TopFeatured.com

Born July 29, 1925 Laconia, New Hampshire Died April 12, 2024 Rochester, New Hampshire Alice Marie Ann Boutin, 98, died on Friday, April 12, 2024, under the loving care of her two daughters, Suzanne Boutin and Elizabeth McGrath DNP, and her husband, John McGrath, in Rochester, NH, where she lived the remaining three years of…

Born July 20, 1970 Lafayette, Indiana Died April 12, 2024 Middlebury, Vermont Athletic, artistic, passionate, entrepreneurial — these are all words that describe who David was. As a youth, David was an elite junior ski and bike racer. David spent his formative years in York Pennsylvania, ski racing at Round Top and competing in local,…

Timothy Noonan of Montpelier is a veteran runner who will be competing in the Boston Marathon on Monday. Seen at home on Wednesday. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Vermonter Tim Noonan knows the long slog of winter, having seen this April spring more snow than showers. The 67-year-old Montpelier resident is also well aware of the…

Rep. Emilie Kornheiser, D-Brattleboro, left, and Tax Commissioner Craig Bolio. Photos by Glenn Russell and Mike Dougherty/VTDigger When the week started, the House’s tax writing committee looked poised to structurally transform Vermont’s education finance system. By Thursday, such changes seemed less certain. And on Friday, Gov. Phil Scott’s administration entered the room, throwing out an…

Zoie Saunders has been appointed as Vermont’s new secretary of the Agency of Education. Courtesy photo The Vermont Senate Committee on Education will hold its confirmation hearing for Gov. Phil Scott’s pick for education secretary, Zoie Saunders, on April 23.  The committee’s chair, Sen. Brian Campion, D-Bennington, initially considered holding the hearing next week, when…

This commentary is by Rep. Laura Sibilia, I-Dover. For years, a multitude of factors beyond the control of school districts have been affecting school budgets and tax rates: demographic shifts, pandemic disruptions, the end of federal funding and deeply flawed equity calculations in the education finance mechanism.  Gov. Phil Scott and the Legislature have regularly…

“Goldfinch,” by Lauren McCabe, 17, of South Burlington. Young Writers Project is a creative online community of teen writers, photographers and artists, which has been based in Vermont since 2006. Each week, VTDigger features the writing and art of young Vermonters who publish their work on youngwritersproject.org, a free, interactive website for 12- to 18-year-olds.…

A customer tries a few of the many samples at Blake Hill Preserves in Windsor on Tuesday. As part of a larger financing package, the business is applying for funding through the Town of Windsor to support a $2.7 million facility expansion in Artisan Park. Photo by Jennifer Hauck/Valley News This story by Patrick Adrian…

Dear reader, From the time I was a young child, my parents lovingly fostered a passion for reading in me. I remember my brothers and I piling into bed with my mom while she read us stories before bed; Harry Potter and The Time Warp Trio were our favorites. Stretching back earlier than I can…

Sen. Chris Bray, D-Addison, chair of the Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee, speaks as the committee takes testimony on a bill that would provide a statewide river management system at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Tuesday, February 13, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Credit: Glenn Russell The Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee has…

A group of people waves Black Lives Matter flags outside Milton High School on March 20. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger MILTON — The Milton school board on Thursday avoided talking about the Black Lives Matter flag that has flown outside the high school for five years. But the board voted to change the flagpole policy…

This commentary is by Assia Hamana of Winooski and Alice Urban of Burlington. Assia is a graduate of Winooski High School and a junior at Brandeis University in Massachusetts, studying international relations. Alice is a member of the MENTOR Vermont board of directors and is a director of business development at Tetra Tech, a global…

This commentary is by Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, founders of Ben & Jerry’s. As the founders of Ben & Jerry’s, we know firsthand the power of investing in Vermont’s communities. Since opening our first location in downtown Burlington, we’ve used our platform to support economic and social justice. That’s why we wholeheartedly support the…

Born Oct. 25, 1941 Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Died April 5, 2024 Berlin, Vermont Details of services In accordance with Charlotte’s wishes, there will be no services held. Charlotte A. (Harring) Teese, 82, of South Burlington, Vermont, passed away on April 5, 2024 in Berlin, Vermont after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania,…

This commentary is by Rep. Marc Mihaly, D-East Calais. He represents Marshfield, Plainfield and Calais in the Vermont House of Representatives.  In his State of the State speech in January, Governor Scott laid out two important goals for his administration: Build more housing affordable to Vermonters and deal with rising crime. We all share these…

The Wilder Dam, seen from a portage trail in West Lebanon, N.H., on Tuesday, April 9, 2024. Photo by Alex Driehaus/Valley News/ Report For America This story by Frances Mize was first published by the Valley News on April 9. WILDER — With the Wilder Dam’s 40-year federal license expiring, Hartford residents and officials are…

A train crashed into two vehicles that police say were parked too close to the railroad tracks in Barton during Monday’s total solar eclipse, sending one woman to the hospital with minor injuries.  Authorities responded to the crash at 3:33 p.m., according to a press release issued late Tuesday by Vermont State Police. Totality in…

This commentary is by Greg Marchildon, Vermont state director for AARP. Vermont has a historic opportunity to expand access to affordable, reliable, high-speed internet to everyone in the state, no matter where they live or their circumstances. Access, however, depends on more than wires, poles and other pieces of infrastructure. It also depends on making…

This commentary is by Jeff Battaglini of West Dover, president of the Vermont Beekeepers Association; Andrew Munkres of Cornwall, immediate past president of the VBA; and Jack Rath of West Pawlet, past president of the VBA. “How are the bees doing?” is the question that we beekeepers are often asked when we interact with the…

Spectators view a solar eclipse in Burlington on Monday. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger As a total solar eclipse passed over Vermont on Monday afternoon, the headline we sought at VTDigger was not “moon blocks sun.” Instead, we tried to answer the questions: How are humans in Vermont reacting to this celestial event — a once-in-a-lifetime…

Image courtesy Michael Zeiler/GreatAmericanEclipse.com You might’ve heard there’s an eclipse coming. But when, exactly?  In many parts of northern Vermont, a partial eclipse — when the moon starts to move in front of the sun — will begin around 2:14 p.m. Monday and end around 4:37 p.m. Totality — when the moon completely obscures the…

Dear reader, Local journalism is the sunlight our democracy needs to function. Please keep it shining in Vermont by joining our spring drive today on eclipse day! You’ll also brighten a child’s day by sending a brand-new book with your supporting gift. Give and send a book Here’s how we’re making sure that you have…