The Lamoille Ledger
January 31, 2025
Important Dates / Resources
February 6th - SSD Board Meeting / Budget Information Meeting 5:30PM (SES)
February 7th - Teacher Professional Development (NO SCHOOL)
February 12th - LSSU Board Meeting 5:30PM (MES)
February 19th - EMUU Board Meeting 5:30PM (MES)
February 24th - 28th - Winter Break (NO SCHOOL)
LSSU Family Handbook (2024-25)
Monthly Update
Dear LSSU Community,
As we head into February, we take a moment to celebrate a strong start to 2025 and an overall very positive year for our schools. Next Thursday, I will present our mid-year academic data to the Stowe Board and an EMUU presentation will take place on February 19th. Although there has been recent media articles stating Vermont test scores are dropping, student outcomes in Lamoille South continue to rise. In fact, standardized test data indicates our schools have outperformed the state significantly in all assessed areas and the investments we have made in mathematics, literacy, and behavioral supports are paying off. Our student behavior data also indicates a sharp decrease in discipline referrals and this is all a direct result of the hard work of our incredible faculty and staff.
As we share this good news, there is a lot of discussion in Montpelier regarding the future of public education. We are all in agreement that something significant needs to be done and I have advocated for some very specific changes that would reconnect voters with their local spending decisions. The new Secretary of Education, Zoie Saunders, presented a comprehensive plan to completely redesign our system and consolidate into five school districts. Transparently, I have significant concerns about this plan when considering what is best for our students. We have learned through Act 77 (proficiency-based learning), Act 46 (consolidation), and the lastest Act 127 that well-intended changes made at a state level are often very detrimental to our local communities. The current plan would put our schools in a 15,000 student district that spans from Eden to Sharon and includes no funding for capital improvement. The board of this mega-district would make all decisions regarding the education of our children with a base budget per pupil that is proposed at $13,200. This is far below what most districts are spending and would require drastic cuts to programming decided by a board disconnected from the local communities it serves.
I have been appointed by the Vermont Superintendents Association to serve on a policy team to review these plans and will be advocating for changes that are aligned with best practice and research, along with in-depth financial modeling. The reality is that the only way to reduce education property tax is to reduce the number of adults working in our schools. Lamoille South has historically been a low-spending supervisory union with steady enrollments and appropriate student to teacher ratios. We should not be penalized for years of fiscal responsibility. Please contact your local legislators if you would like to express your views on the proposed change:
Legislators that serve our supervisory union include:
Sen. Ann Cummings (D) acummings@leg.state.vt.us
Sen. Andrew Perchlik (D/P) aperchlik@leg.state.vt.us
Sen. Anne Watson (D) awatson@leg.state.vt.us
Sen. Richard Westman (R/D) rwestman@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Saudia Lamont (D) slamont@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. Jed Lipsky (I) jlipsky@leg.state.vt.us
Rep. David Yacovone (D) dyacovone@leg.state.vt.us
Please have a wonderful weekend and reach out with any questions.
Thank you,
Ryan Heraty
Superintendent
School Budgets
Our school boards have put forward two responsible budgets for Town Meeting Day. The tax rate in EMUU is projected to decrease by 5%. The tax rate in Stowe is estimated to increase by 3.59%. Governor Scott has also indicated he plans to use one-time funds to buy down the tax rate even further across the state. Every registered voter will be receiving a letter with highlights on the current budget. Additionally, all of our information and resources have been put on a new webpage organized for the public to easily answer questions regarding the proposed budget.
New Literacy Requirement: Act 139
Vermont has passed a new law requiring schools to share literacy screening data for any student testing under a certain level. We have decided to share all screening data with families, regardless of performance level. HERE is a letter describing that decision.
Music Celebration
We are extremely fortunate to have such a thriving music program in our schools while many cut programs around the country. I asked the music department to just list a few highlights of their recent work. You will notice, that there is A LOT happening in the arts!
Superintendent of Lamoille South Unified Union School District