Fewer and fewer children who live close to school regularly walk or ride a bike to classes. And this is largely due to safety concerns: speeding traffic, distracted drivers and inadequate sidewalks or other pedestrian infrastructure. The Safe Routes to School program is a national program that looks to reverse this trend. The goal of the SRTS program is to enable and encourage children to safely walk and bike to school. Not only does it work to educate children and give them the skills to get to school safely, but it also works to address infrastructure needs that may prevent children from walking and biking. In the process, programs are working to reduce traffic congestion and improve health and the environment, making communities more livable for everyone.

Raising Vermont's cigarette tax by $1 per pack would bring in $6.7 million in new annual revenue to help close the state's budget shortfall, while also reducing smoking and saving lives, according to a national report released today by a coalition of public health organizations. "This report shows that raising tobacco taxes is truly a win-win-win for Vermont. It is a budget win that will help protect vital programs like health care and education, a health win that will prevent kids from smoking and save lives, and a political win with the voters," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

Vermont Public Radio reports that "ten leading Vermont college educators are among scores of their colleagues from across the country calling for a debate about the merits of the minimum drinking age of 21." Educators who have signed onto the Amethyst Initiative, which wasdeveloped by former Middlebury College President John McCardell, maintain thatthe 21-year-old minimum drinking age is not working because more young people are drinking irresponsibly. College of St. Joseph President Frank Migloriecommentedthat "once people reach 18 years of age they are given full citizenship, except the right to drink alcohol." Since July 2008, 134 college presidents from around the country have signed the initiative."

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Vermont Public Radio reports that "police at the University of Vermont say they've cited four people over an apparent hazing incident involving the college's sailing club." In addition, "the club was suspended two weeks ago amid allegations that underage members were required to consume alcohol." The sailing club will not be able to compete in the Atlantic Coast Championships, being held this weekend in Geneva, N.Y., because of the suspension.

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The Burlington Free Press reports that the the Winooski School District has implemented the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program to "to change the norms around bullying behavior and to restructure the school setting so bullying is less likely to occur." The program is being used at the elementary, middle and high school levels.

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The Bennington Banner reports that the Bennington Police Department (BPD) is partnering with the North Bennington Graded School to provide students and parents with pedestrian and bicycle safety information through the Safe Routes to School Program. Notably, "the school does not provide school buses, students must either be dropped off at school, or make their own way — on foot or bike," and according to BPD Lt. Paul Doucette, "Some of the sidewalks in North Bennington are in need of serious work." In turn, the BDP has "stepped up the motor vehicle enforcement in the village in an attempt to ensure the safety of students" and has spent time at the school reviewing safety with students.

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Vermont Public Radio reports that Norwich University officials announced last week that "allegations had surfaced that an upper-class student had hit a freshman with a broom handle, and that such an act crosses the line into hazing." Officials noted that their "tough response to [the] incident is in keeping with a policy of zero tolerance toward the practice." The University also "acknowledge[d] that in the school's military component - its Corps of Cadets - there can be a thin line between military-style discipline and what some might consider to be hazing."

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Vermont Public Radio reports that last week's kidnapping and murder of Brooke Bennett, a 12 year old Braintree girl, has "sparked a debate among Vermont's political leaders about ways to reduce the incidence of sexual violence in the state." Governor Jim Douglas has suggested "a civil commitment law that allows the state to keep a convicted sex offender in prison beyond their sentence if the individual hasn't successfully completed a treatment program. Douglas also wants lawmakers to pass Jessica's law - a bill that would impose a 25 year mandatory minimum sentence for people convicted of sexually assaulting a child" and said "he doesn't oppose restoring the death penalty in Vermont to deal with crimes like the Brooke Bennett case." Gaye Symington, House Speaker and Democratic gubernatorial candidate, has said "she supports a comprehensive review of Vermont's sex offender laws."

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Update on Thursday, October 2, 2008 at 03:24PM by VCF Staff

Jacques gets federal indictment in kidnapping, death of Brooke Bennett

Vermont Public Radio reports that  "a federal grand jury has indicted the uncle of slain 12-year-old Brooke Bennett, saying he drugged, sexually assaulted and smothered her with a plastic bag this summer." Authorities also say that the uncle, 42-year-old Michael Jacques of Randolph, "could face the death penalty." Notably, "Jacques is accused of kidnapping, production and possession of child pornography and other charges. Brooke, who disappeared June 25, was found dead a week later."

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Update on Monday, December 8, 2008 at 09:51AM by VCF Staff

Amber Alert test finds glitch

Vermont Public Radio reports that "a test of Vermont's Amber Alert system - a law enforcement program to get notifications out quickly when children go missing - turned up a problem Thursday morning." Indeed, "Vermont State Police officials say a mass e-mail that was supposed to go a large number of recipients did not work as planned." By Thursday afternoon, "authorities say they were able to correct the problem." Vermont has only used the alert program once, "this past June when 12-year-old Brooke Bennett of Braintree disappeared. She was later found dead and her uncle, 42-year-old Michael Jacques of Randolph, has been charged with abducting, raping and killing her."

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The Bennington Banner reports that the Arlington Memorial High School and Middle School is creating a mandatory Internet safety course for all sixth-graders in response to "ever-growing concerns about online predators, inappropriate material being posted on social pages, Internet financial scams and cyber-bullying." Students in the course will meet daily for nine weeks, and the class will cover topics such as social networking on sites like Facebook and MySpace; the dangers of harassment and cyber-bullying; preventing and avoiding sexual solicitation; e-commerce; and intellectual integrity, when it comes to doing research for a paper or downloading music. Principal Kerry Csizmesia explained that he plans to "tie [the course] in with the school's technology competency, which requires all students to master nine areas of technical skills before graduating. He said the School Board, superintendent, teachers and parents have been supportive of the idea from the start."

