March 13, 2026
Dear BSD Community,
This week, we had two immigration enforcement incidents in our region that were very concerning and have left many scared, upset and angry with the actions of our federal policies and the local implementation of these policies this week.
First, there was an incident on Pine St. on Monday that led to almost 60 community members coming out to provide support for any potentially targeted residents. Then yesterday, the senseless chaos created by ICE enforcement action on Dorset Street in South Burlington led to a similar outpouring of support. These incidents have caused anxiety and frustration among Burlington’s most vulnerable families and those who want to support them. These violent and intimidating tactics are incredibly disheartening and go against our district’s values of diversity, equity, and inclusion. These values were beautifully displayed earlier this week at the Flynn, where all BHS students attended a performance from the Vermont-based Global ensemble, All the Rivers. Throughout the performance, the entire student body was dancing, singing, and celebrating their cultures together. This is what makes our nation and Burlington special, and we will continue to celebrate these values as we love and protect our students and families who are targeted by racist policies and practices.
Last month, I let you know that we were developing a new set of procedures to be implemented in the case of increased ICE activity in our city. That work was completed early this week, and we used some of those procedures to help us respond and navigate the events in South Burlington. It will take a few weeks to be ready to fully operationalize the procedures, but some parts are ready to be put into place now. (For instance, helped identify and provide alternate routes home for some students on Wednesday and Thursday.)
I encourage you to review the procedures and let us know if you have any questions or concerns. A few things to keep in mind, which are also included in this summary (among other highlights).
- The full procedure will go into effect only in the event of increased ICE activity in our neighbors, and specifically around BSD schools.
- This procedure seeks to streamline communication and support at the District level and at the school level, and with our PTO’s.
- When in effect, principals will designate one person per school to work with community volunteers and act as the point person. (In many cases, this may be the principal themselves.)
- In the meantime, if you need to make a report about ICE presence, please contact Victor Prussack at (802) 316-6653 or via email vprussac@bsdvt.org
- In addition to these procedures, our “No Trespass” for Encounters With Law Enforcement Procedure is still in effect: law enforcement is not allowed in our schools without a signed judicial warrant.
While I hope we will not have to fully implement these procedures, it is important for us to be prepared; having solid procedures that we follow consistently is the most effective way to support our students and families. Thank you for your partnership in this work.
Tom
Congratulations Presidential Scholars! BTC has had four students named Vermont Presidential Scholars, including a BHS student, as well as two honorable mentions. These students will be recognized at a ceremony at the Vermont Statehouse on the evening of March 16th. Congrats to
- Barwaaqo Hussein Sugow, Health Sciences Academy (BHS), VT Presidential Scholar in Career and Technical Education
- Riley Grace Tierney, Health Sciences Academy (BFA Fairfax), VT Presidential Scholar in Career and Technical Education
- Gina Kim, Health Sciences Academy (SBHS), VT Presidential Scholar in Career and Technical Education
- Payton Hruby, Design & Illustration (CHS), VT Presidential Scholar in the Arts
- Levi Olsen, Digital Media Lab, (CVU), Honorable Mention
- Anna Luther, Design & Illustration, (MMU), Honorable Mention
FY27 Calendar Approved – On Tuesday, the board approved the calendar for next year. Many adjustments and notes (including how we responded to community feedback) are available in this calendar memo.
Annual Survey – Please take a moment to complete the Family Annual Survey. Responses are used to measure our progress on our Strategic Plan, inform professional development and training, and to identify bright spots and areas of need. We value your feedback and perspective… thank you for taking the time to complete this survey!
Food Insecurity – Students enrolled in Education Training and Leadership are raising money to fund making food baskets for families dealing with food insecurity in Burlington. The “Food Fairies” have a goal to make breaks from school, when food isn’t provided, easier for families. They fill baskets with nutritious, non-perishable, and shelf-stable foods and get them to family and need. ETL Food Fairies is run by five high school students working to improve food insecurity in our community through this project. Our next food delivery/pick up will be before April break, so please fill out our form and/or email us if this project would benefit your family!
Redistricting – There is continued confusion in Montpelier around redistricting, with the House and the Senate approaching the issue differently. There is a lot to figure out in terms of closure authority, governance, size, and structure, and none of those issues have seen much progress. The AOE continues to push the idea of larger districts, still focusing on the 4,000-student range. We have also seen financial modeling using a foundation formula that will hurt Burlington taxpayers more than any consolidation would help at this point. Because of this, I have not been able to support much, if any, of the work that has been done. We continue to monitor the situation and are working with Atlas Government Affairs to ensure we are ready to advocate for Burlington when the time is right.
