 Good evening and welcome to Town Meeting Television's continuing coverage of Town Meeting 2023. That's March 7th, is voting day, although many of you have probably received your ballots in the mail already. And if you haven't yet made your decision on the South Burlington School Board Race, we have two of the candidates here who I think will inform your vote. We have Brian Campion and we have Trivia Childs. And you are an incumbent. You're already sitting on the school board. Yes, I am. Would this be your second term? Yes. Okay, wonderful. And I'm also gonna remind folks that you can give us a call at 802-862-396 if you have any questions for the candidates, we'd love to hear them. So we're gonna start with opening statements. Brian Campion, why don't you tell us? Companion, just the way it sounds. Companion, fabulous. Good French name. Yeah, it's C-O-M-P-A-N, are you in? See, we all get a little nervous. Not a problem. I've been called much worse. Brian, Companion, give us your opening statement. Why are you running and what qualifies you to be on the school board? Sure, good evening. Over 40 years ago, my wife Vivian and I moved to South Burlington. At the time we had no children, but we knew we wanted to be part of a growing community with good schools. Looking back 43 years, things really haven't changed. Both of our daughters graduated from South Burlington High School and currently we have three grandchildren at Orchard School. As a family, we feel very indebted to the community and the schools for the role they played in the development of our daughters and the continuing role they played with our grandchildren. My work career was primarily at PC Construction. For 30 years I was the risk manager. I learned a great deal there. Teamwork, I learned that nobody builds a construction project by their own on their own. Problem solving and of course construction. But I think the key takeaway from PC was that an organization is defined by the quality of its people and the success of that organization will be based on those people. In 2020 I served on a budget review committee. After two budget defeats, I found the work interesting, challenging and I began thinking about running for school board. So three years later, here I am. Sometimes it takes me a while to get doing things. But recently I've gone to, visited three schools. I have gone to school board meetings and talked to past members. So I think I have a view of the job and the issues. I believe my life experience, my business skills would be beneficial to the school board as we address various educational issues in the district. Thank you so much, Brian. Trivia, tell us a little bit about why you're running for reelection and what qualifies you. My name is Dr. Chayos and I am currently the chairperson of the board. And as like other political places, the first term you're just trying to get in the groove of it. And then the second term is when you really do something. And I find out that more parents are reaching out, contacting me about minority kids, about the things that they're doing. And I know my job has just begun. And I'm qualified because I'm a disabled vet. I'm a mom of four and a nana of four. And I own a youth center at the mall. So I'm always there or in school. I'm an activity plan director out there. I run the club. So I try to get out there, I try to listen to the students and try to give them an idea that someone is here. Thank you. Thank you so much. Can you tell us your position on the school budget for this year, for FY24? I approve it, yes. Do you want to say a little bit more about it and why you think the voters should support it? Because the budget focuses on supporting students, social, emotional, and academic safely and facilities in Burlington. We are going out to the buns too for ZEMs to address overcrowding at Orchard and Rick Marquardt Elementary School and the facilities needs in the school. 91% of the ZEMs will be paid back by impact fees. Impact fees are charged by the city for sewer, fire, et cetera. This will be an education fee. And the main thing, we can't do anything with the kids if we don't have money. We're struggling, we had to take care of, I mean, take away a few classes and teachers. But it should never be a reason why someone would vote no unless it's unethical. And I understand that there's a lot of crowding in the South Brunkin School District. Yes. And so it sounds like this bond is meant to address that issue. For the ZEMs, yes. And what are the ZEMs? They're similar to, not trailers, I don't want to say that. Modulars, yes, but they look much better. Brian, tell us your position on the school budget, please. Certainly. These are difficult times with high inflation and economic uncertainty. I think the key to budgeting is finding that balance and Dr. Childs referred to it of what is necessary to deliver a quality education and what the community will support. I do support the budget. It has about a $4.2 million spending increase this year, which is about 7%, but the school tax rate is only going up about 4%. I think all districts in Vermont are very fortunate right now that the state yield, which is the contribution the state makes to districts, went up 16%. Well, what does 16% mean? To South Burlington, it means we're getting close to $4.9 million of new money. So you might say that yield increase is kind of taxpayer relief in these tough times, which I think is good. Another part of the budget I really like is the fact that we have four math interventionists that we're keeping on. They were previously funded by ESSER COVID relief