Bernie Sanders supports inclusion

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Sanders visits RHS
By Jim Sabataso Staff Writer
 19 hrs ago
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U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., addresses the media after speaking with students and faculty at Rutland High School.

Photo by Hannah Dicton
 Students in Rutland High School were feeling the “Bern” Wednesday afternoon during a visit from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.

Vermont’s independent senator and two-time former presidential candidate, visited with students and fielded questions about national politics, college affordability and in-state job opportunities.

According to a Sanders staffer, this was Sanders’ first major tour of Vermont since the coronavirus pandemic began last year.

 
In addition to touring RHS on Wednesday, Sanders visited Rutland Regional Medical Center and Community Health Rutland, as well as making stops in Middlebury and Bristol.

“This has been a terrible, terrible year for the country in terms of the COVID pandemic — the loss of lives, the illnesses that we have seen, the disruption of education and the collapse of the economy,” Sanders said while speaking to press outside RHS.

Media were not allowed to accompany Sanders inside the school because of COVID-19 regulations.

He added that the country is now seeing “light at the end of the tunnel,” noting an increase in people getting vaccinated, a decrease in pandemic-related deaths and an economy that’s beginning to rebound.

Another bright spot, according to Sanders, was the influx of federal relief funds aimed at helping students recover from the pandemic.

“We’re working with the governor for a tripling of funding for summer programs and after-school programs to make sure that the kids here in Rutland and around the state, who have had such a difficult year, are able to get the summer experiences that would suit them well,” he said.

During the next three years, Vermont will receive $71 million in federal relief to develop and expand out-of-school academic and recreational programs, as well as provide summer job opportunities.

The money is part of the more than $1 billion allocated to the state as part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) approved by Congress earlier this year.

“This has been a difficult year for everybody. It has been an especially difficult year for the young people,” Sanders said.

And while kids are struggling academically, he acknowledged they are also struggling socially and emotionally as a result of being isolated from their friends and not being able to participate in activities.

“We have a serious mental health issue throughout this country, including the state of Vermont. And that’s why we have greatly expanded funding for community health centers who are providing psychological counseling,” he said, referencing more than $33 million in ARP money going to the state’s 11 health centers.

 
“We’ve got a lot of work to deal with the mental illness issue, which has been exacerbated because of the pandemic,” he stated.

Ella Lowkes, a senior at RHS, was one of the students who accompanied Sanders on his tour of the school.

She said Sanders requested to visit a variety of classes that represented all students, including those who have might have struggled more over the past year.

Lowkes said she asked Sanders about what he’d do to help young people find work in Vermont after college, explaining that a lack of high-paying jobs was one of the reasons why she plans to attend college out of state.

“I’d love to come back to Vermont,” she said.

She said Sanders told her the state was trying to address the issue and noted his efforts to increase the federal minimum wage to $15.

Michael O’Connor, a junior, said he took part in a conversation in his civics class facilitated by Sanders, where they talked about a variety of current topics, including college affordability.

He said the issue resonated with him.

“I see kids who can’t go to college because they simply can’t afford it. It’s not because they can’t get in academically,” he said. “That’s something that is really sad and shouldn’t happen.”

As Sanders departed the school, a group of students presented him with a T-shirt featuring the new Rutland Ravens mascot.

Also, Sanders was asked to comment on the Rutland City Board of Aldermen recently adopting a “declaration of inclusion” condemning racism and discrimination.

“I’m delighted to hear what Rutland has done. It’s the right thing, and I hope that our state can be a leader in the fight for racial justice,” he said, acknowledging that “it’s not going to happen overnight, but we’ve got to begin somewhere.”

jim.sabataso @rutlandherald.com

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