2027-2031 Strategic Plan Request for Proposals – BSD is heading into the final year of a 5-year strategic plan. We are sending out this RFP next week to solicit bids for a consultant to help shepherd us through the strategic plan development process. Please share this out to potential interested parties. Reach out to Victor Prussack with any questions about this RFP process.
Expanded Services for ASD and Behavioral/SEL Needs – Student Support Services is working with school leaders to expand the current district programming for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). In addition to the current 2nd through 5th-grade RISE classroom at EES, we are planning to add a classroom for younger students. The special education teacher/case managers and the location of the program are currently being decided. There will also be a program at HMS in the fall to support students with Behavioral and SEL needs. The following school year, we will work with EMS to enhance their existing Cornerstone programming to support students with similar needs.
New Hires: Welcome Dacia Ostlund, Congrats Principal Oropeza and Principal Stone! Please join me in welcoming Dacia Ostlund (below) as our new director of Expanded Learning Opportunities. Dacia previously worked in our after school program, and we are thrilled to have her back and at the helm! We are also excited to welcome Principal Nina Oropeza to our Teaching and Learning team as Associate Director of Curriculum. Principal Oropeza has served as the building leader at Sustainability Academy for the past seven years, and I am looking forward to her jumping in and helping us bring targeted support to our work to improve teaching and learning! Last but not least, the Board approved my recommendation that Dr. Emily Stone be named interim principal of Eagle Bay Academy. She has been doing a great job filling in as our acting principal, and we are excited to have her remain at the helm!
Schools Exiting Comprehensive Supports! The AOE released assessment and accountability results from the 2024–2025 school year. The release includes the Vermont State Report Card, assessment results, school accountability ratings, and the list of schools identified for Comprehensive and Targeted Support and Improvement. No BSD schools have been added to the list of new schools entering comprehensive support and improvement status, and even better, the report also identified schools that exited Comprehensive Support and Improvement Status, including HMS and IAA! I want to thank our school leaders, teachers, and staff for stepping up to get these schools back on track. We still have work to do, but this is great progress in the right direction.
Elementary Professional Learning – On Thursday, teams from every elementary school met to implement new data-review processes designed to better support students who are performing below grade level. This collaborative effort reinforced our shared commitment that every adult in our district is responsible for every student’s success. By working together to respond directly to student data, we are taking focused, collective action to close the achievement gap and ensure that every student makes meaningful academic progress. Please check out the video, where three Flynn educators reflected on the importance of the day and the direction we are headed. (Thank you, Kevin, Maura, and Katherine!)
OTHER NEW/UPDATED PROCEDURES
BSD Naloxone Procedures
BSD Medication Administration Procedures
BSD Condom Availability Procedure
BSD Nursing Delegation Procedure
Vision and Hearing Screening Procedures
SCHOOL UPDATES
Student Leaders in the News – Once again, Esther Lokossou and Victoria Tornwini step up to represent the school district by sharing about their work as Peer Mediators and members of the Sankofa project, and more. Check them out on WPTZ, Burlington School District honors Black history beyond February through the Sankofa Project. In addition to this, Victoria and Esther will also be presenting a workshop to the board on youth leaders for racial justice on March 17th. They will be sharing stories of their amazing youth leadership work at BSD and challenging the board to reflect on leadership and their roles in dismantling white supremacy culture in schools.
BHS Councilor Honored with the VTSCA Rising Star award – Congratulations to Fern Aguda-Brown! The Vermont School Councilors Association has named Fern a 2026 Rising Star! The award recognizes an individual who has entered the school counseling profession within the last five years who is a model for new counselors, demonstrating the highest standards of professional competence, outstanding contributions to the school community and/or profession, and has demonstrated strong rapport with students, parents/guardians, and school personnel. We are lucky to have Fern with us!
BHS/BTC Project
Timeline WT has provided an updated schedule indicating we are still on track to conduct the Building Code Official and Fire Marshal inspections in the first week of April to meet our targeted substantial completion date. These inspections will confirm our ability to start moving new furniture and equipment into the building, which is scheduled to begin in early April. Work in the building will continue through April and May. We are targeting June 15th to start moving furniture and equipment out of DtBHS and transition full-year staff to the new building, contingent upon approval from the Building Code Official and Fire Marshal. Site work on Institute Road will continue throughout the summer and is anticipated to finish in August. We are close!