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Vermont Public Radio reports that about 200 Brattleboro residents including teachers, police officers, community leaders and many members of the biracial community "turned out for a community forum on racism in Brattleboro, where the discovery of a racist group and the arrest of a teenager on hate crime charges has shaken people up." The event was designed to "gauge community sentiment on how the recent incidents had affected people, and what should be done about racism in the community." Attendees said "they were relieved to see the large turnout of support. But others said talking to like-minded people would not solve the problem."

Update on Tuesday, July 1, 2008 at 09:19AM by VCF Staff

Students Fight Racism with Technology
The Rutland Herald reports that high schools students in Brattleboro are "using technology to keep a recent racist incident from igniting further problems." Last week the students "launched a text-messaging campaign to keep fellow students informed, and prevent misinformation and rumor from boiling over into violence." According to Curtiss Reed Jr., the executive director of ALANA, a local civil rights organization, and chairman of the Vermont State Advisory Committee on Civil Rights, "The kids are telling each other 'avoid, ignore, resist, [and] don't respond."

The campaign comes in response to recent racist incidents in Brattleboro, "which included the formation of an informal student club, whose very name includes a threat of violence and a racial epithet. Last week, a 17-year-old Guilford student was placed on house arrest after he was charged with two hate crimes, including aggravated stalking with a deadly weapon and disorderly conduct, as well as two other alleged crimes." In addition, the Vernon Police are "investigating several racist signs left in town.

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Vermont Public Radio spoke with Rich Long, director of campus public safety with Champlain College, and Gary Margolis, the University of Vermont's (UVM) Chief of Police, about student safety on Vermont's college campuses. Margolis commented that crime statistics from the U.S. Department of Education show that individuals are safer on college campuses than in cities or towns. Long noted that UVM, Champlain College, and Norwich University, recently teamed up to provide an inter-campus alert system. The alert system can send phone messages, pager messages, text messages, and email to students within a few seconds of a catastrophic incident. Notably, Margolis recently co-authored a report "on how safe America's college campuses are. The study is in response to the shootings at Virginia Tech more than a year ago."

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The Rutland Herald reports that the state legislature is considering a highway safety bill that would ban cell phone use among 16- and 17-year-old drivers. "Though Vermont lacks state data linking cell-phone use to accident rates, highway safety experts around the state agree that the phone conversations can become a deadly distraction on the road." Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin has said he would support the legislation if "representatives accept a Senate provision that would make it easier for teenage drivers to ferry their siblings around. Presently, teenagers have to wait three months after receiving their driver's license before they can be accompanied in the car by their minor siblings. Shumlin said he wants to change the 'graduated licensing' rule, reducing that timeframe to 30 days." Maxine Grad, a Moretown Democrat, disagrees. Indeed, Grad is "unwilling to undo a nearly decade-old graduated licensing program that has, according to state statistics, reduced crash rates for 16-year-olds by 90 percent."

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Update on Tuesday, May 6, 2008 at 02:48PM by VCF Staff

Cell Phone Bill Will Note Become Law This Year
The Times Argus reports that the Legislature adjourned late Saturday afternoon without a cell phone law that "would have banned cell phone use by teenage drivers." Earlier this year, the bill had "nearly unanimous support" but Senate opposition to the plan "necessitated significant concessions" and "negotiations stalled." Rep. Maxine Grad, a Moretown Democrat said she'll return to the Statehouse next year prepared for another battle over the teen cell phone ban.

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The Burlington Free Press reports that a small group of students gathered in Burlington's City Hall Park on Wednesday to "protest bullying and harassment of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students." The gathering was followed by a "statewide Day of Silence designed to bring attention to the problem." Notably, the most recent Vermont Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that "34 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students surveyed in Vermont public schools had been bullied in the past 30 days." According to Christopher Neff, executive director of Outright Vermont, "That figure is twice the rate of overall bullying."

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The Times Argus reports that at a summit on internet safety in Montpelier on Monday, "law enforcement officials said that Vermont teenagers are increasingly vulnerable to a criminal element that veils itself behind the anonymity of the virtual world." According to the police, "internet-aided sex crimes have risen dramatically in recent years." For example in 1998, "Vermont police investigated one case involving an online predator" while last year, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force "examined the computers of about 200 suspects charged with a sex offense."

Steve DeBrota, a nationally recognized expert on online predatory techniques, said that "ensuring healthy Internet behavior means becoming involved in children's online lives." De Brota added, "If you want to protect minors, you first have to understand them and how they interact with others in this world. A lot of safety messages have been based on banning access. I don't think that's possible anymore. Now I think we need to empower good choices."

Notably, "Vermont is investing more law-enforcement resources to clamp down on internet predators. A $250,000 federal grant from the Department of Justice will fund three part-time investigators. Much of their time will be spent posing as potential victims, snaring would-be predators who try to arrange illicit meetings with their underage targets."

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WCAX News reports that according to a new report released by the Every Child Matters Education Fund, Vermont "is the safest place for children to grow up." The report entitled Geography Matters - Child Well-Being in the States,
"ranks states based on ten wellness indicators: infant mortality, child deaths 1-14, teen deaths 15-19, births to teen mothers, little or no prenatal care, child poverty, uninsured children, juvenile incarceration rates, child abuse deaths and child welfare expenditures." Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire also received high rankings.  Linda Johnson, executive director of Prevent Child Abuse Vermont, lauded the state for its great work but added that she would like to "see more emphasis on education about shaken baby syndrome." The Department for Children and Families noted that "it would like to see more work in the area of child poverty."

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