by the Ethan Allen Institute
The Vermont House passed S.139, the nondiscriminatory school branding bill May 5 by a vote of 96-47.
Purpose: S.139 would move the final decision-making authority on school branding from local schools to Vermont’s Agency of Education.
In recent years, Vermont communities have been divided over controversial school brands and mascots. The Rice Little Indians and CVU Crusaders became the Rice Knights and CVU Redhawks. After a brief change to the Rutland Ravens, the Rutland Raiders brand was recently brought back. S.139 was introduced shortly after the reversal.
School brands and associated mascots may not be based on “race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity of any person or group of persons.”
Guided by this policy, S.139 directs Vermont’s Agency of Education to draft a “policy (which) shall provide a process for an individual to file a complaint that an element of school branding is in violation of the policy. Complaints shall be determined first by the school board of the district and, if the individual is unsatisfied with the decision of the board, may be appealed to the Secretary of Education,” who can make a final decision.
Analysis: Those voting YES want to stop harmful stereotypes associated with several Vermont schools.
Those voting NO may prefer that schools stop using such stereotypes, but believe those are decisions best made at the local level. They see this as the latest episode in a long history of local decision making authority being taken away and transferred to state government.
As Recorded in the House Journal, Thursday, May 5, 2022: “…Shall the bill be read a third time?, was decided in the affirmative. Yeas, 96. Nays, 47 (Read the Journal, p. 1742-44).
Watch the floor debate on YouTube.
These roll call reports are designed to help citizens understand how their elected representatives vote on key issues. The bills may or may not eventually become law. Click on the link to the bill page at the top of this post for an up to date status on the bill.
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How They Voted
(Click on your Rep’s name to view their profile)
| Sally Achey (R – Middletown Springs) – NO Janet Ancel (D – Calais) – YES Peter Anthony (D – Barre City) – YES Norman Arrison (D – Weathersfield) – NO Sarita Austin (D – Colchester) – YES John Bartholomew (D – Hartland) – YES Scott Beck (R – St. Johnsbury) – NO Matthew Birong (D – Vergennes) – YES Alyssa Black (D – Essex) – YES Tiffany Bluemle (D – Burlington) – YES Thomas Bock (D – Chester) – YES Seth Bongartz (D – Manchester) – YES Michelle Bos-Lun (D – Westminster) – YES Erin Brady (D – Williston) – YES Patrick Brennan (R – Colchester) – NO Timothy Briglin (D – Thetford) – YES Jana Brown (D – Richmond) – YES Nelson Brownell (D – Pownal) – YES Jessica Brumsted (D – Shelburne) – YES Thomas Burditt (R – West Rutland) – NO Mollie Burke (P/D – Brattleboro) – YES Elizabeth Burrows (P/D – West Windsor) – YES Scott Campbell (D – St. Johnsbury) – YES Bill Canfield (R – Fair Haven) – NO Seth Chase (D – Colchester) – YES Kevin “Coach” Christie (D – Hartford) – YES Brian Cina (P/D – Burlington) – YES Sara Coffey (D – Guilford) – YES Selene Colburn (P/D – Burlington) – YES Hal Colston (D – Winooski) – YES Peter Conlon (D – Cornwall) – YES Sarah Copeland-Hanzas (D – Bradford) – YES Timothy Corcoran (D – Bennington) – YES Mari Cordes (D/P – Lincoln) – YES Lawrence Cupoli (R – Rutland City) – NO Lynn Dickinson (R – St. Albans Town) – NO Karen Dolan (D – Essex) – YES Kari Dolan (D – Waitsfield) – YES Anne Donahue (R – Northfield) – YES Kate Donnally (D – Hyde Park) – YES David Durfee (D – Shaftsbury) – YES Caleb Elder (D – Starksboro) – YES Alice Emmons (D – Springfield) – YES Peter Fagan (R – Rutland City) – ABSENT Martha Feltus (R – Lyndon) – NO John Gannon (D – Wilmington) – YES Rey Garofano (D – Essex) – YES Leslie Goldman (D – Bellows Falls) – YES Kenneth Goslant (R – Northfield) – NO Maxine Grad (D – Moretown) – YES Rodney Graham (R – Williamstown) – NO James Gregoire (R – Fairfield) – NO Lisa Hango (R – Berkshire) – NO James Harrison (R – Chittenden) – NO Robert Helm (R – Fair Haven) – NO Mark Higley (R – Lowell) – NO Robert Hooper (D – Burlington) – YES Mary Hooper (D – Montpelier) – ABSENT Philip Hooper (D – Randolph) – YES Lori Houghton (D – Essex) – YES Mary Howard (D – Rutland) – YES