Education Op/Ed

Letter to the editor: McGlashan offers credentials in her re-election bid

I am running for at-large re-election to the Ripton seat on the Addison Central School Board. I feel called to serve on behalf of all students in ACSD, driven by my commitment to address inequities across our district regarding who has access to educational opportunities and whose educational needs are being met. I bring passion, experience, leadership, integrity, and accountability to my work on the board.

I am a mother of two Ripton Elementary School and MUHS graduates and have lived in Ripton for 23 years. I served on the Ripton School Board and the ACSU board 2008–2013, and in that time oversaw the Study Circle process that engaged hundreds of citizens in each of our towns in meaningful discussions about whether or not to unify our supervisory union into one district. I am also the ACSD representative on the MCTV board. My academic credentials and the entire 35+ years of my professional career have been in education, preK-12 and higher education. I also teach a project-based Winter Term course at Middlebury College, “The Future of Vermont Public Schools.”

I ran for the Ripton seat three years ago, knowing that as a district, we are facing huge, complex challenges. I wanted to engage in a problem-solving process with integrity, transparency, and robust community engagement. For me, the board’s primary responsibility is to plan for and manage our assets and resources that best meets the needs of all our students. Making certain that all students feel welcome, supported, and successful is a top priority. By several measures, our socio-economically disadvantaged, special education, and students of color are not performing as well as their counterparts, while our educational resources and programming are unevenly distributed across the district. I feel morally obligated to act. At the same time, we face reduced enrollment, increased fixed costs and vastly increased student needs. The status quo is not sustainable and doing nothing is not an option.

We face very challenging decisions regarding the future of our district. It is essential that the board engage our educational community and help members understand the reasoning and results we hope to achieve. If I am re-elected, I pledge to collaborate with all of our stakeholders in building our future, particularly in how we cultivate a deep sense of belonging and uphold the unique strengths of our member towns.

Seven years ago, our towns unified into a single district so that we could address these challenges together. I remain committed to that work of collaborative problem-solving. I vow to work on behalf of all our students and families across the district, especially our most vulnerable. I would very much appreciate your vote on March 1, and I encourage you also to vote for my colleague Mary Cullinane from Weybridge, who has served as an incredibly effective board chair and unwavering advocate for our students.

Thank you.

Amy McGlashan

Ripton

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