Vermont Education Equity Project
In 2018, The Bay and Paul Foundations supported CYCLE to create a series of equity-focused educational briefs to inform the Vermont Education Equity Project (VEEP). VEEP’s mission is to examine systemic inequities faced by school-aged youth in Vermont's public schools, as well as possible solutions, and develop a policy agenda. To inform the briefs, CYCLE conducted background research using existing materials such as policy documents, reports, and news articles, and conducted interviews with individuals who had specialized knowledge and expertise about educational equity in Vermont. These individuals included leaders and educators at the state, local, and school levels; political representatives; and staff from community-based organizations working in education. Driven by themes most prominently occurring in interviews, the briefs focus on four topics that can be used to inform educational equity policy:
Defining Educational Equity in Vermont
Local Control and Vermont Public Schools
Whiteness and Race in Vermont
Targeted Universalism
The briefs additionally provide useful frames, key questions, and helpful reminders for ensuring that conversations about education in Vermont continue to prioritize and make progress toward equity.