Letter to the editor: Choices loom in ACSD spending

As budget development season approaches, I have been reflecting on what the school budget represents to the members of our ACSD community.

After the half-time principal of Ripton Elementary resigned, Salisbury Principal Bjarki Sears will become acting principal in Ripton and Roxanne Greene will be the on-site, part-time associate principal there.

A successful reconciliation effort between Ripton parents and their local educators will allow the community’s elementary school to continue as a K-5 learning hub — at least for now.

The Addison Central School District board on Monday endorsed a new, two-year contract with ACSD support staff that among other things assures them base-pay raises of 10% in year one (2024-2025) and 6% in year two (2025-2026) of the deal.

When is a class size too small in an elementary school? The answer lies in the number of peers in a classroom available to form friend groups of 2 to 5 students.

The town of Ripton, two years removed from a bruising battle to safeguard its elementary school, finds its public education hub in crisis. Parental backlash over a recently launched K-1-2 combined class came to a head on Monday with the sudden resignation … (read more)

Like many who attended Monday night’s ACSD meeting, I left feeling incredibly disappointed with the board’s actions in the meeting. The discussion centered around immediately removing the K-2 students at Ripton elementary and placing them into other area … (read more)

The Addison Central School District (ACSD) on Aug. 20 honored its top staff and educators for 2024, one of whom has also earned statewide accolades for her performance.

Lashawn Whitmore-Sells likes just about everything about her new gig as Shoreham Elementary School principal — even her hour-long commute.

Jenny Urban has served the ACSD as a grades 1 and 2 classroom teacher, a paraeducator, an International Baccalaureate team leader, dean of students at Mary Hogan Elementary School, assistant principal of both Bridport and Shoreham elementary schools, and … (read more)

The Middlebury selectboard has set the fiscal year 2025 municipal tax rate of 88.94 cents per $100 in property value, representing a 2.46-cent bump from the current rate of 86.48 cents.

Here are the scheduled school bus pick-up and drop-off times for students in Cornwall, Salisbury, Bridport, Shoreham, Weybridge, Ripton and Middlebury, as well for students over the mountain.

Communication will be among Nadya Bech-Conger’s top priorities during her first several months helming the Bingham School, whose halls will soon ring again with the voices of around 85 students in grades K-5. It’s one of seven elementary schools — along w … (read more)

While Wendy Baker is new to the Addison Central School District, her recent hire as the ACSD’s new superintendent is somewhat of a homecoming.

I would like to respond to the recent article by John Flowers on the conclusion of negotiations between ACEa teachers union and the ACSD school board.