Education

Education section

Leo Mousseau on “Here We Are”

by Wendy O'Connell | Education

Voices from our high school ! A senior at BUHS, LEO MOUSSEAU keeps busy as a teacher’s assistant, acting in local productions and serving on the student-led Restorative Justice panel. Tune in for an inside look…..

WSESD Joins Rural School Community Alliance

by Not Signed In | Education

As state legislators and Governor Phil Scott draft and release plans for drastic education reform, the Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) Board voted unanimously to join the Rural School Community Alliance (RSCA) on February 11, 2025. RSCA is a coalition of Vermonters that advocates for the importance of rural community public schools and for a democratic voice in decision-making about their future. The RSCA’s goal is to encourage legislators to pursue meaningful property tax reform that strengthens Vermont’s future while maintaining support for high-quality, equitable, cost-effective rural schools.

WSESD Board Meeting Minutes – April 8, 2025

by Not Signed In | Education

Summary
● 3 Executive Sessions were held regarding student academic records and disciplinary matters, and labor relations. Board motioned to ratify the contract for certified employes as negotiated
● Significant public comment and board discussion occurred concerning Title VI and recent
federal DEI-related directives from the state; a special board meeting was scheduled for April 10 to continue the conversation.
● Board subcommittees and leadership councils shared updates, including ongoing work in social justice, goal setting, and community engagement through the Rural School Alliance.
● Personnel updates included multiple hires, two resignations, and one retirement, all accepted with appreciation.
● Board voted to ratify the contract for certified staff.

WSESD Board Meeting Agendas

by Not Signed In | Education

The Windham Southeast School District Board will meet at 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday,
April 08, 2025 at the Guilford Central School and remotely via Zoom.

The Windham Southeast School District Policy and Amendment Committee Meeting will take place Wednesday, April 09, 2025 at 2:00pmin the WSESU Central Office, 53 Green Street, Brattleboro

WSESD Board Meeting Minutes – March 25, 2025

by Not Signed In | Education

Summary
● Leadership Council and Committee assignments were established.
● The Board determined that they will follow Robert’s Rules for Small Boards and confirmed Board Norms.
● A committee was established to explore the Board goal setting process.
● Donation of $4,626,00 made to the Rural Community School Alliance was approved.
● Approved 3 policies.

WSESU Reorganizational Meeting Minutes – March 19, 2025

by Not Signed In | Education

Mark presented the board with documents detailing our SU’s current system of Supervision, Observation & Evaluation for certified staff. New teachers are evaluated during their 1st and 2nd years and then afterwards on a 3 year cycle. A committee was created including members of the Curriculum office, BAMS and BUHS personnel as well as representatives from the elementary schools so that there was a full Pre-K – 12 lens on this issue. The committee is proposing a newly formatted template that will be discussed at the April Admin meeting. The intent is to create a common structure that can be used across all schools.

WSESD Policy & Amendment Committee Meeting Minutes 3/12/25

by Not Signed In | Education

F8 Student Medication
Invited Attendee: Rebecca Olmstead, Nurse Leader

Since the last meeting, RO met with the district doctor regarding this policy, and the doctor approved the draft brought to the committee today. The committee read the new draft aloud, and in consultation with RO, made a number of edits for clarity, consistency, and accuracy. The last two paragraphs (non-prescriptions medications and the concluding paragraph) were reviewed after RO had to leave the meeting, and these will need to be reviewed again. The procedures section was not reviewed.

Guilford WSESD Seat Recount Results

by Not Signed In | Education

Official recount results are in, for the Guilford seat on the Board of Directors of the Windham Southeast School District: There has been no change to the number of votes for each candidate from Guilford. Jocelyn Fritts has been duly elected to the Board of Directors.

WSESD Recount of 3 Year Seat Scheduled for March 11

by Not Signed In | Education

The Town Clerks of Brattleboro, Dummerston, Guilford and Putney have confirmed that they and members of their Boards of Civil Authority will come together in each town for a recount of the contested Guilford 3-year seat on the Board of the WSESD.

Candidates and members of the public are welcome to observe the recount. Time and locations for the re-count: 

Windham Southeast School District Recount

by Not Signed In | Education

The Windham Southeast School District announces that a recount has been requested in the election results for the three-year Guilford seat on the WSESD Board of Directors. Candidates were Jocelyn Fritts, having received 1128 votes and Kelly Young, having received 1100 votes.

The total vote tallies are reported in a “commingled” manner, as per 16 V.S.A. § 741(3). “The articles of agreement as initially approved by the voters on or before July 1, 2019 explicitly provide that the board of civil authority of each town within the unified union school district shall count Australian ballots cast in that town and report that town’s results to the district clerk, who shall calculate total votes cast within the unified union school district and report the result of the vote to the public.”

WSESD Board Meeting Minutes Feb 25, 2025

by Not Signed In | Education

Summary
● The Board debriefed two important Summits held in the past two weeks, 2/12/25 with the three School Boards and 2/24/25 with local legislators.
● The Board accepted, with regret, the resignation of Christopher Brewer, Dean of Students at BUHS.
● Three policies (D1, F16, F28) were presented to the Board for a first reading.
● The Board entered Executive Session under 1VSA §313 (a)(1)(A) Contracts.

WSESD Independent Budget Review Committee Minutes – Feb 2, 2025

by Not Signed In | Education

On a Motion by Elie and seconded by Maggie the committee unanimously approved the draft for publication pending any comments from Frank Rucker, WSESD business manager.

Kristina referred the committee to the motion from the past meeting authorizing Maggie and Kristina to incorporate edits before releasing the report if Frank has minor changes. The committee agreed to let the motion stand, and Kristina agreed to hold an emergency meeting if any issues arise in the next few days which would require substantive rewrites.

Windham Southeast School District Board Windham & Southeast School Union Board Special Board Meeting Minutes

by Not Signed In | Education

IV. Overview of Governor Scott’s “Education Transformation Proposal: a proposed reform of Vermont’s current system of education and funding.”

Dan McArthur Rural School Alliance gave an overview of the Governor’s proposal for educational reforms and gave remarks on behalf of the rural school alliance.

Emilie Kornheiser also gave remarks regarding educational reform proposal and various funding mechanisms