Mayoral Candidates - Take 3

Burlington Mayoral candidates addressed Edmunds Middle School accessibility again the other night... this time at the People's Forum hosted by the Vermont Workers' Center. Here's Take 1 and Take 2. Check Take 3 below from CCTV (the question is asked about three-quarters into the video clip)...

Loop holes and fineprint

Another relevant cartoon by Michael Giancreco. Learn more and order some of his work here.

School Board Members discuss Edmunds Accessibility

Three Burlington school board members were asked about Edmunds Middle School accessibility on Feb. 19 at the Wards 4 & 7 NPA meeting... impressive considering that most of the kids in the New North End attend Hunt Middle School instead.

CCTV captured their answers in the video clip below... about ten minutes' worth about one-sixth of the way into the clip.

Mayoral Candidates take another Stab at EMS Accessibility Question

AARP Vermont hosted a Burlington mayoral debate on February 19. The candidates were asked about making Burlington schools accessible for all community members. They each seem to be refining their answer as compared to a previous debate.

CCTV captured the video. The question comes about 20-25% of the way into the video clip.

Ask Burlington Mayoral Candidates about EMS Accessibility

Please attend one of the many candidate forums for Burlington Mayor and ask how they plan to make Edmunds Middle School accessible in the next two years. This project has been put off for decades... no more delays!

Feb. 22 - Ohavi Zedek, 3-5 PM

Feb. 24 - Vermont Workers' Center, 7-9 PM, 294 N Winooski Ave

Feb. 25 - Boys and Girls Club, 6:30-7:30 PM, 62 Oak St

Feb. 26 - Burlington DFA and Green Mountain Daily, 7-8:30 PM, Sapa Coffee & Tea, 9 Center St

Contact Public Officials about School Accessibility

Please contact your public officials today and ask them to support making Burlington schools accessible to all students and community members, regardless of physical disabilities.

• Senator Leahy
• Senator Sanders
• Congressman Welch
• Vermont Governor
• Chittenden County State Senators
• Burlington State Representatives
• Mayor of Burlington
• Burlington City Council
• Burlington School Board
• Burlington School District Superintendent

Mayoral Candidates' Position on Edmunds Accessibility

The four major candidates for Mayor in Burlington were asked last night the following question at the Ward 5 NPA meeting...

A surprising two-thirds of Burlington public school buildings are not fully accessible to people with disabilities. Edmunds Middle School is the worst offender. It is, arguably, the most prominent school building in the State of Vermont, sitting, as it does, on Main Street in our largest city. Yet, this public school building and community meeting place is segregated. Students, parents and grandparents, teachers, and community members who use wheelchairs are not welcome. They are, effectively, barred from entering.

In the decades since our federal disability civil rights laws were enacted, we have done almost nothing to remedy this problem here in Burlington. So, my question for each of the candidates...

If elected Mayor, what steps will you take to concretely fix this problem within the next two years?

Listen to their responses at about the 59-minute mark (2/18/2009)... XML or iTunes

UPDATE: Here's the audio clip of just this one question and the candidates' answers.

Edmunds Middle School Accessibility Article

A Feb. 18, 2009 Seven Days cover story by Aimee Picchi...

Middle schoolers whiz through the halls, laughing and talking, books in their swinging hands. It’s a change of period at Edmunds Middle School, and the students are pounding up and down stairs to make it to their classes on time.

Most of them may not give the 19th-century building’s layout a second thought. But Burlington resident and parent Michael Wood-Lewis does. His oldest child uses a wheelchair. Chris Giard, director of property services for the Burlington School District, is winding up a tour of the property, pointing out to Wood-Lewis why students with mobility problems can’t attend the Edmunds schools: stairs, stairs and more stairs.

For much of the tour, Wood-Lewis — the founder and owner of neighborhood email listserv Front Porch Forum — has been quiet. But in the stairwell, pausing amid the mingling scents of cafeteria food and stale gymnasium, he voices the question he’s been asking since his third-grader, who was born with cerebral palsy, first entered the school system: When will the Edmunds schools be made accessible to people with disabilities?

“This is the most prominent school in the state of Vermont, and yet we’re segregating our kids,” Wood-Lewis tells Giard. His voice contains a touch of resignation, as if he may not expect an answer. “Everyone has been kind, but when is it going to get done?”...

Click here to read the entire piece.

UPDATE: Read two excellent letters to the editor in response to this article.