Mountain Times: Keeping Small Schools, Small Towns: ‘It just comes down to math,’ Gov. Says
Originally Published 12/2/19
Op-Ed, Opinion
NOVEMBER 27, 2019
By Angelo Lynn
As advocates of small schools and those supporting school consolidation come to terms with declining enrollments and rising costs, here’s the conundrum both face: consolidation is the right short-term answer to cost-cutting to contain higher and higher taxes, but it’s the wrong answer to building a stronger, more diverse statewide economy.
It’s a trickier question when asking which most benefits the student, because no two people are the same and what benefit one may not work as well for another.
But no matter how you dice it, as Gov. Phil Scott said in a meeting in the Addison Independent’s office Monday, Nov. 18, declining student enrollment with escalating costs is not sustainable. “It just comes down to math,” he said.
But like in so many other areas of American economics, our collective focus is on the short-term fix, not the long-term answer.
It’s true that to reduce property tax rates for Vermonters, which are high and going higher, the most immediate fix is to reduce school expenses. And that can be done through consolidation of schools and letting teachers go because we have declining enrollment in many of Vermont’s rural schools. (That’s not necessarily true in Chittenden County, or in the few other Vermont communities with higher growth rates where student population is growing and relative costs per pupil are less.)
If the short-term goal is to keep taxes contained, consolidation and cost reduction is the logical process.
But, if the goal is to build a stronger statewide economy over the long-term, say the next 10-20 years, Vermont needs to change the metrics.
Bear with me for an explanation. Let’s first establish a few principles:
• Growth should not be limited to Chittenden County, and a few other hot spots, but spread across the state. We need an action plan per county to do just that, and it’s going to have to have at least one component that relies on a strong educational system in each county.
• We need to grow in places outside of Chittenden County for two reasons: we have underused infrastructure going to waste in counties that have seen a significant decline in population over the past 30 years, and we’ll have to build more infrastructure in high growth areas if all the growth is concentrated there. Neither is the highest use of current assets.
• To change the underlying dynamics that have caused current growth trends, you can’t stay with the status quo and expect rural areas to grow. Significant change has to be considered. For example, currently state aid is based on a per pupil dollar amount. That benefits schools that are growing and penalizes all rural schools that have been declining.
This formula feeds an ever-descending spiral of consolidation. First, we consolidate the elementary schools; the towns without schools eventually wither, and not so long from now, we make a move to consolidate all three union high schools into one. It’s what Vermont Secretary of Education Dan French noted in our meeting with the governor and several cabinet members, adding that Addison County was a prime candidate for such consolidation.
And we are. Absolutely. It makes economic sense. We could save lots of money with just one superintendent and one principal, and one primary facility but keeping the satellite schools in Vergennes and Bristol for some classroom space. And just think of the savings in athletic programs: instead of one team for each school, taxpayers would see consolidation into one unified county team with a third the number of teams to support. Not as many kids would be on the varsity, of course, and more would see bench time, but hey, those are necessary tradeoffs if economic efficiency is the holy grail.
And that’s where that line of thinking takes us over time.
It’s not all bad. Larger schools, theoretically, would have the money to offer more sophisticated programs. Larger class sizes to reach that optimal 14-17 pupil per teacher range would be a given (at least for a while.)
But the downsides are equally apparent: there would be a loss of community involvement and attachment. Parental volunteers rally around small schools partly because they have to, because without them the work doesn’t get done as well. That’s not the case, or the expectation, in larger schools where many towns are combined into one school district. There are transportation issues to work out. But it’s doable, if that’s the road we choose.
The flip side to consolidation is to change the funding formula to favor rural schools over those higher growth schools, which are currently benefitting from the financial aid formula in place. If high growth towns and their schools were seeing penalties because of their growth (instead of penalties effectively being placed on schools who lose student population), more Vermonters might choose to live in those outlying towns. And if rural communities were given incentives for lower-priced housing, for example, perhaps the growth curve could be bent outward from our population centers to diversify our population base and spread the wealth into those existing towns.
Admittedly, that’s a big lift — and stretch.
Conservatives argue effectively that many are the fools who try to buck the fundamentals of capitalism and economic growth.
But legislators need to have that conversation. If we are, 50 years from now, going to be a state with 151 towns, not the current 251, we need to embrace that reality now and build around that newer, sleeker environment with eyes wide open.
If we want to preserve our economy, and our culture, based on 251 communities, we need to change current economic realities and drive more of the state’s economic growth to its further reaches — and with it, justification to keep rural schools vibrant and in the mix.
Angelo Lynn is the editor and publisher of the Addison Independent, a sister publication to the Mountain Times.
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Vermont Journal: Black River High School Building Feasibility Study
Originally published 10/30/19
THE VERMONT JOURNAL
Letters to the Editor
October 30, 2019; Ludlow, VT – Dear Editor,
Over the summer, the Ludlow Selectboard had a Feasibility Committee investigate the purchase of the school building, baseball field, and adjoining land. Below are some of the highlights and recommendations from that report.
Per the Ludlow-Mount Holly Unified Union School District merger agreement, when BRMHS closes June 30, 2020, the building must be offered to the town for $1.
If the town does not acquire the building, it can be sold on the open market. If sold on the open market, the town will lose control over who becomes Ludlow Elementary School’s neighbor. We would like to promote a non-smoking, drug-free, and safe environment.
If the town does not buy the building, the building may be left abandoned.
Potential uses for the BRMHS building
The Fire Marshal’s report regarding broad uses for the building – without triggering code issues – opens the possibility of utilizing the space for town offices, as well as generates revenue by renting space to other organizations.
