Peter D'Auria
Consultant to GMCB: four hospitals need ‘major restructuring’ to survive
A consultant is urging the state to make dramatic changes to its health care system, including repurposing inpatient units at Grace Cottage and three other hospitals, consolidating services at others, and reforming how and how much facilities are paid for care.
If fully enacted, the recommendations, contained in a 144-slide presentation released on Sept. 18, would lead to a sweeping transformation of Vermont's health care landscape. The report envisions a system in which much care takes place outside hospitals, where existing full-service hospitals pivot to providing specific types of care, and where charges to private insurance are kept down through regulation.
Staffing crunch temporarily closes Windham school
Windham Elementary will close for remainder of the school year after months of tumult over the school’s ultimate fate
School board members have decided to temporarily shutter Windham Elementary School after administrators struggled to fill staffing positions at the tiny school. The three-person Windham School Board voted on Dec. 14 to close the 15-student school and send kids to Townshend Elementary, roughly 10 miles away. Students will continue...
Windham school, one of smallest in state, prepares for new year amid turmoil
Six families whose children attend the school have filed a lawsuit seeking public tuition for their children to attend schools elsewhere
Windham Elementary School ended the 2022-23 school year this spring with three staff members resigning. With high turnover rates for educators nationwide, the departure of three employees might not be cause for concern at most schools. But at the tiny Windham Elementary, those three employees - a principal, a...
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Legislature approves universal school meals bill
Vermont lawmakers in both chambers have now given approval to legislation that would create an indefinitely operating universal school meals program, though it's unclear whether the governor will sign it. On May 5, the Senate voted to give initial approval to H.165, which would require schools to provide free breakfast and lunch to Vermont students. The legislation passed the House in March. “About a year ago, when I heard about universal school meals, I remember thinking to myself, 'That sounds...
Twin Valley School District failed to address harassment and ‘hostile educational environment,’ federal investigation finds
A federal investigation found that the Twin Valley Unified Union School District failed to prevent a “hostile” school climate that included “targeted peer harassment” at Twin Valley Middle-High School, officials announced on March 16. In a settlement with the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney's Office, the district agreed to update its policies, improve training programs, and monitor the school's environment more closely, the agencies said. “Schools should feel safe for all children, but when harassment does happen, schools...