Editorial

School enrollment trends question district futures, impacts of VT Legislature

It’s often been said that numbers don’t lie. For anyone who read Lauren Harkawik’s report last week on the recent River Valleys Unified School District board meeting, the numbers tell an uncomfortable truth. Student enrollment numbers are low, and appear to be staying that way for the...

Know Your News

When your town, city or county has a local news outlet, the benefit ripples through the entire community.
You have a defender who cares about where you live and work, from reports about the content of school lunches to the latest proposal to raise taxes or increase your monthly water bill...

Leaves change, wish for rain

“That old September feeling, left over from school days, of summer passing, vacation nearly done, obligations gathering, books, and football in the air ... Another fall, another turned page: there was something of jubilee in that annual autumnal beginning, as if last year’s mistakes had been...

"Never forget"

This week we publish on September 11. It would be virtually impossible for citizens of the United States to forget the significance of that day. On September 11, 2001, the world changed.
That was, of course, the day the country was attacked by operatives of the terrorist group al-Qaeda...

A historic evening

History of a different kind was made Tuesday evening in Wilmington. Leland “Buddy” Hayford notched his 500th career win as a head soccer coach. Hayford is a legend in Vermont high school coaching circles. He is currently in his 43rd year coaching boys’ soccer, all here in his hometown. First...

Beware the handmaidens

Memorial Hall in Wilmington was host this past weekend to the Holocaust Remembrance Exhibit, which featured more than 100 items from the collection of Darrell English. He has brought his collections of Nazi memorabilia to the valley on more than one occasion, and each time there are new lessons...

We all have reason to celebrate Labor Day

Labor Day weekend is here. The unofficial end of summer. The start of the new school year. The kickoff weekend for football season. In short, it’s a time of transition, anticipation, and excitement for many.
Labor Day at its core is a holiday for everyone. After all, just about...

Region must work to reverse aging trend

Vermont in general and Windham County in particular are getting older, with no change in sight. A recent newsletter sent by the Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation hammered home that point.
At the top of the email was a chart (see below) created by the United States Census Bureau...

We are all Americans

Last week’s story by Lauren Harkawik hopefully will make readers pause and reflect for a moment.
Harkawik wrote about two restaurant workers who are here in the valley on legal visas. The owner of the restaurant thought so highly of them as people and team members that he sponsored...

Lack of representation a reason for concern

Earlier this summer, the Vermont Legislature passed, and Gov. Phil Scott signed into law, House Bill 454. Now known as Act 73, it promises a sweeping overhaul of Vermont’s primary and secondary public education system. It’s a complex bill with a variety of goals and triggers, as we have...