Kathleen James (D – Manchester) – YES Stephanie Jerome (D – Brandon) – YES Kimberly Jessup (D – Middlesex) – ABSENT John Kascenska (R – Burke) – YES John Killacky (D – S. Burlington) – YES Charles Kimbell (D – Woodstock) – YES Warren Kitzmiller (D – Montpelier) – ABSENT Emilie Kornheiser (D – Brattleboro) – YES Jill Krowinski (D – Burlington) – PRESIDING Larry Labor (R – Morgan) – NO Robert LaClair (R – Barre) – NO Martin LaLonde (D – S. Burlington) – YES Diane Lanpher (D – Vergennes) – YES Wayne LaRoche (R – Franklin) – NO | Paul Lefebvre (R – Newark) – NO Samantha Lefebvre (R – Orange) – NO Felisha Leffler (R – Enosburgh) – NO William Lippert (D – Hinesburg) – YES Emily Long (D – Newfane) – YES Michael Marcotte (R – Coventry) – NO Marcia Martel (R – Waterford) – NO James Masland (D – Thetford) – YES Christopher Mattos (R – Milton) – NO Michael McCarthy (D – St. Albans City) – YES Curtis McCormack (D – Burlington) – YES Patricia McCoy (R – Poultney) – NO James McCullough (D – Williston) – YES Francis McFaun (R – Barre Town) – NO Leland Morgan (R – Milton) – NO Michael Morgan (R – Milton) – NO Kristi Morris (D – Springfield) – NO Mary Morrissey (R – Bennington) – NO Michael Mrowicki (D – Putney) – YES Emma Mulvaney-Stanak (D – Burlington) – YES Barbara Murphy (I – Fairfax) – NO Logan Nicoll (D – Ludlow) – YES Michael Nigro (D – Bennington) – YES Robert Norris (R – Sheldon) – NO Terry Norris (I – Shoreham) – NO William Notte (D – Rutland) – YES Daniel Noyes (D – Wolcott) – YES John O’Brien (D – Tunbridge) – YES Carol Ode (D – Burlington) – YES “Woody” Page (R – Newport City) – NO Kelly Pajala (I – Londonderry) – YES John Palasik (R – Milton) – NO Joseph Parsons (R – Newbury) – NO Carolyn Partridge (D – Windham) – ABSENT Avram Patt (D – Worcester) – YES Henry Pearl (D – Danville) – YES Arthur Peterson (R – Clarendon) – NO Ann Pugh (D – S. Burlington) – YES Barbara Rachelson (D/P – Burlington) – YES Lucy Rogers (D – Waterville) – YES Carl Rosenquist (R – Georgia) – NO Larry Satcowitz (D – Randolph) – YES Robin Scheu (D – Middlebury) – YES Heidi Scheuermann (R – Stowe) – NO Charles “Butch” Shaw (R – Pittsford) – NO Amy Sheldon (D – Middlebury) – YES Laura Sibilia (I – Dover) – YES Katherine Sims (D – Craftsbury) – YES Taylor Small (P/D – Winooski) – YES Brian Smith (R – Derby) – NO Harvey Smith (R – New Haven) – ABSENT Trevor Squirrell (D – Underhill) – YES Gabrielle Stebbins (D – Burlington) – YES Thomas Stevens (D – Waterbury) – YES Vicki Strong (R – Albany) – NO Linda Joy Sullivan (D – Dorset) – YES Heather Suprenant (D – Barnard) – YES Curt Taylor (D – Colchester) – YES Thomas Terenzini (R – Rutland Town) – NO George Till (D – Jericho) – YES Tristan Toleno (D – Brattleboro) – YES Casey Toof (R – St. Albans Town) – NO Maida Townsend (D – S. Burlington) – YES Joseph “Chip” Troiano (D – Stannard) – YES Tanya Vyhovsky (P/D – Essex) – YES Matt Walker (R – Swanton) – NO Tommy Walz (D – Barre City) – YES Kathryn Webb (D – Shelburne) – YES Kirk White (P/D – Bethel) – YES Rebecca White (D – Hartford) – YES Dane Whitman (D – Bennington) – YES Terri Lynn Williams (R – Granby) – NO Theresa Wood (D – Waterbury) – YES David Yacovone (D – Morristown) – YES Michael Yantachka (D – Charlotte) –YES |
Categories: Legislation
“Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing.”
― George Orwell, 1984
Bravo!!! to the INGSOC party . You’ve done it AGAIN!!
Your overloads will control you and your institutions. You will say nothing, you will own nothing, you will bow to your gods and you will be happy! This reminds me of the saying, ” The beatings will stop when the morale improves. You would think that the Vermont voter would be sick of the beatings from the legislature. They spent taxpayer money on this to prevent some triggered parent from throwing a fit over the school mascot on the team shirt. This is over the hill stupid and a waste of money. Maybe the governor can see how stupid this is and veto it.
A very low and stupid point in the history of the Vermont Legislature. Think: these same people are the ones trying to pass Clean Heat etc. Tells you all you need to know about Clean Heat etc.
Ridiculous ! With all that is going on theses days these clowns are worried about what school kids choose as a mascot ? Why do people think so negatively about them ? Pinheads !
Some want to promote divisiveness more than Freedom and Unity.