The 802 Ed

What's going on in Vermont's education policy and practice

Welcome back! This issue covers many topics that are immediately useful like Tired Teacher Bingo, a youth mental health panel, and the latest social media app to watch out for. Be sure to check out the latest on one of the most unusual jobs in education!

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

“Slap in The Face of Public Education.” VT Digger recently highlighted reactions to the new Interim Secretary of Education starting work despite a no-vote from the Senate, including:

• An open letter requesting that she resign: “Stepping into the ‘interim’ role hours after that rejection is a choice you did not have to make.”

• An opinion piece that was also critical: “Arguments in favor of the candidate were that she was ‘smart,’ a ‘nice person,’ and ‘had vast experience.’ None of those generic comments make anyone suitable for this position. They describe me, and I am not qualified for this position.”

The Seven Year Itch. Education Week shines a light on the stage of a teacher’s career when morale can be at its lowest.

School Budgets Heading to The Cliff. Seven Days VT goes deep into the back stories behind several communities’ failed efforts to pass a school budget.

New Vision for Education. The Times Argus recently featured an opinion piece from a long-time Vermont educator who points out problems with consolidation and the promise of the Future of Public Education legislative commission.

Making Fizz Go Flat. Tech Crunch covers Fizz, a new anonymous social media app that joins Yik Yik, Sidechat, and Whisper that more than a dozen universities have banned.

“Equity Is Not An Initiative.” VTDigger recently published an opinion piece co-written by a high school student and arguing for the effectiveness of embedded Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts. This was a popular item in last issue, so here it is again for readers who may have missed it.

Mold, Toxins, and Gushing Water. VT Digger reviews several schools that have had to close recently because of facility infrastructure issues.

Tired Teacher Bingo. We Are Teachers offers “the game you didn’t know you needed,” just in time for the end of the school year.

Talking about Burnout. HigherEdJobs Podcast offers practical advice on how to pin down just what is causing the burnout and how to bring up the topic with a supervisor.

Heads Up, Vermont. States are taking innovative steps to support their students and Vermont school leaders and lawmakers should take note:

• Schools in Idaho and Texas offer on-site child care as a teacher retention tool.

• Michigan, Colorado, Minnesota, and Texas are rolling out a new Youth Mental Health Corps program to improve students’ access to mental health services.

• Oakland, California recently announced being the first district in the nation to have an entirely electric bus fleet.

School Shootings in 2024. Education Week’s tracker has logged 16 school shootings in 2024. “On May 10, a student was injured in an accidental shooting inside a car in the Hastings High School parking lot in Houston.” 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 is the school year wrapping up? More than twice as many readers selected More challenging than expected as compared to Better than anticipated and Ask me again in June.

This issue’s survey question: What do your plans for the summer include? Please indicate your response by clicking a check mark.

✅ Professional development

✅ Teaching or running a program

✅ Absolutely nothing to do with school

Thank you to the reader from an afterschool program 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 thousands of 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 contracting company is looking for a Hungarian teacher… who speaks Arabic… for a “7-year old kid.” And somewhere in the world there’s a Finno-Ugric-Semitic linguist who is fist pumping the air at finally finding a dream job.

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

Problem solving is big business. School leaders are hired to figure out everything from class schedules and bus routes to how the layout of the cafeteria can be changed to reduce the number of food fights.

But sometimes looking at a problem up close for a long time promotes a sense of near-sightedness. System thinkers can benefit from taking a step back and drawing in a long breath to look from a new perspective. You know, like those 3D pictures that were popular in shopping malls in the 90s.

Consider, for example, Vermont’s problem of hundreds of schools in dozens of districts and supervisory unions. Consolidation of schools into districts and supervisory unions may have seemed like a good cost-cutting measure, but there are plenty of schools that pushed back and even now want their autonomy.

And can you blame them? If there’s one thing that most everyone can agree on in Vermont education, it’s the importance of community schools for our communities. The antithesis of this, some may say, is the bogeyman of charter schools that upset the apple cart in the recent Secretary of Education confirmation hearing.

