Happy spring, everyone!
Though Representative Torre addressed Education Reform last week, I, too, will discuss it as it is arguably the most important legislation of this session.
On Friday, the House passed H-454, the transformative education bill that has been under construction since the session began. I voted in support of this bill for many reasons, but in short, because it is the product of a collaborative and comprehensive process that begins to update Vermont’s public education system.
The bill began with Governor Scott’s big-picture view of education transformation presented in January, and dug into the details of each idea to create workable policy. The governor and education secretary’s plan included many strong ideas that are necessary for both equal opportunity for students and cost-containment for taxpayers: minimum class sizes; recommended school sizes for grades 6-12; a foundation formula for school funding; and limiting the disbursement of Vermont public-school funds to private and out-of-state schools. A unified statewide school calendar and universal graduation requirements are also key components of the bill.
H-454 is receiving some criticism for its multi-year timeline, but after much testimony on this topic, the proposed schedule is realistic and reflects input from school superintendents and others who are closest to the work. The governor’s original proposal expanded the scope of the Agency of Education while contracting that of the State Board of Education (SBE); however, the House felt strongly that both agencies must remain intact, and H-454 reflects that. The cost-per-student is another point of disagreement: the governor’s plan initially suggested a cost of approximately $13,000/student with the new foundation formula, but after extensive research into ensuring all costs were accounted for, the House bill increased that cost to approximately $15,000/student, before student weighting. Cost containment is one of the main necessities of reform, and the House bill sets the stage for savings, while acknowledging there is more work to be done in future years to control costs (particularly those related to health care and special education costs). H.454 is now in the Senate where it will likely undergo revisions before returning to the House.
H.454’s Proposed School Reform timeline:
- 2026 legislative session: create new, larger school district boundaries (evaluating the up-to-three redistricting proposals due December 1, 2025, by a subcommittee of the Commission on the Future of Public Education); consider statewide graduation requirements proposed by Agency of Education.
- Academic year 2026-2027 –– class-size minimums take effect (there is support for schools that don’t meet these criteria).
- 2027 legislative session: create voting wards within each school district for the election of school board members.
- Academic year 2028-2029 – implement statewide school calendar
- November 2028: the first school board member elections within the newly-created school districts.
- Academic year 2029-2030 – new school districts are operational; foundation formula in-place.
Proposed Class Size Standards:
- The average class size minimum for kindergarten classes shall be 12 students.
- . . . for grades one through four shall be 15 students.
- . . . for grades five through 12 in all required content area classes shall be 18 students.
- Multiage classrooms for grades kindergarten through eight shall be limited to two grade levels per classroom.
- Career and Technical Education classes, flexible pathways, terminal courses, AP courses, courses requiring specialized equipment (ex. Science labs), driver’s ed., special education, English learner instruction, and specialized intervention are excluded from this requirement.
I believe that we are on the right track to reform our education system in a way that brings costs under control and establishes best practices for delivering a high-quality education to Vermont students. Thank you to many of you for your engagement in this process.
Spring Coffee Hours:
Monday, April 28, 7:30 a.m., Twisted Halo, Waitsfield.
Tuesday, May 13, 8:30 a.m., Black Cap Café, Waterbury.
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