by Alison Despathy 

In October 2020, Bryeanne Russillo and her daughter moved to Vermont to escape the chaos of Long Island. They were excited and held visions of the life they would live together close to nature and connected with a small community. First stop landed them in Morrisville where Bryeanne’s daughter attended People’s Academy and all was settling into a comfortable rhythm. Her daughter had friends and was thriving at the new school. This continued for a year.

In August 2021, they found a house to buy in Cabot and they moved into their new home excited for the next chapter of their Vermont journey. Bryeanne’s daughter would miss her friends but held high hopes for her new school in Cabot. Her first week as a 7^th grader at the Cabot school was promising. The second week a student threw a rock at her head and from here everything took a turn for the worse and has only intensified in an ongoing struggle. 

For almost two years now, Bryeanne has been emailing the school, attending board meetings, talking to the principal, teachers and superintendent to try and find an option for her daughter who is bullied by other students on a regular basis. She has documented all of her email exchanges with teachers, staff, the school nurse, the school board, the superintendent and the principal. They are all well aware of Bryeanne’s daughter’s situation yet none have offered a solution for her to attend school elsewhere 

Bryeanne is desperately seeking an option for her daughter who is now diagnosed with anorexia and depression. In our conversation, Bryeanne shared, “She cannot stay in that school. A child with diagnosed depression and threatening suicide because the school is such a stressful place for her is just wrong. I have reported bullying for months and there has been no resolution.

Even her daughter’s dietitian who has worked closely with her to monitor the anorexia and behaviors around food has been concerned and disappointed with the lack of support the school has offered. She sent an email to school staff regarding issues related to her food access stating, “I am also concerned for the safety and wellness of ——– in this particular school environment.”

Fortunately Bryeanne and her daughter have a close and trustworthy relationship. Bryeanne has been a rock for her daughter and their communications demonstrate the unconditional love and support that Bryeanne offers her daughter as she endures this level of pain.

Many days she doesn’t want to go to school. She has been hit twice by another student and there is a group of “mean girls” who harass her. “The school has destroyed my child’s confidence.” Bryeanne shared. These are formative years that cannot be reclaimed and Bryeanne does not feel that she has received support or guidance from anyone. 

Bryeanne recognizes that Cabot school is a great match for some students, she is simply seeking an alternative for her daughter because it has not been working for years. They have given it a solid chance and have tried multiple approaches to attempt a positive and safe learning experience. 

Cabot is not a school choice town. They do have a lottery program in which 10 students are offered an opportunity to attend another public school. There are 38 students in the high school. Having just recently found out about this lottery option, Bryeanne applied and hoped that with her daughter’s struggles and the School board’s awareness of the situation that she would be granted a lottery slot. 

Bryeanne was informed this past week that there were four applicants and only two slots available. Her daughter would not be awarded the option to attend another school. 

As you can imagine this was devastating for Bryeanne and her daughter. They had hoped that her daughter’s situation would factor into the decision but apparently it was a third party making the determination.  Bryeanne was told that if she wanted an option, she could move or homeschool her daughter. Neither of these options are viable at this time, her home is in Cabot and housing and rentals are severely limited in many parts of the state.

Bryeanne is realistic, she knows her daughter has made some poor choices at school. In an attempt to fit in with some high school students, as she seeks friends and acceptance, she was offered what appeared to be a nicotine pouch called a Zyn. Bryeanne’s daughter had never done something like this before, she immediately became sick and the dose landed her in an ambulance at school with a trip to the emergency room.

On top of all of this, the behavioral problems of many students at the school are interfering with actual education. There are students attending Cabot who are—right or wrong– often collectively referred to as the “trauma kids”. Many of these children have parents with addiction issues, are foster children or they themselves are doing drugs. 

Last year Bryeanne’s daughter was in a class in which a group of boys were so loud and uncontrollable that the teacher regularly offered the other students the option to go elsewhere to do their work. It is not just Cabot school experiencing this struggle but here many parents believe it is interfering with actual educational opportunity. 

Due to concerns related to rampant behavioral issues and multiple reports of ongoing bullying earlier this year, the Cabot school conducted a study to assess parents’ opinions of their child’s experience at the Cabot school. It was called the “climate survey” which was misleading for many parents who did not understand this was about the school climate and behavioral environment and thus did not take part.

There were 31 responses which represent roughly 1/5 of the students. There are approximately 150 students and only 38 high school students. Many parents have several children in the school which makes this number of respondents quite significant. These responses reflect the degree of concern about the ‘climate’ within the school. Leadership deemed this too small a group of respondents to be meaningful and noted that action was already in place to address some of the issues raised. 

A sampling of the survey questions and results are as follow:

1. The climate in my child’s classroom is supportive and safe.
   Almost half disagreed with this statement
   32.3% disagreed,
   12.9% strongly disagreed
   32.3% agreed.
   
2. The climate in my child’s classroom allows learning to occur.
   Almost half disagreed
   41.9% disagree
   12.9% strongly disagree
   29% agree
   3.2% strongly agreed
   
3. Behavior issues in my child’s classroom frequently make it difficult for my child to learn
   Two thirds of respondents agreed with this statement.
   35.5% agree
   35.% strongly agree

4. I feel that my child is receiving a quality educational experience
   Almost 60% disagreed with this statement
   38.7% disagree
   19.4% strongly disagree
   
5. I feel that the behavioral intervention system being used at school is effective at maintaining an effective learning environment.
   24 out of 31 respondents disagree with this statement
   41.9% strongly disagree
   35.5% disagree

Several public schools including Cabot have implemented Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, commonly known as PBIS, to promote school safety and good behavior. PBIS is focused on prevention not punishment and children are taught about their behavior expectations and strategies. 

