Next year will be my tenth as a teacher in Vermont. It’s a sobering and proud milestone for me – a recognition of roots and dedication to this state that has opened up purpose and passion in my heart since I was an 18 year old on UVM’s campus. In my mind, this tenth year of teaching is the recognition of my commitment to a career, not just employment. A career defined by the giving of time, energy, attention, second chances and the giving up of ego, biases, weeknights and sunday afternoons with the family. All so that future generations of Vermonters will continue to embody our nation’s most honorable and just values.
This commitment, however, bears no fruit without the support of those it is meant to benefit. Upcoming debates and votes on more school closures, recommendations to place an egregious amount of pension liabilities on teachers, punishing our least-paid education staff for rises in healthcare costs, and conflating inadequate learning management technologies with changing graduation requirements have left me feeling that at this moment Vermonters are at best confused about what they value in the education of their youth.
We’ve all been there before. You’re overworked and aching to the bone, sitting in a meeting where the information is coming at you too fast in language that is too technical. You look around and some people seem to nod or agree with what’s said. You make a quick assessment – it looks like the people running the meeting know what they’re talking about. Something in you says this doesn’t make sense, but in an effort to not stall progress nor look unintelligent for asking a question you don’t know how to word, you remain silent until the end. You leave with some combination of regret, disappointment, and apathy.
Right now conversations about pensions include eliminating COLA, increasing AFC years, increasing employee contributions, and Rule of 90 adjustments. Health insurance revolves around HRA’s vs. HSA’s, third party administrators, out of pocket costs, premiums, and wellness prescriptions. School closures are being dictated by equalized pupil count, capital projects, and excess spending penalties. All of which is a daunting task to make sense of, least of all in the middle of a pandemic. Don’t get me wrong, each of these is a vital component of a functioning, equitable education system. But the tone and tenor of conversations is that all of these technical components are somehow broken and can only be fixed through severe austerity measures. Least of all in the middle of a pandemic.
There is always an alternative. For too long the pendulum has swung in the direction of cuts, reductions, and elimination. The gap between the wealthy and poor is the largest it’s been since the Great Depression and continues to widen. Lawmakers can recognize that after a decade of recessions, a global pandemic and an opioid epidemic, the working class can be gutted no longer. There is no more left for them to give without permanently damaging the state’s future economic and social potential. It is time for Vermont to reinvest in all of it’s commitments by ensuring that everyone pays their fair share.
Educating for Climate Change 
Yes, there is always an alternative. And that can take shape as there is honest, respectful dialogue. Our students, and the work of our educators and school systems, is too important for these conversations to fail.
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