Staff report Last Tuesday, April 15, voters approved the Slate Valley Unified School District (SVUSD) budget by a vote of 824-631 — a low voter turnout for the district. It was SVUSD’s second vote to pass the budget. Last year, in which nearly a third of all school districts within the state failed to pass district…

By Melinda Myers Trees provide many benefits to the environment and our health and wellbeing. These long-lived members of our landscapes and communities provide shade, help reduce energy costs, clean the air we breathe, prevent soil erosion and stormwater runoff, and attract and provide homes for birds and pollinators. National Arbor Day, celebrated on the…

Saturday, April 26 from 9 a.m to 5 p.m.—QUECHEE — The Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS) invites owl lovers, curious kids, and nature enthusiasts to take flight into the world of raptors during its 10th annual Owl Festival at the VINS Nature Center in Quechee. This milestone event is more than a celebration of…

April 26, 2–4 p.m. — RUTLAND — Young artists with a passion for Japanese animation and comics will have the chance to explore their creativity during a special “Manga for Kids” drawing class at Kaleidoscope Art Supply in downtown Rutland. Designed for children ages 8 to 12, the workshop introduces participants to the basics of…

Saturday, April 26 at 6 p.m.—LUDLOW — The Ludlow Rotary Club is gearing up for the 67th annual Penny Sale in the Ludlow Elementary School gymnasium. A much-anticipated community tradition, the event promises an evening of fun, excitement, and generous prize giveaways, all supporting local students and charitable causes. The Penny Sale is free and…

April 26 from 2 to 4 p.m.—POULTNEY— Stone Valley Arts will open its 2025 SVA Artist Members’ Show on Saturday with a celebratory artists’ reception from 2-4 p.m. at the organization’s gallery space. The exhibit will remain on view through June 7, with regular gallery hours on Saturdays and Sundays from 1-4 p.m. This year’s…

Saturday and Sunday, April 26–27, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.—WOODSTOCK — It’s officially the cutest weekend of the year. The baby farm animal celebration returns to Billings Farm & Museum, inviting visitors of all ages to enjoy a weekend of hands-on farm fun, education, and baby animal bliss. Guests will have the chance to…

By Jenney Samuelson, secretary Agency of Human Services Vermont has long been a leader in treatment for addiction and substance use, particularly through its Hub and Spoke model, launched nearly a decade ago to address the opioid epidemic. This approach brought treatment into mainstream, integrating into doctor’s offices and expanding access to services through regional…

By Anson Tebbetts, Vermont Agriculture Secretary By the end of the month, we’ll have a clearer picture of how Vermont’s sugar makers view this season. How was the yield? What will prices look like? Where will the markets be? In June, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will release the official results of its annual…

Dear Editor, If you’re wondering what Gov. Phil Scott and Sec. Zoie Saunder’s education plan will be like in practice, I can tell you­— our family lived through it in Florida. My family relocated to Vermont from Florida just a couple of months after Saunders and her family. Unlike Saunders, we moved to Vermont to escape Florida’s…

Dear Editor, We moved to Woodstock, Vermont, in early 2017. It was the first time we had spent any time in Vermont, and we fell in love. We loved the town, the community, and everything else. We opened a business, and one of the first people we met was then officer Joe Swanson. He was…

Dear Editor, At the Vermont Network, we support survivors of domestic and sexual violence, amplify their voices, and build safer communities. We represent 15 independent nonprofits that provide direct services to survivors and prevention programming in their communities. S.27, a proposal to eliminate up to $100 million in medical debt for low-income Vermonters and exclude…

By David Moats Editor’s note: David Moats, of Salisbury, is editorial page editor emeritus of the Rutland Herald, where he won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for his editorials on Vermont’s civil union law. The festive atmosphere on the town green in Brandon during the “Hands Off” protest on April 5 did not mask the seriousness of the…

By Habib Sabet/VtDigger Cabot Creamery has issued a voluntary recall for nearly a ton of butter due to potential fecal contamination, the brand’s parent company, Agri-Mark Inc., announced April 9. The recall covers 189 cases of the iconic Vermont brand’s 8-oz. Extra Creamy Premium Butter across Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, Maine, Connecticut, New Hampshire and…

LUDLOW—Former Vermont Lieutenant Governor David Zuckerman recently addressed the Ludlow Rotary Club, making a case for ranked-choice voting in elections with multiple candidates. He argued that allowing voters to rank their choices rather than select just one could foster broader participation and more open dialogue among candidates. “Ranked choice voting gives voters more voice and…