In the climate survey, several parents shared their opinions on the PBIS model. One parent explained that their students, “have expressed anxious feelings about their school day as it related to PBIS and discipline. They feel unsupported when they bring their concerns forward or are worried about being pulled out of class to process incidents they may or may not have been involved in. From our experience, the PBIS approach proactively seeks opportunities to intervene which can make matters feel bigger than necessary and pulls students away from the classroom. It feels a bit like a social experiment or creating a problem that doesn’t really exist”. 

Additional comments include concerns around the absence of a “clear ‘floor’ for what is unacceptable behavior” and that “the PBIS framework distracts students from how to resolve issues with classmates in a meaningful way.” Regarding PBIS, one parent stated, “It is a distraction from the learning environment and it feels like an endless cycle. Our students should be in the classroom and if an issue requires them to leave, this should be communicated with parents. Too often students are being taken out of the class for PBIS.” 

Due to these behavioral and bullying issues, the school’s regularly failed budget (except this year despite an increase of ~25%), dwindling enrollment, troubles recruiting and retaining staff, and declines in academic performance and basic skills, several community members gathered signatures for a petition to include an article on the town meeting ballot to close the Cabot High School and tuition students out.

As always, this ballot item was highly contentious and the debate leading up to town meeting was emotionally intense. Communities will fight fiercely to hold on to their small local schools. There is so much a small town school offers a community. The ballot item was strictly intended to close the high school, not the grade school. 

With ongoing financial struggles and dwindling enrollment, the school board had already begun conversations on the possibility of merging with Twinfield, a nearby public school. This ballot item would have secured school choice for all Cabot High School students versus limiting students to the Twinfield option only. 

Complaints from school choice towns are nonexistent. Many families actively seek homes in these towns in order to choose the best match for their children. 

When there are questions related to high levels of behavior issues, chronic bullying, academic performance declines, deficiencies in basic skills, staffing problems, economic viability, curriculum concerns and controversy, what is a town to do?

On Town Meeting Day, Vermont Public interviewed Cabot resident Richard Lacelle. When asked why he voted to close the high school and offer students school choice.  He explained that, “They’re turning out more social justice warriors versus focusing on actual education.”

In the windows of a school building read the words, social change. 

This ballot item to close the Cabot High School and tuition students out ultimately failed with a vote of 239 to 367. The number of Cabot residents who voted to close the high school reflects the school’s issues and resident’s desire for options. Many are not happy with the performance of the school, the ever increasing property taxes (especially this year with Act 127) and their child’s school experience. Children thrive in different environments and without options, the education and emotional, physical and social health of students are compromised as is the case for Bryeanne’s daughter. 

In the past several years as Vermont public school enrollments and performance decline, there has been an attack on private and independent schools throughout the state. Both S.66 and H.258 reflect this drive to restrict money to public schools alone (with a few exceptions). These bills were fought last session by both families and schools throughout Vermont.

In the statehouse this was led by Vermont Public School lobbyists and several legislators who are proactively working to limit families’ options for schools outside the public school system. This appears to stem from fears around a collapsing public school system that does not have the capacity to serve all students. Unfounded and erroneous reasons of discrimination and cost within non-public school are often used to bolster the public school only argument.

When something is not working, people will seek solutions. Actions to thwart this natural human response to a problem is currently in play on the legislative level. Families deserve options in order to choose the right match for their child. 

The latest attempt to limit options for students and communities is evident in H.634, a bill sponsored by Representatives Sibilia and Holcombe. H.634 would ultimately eliminate school choice for any towns moving forward with a school closure. It requires designation of public schools. 

The Vermont public school lobbyists are paid to secure the future viability of Public schools.  However the fundamental question is when it is at the cost of serving students will this be tolerated. For many it is a step too far. Despite declining academic performance, the cost of education in Vermont has skyrocketed over the years. Parents would like their children to be in a safe environment with educational opportunities. 

Representative Terri Williams resides on the House education committee, she has been closely watching this situation unfold at the statehouse. Williams shared “The big message from public school lobbyists is that public dollars must go to public schools and that this will help strengthen our public school system.” Despite ever increasing budgets, how long will this vicious cycle continue and when will students actually receive quality educational opportunity? 

H.634 would fully monopolize education in Vermont at the expense of the children. There are multiple reasons why students and parents may struggle with a public school only model. Academics, behavioral issues, and curriculum concerns top the list for many parents seeking options. 

Representative Williams stated, “When one is talking about equal opportunity, they must remove their blinders and have a serious conversation about what is best for the child.” She explained that, “This concept is lost because most conversations revolve around money and public schools.” It is clear that, “not all school settings fit all students.”

Bryeanne has recently requested an evaluation for her daughter to receive an Individualized Learning Plan (IEP) due to her documented health concerns. She is also scheduled to present testimony to the school board to request that her daughter be tuitioned out to a different school under Vermont Statute 16 V.S.A. § 822.

Byreanne and her daughter are seeking compassion and guidance as they attempt to navigate their options. They feel unsupported and even shunned and shamed because of the situation. There are always different sides to a story. This is their story. 

Input from the superintendent, the Cabot principal and the School Board for any comment regarding the situation has been requested. If responses are shared, this article will be updated. 

This entire scenario presents the problems with the public school monopoly system. It seems student retention at the school and funding are the number one priority and even trump what is actually best for the student.

In a student-centered education system, Bryeanne’s daughter would have been back at People’s Academy a long time ago instead of continuing to suffer through a highly stressful experience at the Cabot School. They are hoping for resolution and Bryeanne continues to fight for her daughter’s safety and overall well being, as any good parent would.

The author is a clinical nutritionist in St. Johnsbury.