funds, and that money, of course, is running out. But I was really pleased to see that the local budget is picking up three of those positions, because back in that budget period of 221, we had two defeats. One of the largest reductions in our budget was math and literacy support. I didn't agree, but we had to pass a budget. So I think when you look at our scores and that kind of reduction in the pandemic, you can understand why some of our students are struggling in that area and our proficiency is down. So I support the budget as far as staff cuts. I trust the administration and the board we have to make those decisions. They're not easy. But when you think about our budget being 78% salaries and benefits, when we have to get to numbers and we have to get to a level of the communal support, it has to sometimes be in that area. So Dr. Trials spoke to the bond issue, that what's your position on that? $14.5 million? Yes, I've said this before. I would have probably campaigned for two bonds, one for maintenance and one for the classroom project. I'm conservative in nature. And this is the biggest bond the community's had. I believe it's going to pass. But as being a conservative person, I'd rather get something than nothing. So we're all in. But clearly we do have overcrowding. I think we'll get to that on facilities. Exactly. So let's talk about language access. We'll start with you, Brian. What important initiatives are underway in the school district and what more needs to be done in your view to meet the needs of students and families who are proficient in languages other than English? Sure, great question. And I will tell you, I did not know much about this, but I did some looking at it. I was told by one of the principals I toured with that over 80 languages are spoken at homes in our district. And I thought, wow, I haven't heard this issue surface at a school board meeting or in our community. And I have a neighbor who does not speak English in their house. But what I found out is we have a very strong English language program. They're working on training for translating and interpretive services. They have English learning teachers. They're having family engagement nights to help other members of the family at the community library. They're doing assessments that are shared with educators as well as the administration so we can target areas that are in need. And they're in the final stages. It sounds like of developing a plan for English learning across the entire district. So it sounds like we address the issue. We're continuing to address the issue. And because it hasn't been raised as a real crisis or anything, I'd have to say job well done. Thank you. Dr. Childs, what's your view of the efforts in the district to provide access for different language backgrounds? Support and diversity to our community is very important. At SBSD, we have made huge advances in the last two years to support those who are proficient in other languages. Superintendent Nicholas began the English language learner, ELL, nights where there was literature, culture and food and celebrated the difference between people. And so we do have a translation and we try to provide what I've learned if you have to meet the student where they are and if they're in the room and no one speaks their language, they're gonna stop learning. So now that the district's become more diverse, it's very important that we take care of the kids that are coming in. We have implemented a software program that allows us to use data to understand student and family needs as well as provide information on home language spoken. We also hired the English language coordinator and expanded our ELL teaching staff. We know that those who speak languages other than English enrich learning for all of our students. This is one of the main reasons that I helped to create a district's equality policy last year as a member of the board. Thank you. Why don't we go to the question of capital improvements in bonding? You have spoken a little bit about that, Dr. Charles. What role does school infrastructure play in a healthy community? And in addition to addressing the overcrowding, what's next for the city of South Burlington School District? We're partnering with our community. To develop facilities is one of the greatest needs. We need to address over enrollment now in our elementary schools with ZIMS. This recommendation was brought to us by a community committee called the Enrollment Committee. Elementary school students will move through our system. We need to work with the community to determine if our community wants to move fifth graders to the middle school, then start the infrastructure committee to determine middle and high school facilities. I am a supporter of community engagement and I will work with city manager, superintendent, city council chair to ensure that development within SB is supported in the partnership in our district. Thank you. Brian, companion, tell us about your view of these infrastructure improvements and capital improvements and what's needed. You know, certainly people's work environment has an effect on how they look at going to work, how they approach their job. And in a school's case, how students learn it can impact their performance. I visited three schools and I think our staff administration and faculty in those schools are doing a great job managing a difficult situation and it's time to fix it. We do have overcrowding. Clearly we're using every square foot in those schools. And we have maintenance issues when you have small little children's swimming pools