should have stopped.
A free community college program in Massachusetts has already boosted statewide enrollment by 8%.
School Shootings in 2024. Education Week’s tracker has logged seven school shootings in 2024. “On Feb. 1, two people were shot and injured in the parking lot at McEachern High School in Powder Springs, Ga.” 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: How many school budget votes will fail this year? The responses were most strongly in favor of Just a few budgets, with about half as many readers selecting A majority of budgets and very few optimists responding with In a state-wide show of support for education, no school budget will fail.
This issue’s survey question: Which is the higher priority for your school or schools? Please indicate your response by clicking a check mark.
✅ School construction
✅ Student mental health
✅ Staff turn-over
Thank you to the Lamoille County school leader 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
Principal. Berkshire Elementary-Middle School is seeking a dynamic and caring leader for a staff that values kindness, respect, and fun. Strong candidates will demonstrate a successful record of leading school improvement efforts around academic, social, and behavioral expectations for all learners. Sponsored by Franklin Northeast Supervisory Union
Assistant Superintendent. Come join a fantastic team that believes in the power of education to transform lives and communities. North Country Supervisory Union is seeking an experienced leader with demonstrated success in school finance and operations, and excellent consensus-based leadership skills. Sponsored by North Country Supervisory Union
High School Principal. Milton Town School District is seeking a dynamic, equity-driven principal to lead an innovative team designed to meet the needs of the whole child in alignment with the district’s Vision of Learning. The candidate will be an instructional leader who is highly collaborative, possesses exemplary communication and interpersonal skills, and is strongly committed to providing all students with a challenging and supportive learning experience. Sponsored by Milton Town School District
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 about 400 job opportunities for remote work in K-12 education.
Looking for a Change? With so many open positions, there are sometimes unusual opportunities. For example, Morristown is looking for an on-call cemetery sexton. It doesn’t pay much but you’ll never have to worry about getting a room to shush.
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
Back in a college government class I learned about the “prisoner’s dilemma,” a paradox where two parties have to decide whether to cooperate without the benefit of direct communication.
Here is how it works: imagine two bank robbers sitting in separate interrogation rooms. If neither one squeals, they both go free. And if both of them point the finger at the other, the two of them are in the clinker for five years.
However, if only one of the robbers confesses then they get only one year while the other one gets eight long years in the big house.
So, what would you do?
The prisoner’s dilemma isn’t just a thought exercise. It played out recently in Vermont’s education scene. School boards across the state were told that, under Act 127, they could increase their proposed budget up to five percent without passing much of that tax increase on to the local community.
In other words, if one community increases their budget under the Act 127 provisions and no one else does, everyone else across the state ends up footing the bill.
Similarly, if no school boards presses the Act 127 Increase Budget button, recognizing that it was “not intended as free money,” then everyone’s taxes would only reflect the local school budget. The prisoners would go free.
That’s not what happened, though. Vermont Public reported that “every district is now projected” to take advantage of this increase as school boards correctly identified a once in a generation opportunity. The prisoners turned on each other and the legislature went into damage control mode to find a fix.
The solution that the legislature is considering seems simple enough: scrap legislative permission for the five percent increase, give school boards more time to re-work their budgets, commit half a million dollars to print new ballots and cover other election costs, and subsidize budgets that were adversely affected by Act 127.
Meanwhile, the reaction from school officials is running “from dismay to discouragement and from anger to anxiety” according to the VSBA and VSA. A legislator, a Democrat no less, summed it up: “This is a non-solution to a problem we are pretending to address.”
School boards will need to restart their budgeting process, this time with a tighter bottom line. Since most costs are typically in salary and benefits, this change may prompt layoffs just as the total number of open positions statewide has dropped by about a thousand in the past 30 days.
Maybe the prisoners would have been better off just cooling their heels in jail a while longer.
The chart below tracks the number of openings for education positions in the 60 days prior to publication, presented as data points and no trend line this time. 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 school leaders who are making a change!
Layne Millington, currently superintendent at Orange Southwest Supervisory District, will be superintendent at Two Rivers Supervisory Union this summer. He is taking over from Lauren Fierman.
Caitlin Toleno, currently SEL coordinator at Thetford Elementary School, will be principal this summer. She is taking over from Bernice Mills.
Congratulations also 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.
Christina Boissoneault • Principal
Michael DeWitt • Principal
Taneshra Dixon • Principal
Thomas Harkins • Principal
Do you know a colleague who has made a recent move? Let us know!
Grants & Opportunities
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 7 - 8:30 am, February 13 and 3:30 - 5 pm, March 11.
Ice Rescue And More. DPS released an RFP for a contractor to train technical rescuers to become surface water technicians, swift water technicians, and ice rescue technicians. Deadline is February 16.
Better Storytelling. Just in time for budget presentation season, Harvard Kennedy School is offering a workshop on how to improve storytelling skills. Noon - 1 pm, February 28.
Preparing for The Eclipse. The Department of Libraries is hosting a roundtable to discuss resources and shares idea in preparation for the upcoming total eclipse. 2 - 3 pm, February 29.
NEH PD 4U. The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is offering nearly four dozen summer programs for K-12 teachers and higher education faculty, from Shakespeare to the Space Age and more. Deadline is March 5. Thanks to a Congressional liaison for the tip!
Two-Day Workshop on Bullying. The Grand Lodge of Vermont Freemasons is offering an in-person workshop on bullying prevention and conflict management for educators. Barre Elks Club, 8:30 am - 4 pm, March 7 - 8.
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.
Supporting Afterschool Programs. AOE has published an RFP seeking assistance with the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program. Deadline is March 18.
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.
If You Missed It
Celebrating Black History Month. Smithsonian Education offers a digital toolkit to celebrate those who have used art as their platform for social justice.
Schools And Youth Mental Health. Thank you to the House Committee on Education for inviting the 802 Ed’s editor to present testimony about youth mental health and schools!
Universal Mental Health Screening for Students. The House Committee on Health Care has a bill with more than a dozen co-sponsors that would require universal screening of students for anxiety, depression, and suicidality: H.816, An act relating to mental health screenings in school-age youth.
Therapy Pods. The Mental Health Health Initiative is looking for a school or youth program interested in receiving a stand-alone unit for school based clinicians to meet with students in a private and confidential space.
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: Nostalgic for 80s television? My 80’s TV has clips from soaps, cartoons, commercials and more.