To The Editor:
Our educators have been left out of the HUUSD redesign process. Aside from public comment during board meetings and the same handful of community forums available to the general public, the people with the most expertise, knowledge and direct interaction with students did not have a seat at the table when it came to discussing potential school configurations. It wasn’t until the teachers union enforced contractual obligations that the HUUSD Board included time on the agenda for them to make impact statements at the recent meeting held February 12.
Less than 48 hours after this time spent with teachers during the board meeting which included several motions around creating transition teams consisting of administration and teachers, reduction in force (RIF) letters went out to the staff in the district. Positions were eliminated, reduced and many reassignments were made, none of which needed to happen before our vote on the proposed budget. Whether it was intentional or not to omit this information during the February 12 board meeting, it certainly comes across as completely unprofessional and extremely disrespectful of our educators. It is yet another example of a deeply flawed redesign process since Superintendent Nease released her white paper in 2017 already proposing the closure of schools a mere five months after the merger.
There have been recent statements by individuals and the HUUSD Board that a choice has to be made between cutting programs and reducing staff in order to achieve necessary savings. I believe this to be a false dichotomy. In such a small school system, our educators are our programs with each one bringing a unique skill set that cannot be easily replaced by simply shifting teachers around like widgets. And due to the contract between the board and teachers and the state credentialing system, it is high school positions that are being cut, meaning the loss of important programming opportunities for graduating students like STEM classes, digital media and world language.
Although it is true that our district faces some hard choices ahead, this is not a reasonable way to treat the hardworking people we entrust daily with our children. I have never before voted against a school budget or request for funding; however, I cannot support school redesign through budgeting and the fear and uncertainty this process has caused staff, students and families across the district. It is not healthy for our community and so I will be taking the advice several HUUSD Board members recently gave when they rejected warning the petitioned Articles of Agreement and I will vote no on the proposed budget coming before us March 3. I stand with our educators.
Cory Stephenson
Moretown, Vermont
