Drum roll, please
Hidden history
Un-beat-able Japanese drum show coming to Shelburne this weekend
Meet three Vermonters whose histories may be lesser known
Page 2
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Volume 55 Number 35
Champlain Valley to study merger with Mount Mansfield
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August 27, 2026
Knows the ropes
BRIANA BRADY STAFF WRITER
The Champlain Valley School District is beginning to tackle tasks set out by last year’s statewide education reforms. The district will study the possibility of a merger with another district and collaborate with a larger regional network, called a cooperative education service area, to consider sharing some services and resources. The legislation — Act 170 — has paired Champlain Valley with the Mount Mansfield Union Unified School District to study a merger between the two. The two districts have been named to the broader “Champlain Valley South,” service area, which also includes the majority of Addison County’s school districts, including the Hannaford Technical Center in Middlebury. The merger studies and the creation of the service area groups are mandated by law. Whether or not the districts actually merge, and what services end up being shared, will be decided later by voters. See MERGER on page 15
PHOTO BY LEA ANN SMITH
Odinn, a J/111 captained by Kjell Dahlen of Lake Champlain Yacht Club, heads for the finish line during the final windward leg in the Diamond Island Race, with Camel’s Hump in the background. Odinn was first to finish in the race. See story, page 10.
Town updates ethics policy to meet state guidelines MARI HUGLIN STAFF WRITER
The Shelburne Selectboard has updated its ethics policy to better comply with the state’s new framework. At a July 14 selectboard meeting, Lee
Suskin, a member of the town’s ethics committee, explained that Vermont has changed the framework of its ethics policy, and the town should do the same. Suskin and town moderator Tom Little wrote the original town’s ethics ordinance around 2009. It was updated in 2018 and
2024 after multiple events — including a locally infamous controversy over a Vermont Railway salt storage shed. The ordinance is focused on residents
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See POLICY on page 2