The Vermont House has given final approval to a bill that would shake up the way schools in the state are governed, consolidating the number of school districts from more than 270 to around 50. President Obama has recently announced a plan to develop ratings for teacher preparation programs. A report released last year gave Vermont a poor grade for its efforts to train teachers. And the focus from the White House has renewed controversy about ranking institutions where future teachers are educated. Nonprofit organizations that help Vermonters find insurance on the new health exchange are giving mixed reviews to the program.
Melody is the Contributing Editor for But Why: A Podcast For Curious Kids and the co-author of two But Why books with Jane Lindholm.
A graduate of NYU with a Master's Degree in journalism, Mitch has more than 20 years experience in radio news. He got his start as news director at NYU's college station, and moved on to a news director (and part-time DJ position) for commercial radio station WMVY on Martha's Vineyard. But public radio was where Mitch wanted to be and he eventually moved on to Boston where he worked for six years in a number of different capacities at member station WBUR...as a Senior Producer, Editor, and fill-in co-host of the nationally distributed Here and Now. Mitch has been a guest host of the national NPR sports program "Only A Game". He's also worked as an editor and producer for international news coverage with Monitor Radio in Boston.
