Should Stowe schools become independent or remain public?
That is the question that a small group of parents, teachers, community leaders and citizens is studying in response to the pressure for school-district consolidation under Act 46, Vermont’s new education law. The group, the Stowe Local Schools Initiative, started meeting in the fall, but its study is really just getting off the ground.
The group is applying for certification as a nonprofit group and has established a bank account so it can take donations toward the study. The group has also established committees.
Finance and infrastructure will look at how an independent school will be paid for, the budget differences between an independent and a public school, and how to deal with leasing the buildings from the school district.
A communications committee will look at how to present information to entities in town, especially on why the study is being conducted. Another committee will look at how to fund and run special education in an independent school.
The group wants to be sure its vision for an independent school is clear when the idea is presented to the community.
“We want to make sure that people know this study is looking at an approved independent school — not as an exclusive, private school, but as an inclusive part of the community that will be paid for by public dollars,” said committee member Norm Williams, a Stowe High teacher and a former select board member. “We also need to look at how forming an independent school or remaining public will affect the business and education communities in town.”
The communications committee plans to meet with Realtors to understand how people moving into town look at schools, and what would be most beneficial for the town, based on that information.
“We don’t really know if we have a product to sell,” said Lisa Senecal, a steering committee member, “because we haven’t actually done the study yet. We need to know what people in the community want, and what the best option is for the kids. We might get to the end of the study and find that this won’t work for Stowe as it has at other schools, but we believe it is worth looking into.”
The Stowe Local Schools Initiative is meeting with officials at independent schools in Vermont to discuss how their schools run, and what they mean for the community. The group has already met with Tom Martin from the Village School of North Bennington, and will meet Feb. 16 at 5:30 p.m. with Daren Houck, headmaster at Lyndon Institute. On March 15 at 5:30, the group will meet with Mill Moore from the Vermont Independent Schools Association. Locations have yet to be determined.
All the initiative’s meetings are open to the public, and anyone can attend. Information: stowelocalschools.org.
“I don’t think we are advocating for an independent school,” Senecal said. “The focus really is on studying the pros and cons.”
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