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This commentary is by Krystyna Davenport Brown of Charlotte. Thank you. For four years I have been struggling with how to say thank you to the health care workers that saved my then-6-year-old daughter’s life. I have started and stopped so many times, maybe it was too emotional, maybe it was too soon, too late,…

This commentary was submitted by  the Forest Partnership, a coalition of the following conservation organizations in Vermont: Audubon Vermont; Northeast Wilderness Trust; The Nature Conservancy in Vermont; Trust for Public Land; Vermont Conservation Voters; Vermont Land Trust; Vermont Natural Resources Council Vermont forests are under threat. This includes the plants and animals who call our…

More than 75% of Vermont is “abnormally dry,” and a quarter of the state is in a drought, according to the latest data from the U.S. Drought Monitor.  As of last week, drought conditions were worst in southern Vermont, where much of Rutland, Windsor, Bennington and Windham counties were experiencing “moderate drought,” according to the…

This commentary is by Hannah Sorila of Brattleboro, a writer and community organizer who aims to align intention and impact in community safety and public policy.  If Brattleboro was seen as a community and not a business, the emergency would be that we have neighbors living outside, on our streets, because they do not have…

Dear Editor, I have written before about the way the University of Vermont Health Network spends its money, and now it appears the Green Mountain Care Board that approves its budgets have noticed that they overcharge to make money. UVM Health Network’s response is to cut services to Vermonters.  Apparently cutting salaries to its overpaid…

A set of murals by local artist Stephen Belaski, in storage in northern New York for the past 38 years, were recently given to the town of Rockingham. Photo courtesy of The Commons This story by Robert F. Smith was first published in The Commons on Nov. 12 ROCKINGHAM — A pair of Stephen Belaski…

This commentary is by Jonathon Weber of Burlington. He is programs director at Local Motion, Vermont’s statewide advocate for active transportation, vibrant communities, and safe streets. Around 2:45 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 11, 38-year-old Sean Hayes of Burlington was biking on Shelburne Road near Fayette Drive in South Burlington when an on-duty Shelburne police officer…

The Roxbury Village School was closed in fall 2023. File photo courtesy of Roxbury Village School This story by Tracy Brannstrom was first published in The Bridge on Nov. 11 After several months of discussion, board members of the Montpelier Roxbury Public Schools (MRPS) will be voting on whether to keep the Roxbury Village School…

This commentary is by Pat Suozzi of Hinesburg, president of the Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds. With the recent announcement of the discovery of golden clams in Lake Champlain, the total number of known invasives in that lake rises to 52. This follows the recent announcement this summer that Eurasian watermilfoil, also an aquatic…

Gov. Phil Scott pulled off a trifecta win in the latest election. The “most popular” governor in the country, a non-MAGA, conservative Republican in a liberal state, was easily reelected to a fifth term.  And by investing much of his own campaign war chest in defeating liberal legislative leaders in their own districts, he put…

“Mirror,” by Astrid Longstreth, 15, of West Bolton Young Writers Project is a creative, online community of teen writers and visual artists that started in Burlington in 2006. Each week, VTDigger publishes the writing and art of young Vermonters who post their work on youngwritersproject.org, a free, interactive website for youth, ages 13-19. To find out more, please go…

Dear Editor, Why are Vermont’s prisons contracting with a company owned by a predatory, profit-seeking private equity firm to provide health care to the state’s incarcerated population? Wellpath, one of the country’s largest for-profit health care providers for prisons/correctional facilities, is owned by multibillion-dollar private equity firm, H.I.G Capital. Just last month, the company defaulted…

Gov. Phil Scott has appointed Steven Brown Jr. to serve as the top prosecutor in Windham County, the governor’s office announced in a press release Friday.  Brown worked in the office as a deputy state’s attorney for 17 years before becoming interim state’s attorney when Tracy Shriver retired in July.  Prior to working in the…

James Ehler, left, and Elizabeth Brown. Photos by Glenn Russell and Gordon Miller/VTDigger Vermont Lt. Gov.-elect John Rodgers has named a recent state House candidate and a longtime activist to serve as his office’s chief of staff and as a top advisor, respectively. Rodgers this week announced that Elizabeth Brown, who ran unsuccessfully in this…

The Hannaford grocery chain website is down. A screenshot on Friday, November 15. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Hannaford’s website has been down for more than a week, causing issues for customers looking to use the Northeast grocery chain’s pharmacy or pickup and delivery services.  Hannaford’s parent company, Ahold Delhaize USA, first detected a cybersecurity issue…

This commentary is by Nicholas Boke of Chester, a freelance writer and international educational consultant. I stood at the polls in Chester on Election Day, as I’ve stood at polls in various locations over the years, and as a Springfield friend has done. I’ve always enjoyed greeting the people who come out to vote, who…

This commentary is by Laura Sibilia of Dover. She is an independent representing the Windham-2 district in the Vermont House of Representatives. In October, I announced my campaign to be Vermont’s next speaker of the House. Now, after an election that eliminated the House supermajority, I want to acknowledge the challenges we face, share why…

The Mountain Top Resort in Chittenden on Thursday, November 14. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Generations of cross-country skiers have flocked to Chittenden’s Mountain Top Resort to spend wintry days gliding along bucolic, snow-capped paths nestled in the shadow of Killington. Now, as the popular cross-country skiing destination celebrates its 60th year in business, Mountain Top…

This commentary is by John Clifford of Hinesburg. He is a former Army officer and professor at Vermont Technical College. Recent VTDigger commentaries have caught my attention. In one — an opinion piece by Don Tinney, president of the Vermont NEA — the author emoted over a focus group video from the Agency of Education…

This commentary is by Daniel A. Morris of Northfield. He is the chair of Central Vermont Supervisory Union and the vice chair of Paine Mountain School District. He teaches philosophy at Norwich University. Dear Vermont Agency of Education, I was pleased to see that the Agency of Education will be conducting a “listen and learn…

Jane Kitchel, left, and Diane Lanpher. Photos by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Last week’s election, and the resulting power shift in Montpelier, will also reshape some of the Vermont Legislature’s most powerful committees — and who will lead them. The heads of two panels, the House and Senate appropriations committees, which steer the state budget-building process each…

This commentary is by Thomas West of Manchester. He is a father of four, an openly gay Army veteran, and co-author of “A Kids Book About Gay Parents,” which he wrote with his husband to celebrate diverse family structures. He serves on Manchester’s planning commission and was recently elected as a justice of the peace.…