Today is Feedback Friday on VDC’s Hot Off The Press at 11:05 AM on WDEV AM 550, FM 96.1, and wdevradio.com livestreamed. As usual on Feedback Friday, there are no guests scheduled.
Whether you’re working at home or shopping or in the car or just hanging out, I hope you will have your say, hang out with us for an hour, listen and call in with your comment or question – 802-244-1777.
Did you know there’s a daily Vermont news roundup, not unlike VDC, published in the Connecticut River valley for Orange and Windsor counties? It’s called Daybreak and they picked up our story yesterday about the retired Marine and Vietnam veteran in Vershire forced to haul water because his well is still dry due to drought. Folks, VDC news is meant to be shared. I’m glad Greg Gurwitt of Daybreak picked it up, and I invite all of our readers to share VDC news on their social media.
I never got to finish James Garnett’s story on the air yesterday. Basically he’s been without water all fall, he’s had to borrow money to have water hauled in and he’s breaking ice and filling buckets for the rest of his water needs, including feeding his goats and horse, and the state and the insurers have been very little help. Just just another case of how people in rural Vermont are easily forgotten and ignored by the powers that be when disaster strikes. If you have a drought story, we’d love to hear it.
Big schools versus little schools – Daybreak also carries a story about some Windsor County adults who want to see their small, local schools stay open. On the other side of the coin, Alison Despathy in today’s VDC reports of the 30 students who answered a questionnaire, 13 indicated some unhappiness with being forced to attend a small, local high school. Some of their comments:
“Danville holds a special place in my heart but I would do much better at another school.”
“Close the school because I want to go to the Academy, but my family can’t afford to move or pay tuition.”
“The people who live in Danville and want to the go to the Academy and cannot afford it need a choice at least.”
“I have nothing against Danville school but I feel like I would have a better opportunity at St. J or LI.”
“The school has slowly but surely affected my mental health and honestly I just want to start fresh.”
“I would feel relieved if the school closed, so my Mom wouldn’t have to work a third job to help pay for the academy”
“Danville holds a special place in my heart but I definitely could benefit from the closing mentally and would do much better at another school. Coming from someone who can’t afford to move or pay tuition.”
“This is a small school and toxic environment. Small schools are great but this is crazy. I think in order to be exposed to the real world and different cultures, step out of your comfort zone and into a bigger school.”
So what’s the answer – back the small local schools, or merge? Alison’s op-ed suggests that maybe the real choice should be up to the students and their parents. Rather than a top-down approach – “thou shalt be educated thusly” – maybe it should be up to the families to decide if they want the small, local, intimate school, or want the more challenging – in ways both good and bad – bigger, more distant school.
What do you think about school choice, and about the whole debate over keeping our local schools? Be heard. Have your say. Call in to Hot Off The Press today at 11:05 AM at 802-244-1777.
Other stories of interest include:
Elon calls Bernie a ‘taker’
“The goal of AI and robotics must be to improve life for all people, not just to make you and your fellow oligarchs even richer.”
After Bondi Beach, rabbi at State House Hannukah celebration says Jews will ‘stand strong’
Tuesday, December 16, the halls of the Vermont State Capitol were filled with light and song as the community gathered for the annual Hanukkah celebration. A tradition for the last 15 years, the event serves as a public declaration of religious freedom and communal resilience.
Soulia: What happens when Vermont ignores reality – Part 2
What Vermont cannot do is continue pretending it can sustain prohibitive regulation, minimal growth, lavish spending, high-cost labor structures, small schools everywhere, expansive public programs, and low taxes at the same time. Part 2 picks up where that conversation left off, continuing through the remaining structural challenges affecting Vermont’s economy, cost of living, and long-term fiscal stability.
It’s Feedback Friday. I want to know what you think. Call 802-244-1777.