Merging Charlotte, Hinesburg middle schools contemplated

Informal conversations about the possibility of merging the Charlotte Central and the Hinesburg Community middle schools have been going on for years.

At its Tuesday, May 20, meeting the Champlain Valley School District board began a process to make those conversations more formal.

Superintendent Adam Bunting said they didn’t want the discussions to continue without wider community awareness about these conversations.

“There’s a lot of things to talk about. A lot of feelings I imagine that people would have,” Bunting said. “Our question essentially was: Is this something the board would want to direct us to look more into?”

The consensus of the board appeared to be affirmative, that the members would like for the administration to look more deeply into this.

At its June meeting, the board is expected to formalize the formation of a study committee directing the administration to look into the idea. The committee members will be from the district’s administration, not from the school board, chair Meghan Metzler said.

Metzler said the committee would be charged with researching, considering and recommending opportunities for sharing resources between the two schools, specifically the middle schools.

Bunting said the possibility of the two schools sharing resources had been discussed since before he became superintendent.

Board member Keith Roberts said this topic was being discussed in 2009, at a very preliminary level, when he was elected to the Hinesburg school board before school consolidation.

“We were thwarted at every opportunity because it was a different school district,” Roberts said.

Being able to combine resources was supposed to be one of the advantages of consolidating the schools, he said.

“It’s one of the reasons that I personally supported consolidation,” Roberts said. “I’m delighted that this is being contemplated, to have a formal study committee.”

He said it is important for everyone to understand that the discussion and the forming of a committee would be the beginning of a journey, but there is no commitment at this time.

And it is not something the board will rush into. Roberts said, “We’re going to bring the communities along. It’s about equity among our students.”

Bunting said it began as a conversation about saving money, but as the conversation continued it has become about increasing opportunities for students. For example, the playing fields and facilities at Charlotte are outstanding, but less than adequate at Hinesburg.

“We can’t even have a baseball field at Hinesburg because of the wetlands that are there and the risk of flooding,” Bunting said.

After years of informal conversations, Bunting said, “We would rather err on the side of full transparency.”

Gary Marckres, chief operation officer from the district’s central office, confirmed that the school system would save approximately $500,000 by combining the middle schools.

With a school district budget of around $100 million, Metzler said she didn’t think this amount of savings was a sufficient reason to go ahead with the proposal, but the reason to go forward is if it “will improve student engagement at all levels.”

She encouraged members to talk to parents of young children at the Hinesburg and Charlotte schools to hear their reactions to the proposal, and Metzler also urged them to get the perspectives of students who have graduated from those schools and are now at Champlain Valley Union High.

Teachers, school board ratify employment agreement

Also at the meeting, the Champlain Valley Education Association and the school board announced the ratification of an agreement between the two bodies to succeed the current agreement for the district’s teachers. The agreement will take effect on July 1.

“I’m proud of the respectful and collaborative negotiations between the two parties,” Bunting said. “While neither team got everything they wanted, the agreement represents what’s best for our students and educators — and our community as a whole.”

Effective for three years — from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2028 — the agreement includes an increase to the life insurance benefit; more robust health and safety language; expansion of the board certification benefit; and subcommittees to review workday, caseload, and professional development funds. Salary increases total 15 percent new dollars over the three-year agreement, which the Champlain Valley Education Association and school board deem competitive and responsible, according to a release from the school district.