2+ week, 4+ day ago (106+ words) Cheer on Vermont's rising stars as they showcase their talents on Saturday, December 6, 2025 at Higher Ground in South Burlington. The local youth in Kids VT's 2025 Spectacular Spectacular talent show don't need a spotlight to shine " they are already stars! The young performers listed below impressed our panel of judges with their amazing auditions and now they're ready to perform in person. Cheer them on as they showcase their talents at noon on Saturday, December 6 at Higher Ground in South Burlington. Thanks to everyone who submitted audition videos " and to our sponsors: This article appears in Kids VT Winter 2025....

2+ week, 3+ day ago (811+ words) To say that the comedy scene in Burlington has come a long way in the past decade would be an understatement. I still recall the way local aspiring standups milled around shows at Nectar's and the Monkey House, hoping to pop onstage between punk bands to tell jokes to a boisterous, heavily intoxicated crowd that wanted to mosh more than laugh. Trust me, you haven't seen cringe until you've watched a neophyte comic trying to be funny at a Monday open mic between Sublime covers and poetry readings. But that was the standard comedy showing in Burlington not so long ago. "To be perfectly honest, we bit off more than we could chew when we opened this place," Hartswick told me as I sat down with the couple at the club's bar last week. "We had to bust our asses…...

3+ day, 5+ hour ago (215+ words) Vermont's severe summer drought caused problems for farmers, boaters and people with wells. But it also led to some new adventures. As Lake Champlain's water receded, Vermonters explored islands that were suddenly accessible by foot. Social media was awash with images and videos from their trips to Law and Mosquito islands. Law Island is a nine-acre nature area west of the Colchester Causeway and is usually reachable only by boat. It offers rustic camping sites, windswept bluffs and a trail that loops around the island. Conserved in 1994 by the Lake Champlain Land Trust, Law Island is now owned and managed by the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation." In the latest episode of "Stuck in Vermont," Seven Days senior multimedia producer Eva Sollberger joined naturalist educator Teage O'Connor on a trip to the island. In early November, they crossed…...

2+ week, 4+ day ago (692+ words) The end of the year is traditionally a time when Americans give to charities. Many nonprofit organizations launch fundraising campaigns the week after Thanksgiving on Giving Tuesday, which falls on December 2 this year. In advance of that, Kids VT compiled a list of 15 organizations working to improve the lives of Vermont children and families. Some have a statewide reach, while others work on the local level. Some support activities for kids; others aid parents and caregivers. They all enrich the lives of young people and families in our largely rural state. As the giving season approaches, consider supporting the next generation of Vermonters, whether by donating to these groups or to others closer to home. Investing in healthy kids and families can make a difference for generations to come. As central Vermont's hub of information, support and connection for prenatal…...

1+ week, 4+ day ago (1463+ words) The redistricting task force members were facing a problem that Vermont policy makers encounter all too often, according to other state legislators who spoke with Seven Days: The data that state agencies release are frequently incomplete or inaccurate. Outdated information technology systems often are to blame. "If we don't have the right data, the consequences could be devastating." As lawmakers confront increasingly complex issues, their ability to make evidence-based decisions still hinges on a digital infrastructure that too often can't keep up. "Data is incredibly important to everything we do in the legislature," Gulick said. "If we don't have the right data, the consequences could be devastating." Data from the Agency of Education are central to the ongoing effort to transform Vermont's public school system. Gaps and errors in the data pose a serious problem for lawmakers, Gulick said. At…...

1+ week, 3+ day ago (1780+ words) The disbanding of a civic organization may not seem cause for celebration. But optimism and an air of a job well done prevailed in September, when a business-casual crowd gathered in Burlington to bid farewell to Let's Grow Kids." Let's Grow Kids, a broad and well-funded coalition representing childcare providers, parents, business leaders and the politically connected, became the homegrown vessel for reform. The group gave itself 10 years " a term that ended this fall " to rally Vermonters to push for major public investment in childcare that would begin to answer the state's gaping needs. The increased funding has helped create more than 1,700 new childcare slots. Although much evidence remains anecdotal, some middle-income families report feeling a lighter financial burden, childcare providers say they have been able to expand their programs and pay their workers better, and certain businesses report that…...

1+ day, 15+ hour ago (411+ words) Vermont's Afghan community is reeling from news this week that a fellow national has been accused of shooting two National Guard soldiers in Washington, D.C., killing one of them. "They're outraged that this horrible act of violence occurred, and they're deeply worried that they may be blamed," Gray said in a phone call Friday. Officials say Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, of Washington State, drove across the country to the nation's capital and shot two West Virginia National Guard members who were deployed there. Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, has since died, officials say, while 24-year-old Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe remained in critical condition. Lakanwal arrived in the U.S. in 2021 as part of a Biden-era program to resettle Afghan nationals whose work on behalf of the U.S. government made them targets of the Taliban. Officials say he was part of one of the CIA's "Zero Units," which were…...

3+ day, 19+ hour ago (588+ words) There's No "A' in Creemee," the newish podcast from Joanna Grossman and Andy Julow, sounds like it should be about the eccentricities of New England spelling. Instead, the two Vermont politicos spend an hour each week talking to politicians, nonprofit leaders and media personalities about, as the tagline suggests, all things Vermont politics, culture and beyond." And yes, they usually carve out time for their guests to weigh in on Vermont's signature frozen treat. Coming from Vermont, I never really thought about it: You win a Little League game, and you go out and get a creemee," said Julow, 48, a Burlington native who lives in North Hero, in the podcast's inaugural episode from May. But Grossman, 49, a native New Yorker, admitted that even after years of living in Burlington she can barely say the word creemee" without giggling. I love…...

2+ week, 1+ day ago (458+ words) The Flynn in Burlington and Artistree in South Pomfret are among hundreds of arts presenters across the country staging events to protest the actions of President Donald Trump and his administration. Planning began just two months ago. Participants include the Institute of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, Berkeley Repertory Theatre in California, the Public Theater in New York City and Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, D.C. Artistree will present "Small Staged Works," staged readings of plays by three local playwrights at the Grange Theatre. The Vastness Within by Daniel Patterson is on November 21. Discord in Concord by Peter Rousmaniere and Shrimp Pudding by Kyle Mumford take the stage on November 22. The Flynn will offer a free staged reading of Sinclair Lewis" It Can"t Happen Here on November 22, in its Flynn Space black-box theater. The 1935 novel, adapted for stage in…...