April 26, 2007
By JOHN FLOWERS
MIDDLEBURY — Local members of the Vermont House on Monday sharply criticized a Senate-passed legislation calling for annual caps on school budget increases.
The measure — devised by Gov. James Douglas — calls for public school budget increases to be limited to 4 percent in the first year, and at 3.5 percent during ensuring years, unless a “super majority” of at least 60 percent of the local electorate decides to override the cap.
Douglas has touted the cap as a means of limiting education-related property tax increases during an era in Vermont’s history when school populations are declining.
The Vermont Senate on April 17 voted 15-15 — with Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie breaking the tie — to endorse a series of amendments (including Douglas’s spending cap) to H.526, the so-called “act relating to education quality and cost control.”
April 26, 2007
By HARRIETTE BRAINARD
MIDDLEBURY — The annual cost of attending Middlebury College will hit $46,910, a 5.25 percent increase over the prior year, for the 2007-08 academic year. The increase includes a 5 percent bump in the comprehensive fee and a 50 percent jump in the student activities fee set by the Student Government Association (SGA).
College officials this week said the increase reflects the commitment their institution has made to increasing faculty size and student aid as outlined in the strategic plan approved last May.
“With the federal government taking less of a role in providing scholarships to college students all of us who are involved in educating students are trying to reduce the loan component for the sake of the student,” said Vice President for Communications Mike McKenna.
