Inaccurate school data /Closing schools, getting rid of boards

Rutland Herald

Opinion Letter

April 25,2015

It has come to my attention that the Vermont Agency of Education data I quoted in a commentary on April 23 [see below] in the Rutland Herald, are not accurate. For this, I apologize.

Looking at the Vermont Agency of Education table called, “Per Pupil Spending by District Type,” (this can be found by that name by simply typing it into a search engine), for 2014 the table states clearly that the Sherburne Elementary School in the town of Killington has 58.64 equalized pupils and a budget of $26,642 per equalized pupil. What the table neglects to state is that Sherburne Elementary School also has tuition pupils from neighboring towns to bring the school pupil population up to around 95. This then means that the Sherburne budget is around $17,800 per pupil. Certainty a much more reasonable number. The Sherburne school is to be commended for voluntarily doing what the Legislature is trying to force on us.

I appreciate that a reader from Killington brought this inaccuracy to my attention and that he agrees with the rest of the commentary. One has to wonder that since the Agency of Education can’t get the numbers right, how will anyone, including the Legislature, ever be able to improve our school system. The more I think about it, the more I hope the Legislature does nothing this year.

PAUL STONE

Thanks Mr. Stone for the correction. The person who alerted Mr. Stone to this error is none other than our own inimitable former Selectman Jim Haff who is now on the School Board and well versed in Vermont education financing. I spoke to Jim after noticing Mr. Stone's original letter (below) and he confirmed the error and said he would contact Mr. Stone.

Vito  

Closing schools, getting rid of boards

Rutland Herald

Opinion Commentary

April 23,2015

Make no mistake about it, the goal of H.361 passed by the Vermont House and now being considered by the Senate is about closing elementary schools and getting rid of elementary school boards. About reducing citizen and parent participation in the education of their children; about removing those pesky and annoying things, citizens and parents, from the bureaucrat’s otherwise tranquil life. About giving over to the bureaucrats of the state more power, more control, more money.

This is not about good education. It’s about centralized control. Moving parents out and far away from their responsibility and rights toward the education of their children.

No wonder the superintendents of supervisory unions are for it. They get to keep their profitable jobs and get more power and control, the dream of every bureaucrat.

Some lawmakers, including the governor, made a big deal last election about the high cost of education and that property taxes were supposedly going up out of sight. The news media gladly went along always looking for a juicy story to sell. There has been a lot of hype about the supposed high cost of education, but this spring 237 school budgets passed and only 20 failed.

Vermonters take the education of their children seriously and have historically been willing to finance good local education. Just because a school is small doesn’t mean it is providing inferior education. And it definitely does not mean that costs are more.

Advocates of H.361 claim that larger school districts will reduce costs due to efficiencies achieved in larger numbers of pupils.

However, the Vermont Agency of Education website in a table of figures titled “Per Pupil Spending by District Type” for fiscal 2014 for the whole state, both the voted school budgets per pupil and what the agency calls the spending cost of education per pupil increased as the size of school districts increased from less than 100 students to those over 1,000. Please check this out to assure yourself of the facts.

For 2014, the figures above, there is no savings for the 16 Vermont school districts over 1,000 students compared to all the rest of the districts, 92 of which are under 100 students.

Voters vote school budgets and not spending per pupil. The discussion about school costs currently raging, according to lawmakers and the media, is the high cost per pupil. Citizens are thinking about the budgets they pass, but lawmakers are talking about spending per pupil. There is a big difference. School spending per pupil as defined by the Agency of Education is much less because they subtract from the budget the following: 1) a possible budget deficit or surplus from prior year; 2) grants, such as small school grant; 3) federal dollars; and 4) privately donated dollars.

This calculation by the education agency makes no sense because the cost of education is actually the budgeted amount passed by voters. That is the amount of money really spent, not the so-called school spending per pupil as stated by the education agency.

This boils down to if your school district is good at obtaining any of these four sources of revenues your school budget may be high but your school spending will be much lower because, apparently, these four sources of income for your district for some reason don’t count toward the overall cost of education, according to the education agency.

Take for example the town of Killington, 59 students in elementary school, with a 2014 school budget of $26,642 per student and school spending of $13,538. One can presume that because Killington is a well-off town that there is a lot of private money or money from somewhere coming into the system to support the budget.

Wherever the money comes from the budget for the Killington Elementary School budget in Killington of $26,642 is twice the budget of the town of Orwell at $13,035. This imbalance surely seems to circumnavigate efforts by the Legislature and courts to ensure a more fair and equitable education funding amongst towns in Vermont.

