‘Time Inside’
Tough stretch
‘Ambassador’
A Cornwall poet’s latest book draws on his experience teaching in prison. See Arts + Leisure.
The AC Legion team rallied for one stirring win, but lost three other games. See Page 1B.
Middlebury’s parking enforcement officer takes a diplomatic approach to her work. See Page 2A.
ADDISON COUNTY
Vol. 73 No. 28
INDEPENDENT Middlebury, Vermont
Thursday, July 11, 2019
42 Pages
$1.00
Patton eyes town-gown future
College president dreams big, works patiently By CHRISTOPHER ROSS as local classroom opportunities for MIDDLEBURY — Where town- Middlebury College students majoring in gown relations are concerned, a lot has Education Studies. happened during Laurie Patton’s four • Through a yearlong “workforce years as president of Middlebury College, planning” project, the college put itself and she’s perfectly happy to on a path toward financial take an inventory of recent “We can be a sustainability — without successes: laying off any employees. major driver in • The percentage But in a recent interview of students engaged in keeping talented with the Independent, community service has students here, Patton grew most excited increased from 70 percent both in the when she talked about to 80 percent, roughly, and the “twinkles” in her county and in Patton is eyeing 90 percent eye — those still-forming Vermont.” in coming years. dreams and schemes — Laurie Patton for collaborating with • The college has worked with the Addison Central the community to solve School District to develop an International shared challenges. Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum for its “But make sure you put ‘twinkle in schools, and after two years of planning my eye’ in bold,” Patton said, laughing. will soon roll out graduate-credit-bearing “We’re not at ‘Middlebury Announces courses for ACSD teachers, as well New Initiatives’ yet.”
RETAINING YOUNG PEOPLE “We can be a major driver in keeping talented students here, both in the county and in Vermont,” Patton said. “The first way is to get them really excited about their internships, where they say, ‘Oh, I’d really like to stay.’ It would be great to partner with both Addison County and the broader Vermont business community on a program that would offer internships, and maybe some financial aid, and in return, students could stay and work at those companies for a year or two afterward.” Such a program, she said, would both contribute to the Vermont economy and help to keep talented young people in the state. “That’s a really big dream,” she acknowledged. “But you have to start small. We could stand it up with three or four students, then others would say, (See Patton, Page 13A)
MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE PRESIDENT Laurie Patton believes the college has a powerful role in the community and that its decisions have real impact. This role has informed her approach to strengthening town-gown relationships.
Independent photo/Steve James
Middlebury water/sewer rates rising By JOHN FLOWERS MIDDLEBURY — The average municipal water and sewer user in Middlebury will pay a combined total of $700 for those services this fiscal year, a bump of more than 6.5 percent, or $43, compared to last year, according to figures supplied by the town. At issue are fiscal year 2020 water and sewer rates recently endorsed by the Middlebury selectboard, rates that are likely to rise further in the coming years as the community takes stock in its aging infrastructure — specifically, water and sewer mains. “The water system is underfunding its capital improvements by around $575,000 a year, based on life-cycle costs (of related infrastructure),” Middlebury Public Works Planning Director Dan Werner said. “We have 54 miles of water main in an assumed 80-year lifespan. We would need to spend about $784,000 (annually) to sustain the water main replacement program.” The new water fund budget of $1,473,805 represents a $136,664 increase compared to the last fiscal year that concluded on June 30. Werner noted $109,800 of the increase will be sunk into a capital improvements budget that has historically been shortchanged in order to keep the water rate in check. In addition to allowing for more capital improvements, the $136,664 increase will cover $6,600 in contracted wage and benefit increases for water department employees, and will allow the town to complete its phase-in of more modern water meters that can be read through cellular technology. Prior to this latest increase, Middlebury had been budgeting $235,000 annually for water main improvements. The new infusion of $109,800 will bring the total to $344,800. The Middlebury Infrastructure Committee will (See Middlebury, Page 13A)
New plants sprouting up in emerging local market
Pittsford farm changes crop to keep growing By RUSSELL JONES PITTSFORD — “Our secret’s out,” grinned Sam Markowski as he surveyed a dirt field full of different farm equipment. “We’re growing hemp up here in Pittsford.” A close relative of the marijuana plant, hemp looks and smells just like it, but lacks the mind-altering chemicals found in its biological cousin. Hemp also has a wide variety of uses, most notably of late as the main ingredient in products made with CBD (shorthand for the chemical compound “cannabidiol”). For the Markowskis, the decision (See Hemp, Page 9A)
Top shelf music
THE 41ST ANNUAL Festival on the Green rocked Middlebury this week. Above, Véronique Plasse and Dominic Desrochers of the Montreal trio Bon Débarras belt out a tune on Monday evening; ever-popular Vermont musician Jon Gailmor, below, gets a little audience participation during the Tuesday Brown Bag Lunch show; and Davy Sturtevant, right, blows an excellent cornet during a Heather Pierson Acoustic Trio performance Tuesday night. The Festival continues through Saturday night. See more photos on Pages 4A and 8A.
By the way
Independent photos/Trent Campbell and John S. McCright
The American Legion Department of Vermont convened its 100th Annual Department Convention on June 27–29 in South Burlington and elected a variety of officers for fiscal year 2020. Among them was Ronald LaRose of Post 19 in Bristol, who was elected Department Commander. Jeremy Revell of Squadron 19 in Bristol was elected Senior Vice Commander of Sons of The American Legion. Please don’t forget about the Helping Overcome Poverty’s (See By the way, Page 9A)
Local families provide a bridge for foreign students By NORA PEACHIN MIDDLEBURY — Every fall semester, Middlebury College’s Great Hall is decked out with decorations and numbered stations for the big host family reveal. International students and local families meet on campus to discover their matches.
Participants in the Friends of International Students (FIS) Host Program anxiously await this morning, which comes weeks after they fill out questionnaires detailing their expectations and hopes for their host experiences. Kathy Foley and her colleagues at Middlebury College’s Office for
International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) work tirelessly during the short time period at the start of the semester to pair students and hosts, based on preferences such as family size, religion and academic or professional interests. As participants trickle in, they are given the questionnaire of their
match to read over. Students and families are confined to separate rooms. Once everyone has gathered, they are released into the Hall to finally meet their partners for the next four years. It’s a moment full of expectation and excitement. Foley piloted the program in 2001 as a result of student interest. Chinese
professor John Berninghausen had created an informal host family arrangement for students before the official program, which introduced Middlebury students and families to the idea. “We live in an 8,000-person town, and the world is coming (See Students, Page 14A)
Index Obituaries.........................6A-7A Classifieds......................8B-10B Service Directory.............6B-7B Entertainment...... Arts + Leisure Community Calendar.......4B-5B Arts Calendar...... Arts + Leisure Sports...............................1B-3B