There may be another solution. Take a step back, stare at that 3D picture a little longer, and you may see a different image emerge that is based on the federal system of Native American education.

Most schools on reservations are part of the Bureau of Indian Education, what is effectively a national school district with headquarters in Washington, D.C. This model is similar to what we have in Vermont. Our headquarters in Montpelier may be accused of officious intermeddling, as a lawyer friend terms it, but at least it doesn’t become a soup of humidity in the summer.

More recently many reservation schools have opted into becoming Tribally Controlled Schools, where they receive direct funding and have greater autonomy. These schools are kind of like charter schools within the federal Bureau of Indian Education system. They are distinct from the privately owned charter school systems that cause such a stir among Vermonters.

Wouldn’t it be interesting, then, if schools in Vermont were to reverse the consolidation process and, in the absence of supervisory unions and districts, an image similar to charter schools were to emerge like a shape coming out from one of those 3D pictures?

Eye on Data

The chart below tracks the total number of education openings in Vermont since the start of the school year, 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 leaders who are making a change! There is a lot of movement among the 108 school leadership positions that have opened since January. Data from VPA.

• Meg Honsinger, currently assistant director at the Southwest Vermont Regional Technical School District, will be superintendent/director this summer. She is taking over from Michael Lawler.

• Brian Boardman, currently principal at Hartford Memorial Middle School, will be assistant principal at Williamstown Middle High School this summer. He is taking over from Abby Smith. This is a correction from last issue

• Denise Maurice, currently principal at Lamoille Union Middle School, will be principal at Spaulding High School this summer. She is taking over from Luke Aither.

Congratulations also to these colleagues who received administrator licensure from AOE since the last issue of the 802 Ed! Data from AOE.

• Jessica Bourbeau • Principal

• Corinna Dodson • Principal

• Erin Silcox • Principal

Do you know a colleague who has made a recent move? Let us know!

Grants & Opportunities

Leadership Conference Presenters. NEASC is seeking school leaders and thought leaders to present at the November conference in Boston. Proposal deadline is May 20.

Youth Mental Health Panel. In recognition of Mental Health Awareness month, the Mental Health Initiative is hosting a virtual panel including a school based clinician, a child psychiatrist, and more. Noon - 2pm, May 22.

New Spin on DEI. Vermont Afterschool is hosting an interactive webinar, facilitated by a member of the State of Vermont’s Office of Racial Equity, on how to short-circuit some biases. 10:30am - noon, May 23.

F-35 Photo Op. The Vermont Air National Guard announced its annual Educator Day, including lunch, for school staff to learn more about the facilities and mission. 9am - 1pm, May 31.

Night at The Ball Game. The Vermont Lake Monsters are offering two free tickets to educators who show identification at the box office for the June 8 game against the Starfires, followed by evening fireworks.

AI in Education Summit. AOE and partners is holding a conference for secondary educators to explore concerns and benefits of using artificial intelligence tools from both student and teacher perspectives. June 27 at Hula in Burlington.

More Kid Care in Rutland County. Pittsford Village Farm is seeking bids from child care programs looking to lease space in a redeveloped facility. Deadline is July 12.

If You Missed It

Less Than Green Mountains. The U.S. Department of Education recently announced this year’s 41 Green Ribbon Schools that offer effective environmental education, from two dozen states… but sadly not Vermont.

Take It Down. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children now offers a free service to remove online nude, partially nude, or sexually explicit photos and videos taken before the subject was 18 years old.

“Data Misses the Humanity.” The Oxbow High School principal, whose novel about a Vermont teenager coming to terms with high school was a National Book Award finalist, reflects on his own experiences in rural Vermont schools.

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, SEL Social Emotional Learning, 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: Looking for a do-gooder task for today? Consider signing a petition to reinstate a Japanese program in an Alexandria, Virginia high school. Because the world needs more anime fans.