This ability of well-off towns to find and spend money puts other towns at a great disadvantage when a spending cap is imposed because a well-off town can find other money to make up reduced spending required by the cap where most towns don’t have the resources, i.e. some industry or business providing property wealth. The questions about school costs are important and should be studied from the point of why are costs so uneven in the state? Why do some schools cost so much? Not about some wholesale forced reorganizing of districts where individual schools have no choice.

Other questions should be why do some schools do better than others? Is it money available or location or what is it? My feeling is the difference in school and student performance is reflected in the makeup of the community. I think an inescapable truth is that the education achievements of students is dependent on parents’ educational level and their accumulated wealth — that is investments, home ownership and other measures of wealth. The real question in this educational debate should be how to level out that inequality.



Paul Stone operates Stonewood Farm in Orwell. He is a former Vermont commissioner of agriculture.

Residents Fed Up With ‘Unbearable’ Gunfire

Vermont Standard

By Curt Peterson

Standard Correspondent

KILLINGTON — When select board chair Patty McGrath looked up to see 11 people seated in the audience and said, “There are a lot of residents here tonight, so I’m guessing you have something to say,” she triggered a discussion that took up half the April 21 meeting.

Diane Hibbert started things off, saying, “I live on River Road, and I want to report there’s a lot of shooting of guns going on very near my house. They’re noisy, and they’re frightening.” She said she believes the shooting is coming from a residence called “the Oney house.”

Claudia Rainko-Bowen chimed in. “The shooting has become unbearable!” She said Adam Oney, who owns the property from where the gunshots are heard, “has brought in a lot of people no one knows, and the shooting goes on almost every day and at all times of day.” She said she’s lived on River Road for 15 years and never had this problem before.

“They sound like machine guns. After the shooting had gone on for an hour and 15 minutes I approached Adam and asked if he could stop the shooting. He told me it was his tenants doing the shooting, and that he would speak to them, but that he doubted they would listen to him.”

McGrath applauded her for going to the property owner directly to try to work things out.

Town Manager Seth Webb read a letter from resident Jonathan Pierce, who expressed concern about people’s pets being shot during gunfire sessions on River Road.

Another neighbor, Wayne Wilbur, said he counted over 200 rounds fired during one session.

“More shots than I’ve ever heard someone fire before.” He said for the past three days things have been pretty quiet, which he appreciated.

Wilbur lives on the edge of the wetlands and has a related challenge from duck and goose hunters. “They put their boats in right in front of my house, paddle out a few yards and just start shooting the birds while they’re swimming in the water.” “I own guns,” he said, “but using them like these firearms are being used changes the whole character of a neighborhood.” He suggested that Killington might adopt a rule prohibiting discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a residence. “Other states have that regulation, and it seems to work for them,” he said. Andrew McKenna said he lives 900 feet from constant shooting in his neighborhood, and has had to call the police many times. “I’ve got Whit’s (Police Chief Whit Montgomery) telephone number on speed dial!”

Rick Bowen, Claudia’s husband, said he’d heard that excessive shooting close to their homes also bothers residents in other parts of town.

Residents expressed worries about injuries to children walking past the shooting incident areas, bikers, hikers on the nearby Loop Trail, and people just enjoying the outdoors when the shooting erupts.

“Yes, and we’re working to expand foot and bike traffic all over town and on our trails system, so we need to protect them too,” McGrath said.

Montgomery made a brief presentation, which, he said, was inspired by the number of residents who had complained to him about the shooting.

“One option we have is to pass a noise level ordinance,” he said, “but I don’t recommend that avenue. Besides the gunfire, we’d be regulating people mowing their lawns and other sources of noise that don’t bother anybody.”

Referring to state statutes, Montgomery said the town could legally prohibit the discharge of firearms within the entire village, or in specific designated areas.

“We could apply the prohibition to areas where there are schools, recreation areas or in thickly settled areas of town.”

Selectman Chris Bianchi said he would rather see such a prohibition apply to the entire town rather than appear to be singling out any one property owner or neighborhood.

“I can sympathize with people who own guns,” McGrath said. “If someone owns a gun they want to use it, and there’s nothing wrong with that as long as it doesn’t affect someone else’s rights.”

Webb and Montgomery were charged with researching available ordinances from other jurisdictions and with asking the U. S. Forest Service and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, who own land in town, how they might co-ordinate regulations with the Select Board.

