Plaintiffs in Vitale v. Bellows Falls Union High School argue that allowing some parents to choose the best school for their child under Vermont’s “tuitioning” system, while forcing other families to accept a school based on geography, is a violation of equal access to educational opportunity under Brigham.
More parents overwhelmingly chose school choice in 2022 after expressing frustration with lockdown policies, school boards and mandates. The majority of parents surveyed in a major study said they wanted other options for their children’s education other than the public school districts their children were zoned to attend.
In 2022, conservatives flipped dozens of school boards across the county, enacting conservative priorities and amending school policies to increase transparency in the classroom.
Legislator reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision allowing public funds to go to religious schools is very likely to trigger damaging proposals in the coming 2023 legislative session.
Longtime Vermont mandatory mask opponent Amy Hornblas has been rebuked by a Northeast Kingdom school superintendent for seeking to overturn the required masking policy in the elementary school in the tiny town of Newark.
“We would like to remind the school board trustees you are elected into your positions to represent the voice of Milton residents, parents and taxpayers. Therefore you work for us, not the superintendent or the administration,” DeLong said.
The University of Vermont hosted “Sex Toy Bingo” for students earlier this month. The event was described as “sexperts, sex toy prizes, condom giveaways, and more,” according to reports.
When this legislature returns to Montpelier in January, Vermont’s century-and-a-half-year-old, highly successful experience with school choice will be under threat of elimination.
Private schools have made the news as an alternative to public schools, but increasing numbers of Vermont parents find homeschools are an attractive additional option.
New Hampshire is facing a lawsuit from a teachers’ union over a new program that diverts public dollars for children to attend private schools and homeschooling.
Utah, New Hampshire and South Carolina are pushing for more expansive school choice legislation, while states such as Arizona and Florida have already implemented programs that provide vouchers to students outside of the public school system.
Vermonters both liberal and conservative expressed their views Tuesday night regarding a proposed education equity policy and related free speech issues at Milton High School.