Dear Barre Community,

Thank you to the many voices that showed up and shared their perspectives at the Board meeting on Monday night. Details or a recording of that meeting can be viewed at www.buusd.org/district/board.

The Board will meet again on October 5, 2026 to discuss the next draft of the budget (vote four) and to continue to discuss the operation of the district without a voter approved budget. We hope to have another budget for a vote in late October. We will share this date as soon as it is set.

We are continuing to work with the State of Vermont and the Agency of Education on our current operations plan to continue running schools without an approved budget. Please see their guidance memo attached to this letter that was released after our meeting with Secretary Saunders and her team on Monday. The conversations around temporary cuts to our operations (co-curriculars, athletics, staff, transportation, supplies, building projects, etc) are ongoing and are a result of needing to operate on 87% of last year's budget until we have a budget.

To operate on 87% for the full school year we would need to reduce costs by $8.4 million dollars. There are not $8.4 million dollars of cuts available to us in BUUSD and we have communicated that reality to the State. The total of all possible cuts, many of which are untenable, are at least five million dollars short of that goal. We know that this has been uncomfortable, but we have had to discuss all of the options. We know that this has been upsetting to many, as activities are an essential part of our programming. It is our goal to work towards another budget vote and move past the current operating restrictions that have been placed on us by Vermont law.

There are no plans to include cuts to student activities, co-curriculars, or sports programs in budget draft four. Those are not items the Board or administration want to remove from our budget proposal for the school year. We heard the voices that spoke at the meeting, and our business office is working to analyze many of the suggestions that we heard from board and community members as we work on the next draft of the budget.

There is a lot of misinformation circulating, and we encourage families to rely on official communication channels to understand the differences between operating on 87% of last year's budget and any reductions that the Board may consider for budget vote four.

Please know that we understand that these are painful conversations for many in our school community. It is our goal to inform you of the current situation as best we can, while navigating the uncharted waters we find ourselves in. Thank you for your passion and your support of our students.

Here is a link to a memo from the Agency of Education regarding what happens when a school budget does not pass.

Sincerely,
Emilie Knisley
Superintendent of Schools

The last video in our series provides an opportunity to learn about the Rowland Fellowship and district goals to improve the student experience.

In this video, some of the BUUSD's administrators discuss important progress that has been made within the district.

In this video, students from the BUUSD share their favorite subjects and what they've learned so far this year.

This video includes insight from several of our teachers across the district.

Please enjoy the first in a series of videos highlighting some of the wonderful things that are going on in our schools, in our classrooms, and in our community.

Stacy Emerson, NNE General Manager of Vermont & New Hampshire Student Transportation of America (STA) shares an update on why the two electric buses previously parked in front of BTMES have been removed.

The Barre Unified Union School District Board is pleased to announce that Superintendent JoAn Canning has been reappointed for the 2025-2026 school year, with an option for contract renewal in January 2026. Please join us in celebrating this continued partnership!

Click here for the full press release.

Yesterday, Encore Renewable Energy, a leading renewable energy developer and operator, delivered a $10,000 donation to Barre Unified Union School District, in particular, to Spaulding Educational Alternatives, which is located adjacent to Encore’s I Love Cows Solar array. Construction and energizing of the project will be completed later this year.

Encore’s generous donation was gratefully received. “Our plan is to utilize these funds to provide our students with technical, hands-on experiences that will allow them to enter the workforce or the next phase of their life with a strong foundation and a strong direction from which they can contribute to the community and benefit themselves,” said Jesse Schattin, SEA Director.

Check out the full story here: http://wcax.com/.../renewable-energy-company-makes-10k.../

This donation is the first of Encore’s recently-established program to empower community initiatives with every project they build, and is part of the company’s broader mission to be a trusted partner for all stakeholders in the projects they develop and deliver.

For more information, visit: encorerenewableenergy.com

Please join us in celebrating Jen Carbonneau’s nomination for 2025 Remarkable Woman of the Year. Jen serves as the Youth Employment Specialist at Spaulding Educational Alternatives. Jen was recently interviewed by Lily Sakaniwa with ABC 22/FOX 44 News.

5 regional finalists will receive a $5,000 donation to a charitable organization of their choosing, and for the Remarkable Woman of the Year, Nexstar Charitable Foundation will contribute $25,000 to her choice of non-profit.

Read about Jen’s interview here:

http://www.mychamplainvalley.com/.../remarkable-women.../

The CW Network will air their one-hour “Remarkable Women” special on Sunday, April 20, at 9pm.

Good luck, Jen!

This short video helps explain how education taxes are calculated.

This short video helps to explain and give background about the terms that are used when calculating education taxes.

October is Farm to School Month and Shelburne Farms along with VT FEED and the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont chose the SEA program to showcase the progress the staff and students have made so far this year with our school based farm to table efforts.  And they have accomplished so much!  Vermont officials including Secretary of Agriculture Anson Tebbets, Secretary of Education Heather Bouchey, VT FEED Director Betsy Rosenbluth, Barre City representative Jonathan Williams, and Barre City councilor Teddy Waszazak joined many others in a ceremony at SEA on Tuesday afternoon.  Students and staff planned this entire event, and BUUSD Manager of Food Programs Jen Hutchinson and SEA Student Support Specialist Alyssa Pratt joined me to share highlights. 

This summer, BUUSD staff attended the Farm to School Institute at Shelburne Farms to learn new ways to incorporate Farm to School lessons and practices into the school year curriculum. During this training they were able to network with other schools and programs from all over the country.  The results have been extraordinary, and yesterday visitors were able to enjoy a meal and activities prepared by our SEA students.  The kids have worked hard to improve garden spaces around the SEA grounds and learn about the joys of preparing fresh meals using locally sourced foods.  Congratulations to Jen, Alyssa, and the entire SEA community for this honor yesterday!

Watch this slideshow to get a better understanding of a day in the life of a SEA student. Find out what makes SEA unique and what our students enjoy most about learning here!

This week's Showcase brings us for a return visit to the SEA Program! "SEA" stands for Spaulding Educational Alternatives, and the program is in the middle of its second year in our new location. Located on Allen Street in Barre City, SEA provides an alternative opportunity to access high school for up to 60 of our students, and the program is off to an impressive and successful start. We met with SEA teachers Stephen Kelley and Cliff Thompson along with some of their students yesterday in East Montpelier with the Vermont Youth Conservation Corp, and it was a great visit.

The SEA crew was joining VYCC staff to work on the Cross Vermont Trail, a multi-use trail network the width of Vermont going along the Winooski and Wells Rivers. The trail will eventually reach about 90 miles in length, and our students were working hard yesterday contributing to this worthy project. Real-world learning and life skills for all Barre students! As I've said before, the community's support of this program says so much about what we value, and as an educator who spent much of my career in Alternative Education, I can promise you that SEA is a program that can make us all proud!