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By Michael Bielawski
A new bill seeks to formalize the always-controversial process of closing a community’s public elementary school.
The bill is H. 180 which is “An act relating to the closure of an elementary school.” Its purpose is to “create a process by which a school district may be permitted to close an elementary school.” It’s sponsored by 13 lawmakers.
Its primary sponsor is Rep. Herb Olson, D-Starksboro. He and Legislative Counsel Beth St. James spoke with the House Education Committee on Tuesday afternoon.
“Some people say that small community schools are part of that cost [of public education],” Olsen said. “And they also say that some of these smaller schools aren’t providing a good enough education.”
“due process”
The bill’s text says “Communities and their community elementary schools should be afforded due process on a case-by-case basis before an elementary school is closed.”
The current standard is school boards can vote to close a school. This bill would call for additional community involvement including potentially a community vote.
Olson said that he put together H. 180 “to try to be more inclusive, more equitable, a more rational way to look at this issue around small schools.” He said there should be “fair standards and fair process” before any school closes.
Before closing a school, the bill says, “The community, including students, parents, community members, and teachers, should have a meaningful voice. The educational benefits of the school for students should be carefully considered, especially for at-risk students from historically marginalized groups, students from households with low income, and ethnically or linguistically diverse households.”
The economics
It says that the economics of a school closure need to be carefully examined. The savings calculated by the closure should be “measured against all other reasonable savings options.”
Another section states that working closer with neighboring schools should always be considered. It says, “Whether collaboration between neighboring or regional high schools and technical centers can reduce costs, after determining the reasonable amount associated with such collaboration.”
Transportation
The bill requires that transportation challenges be addressed. There should be a “standard used by the district to measure whether transport times for students are reasonable, as well as information specifying the time students will spend being transported from their individual home to a new school and back again.”
A public vote?
It also states that there can be a local vote if the district’s articles of agreement require one.
Olson said in some cases there might be some schools that “just can’t make the grade.” He suggested in the case of a closure, having a fair process in place for all interests to be heard would “go a long way towards softening the blow.”
The bill states that for proper public notice of a school closure, it must be “at least nine months before issuing its elementary school closure report and publish an elementary school closure report not later than 90 days before making a final decision.”
Olson told the committee that he hopes the concepts he proposes might make their way into a larger education bill if this stand-alone bill is not taken up.
The administration’s take
The administration’s education proposals spearheaded by Secretary of Education Zoie Saunders have suggested that “small schools by necessity” and “small schools by choice” will be examined and if the latter doesn’t make practical sense for the community then potentially a closure may occur.
Contact your legislators
See all bills assigned to this committee here. Constituents may contact committee members (click link on name for bio, party affiliation, etc.) with comments, questions, and information at the following email addresses:
House Healthcare
Rep. Alyssa Black, Chair, ablack@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Francis McFaun, Vice Chair, fmcfaun@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Daisy Berbeco, Ranking Member, dberbeco@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Brian Cina, bcina@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Mari Cordes, Clerk, mcordes@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Wendy Critchlow, wcritchlow@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Allen “Penny” Demar, ademar@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Leslie Goldman, lgoldman@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Lori Houghton, LHoughton@leg.state.vt.us
All committee transcripts are available at http://www.goldendomevt.com. The Committee meeting video is available on the committee’s YouTube channel. The committee meets in the morning in Room 42.
The author is a writer for the Vermont Daily Chronicle
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Categories: Education, Legislation, Local government, State Government
Transportation:
The bill requires that transportation challenges be addressed. There should be a “standard used by the district to measure whether transport times for students are reasonable, as well as information specifying the time students will spend being transported from their individual home to a new school and back again.”
False flag: Transportation challenges are already being addressed by each school district as it sees fit. Transporting students is a voluntary benefit. School districts aren’t required to provide transportation – except as may be the case for students labeled as being disabled by the Federal Individuals With Disabilities Education Act.
This bill opens a back door. It presupposes that a district’s existing consideration of transportation, no matter what it may be, is insufficient. It presupposes that only a centralized governance can be ‘reasonable’.
This bill is disingenuous and deceptive in this regard.
The administration’s take:
The administration’s education proposals spearheaded by Secretary of Education Zoie Saunders have suggested that “small schools by necessity” and “small schools by choice” will be examined and if the latter doesn’t make practical sense for the community then potentially a closure may occur.
Who is it, again, charged with deciding whether or not a school “make[s] practical sense for the community”?
No. It’s not ‘the community’. Zoie Saunders and the Agency of Education will make that decision for you because they don’t believe you’re capable of making the decision on your own. Sound familiar?
Keep this in mind. ‘Closing a public school’ does NOT necessarily mean the school disappears or ceases to exist. More often than not, when a school district decides to close its school, it does so in order to create more educational opportunities.
Consider the 2013 transformation of the North Bennington public elementary school into what is today the Village School of North Bennington.
“Residents of North Bennington voted three times to close their public school and establish a new, independent academy in the old school building.”
North Bennington residents figured out they could improve education and lower costs by creating an independent school.
This new bill, H.180, is specifically designed to prevent local school districts from controlling their own educational destiny.
“Too many cooks spoil the broth.” Seems to me this bill is an example of that old agage.
The H.89 School Choice bill is a recipe for making your own soup. Bon Appétit.
I think this bill is more likely in the Education committee rather than the Health committee that is tagged at the end of the article.
Queen Zoie has spoken, now fall in line. She comes up here from Florida and starts telling Vermonters just how it is going to be!! Under her plan Kindergarteners will be riding the bus for up to two hours each way! Remember busing is a privilege the school does not have to provide transportation. What if that gets to expensive and they have cut routes or consolidate some routes to save money or even worse yet eliminate it all together. will parents be willing or able to transport their children?
Thanks for this article. It is a thoughtful addition to consider in light of a proposed plan that frankly needs a great deal of improvement.