catching rainwater in hallways. So the immediate needs, Dr. Childs talked about them. We need classroom space at Rick Markott and at Central. We need maintenance on roofs and other issues that are included in the bond issue. If that passes, it buys us time to really have a good structured plan. The fifth grade decision is probably the biggest decision facing our buildings because that will determine where we're gonna have to do the most work. But assuming that they go to the middle school, then the middle school has to be completely looked at. One area I would look at in the middle school is our gym. It's really not functional now and if we bring 150 students there, it's only gonna be worse. So I would look at repurposing something like that. Can we turn it into classrooms and can we build a facility along with the other things we need? Our high school is vintage 1960s. So you know what those kind of buildings and the issues that need to be addressed there. And we're gonna have to look at our future for the high school to accomplish our education goals. Growth in South Burlington is not gonna slow down. You read where there's gonna be another 1,000 homes in the next 10 years. That would be a 20% increase. According to the tax department, we have 5,200 households in South Burlington. So if you add 20%, what's that gonna be for the impact on our schools? So I think the key is a long range plan. The development of it and communicating it in detail to the community. Letting them know the level of support you're going to need. What is it going to cost? I think we're fortunate in South Burlington. We've got a good history of supporting our schools. And if we play the role of a good steward of public funds, maintain and build confidence, earn that confidence, I think we will get the funding we need to address our facility issues. And I just like to give you both the opportunity to comment on how this school's crowding issue became so acute. Would you like to go first or would you like me to? I can go first. Sure. Because we didn't expect it. We weren't prepared for anything, for people to move in. And the not the scary part, but the sad part is now that we don't know what to do actually. We're trying to figure out A-B-S-C was best for us, but we have immediate need. And that's why we have the ZIMS. But people will continue moving to South Burlington because of the radiance of our school. Because that's why I moved here. Is there any connection between the DRB that approves all these buildings? And then is there a feedback to the school that these buildings are gonna be built? They're gonna be more children. There more pressure on the school. All I know when I was in the school the other day, a guy who had graduated from there said nothing has changed in 50 years. So it's always been crowded? No, the building. Got it. Yes, but I think we're just building. Brian? You look at South Burlington and the growth and I think we have been surprised by some of the sources of students. For instance, the demographer of the district uses who projects enrollment numbers. Looks like they missed it when we built these one and two bedroom apartments over in the market street area, our downtown that's developing and it's developing a lot of housing. I mean the university is gonna put 300 units there. But that housing at the other end of town has really overrun Rick Markott and Orchard. You know, the Chamberlain district can't grow. It's just the size of it can't grow so there's no growth there. So we are in a bad situation. The bond issue would give us a stop gap and carry us, give us the classroom space we need to execute and do what is right for the children. But it's a tough thing and the pandemic I think led to it. Vermont became a very good destination to come and work when people could work away from home. And we've seen a lot of that, a lot of families and we came here 40 years ago for schools and people are saying the same thing now. We're very desirable community. Well, Brian, you mentioned in your previous comments you talked about teacher wellbeing and retention. So what is your understanding of the current level of morale among the South Burlington teachers and the South Burlington's district doing enough to retain good teaching and support staff? Let me start with retention. I don't think retention is an issue for teachers in South Burlington. I think we're viewed as a very desirable place to work. You get to engage with good students from good families. I think we have a good culture. We have a very good pay scale and we have a community that is supported. So I don't think retention is an issue with teachers. Hiring staff is an issue for everybody in that business and the education. I think it's a new thing for them. You know, in construction, we've been recruiting people forever. We're in the engineering schools when they're freshmen and sophomores. I don't think education had to do that and I think recruiting is a struggle. To the mental health side of it, I'll tell a story that kind of puts it in perspective. My daughter lives next door to a person who was a high school science teacher in another district. This summer, he told me, he said, I need this summer after the last two years to get myself in the right frame of mind. For the first time in 14 years I've taught, I'm not sure I wanna go back. So to me, that says there's a crisis. It's across the country, but it's in the schools. I don't really know what the schools have done. I would think we might wanna survey and ask the teachers how they feel. What could we be doing for them? I know we have