Podcast
Vermont Edition
Hosted by Vermont Public · EN
Vermont Edition brings you news and conversation about issues affecting your life. Host Mikaela Lefrak considers the context of current events through interviews with news makers and people who make our region buzz.
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Journalist Jasper Craven on the harms of American military education
Yesterday00:49:48Tap to summarizeMilitary academies and ROTC clubs teach children and young adults — most of them boys — how to fight in war. But this education comes with its own risk of scars.Vermont-based freelance journalist Jasper Craven explores American military education in his new book, God Forgives, Brothers Don't: The Long March of Military Education and the Making of American Manhood.Craven has reported on the military and veterans' issues for local and national publications including VTDigger, Mother Jones, The New Republic and the The New York Times Magazine.Broadcast live on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.
Transcribe →'I'm not here to punish taxpayers:' Gov. Phil Scott on ed reform, return to office and more
2d ago00:57:00Tap to summarizeWe’re nearing the traditional end point of Vermont’s legislative calendar. Adjournment at the statehouse in Montpelier is tentatively scheduled for May 29, but there’s a lot left to settle before the state’s part-time lawmakers head home. Throughout this legislative session you’ve heard lawmakers on Vermont Edition discuss these issues. Now, we get to hear from the state’s top elected official, Gov. Phil Scott.
Transcribe →Tick talk
3d ago00:49:44Tap to summarizeTick season is upon us yet again, and tick bite-related emergency room visits in the Northeast are higher than normal right now. It’s hard not to resent these disease-spreading arachnids. Ticks spread pathogens like anaplasmosis, babesiosis, Powassan virus, and Lyme disease. We're joined by David Allen, an associate professor of biology at Middlebury College to talk about the different types of ticks in the region, the diseases they spread, how to prevent tick bites, and how he learned to embrace one of the most detested parts of the animal kingdom. But first; the chair of the education committee in Vermont's House of Representatives will not seek reelection this fall. Rep. Peter Conlon (D-Cornwall) has served in the state legislature for a decade. He's focused his efforts in the last few years on education reform and the ongoing school redistricting debate. He joins us to talk about his decision to step down and what he's learned from his time in the legislature.Broadcast live on Monday, May 18, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.
Transcribe →Burlington police body cam footage from March ICE raid will be released 'very soon,' says mayor
1w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeBurlington police body cam footage from March ICE raid will be released 'very soon,' says mayor
Transcribe →Novelist Tim Weed, photographer Nate Larson, and filmmaker Robbie Leppzer
1w ago00:48:21Tap to summarizeVermont has no shortage of artists creating new works. Author Tim Weed of Putney has a new novel set in Vermont called The Gatepost that blends modern science and ancient cosmology. Photographer Nathan Larson of Windsor packed up his entire life into a van and hit the road. A new book of poetry and photographs captures his adventures. And filmmaker Robbie Leppzer's latest work is a documentary about the founder of Bread and Puppet Theater.Broadcast live on Wednesday May 13, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.
Transcribe →Should Vermont pump the brakes on tech in schools?
1w ago00:49:49Tap to summarizeThere are many tech tools making their way into kids’ classrooms: Chromebooks and iPads, Canvas and Powerschool, ChatGPT and Claude. Is that a good thing? Depends on who you ask. Some states are passing laws to limit in-school screen time. Rep. Angela Arsenault, a Democrat from Williston, supports these measures, saying Vermont should better regulate the use of tech like chatbots and smartphones in schools. Providing the tech perspective is Sara Kloek, vice president of education policy at the Software & Information Industry Association, a non-profit that represents the interests of EdTech companies. Educators Michael Berry, director of curriculum and technology for the Montpelier Roxbury Public Schools, and Brian Burgess, a speech pathologist at Harwood Union Middle and High School, also provided insight.
Transcribe →Layoffs in Franklin County point to a shrinking manufacturing economy
1w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeManufacturing is an important part of Vermont’s economy. According to the state, about seven percent of Vermont workers are employed by manufacturing companies and those employees make an average of $68,000 dollars a year.But the sector is shrinking fast. Between 2020, before the pandemic, and now, the number of manufacturing jobs has fallen by more than 11 percent.Case in point: The infant formula maker Perrigo. About a year ago, it announced it’d be closing its factory in Georgia, Franklin County. This month, it kicked off that process, laying off 162 people. By the end of June, all manufacturing at the plant will have ceased and more than four hundred will be laid off.We’ll work to understand why the plant is closing with Vermont Business Magazine’s Tim McQuiston and Megan Sullivan of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce. We'll also hear from the owner of Georgia Market near the Perrigo plant about the impact to his own business’s future.Then: Overdose deaths have declined in Vermont for three years in a row. Why? Is it access to overdose reversal meds? State-funded treatment programs? Changes in street supply? We'll break down the data with the state's Department of Health.
Transcribe →Flood preparedness and recovery in Vermont
2w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeOver the past few years, Vermonters have upped their flood resilience efforts. As we enter another flood season, this work becomes even more urgent.Douglas Farnham, the state’s Chief Recovery Officer, joins to tell us about how changes at the Federal Emergency Management Agency are impacting Vermont flood recovery efforts. And he gives us an update on the FEMA buyout program.Also, we talk with Arion Thiboumery from the Plainfield Community Development Corp, an organization dedicated to creating new affordable housing in the town of Plainfield. Their current effort called the East Plainfield Expansion Project aims to build 20 new units of housing near the village on higher ground. They just received a grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.Vermont Edition intern Maeve Fairfax went to Hardwick to investigate the challenges that Vermonters face trying to find new housing after being displaced by a flood. She talked with taqueria owner and buyout recipient Bryan Palinonis.Then, Audrey Grant of Northeast Kingdom Organizing joins us to talk about Resilience Hubs. These are community spaces that are stocked with supplies needed for emergency disaster response — muck and gut kits, dehumidifiers, generators, and more. They are also used in quieter times as a space where communities can gather, organize, and access services they might need. These are operated by the organization Northeast Kingdom Organizing.Broadcast live on Thursday, May 7, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.
Transcribe →Vermont Edition's annual spring gardening show with Charlie Nardozzi
2w ago00:57:00Tap to summarizeIt's Vermont Edition’s annual spring gardening show and our guest is Charlie Nardozzi, gardening consultant extraordinaire, speaker, and TV and radio host. You can hear Charlie on Sunday mornings right here on Vermont Public for All Things Gardening. His latest book is called The Continuous Vegetable Garden, all about how to create a low effort, perpetually productive food garden.
Transcribe →After SCOTUS strikes down tariff rule, who gets a refund?
2w ago00:49:50Tap to summarizeAfter SCOTUS strikes down tariff rule, who gets a refund?
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