Some of the specific potential uses of the BRMHS building:
The current Community Recreation Center is located adjacent to both the building and grounds and ownership of the building would allow the Recreation Department to provide continued recreation program offerings, and to access the building for overflow space for any programming needs.
The first floor could be utilized by the TRSU After School and Summer Programs. For example, the summer program, which operates outside at West Hill Recreational Center, could use the first floor for indoor activities in the event of inclement weather.
Black River Independent School could become a tenant of the BRMHS building after BRMHS closes in June 2020, occupying the second and third floor for classrooms and offices and using the first floor as needed and available for assemblies and other student activities.
Other available classroom space could host Adult Learning – community college classes, continuing education classes, online courses, or professional development activities offered through organizations, such as Castleton University.
The first floor could be a used by community organizations. The large classroom has Wi-Fi availability, kitchen amenities, and a large seating area that would be suitable for hosting Selectboard and Trustee meetings, Chamber of Commerce activities, etc.
First-floor space could be rented to nonprofit organizations such as the Visiting Nurses Association and Council on Aging or used for senior activities. The first floor could be secured by keypad.
The BRMHS building is designated as an emergency shelter that could be used to house community residents in the event there is a need.
Expense considerations
The U39 School Board 2017-2018 General Fund Budget, which included the BRMHS building expenses, provides a realistic estimate of what expenses will be to maintain the building:
The cost of maintaining the building including custodial services, heat, and electricity are about $300,000 per year. This includes approximately $150,000 in custodial staff help.
The total maintenance cost for 2017-18 was $341,544.
The art room, band room, gymnasium, and other shared spaces were included in this $341,544 expense and because they are in the LES building, they would not be an expense for the BRMHS building.
The cost of finishing the replacement windows project is approximately $25,000.
If the oil tank were to fail, the deductible is $10,000.
The annual cost for town insurance of the building should be about $4,622.
Revenue considerations
It may be possible for the town to generate revenue through rental agreements with Black River Independent School, as well as other organizations.
Black River Independent School, which will provide important continuity and new opportunities for BRMHS students and be a great complement to Ludlow Elementary School, anticipates 75 students its first year of operation, primarily from Ludlow and Mount Holly; $1.2 million revenue its first year in the form of state tuition dollars; expenses of $200,000 its first year to pay the town as part of a full-service lease.
Risk considerations
If the Black River Independent School does not occupy the second and third floors, the town will have $150,000 to $300,000 in negative cash flow for the building. If the school occupies the second and third floors, but the town does not secure tenants for the first floor, the town could have $100,000 negative cash flow for the building.
The town would not be able to sell the restricted use building for five years unless they compensate LMHUUSD for capital improvements done to the building by LMHUUSD. Acquisition of the BRMHS building could cause an increase in Ludlow municipal taxes.
If the Black River Independent School does not come to fruition, the town would be left owning and maintaining a property it does not need.
The town legally cannot use the BRMHS building and land to develop housing.
Recommendations
We recommend that the town purchase the BRMHS building and land from the LMHUUSD for $1. We recommend that the town rent the second and third floors of the building to Black River Independent School to offer local education for grades 7-12.
We recommend that the town use the “back 40” of land to provide town residents access to walking paths and the ropes course and provide outdoor and nature classroom space for the schools.
We recommend that the town accept the deeded uses of the subdivision done by the LMHUUSD, which will specify access to the “back 40,” the ball field, and parking for educational purposes.
We recommend that the town utilize the first floor of the building for community space or rent it to select organizations, including Black River Independent School, as needed and available.
We recommend that the town contract with LMHUUSD to utilize the existing custodial staff as they have complete knowledge of the building.
We recommend that the town complete the windows project at a cost of approximately $25,000.
Please join the Selectboard Nov. 4, 2019 at 7 p.m. in the Town Hall for an informational meeting and Nov. 12, 2019 at 7 p.m. for the vote on the purchase.
Sincerely,
Dan Buckley
Ludlow, Vt.
VERMONT JOURNAL: 'Expeditionary learning to drive curriculum at Black River Independent School'
Black River Independent School Committee hosted an informational event Friday, Oct. 11 at Du Jour VT Restaurant in Ludlow to celebrate their joining of the Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Originally Published 10/16/19
From THE VERMONT JOURNAL
By Sharon Huntley
October 16, 2019; Ludlow, VT – Black River Independent School Committee hosted an informational event Friday, Oct. 11 at Du Jour VT Restaurant in Ludlow to celebrate their joining of the Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce.
The small gathering marked another opportunity for several of the BRISC members to talk about their progress toward opening a local independent school for grades 7-12 when Black River High School and Middle School close in June of 2020.
Key to this meeting, Board member Summers Eatmon Williams gave a short presentation that shed more light on their emerging curriculum, which will be based on an Expeditionary Learning model.
According to the Expeditionary Learning, www.eleducation.org, this model, founded more than 20 years ago, is based on a collaboration between the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Outward Bound USA. Since that time, they have developed a mission and curriculum that focuses on three key areas for students: mastery of knowledge and skills, quality of character, and producing high quality student work. This learning model is currently used in approximately 150 schools in 30 states and has garnered impressive results in test scores and other measures. There is no other Vermont school currently offering this curriculum.
According to Williams, this style of learning will include short concept classes where students will learn about a specific concept that will then trickle down to other coursework, providing a fully immersive framework for learning. “It is a way that students can engage in work that is meaningful,” she said.