Montgomery’s second presentation included his recommendation that the town regulates taxis.

“One reputable taxi company has been after us for years to regulate the service in town.”

Montgomery said an ordinance would require licensing of any taxi service, and to get the license the applicants’ vehicles would have to be certified as safe and the drivers would have to pass background checks.

“Some time back a taxi driver got into a fist-fight with one of his fares over the bill for a ride. The driver beat the guy up and took his wallet. He was later arrested for robbery.” He said regulating taxi service would benefit both residents and visitors to the area.

Asked if the shuttle services provided by hotels and restaurants would come under the regulation, the chief said he thought they should be held to the same standard as other taxi services. He also recommends that a fee for the taxi license should be reasonable, but both enough to cover the cost of driver background checks and “big enough so the taxi companies take the ordinance seriously.”

“I own guns, but using them like these firearms are being used changes the whole character of a neighborhood.”

Wayne Wilbur

Killington: Higher voter turnout after change [but also less informed voter]

By Emily Cutts

Rutland Herald
Staff WRITER | April 23,2015

KILLINGTON — Three years after adopting paper ballots for voting at town meeting, Killington is reporting higher voter turnout.

“The results of the last three years demonstrate that the Australian ballot has ensured that everyone who wants to vote, can — even if they have to work on Town Meeting Day,” said Patty McGrath, chairwoman of the Select Board. “Adopting Australian ballot has definitely strengthened the democratic process in Killington.”

The Australian ballot, also known a secret ballot, allows absentee voters to participate; this is unlike a floor vote that requires attendance at town meeting.

“I don’t have an issue with either one,” said Lucrecia Wonsor, town clerk and treasurer in Killington. “I always felt bad when people couldn’t vote on town meeting because they couldn’t attend the meeting because of work; the good news is that those people have voted every single year.”

The town saw the highest voter turnout in the past 15 years in 2013 when 51 percent of registered voters turned out to cast their ballots on various issues including a contested Select Board seat. In 2014, 31 percent voted. The most recent town meeting held in Killington, which included a contested Select Board race, saw a 37 percent participation.

“We didn’t have as many people as expected,” Wonsor said.

The highest voter turnout for a regular town meeting before Australian ballots began was in 2009 at 29 percent and the lowest was in 2001 at 10 percent.

During the five years before the town switched voting style, voter participation averaged 25 percent.

Killington uses the Australian ballot to vote on officers, budgets and public questions.

“Vermont allows towns to do either way, if one way doesn’t work out they can go the other way,” said Steven Jeffrey, executive director of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns.

Across the state, 112 communities use a combination of Australian ballot and floor vote with 77 using only floor votes and 45 using only Australian balloting, according to the secretary of state’s website.

In Tinmouth, they use a combination of floor vote and Australian ballot. After a slim margin of two votes, the town switched exclusively to Australian ballot for a few years but eventually returned to floor voting on all issues except officers, said Gail Fallar, town clerk and treasurer in Tinmouth.

“There’s good points on both sides and that’s why we now have the compromise,” Fallar said.

While voting in Timouth may have increased — as it did in Killington — when the switch was made, attendance at the information meeting decreased.

Fallar, Wonsor and Jeffrey all expressed the same concern about using Australian balloting: less informed voters.

“I realized that Australian ballot gives people more opportunity,” Wonsor said. “I’m just disappointed when people don’t take the time to understand what they have been voting on.” 

Comment: Exactly! I've monitored attendance at the "Informational Meetings" and it has gone down every year since Australian Ballot was voted in. 

Vito

 

Killington to expand appeal with new thrill ride

By Bryanna Allen
STAFF WRITER | April 09,2015

 

KILLINGTON — This summer, Killington Ski Resort will have a new kind of beast to boast. At 4,800 feet long, the Mountain Coaster will be just one of the new features soon to be under construction.

The roller coaster, along with a high ropes course, zipline and interactive maze, will all be near the Snowshed Lodge.

“Basically, we are waiting for the snow to melt and the muddy ground to dry out before we begin the building process,” said Michael Joseph, media director of the resort.

The roller coaster will twist and turn through the nearby woods, complete with dips and 360-degree corkscrews.

Joseph said while the final details of the summer projects have not yet been finalized, the plan is to have them up and running before summer is over.

