Last week, Frau Polly Vanderputten received a letter informing her that the full-time German position at SBHS was being eliminated in the newest round of budget cuts. As there is typically only one teacher for this program, the entire German program, which has existed at South Burlington High School for nearly 60 years, will be gone. 

With this cut, The International Experience (TIE) Program in Germany will likely also be cut. TIE is South Burlington High School’s German foreign exchange program. SBHS students and students from the exchange schools spend about two weeks in each other’s countries, experiencing firsthand what it is like to be a student in another country. To the best of my knowledge, the German TIE program with SBHS is one of the nation's longest-continuous German high school exchange programs.

The cuts for the next budget proposed by the SBSD Board and Superintendent Violet Nichols are linked below. Everything listed here is on the table, which would eliminate the equivalent of 40 full-time teaching positions in South Burlington.

FY25 Budget Information (SBEA)

The failed budget has nothing to do with the German program—or with the Japanese program, the Big Picture program, or the many core subjects that face cuts right now.

By joining us in this petition, you are sending a clear message to the SBSD Board and Superintendent Violet Nichols that you value the German and TIE programs and the cultivation of foreign language, cultural appreciation, and international experience for our children in South Burlington, VT.