While it’s summer and classrooms are quiet, school board work across Vermont is anything but. With the passage of H.454 and major education transformation on the horizon, school boards are deep in discussion, preparing for what comes next. Decisions made now will shape the future of public education in rural Vermont and communities are stepping up to make sure their voices are heard.
The Rural School Community Alliance (RSCA) is a grassroots group representing over 100 of these communities across Vermont. We stand for the values, expectations and hopes rural Vermonters have for their children’s educations, their communities’ well-being and the future of rural life in our state. We advocate for strong, community-based public schools and for rural Vermonters to have a democratic voice in decisions about their future.
Vermont is a rural state with the highest percentage of rural students in the nation (54%). Over 70% of Vermont’s schools are considered rural.
RSCA was formed in January to bring Vermont-specific data, national research and firsthand rural experience into the Statehouse debate over H.454. We worked in a bipartisan manner to ensure the voices of rural communities were heard. We advocated transparently for small but meaningful changes to the legislation. These changes were adopted in the Senate and for the most part preserved in the final version of the bill.
While H.454 isn’t perfect, we believe it includes enough safeguards to allow for our continued engagement in the legislative process. We now turn our attention to the next phase: the appointment of a redistricting task force. This group will shape Vermont’s future education system, and its work carries both opportunity and risk.
We are moving forward with good will, knowing that Supervisory Unions are to be included as part of the charge of the redistricting task force.
Supervisory unions are made up of multiple school districts working collaboratively to reduce costs, increase efficiency and improve educational opportunities. Each SU shares a superintendent, central office and board with representation from each district in the union.
SUs are vital to the success of rural public education in Vermont. They offer a practical balance: schools keep local decision-making while gaining the financial and operational benefits of shared services. Among governance models, SUs are the most transparent, cost-effective and educationally sound option Vermont has.
We believe Vermont can thoughtfully create larger SUs to meet the goals of H.454, especially with adjustments for the unique needs of low-population regions and areas with geographic barriers.
RSCA sees potential for cost savings and improved quality, but only if SUs remain the core governance model for rural Vermont. Already, school districts and SU boards involved with RSCA are debating and considering information for the task force that reflects the needs of their regions and will support the task at hand.
Over the last six months, aspects of our work have become clear. In rural Vermont:
Equity matters. Rural families are saying clearly that equity does not mean “newer and fewer.” It means strong and local. Young children should be educated close to home in excellent elementary schools of all sizes. Accessible schools are essential to rural families.
Research shows that even high-quality educational offerings are of little benefit if children must spend hours on a bus to reach them. Strong, local public schools grounded in their communities are a cornerstone of educational equity for rural children.
Place matters. Young families want to live in close-knit communities with strong local schools: places with childcare, preschool and elementary education at their heart. For rural Vermont communities to thrive, they need young families to stay, return or choose to move there.
Educational opportunities centered in place will bring them. Closed schools, depopulation, diminished economic opportunities and declining home values will turn them away.
Democracy matters. People are losing faith in democracy. That’s why any new system must strengthen, not weaken, their connection to democratic decision-making.
Rural Vermont is skilled in democratic decision-making; it is rooted in our history and practiced regularly as we grapple to solve problems locally. It is a strength, not a flaw, and we must protect it. In rural Vermont we protect democracy by practicing it.
As Vermonters work to build a sustainable, high-quality and cost-effective education system for the future, it must reflect and respect these rural values. That means equity, and it means community-centered and strong local voices in governance.
Thriving rural community schools, working together in supervisory unions, are at the heart of this vision.
Margaret MacLean is an educator and a steering committee member of the Rural School Community Alliance. She lives in Peacham, Vt.