referral programs for students who have issues. On the other hand, do we have a program for teachers so they can reach out? It's a very difficult issue. I think well-being and job satisfaction will improve when people feel like they're getting their job accomplished and right now with the issue with students and the fact that we can't meet some staffing issues. Classroom teachers are spending a lot more time on issues other than learning. And I think that's an issue that bothers them. They wanna see their kids advance. Thank you. Dr. Charles, your view of teacher morale and retention? Morale. I think during COVID when these teachers were forced to go back because the parents wanted the kids to go in, a lot of them retired because they didn't wanna be sick and bringing sickness home to their kids. But given all the challenges educators are facing today, what a significant and only made by, I mean, only made greater by the pandemic. We have an incredible and committed staff. I support changes to increase morale that matters such as programming to support, social and emotional learning. And as little is known, like bringing treats to the bus drivers and saying thank you all the time. Now we did that a couple, me and a couple students. We took them treat six 30 in the morning, took them hot chocolate, gift bags and food just to help them to say we care. But I didn't go as his board director. I went as a community member. So I think that we're doing a great job compared to everything else. We are incredibly fortunate in our staff retention rates. The VT superintendent's association complete a staff survey in the fall and we were one of the best staff districts in the state. Excellent pay and benefits as well as culture of care and a tradition of excellence with a supportive community are some of the reasons why. Not to mention our exceptional sports team. Our HR department, superintendent and principals are also working to recruit and maintain staff. We are implementing new programs and training to assist support staff in addressing many of the social emotional learning challenges. We are seeing students in pandemics. Like you said, we can't send them when the teachers are worked so busy working on other things instead of learning. We are grateful to have the best teaching and staff in the state. Thank you so much. I'm just gonna remind our viewers if you have any questions for our candidates for the South Burlington School Board to your seat. 802-862-3966. Dr. Charles, why don't we start with you on this next question on racial justice. What is your current understanding of the work around this issue in our school district and how would you support leadership efforts and initiatives to meet the challenges and create an equitable and thriving environment for all students? First of all, this is an issue close to heart. Things are happening. And I've learned that the more we make ourselves available and we're gonna try to learn. So what's the current understanding of the work around the issue and how long would support leadership efforts and initiatives to meet the challenges of creating an equitable environment for students? I'm sorry. The understanding is that the community, we need to work as a team because nobody understands what racial justice is. We're doing a lot of things restored to practices. And as we continue to be diverse, increasing diverse, it's a lot of things that are going on that now we have to take care of. So my thing is, I think we're on the right path because we hired someone and then we have a lot of people like Mr. Jabar, who deals with this on occasion. And I think that racial injustice, it's gonna take a long time, but we're working forward to doing it, making sure everybody is okay. Because my family went through it also. And are you satisfied with the efforts that the district is now making or what do you think also has to happen? We need more restorative justice. We need it to, if a student has an issue tomorrow, we need to talk about it tomorrow, not wait on three months to talk about it because then it's too late. But yeah, restorative justice is great. And making sure the minority kids understand, you know, we love them. We're gonna protect them. Because one point was when we had SROs and how the kids that looked like me felt they were afraid. And it comes back to yesterday. I mean, the other day when I was in a room with the chief of police and it made me feel different. But until people realize that, we can't go anywhere together. Realize that it's an issue. It's a problem. Because a lot of people I know want to help. But they have to understand, they have to listen and accept it first. Thank you, Dr. Charles. Brian, companion, your view of the work happening on racial justice in the schools and how you would support leadership to create an equitable environment for all students? I think the school is acting appropriately. Dr. Childs has been a catalyst for that and I praise her for that. An equity policy was developed, but we all know that sometimes policies are developed and they're just sit on a shelf. I like the fact that we're putting ours to work. We've hired an executive director who's been on staff for, I think, about eight months. My take, whenever you hire somebody, and it doesn't matter in this position, but where I work, when you hire somebody, you'll let them do their job. We hired a qualified person, the best candidate that the board could find, great. Let them work with the administration in our schools to develop the means and methods to get the results that we want. And that's, I think, how a