Construction Solar work is wrapping up nicely. On Friday, we had our building inspection, and everything went well. On Saturday, Burlington Electric came and made the solar connections in the transformer, so the system is currently energized. The crew is wrapping up the rooftop wiring, installing the remaining racking components, and working with the roofers to install the mechanical attachments. Towards the end of the week, we plan to schedule the final crane day to remove the safety rail and remaining materials.
Stormwater Improvements BSD has been successful in securing grant funding to make additional improvements beyond that which is minimally required by law. We are hoping that the grant funding will be sufficient to allow us to accomplish two goals: (1) Extend and improve stormwater management infrastructure into the (often flooded) baseball field portion of the campus and (2) Enhance the stormwater treatment area with an ADA-accessible path that will make this an instructionally usable portion of the campus. We are preparing bid documents for release to vendors on February 26, with the goal of having the School Board award the contract for this work at the April 7 meeting.
Miscellaneous Updates
- VHV has started up the pumps for the geothermal wells! They are bringing equipment online to test and balance all of the new equipment. So far, we are getting positive reports from our new building supervisor, Trevor Jacobs, who is spending his time watching the progress and taking notes.
- We are working with the bleacher installation company to have the bleachers we salvaged from the old BHS reinstalled in May. The goal is to have them installed by June.
- The existing rubber floor at DtBHS will be installed in the new BHS weight room starting the first week in June, saving the project money.
Captain Planet Garden Grant – Five of our Elementary Schools were awarded the Captain Planet Garden Grant from funder, Cox Enterprises. Cox Enterprises will also host a celebratory event for one of these schools, offering support for garden installation. Check it out!
- Edmunds Elementary School received $7,500 for an expansion of their current garden.
- Integrated Arts Academy received $7,500 for a brand new installation.
- Smith, SA, and Flynn are the recipients of a $500 eGift card.
BTC, UVM, and ESPN – Eleventh-grade students in the Digital Media Lab and Design & Illustration programs were able to observe the production process for televising the UVM men’s basketball earlier this week. The game was streaming on the ESPN site and televised on ESPN 3. Students will be going back to engage with the process for UVM men’s hockey on Saturday evening.
Sankofa Legacy and Light – Last month’s event was an amazing success that really brought some joy that feels very much needed in these trying times. The BSD Bands came out in full force with representation from EMS, HMS, and BHS musicians who came together to feature jazz and R & B genres. Thank you to Graham Lambert, Ed Owens, and David Kerr for organizing this spectacular collaboration. Special thanks to the Sankofa organizing team members Korey Whitfield, Sparks, Autumn Bangoura, Misuk Weaver, Katie Wyndorf, Maria Davies, and student leaders Victoria Tornwini, Esther Lokossou, Mathias Mmunga, Vincent Stany, and Jamal Omar. Shout out also to Seham Alsakkaf for the delicious Yemeni food and to Laura La Vaca and our Food Services Team for the cookies. The Bake Sale raised over $200, which was donated to the Education Justice Coalition to fund scholarships for youth programming. Save the date! The next Sankofa event will be Wednesday, April 9th at 4 pm the Sankofa Slam Poetry Cipher! Location TBC.
Art and ARC! The SA and IAA Art teachers, along with our second graders, worked with a local artist, Erok, to create these bug artworks as part of their ARC 2 unit. Students also exchanged letters describing the bugs they were studying and sharing fun facts they learned along the way. It was a wonderful collaboration and a great learning experience for the students. The artwork will be hung in the hallway near our second-grade classrooms.
Tuesday, April 7: Let’s Talk: Supporting Burlington Youth – Register Today for this free event. Every Adult Has the Ability to Support Burlington Youth! All are encouraged to attend this evening for Burlington students, caregivers, and community members to come together to learn from each other and discuss ways to support a healthier future for the next generation. Edmunds middle schoolers will share local data and their perspectives on the health challenges they face. Everyone will have a chance to discuss opportunities for change. Dinner is provided. Check out this flier to learn more, and don’t forget to register! Schedule:
5:30 – 6:00 pm: Connect with neighbors over a light dinner
6:00 – 6:30 pm: Youth share data and perspectives on key issues
6:30 – 8:00 pm: Small group discussions about local experiences and data
This event is a joint effort between ParentIN Burlington and the Burlington School District
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Office of the Superintendent | Burlington School District150 Colchester Avenue | Burlington, VT 05401 (office) 802.864.8474 | (fax) 802.864.8501 | www.bsdvt.org
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