“We’d ideally like to see the coaster operating by mid-June,” he said, in time for a lot of other summer events, such as the Cooler in the Mountains concert series and the Spartan Race.

“But right now, winter refuses to move on, so we’re just waiting,” he said.

Mike Solimano, president of Killington resort, said the estimated cost for the coaster ranges between $2 and $3 million, and it will be open year round, offering an alternate activity for people who after skiing or riding still want more thrills.

Joseph said the Snowshed area was a good location for these additions because it’s not as far up the access road as the K1 Lodge.

“We don’t want people who are visiting the area to think there is no activity during the summer,” he said. “This lodge is more accessible and will be a hub of activity.”

The chair lift at the lodge is usually running on summer weekends so people can hike and bike, but Joseph said he would like to see them open more regularly as the attractions gain in popularity.

The ropes course will be above the movable maze, so people can look down on others racing each other through the checkpoints coming out on the other side, he said.

Tom Donahue, president of Rutland Region Chamber of Commerce, said the adventurous new additions to the resort will be very important when it comes to increasing the attention the resort gets during the summer.

“We have a lot of great natural attributes in this part of the state,” Donahue said. “This will just be adding to that.”

Donahue said it would be an additional draw to the area, giving families even more to do when the exploring the region.

“The new additions will be perfect for those who don’t necessarily want to ski during the winter or do other, more traditional activities in the summer,” he said. “It offers more options and would get people to come here and check out what else is offered, extending their stay.”

He said it has the potential to boost the economy through other businesses in the area and on the mountain, such as dozens of restaurants.

“There are a ton of great places to eat right there on the access road; this will bring people to those places,” he said.

While Donahue sees the economic factor of the additions, he also sees the fun factor.

“Oh, I’ll be the first one in line to ride that roller coaster, guarantee it,” Donahue said.

But the resort isn’t the only beneficiary of the thrilling new activities.

The town of Killington stands to gain from the expansion of the offerings as well.

“The full slate of events and amenities at the resort this summer will play a critical role in furthering the Select Board’s economic development goals,” said Amy Morrison, events and marketing coordinator for the town.

Morrison added that the resort’s focus on summer is a great example of how the town is striving to be branded as a four-season destination.

Donahue said, “This really complements every part of the town and resort.”

Jerk Festival coming to Killington

By Bryanna Allen
STAFF WRITER | April 08,2015

 

KILLINGTON —Killington Ski Resort will host an event this summer that promises to bring a lot of spice to the mountain.

At a Tuesday afternoon meeting, the town and ski resort announced they are collaborating with The Williams Agency to bring Vermont’s first Jerk Food Festival to the area this summer. The Vermont Jerk Fest is part of an initiative designed to continue growth of Killington summer events and tourism.

“We’re really excited to have this event coming here,” said Mike Solimano, president of Killington Ski Resort. “Our aim is to keep growing events during the summer months, and it’s gotten to the point where we might soon run out of summer weekends to host events.”

The festival will start Friday, July 31, with an adult Rum and Brew tasting, along with Jamaican-style food from local restaurants. Drinks and food alike will have a Caribbean flair, and local bartenders will have the chance to battle for bragging rights as they stir up creative Caribbean cocktails.

Saturday will be a daylong festival boasting Jamaican-style jerk food, live music from both local and Jamaican bands, activities for kids and stages offering other cultural entertainment.

The whole event will take place in and around K1 Lodge.

Nicola Williams, president of the Williams Agency, has organized dozens of Caribbean-style events over the years, including some in Boston and New York City, attracting thousands of people to each one.

But she has always wanted to bring one to Vermont, and now she has that chance.

“I’ve been to Vermont for vacations with friends and I just fell in love,” she said. “There is a lot about Vermont that reminds me of Jamaica, such as the mountains and the connection between the people and the environment. Also, Vermonters just really love their hot sauce.”

Williams said every time she comes to Vermont, she notices a new hot sauce on shelves and at farmers’ markets.

“That little detail is going to tie in nicely with the festival,” she said, laughing.

There will be a spice lane at the event, showcasing local and international specialty products, including hot sauces.

Williams said people will be familiar with a lot of the food, such as jerk seafood and meats.

Other treats will be new and even a bit unusual, including jerk ice cream and cheesecake.

Cooking demonstrations and competitions will also be a huge part of the festival.

“People in this state, as well as Jamaicans, have a good sense of food and where it comes from,” Williams said. “The festival will include that.”

Williams will use as many local foods, chefs and resources as possible for the event, keeping with the theme.

