Town of Cambridge Act 73 Redistricting Survey

The Cambridge Elementary School Board is reaching out to our fellow Cambridge/Jeffersonville residents about Act 73 and its impact on CES. As you may know, the School District Redistricting Task Force released its A MAP FOR THE FUTURE: The Vermont Regional Education Partnership Model report to the General Assembly on December 1st, and it was not well received by Governor Scott and Education Secretary Saunders. As a result, there is much that remains up in the air with the future of redistricting in Vermont, but here are 2 key points we want to emphasize as we head into the final stretch of 2025:

1. We know that change is coming. Small single town districts like Cambridge Elementary School will no longer be an option going forward . CES will ultimately need to become part of a larger PreK-12 School District. There are still a number of maps, approaches, and timelines being considered by the General Assembly, Governor Scott, and Education Secretary Saunders. We will learn more in early 2026 and need to be ready for whatever direction comes into focus. It is important for you to know that there will be no town vote for Act 73, but- as your local School Board- we intend to advocate for a merger direction that will best benefit Cambridge students and reflect what our community values. 

2. We want to take an informed stance and do whatever is in our power to influence the future of CES throughout this redistricting process. As your School Board, we believe it is our duty to consider all of our potential merger options and review the various advantages and drawbacks of each. Since we will have to merge, we want to do so purposefully and with a clear sense of which path forward offers the most opportunity for Cambridge students and aligns the best with what our community values. Even if we don't have an official say in where CES ends up on the final merger map, we believe that collecting community input via this survey and sharing insights with our representatives (Lucy Boyden and Richard Westman) and the Vermont Agency of Education will empower us to better represent the Cambridge/Jeffersonville community and advocate for the best possible end result.

At this point in time, we have a few simple questions for you that will help us with important conversations and next steps on the horizon:

Town of Cambridge Act 73 Redistricting Survey

Whether you have school-aged children in your household or not, we value input from ALL Cambridge/Jeffersonville residents, as this will impact our entire community, not only the families of current students. Only two of the questions are required, but we hope you will respond to as many questions as you can. 

If you know of a friend, neighbor, or family member who does not have access to completing an online survey, we encourage you to reach out to them and help them submit this form. Multiple individuals in a household may submit a response.

We welcome your input now through January 4th. We will review the survey results at our January 7th School Board meeting and then share takeaways and next steps with you soon thereafter.

Many thanks from your CES Board:

Lori Hébert, Rachael Mascolino, Jan Sander, Mark Stebbins, & Denise Webster