BARRE, Vt. — Vermont school leaders say they can’t wait any longer for state construction aid, even as lawmakers stall on reforms and mounting repair needs stretch into the billions.
This November, the Central Vermont Career Center in Barre will ask voters across 18 towns to approve a $149 million bond to build a brand-new, larger facility. The need is urgent, says director Jody Emerson, who notes the school has been forced to turn away roughly 200 students each year due to limited space.
“Every year that I've been here, the number of applicants to our center has increased,” Emerson said.
The ballot, however, comes with a blunt warning: there’s no state help available, and there may never be.
“Therefore, 100% of the project shall be built at the school district’s cost without State participation,” the ballot reads. Early calculations suggest that a $300,000 home in some towns could see property taxes climb by $400 or more per year if the project passes.
Vermont has not funded new school construction since it placed a moratorium nearly two decades ago. Deferred maintenance needs are now estimated at more than $6 billion statewide, with lawmakers saying they hope to eventually restore aid — but only as part of a complex plan to consolidate school districts. How that aid would be paid for remains unresolved.
Asked why the Career Center can’t just wait for possible state help, Emerson was candid:
“The answer is: we don't know if we're ever going to get it.”
Other districts are also testing their chances. The Orleans Central Supervisory Union, serving Barton and nearby towns, is gauging whether communities would support a new regional elementary and middle school without waiting for Montpelier. Superintendent Jackie Ramsay-Tolman said delay is not an option:
“It really comes down to we just don't know.”
Meanwhile, the Mountain Views Supervisory Union in Woodstock has pleaded with lawmakers to ease a tax penalty on school spending, warning that the condition of their middle and high school is nearing crisis.
“At any moment, there could be a catastrophic failure,” said Keri Bristow, school board chair.
But state leaders remain unmoved. Governor Phil Scott flatly rejected calls for a special legislative session:
“We will not be having a special session. January will be coming soon enough.”
Legislative leaders have echoed that timeline. Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Baruth said bluntly:
“We won’t be coming back.”
House Education Chair Rep. Peter Conlon acknowledged the frustration of local officials, saying:
“I suspect school districts are feeling like, ‘Hey, we've been patient enough.’ And they are right in that. So we need to give them some clear guidance moving forward.”
Still, Conlon warned that state finances are fragile, with flat revenues and shrinking federal aid making large-scale funding especially difficult.
“This is just an incredibly challenging and hard and somewhat depressing situation to be in,” Conlon said.
For now, Vermont’s communities are left with a tough choice: pay for new schools on their own, or risk operating in facilities that local officials warn are outdated, overcrowded, and in some cases unsafe.
Originally reported by Lola Duffort in Vermont Public.
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