Another reason Williams was so drawn to Vermont, and Killington specifically, was the passion about sustainability and the preservation of the environment.

Killington Ski Resort officials say they strive for the greatest possible energy efficiency, along with treating the surrounding environment as respectfully as possible. Williams applauds that mentality.

“This event will fit right in with the attitude that Killington has, meaning it will be a zero waste festival,” she said. “I am just completely thrilled to be sharing this event with the town and the resort, we want this to be an event that grows each year.”

Williams said that currently they are estimating a sale of 5,000 tickets for the combined Friday night and Saturday events.

Tickets for the event go on sale April 20.

Sydney Roberts, CEO of Jamaica Awareness, an organization dedicated to preserving and educating people about the Jamaican culture, also is a partner in the festival.

“Jamaica is known for a few different things,” he said. “Reggae music, great athletes and food. This will be mostly a foodie event, but with culture and history tied in.”

On his first visit to Killington to check out the event location, Roberts said the mountains called to him.

The snow, however, did not.

“It was only me second time around snow, and it was not a very pleasant experience for me at first,” he said, laughing at the memory of trudging around the Killington area in the cold.

Despite his initial reaction to the chilly winter weather, Roberts, who is from Jamaica but lives in Miami, said everything else about Vermont and Killington felt right for a festival.

“It felt like a natural place to have the event,” he said.

The words of the Vermont Jerk Fest are Eat, Drink and Be Irie, he explained.

“Irie is a word that describes a feeling,” Roberts said. “That feeling of calmness, of happiness. The combination of the two is what that word means. It’s something you feel in your soul.”

Roberts said that almost everyone can experience and enjoy Jamaican culture, because the Jamaican population has people from all over the world, so everyone can relate to it somehow.

“What I’ve realized over the years is that it doesn’t matter what you look like or where you are from, Jamaican is a feeling you have at your core,” he said, touching his chest. “We’re bringing that experience to Vermont.”

Select Board Discusses Golf Course Upgrades, Littering And Dog Waste

Vermont Standard
April 2, 2015
By Curt Peterson

Standard Correspondent

KILLINGTON — The clubhouse at the town-owned golf course will be getting a new heat pump and air conditioning system this season. Town Manager Seth Webb explained that the new system will be the primary source of heat for the large room in the clubhouse, and the current boiler will heat the administration area and act as a backup system otherwise. The system will be obtained on a lease basis costing $128 per month for 10 years.

The existing air conditioning units haven’t been operational for years, Webb said.

Besides the new heating and cooling system, Webb said, the building is getting some serious sprucing up, including refurbished restrooms, new window treatments and new wall covering.

“We think it will make the course a more inviting place to come and play,” Webb said.

Following up on their recent budget discussions, two warrants were approved, one to authorize the town manager to pursue collection of delinquent sewer assessments for the Alpine Drive and Route 4 lines, and the other to authorize collection of delinquent general fund taxes. Webb reported that $63,000 in sewer fees is delinquent on Route 4, the greatest portion of which is owed by two users. One is a condominium complex, and a second user is in bankruptcy court and collection can’t be pursued until that is settled.

The board authorized Webb to sign a contract with National Center for Electronic Recycling, who will be taking such devices as TVs, PCs, monitors, DVD players, and appliances to help towns satisfy Act 148 requirements. The town will have the option to charge a fee to accept items that are on the “banned” list for landfill disposal, such as mobile phones. Select board member Chris Bianchi pointed out that when you charge residents to turn in specific items, people are tempted to throw them over a bank on the side of the road so they don’t have to pay the fee.

This brought up the problem of littering, in which everyone seemed to have an active interest, and dog waste was a popular topic. One resident reported that people who walk their dogs in the National Forest land near Kent Pond pick up after their dogs, but then leave a pile of bags of waste at the end of the trail for someone else to clean up. He pointed out that it would be preferable if they just let the dog go, then walk away – the weather will wash it away eventually, but not if it’s in a plastic bag.

The state has authorized a fine of up to $500 for littering, and a convicted litterbug may also be assigned up to 80 hours of community service to be spent specifically picking up litter. Bianchi suggested that signs announcing the fine be placed around town, and Killington Police Officer Whit Montgomery agreed to look into getting the signs.

Resident Peter Vito supported the expenditure, “We live in a beautiful place, and people come here because it’s a beautiful place. I think we have to do whatever we have to in order to keep it beautiful.”