Alison Novak

1 week ago | sevendaysvt.com | Alison Novak

click to enlarge In a letter to the U.S. Department of Education on Monday, Vermont Education Secretary Zoie Saunders affirmed that Vermont schools do not discriminate based on race, rejecting the Trump administration's claim that diversity, equity and inclusion — or DEI — initiatives are racially discriminatory.

2 weeks ago | sevendaysvt.com | Alison Novak

click to enlarge An education reform bill passed a key hurdle in the Vermont House Thursday afternoon and is poised for a final vote on Friday. The bill takes a slower, more measured approach to reforming school funding and governance than Gov. Phil Scott's education transformation plan, which was unveiled in January.

2 weeks ago | sevendaysvt.com | Alison Novak

Two students from Nicaragua who attend Champlain Valley Union High School in Hinesburg must leave the U.S. by the end of April after the Trump administration revoked their legal protections. The siblings, both seniors, won't try to legally challenge the order and will voluntarily return to the Central American country in the coming weeks, according to Christina Daudelin, who works to support student and community engagement at the Champlain Valley School District.

2 weeks ago | sevendaysvt.com | Alison Novak

click to enlarge Last June, the Sentinel Group and its owner, Jeff Caron, signed a two-year contract for up to $10.7 million to run a small, temporary juvenile detention center in Middlesex and to help the State of Vermont design a larger, more permanent one in Vergennes. The latter facility is meant to replace Woodside, the troubled teen lockup in Essex that closed in 2020 amid accusations of physical and psychological abuse there.

2 weeks ago | sevendaysvt.com | Alison Novak

click to enlarge The Vermont Agency of Education told school superintendents on Monday evening that it would send a "single, statewide letter" to the U.S. Department of Education certifying that the state is complying with current civil rights law.