school board has to look at it. We're not running the schools on a day-to-day basis. It's our educational experts. And we've hired an expert in this field. As far as a board member, I need to learn more about this. I would do so by listening to the reports that the director develops, looking at issues that might come before the board, listening, asking questions, supporting, and monitoring the program to see that we're attaining our data points and our goals because we do want to move forward. It's an important initiative. I agree on restorative justice. I believe, and I have for a long time, that punishment that is based, or discipline based on punishment only, is a negative to everybody. I could give you numerous examples how it's failed us in our business. So restorative justice where we're trying to repair the harm that's been done. And I had no clue we were waiting three months. That's very sad. Accountability for that person that is responsible for this harm, taking accountability and working to repair. To me, that's creating a positive from what was a negative because discipline for discipline's sake doesn't work. Thank you. So we're moving into our closing comments. I think we have a few more minutes. So I'm gonna just go right to the biggest challenges you see facing the school district. And then we'll go to short closing comments. So Brian, why don't you address this question? What do you see as the biggest challenges facing the district? And how would you use your seat on the board to make those changes? Sure. Issue number one is staffing. Education is a labor intensive business and it is a business. It's the business of educating South Berlin students. And when we can't fill key positions, that means we're not delivering the service that we want to. So education staffing is a real balancing act. And we lost 23 positions this year. Okay, that decision was made by the management of the school, I agree with it. But we always have to look at staffing because it's 78% of our budget, of our $62 million we're gonna spend. 49 is wages and benefits. So staffing is key. We need to attract good people. We need to make South Burlington the place people wanna work. So I think we have to look at ourselves and say what do we need to do to improve culture, our reputation, and be the place to work. After that, I'm looking at social and emotional issues. And I think we ask schools very often to address those. And they do a very good job in some areas. School lunch programs, breakfast programs, combat hunger. We know that students can't learn if they're hungry. After school programs, combat, aid the parents that work. Infrastructure is one that we have to. We've talked about equity. We've talked about mental health. I think those are the things. If I had to look at a vision for South Burlington, I'd say we wanna make sure that every student has the means to maximize their potential. And every parent says, my child was taken care of well. We need to get the growth in the community under control and make progress on the social and emotional issues. Thank you, Brian, companion. Dr. Childs, the biggest challenges and how you'll advance them if you're reelected. Facilities, social, emotional, and academic learning and school safety. I directed Superintendent Nichols to move forward with both ZEMs and impact fees. I believe that the community process that brought us to the ZEMs recommendation. As for learning, I support SEL positions and working on Act I to improve DEI efforts in the district. Regarding facilities, I am supportive of a community conversation on fifth grade transition and middle school. And I'm always in the school. And it's embarrassing sometimes when kids, because the word is South Burlington is the best city in Vermont. And then they have to deal with all of this stuff, like things falling down and it's real. And when my son first started, we walked there, there was no AC, so we had to bring water. But how many people know that? How many people came in there and sat down and walked with the students? Nobody has. Because I'm sure if they did, they would make a change. They would want this for all kids. Because I know South Beach supports their people, our kids. The community also, the community was able to hear from principals regarding school safety at each school. My partnership with the superintendent allows us to work together on both teams to get initiatives accomplished as you can see by deliverable of the impact fees for ZEM, school safety and staffing, to name a few. My vision is that South Burlington minority kids are comfortable. They feel like they're a part of the environment because as I travel in Texas, I feel at home. Nobody was looking at me, nothing was going on. But then when you get here, but I think a lot of times our kids are struggling because that's what someone said, not the truth. And so that's why I always try to make sure we get in contact with the city. We're trying to do things together. But yeah, I'll try, I mean, I challenge like Brian said, facilities. Very good. I want to thank you both. We're out of time. I think your challenge question addressed your closing comments. I just want to remind people to vote on March 7th. If not before, with your ballots, they've been sent to your home. We've been speaking with the candidates for the two-year seat for the city of South Burlington School Board, Brian Companion and Dr. Travia Childs. And I appreciate you both being with us tonight. Thank you. And thank you so much for watching. Stay tuned to Town Meeting Television's continuing coverage of Town Meeting 2023.