House committee backs adding higher-education representative to Office of New Americans working group

At a May 6 meeting of the House Government Operations & Military Affairs Committee, Representative Lynn Dickinson proposed amending S.56 to add a governor‑appointed member nominated by the Community College of Vermont to the Office of New Americans working group.

Dickinson said the Community College of Vermont (CCV) has decades of experience working with new Americans across the state and argued that CCV “looks like the United Nations” at graduations, reflecting many nationalities and language backgrounds. She told the committee CCV helps students transition to other colleges and provides supports for adults balancing jobs and families.

The amendment as introduced would add one governor‑appointed member — increasing that category from five to six — and expand the total membership of the working group from eight to nine. Committee members questioned whether naming a single institution was too narrow and discussed alternatives that would allow representation from the broader higher‑education community.

Several representatives suggested language that would allow a nominee from higher education generally or from the Vermont State College System rather than limiting the slot to CCV. Representative comments cited other institutions that work with international students, including Champlain College, the University of Vermont and Norwich University, and noted that many new Americans begin at CCV but also transfer to other public and private institutions.

Committee staff said the sponsor could produce a revised amendment reflecting broader higher‑education language. The committee paused while staff prepared a new draft; members then indicated support for replacing the specific CCV nomination with language referencing the Vermont State College System. The committee recorded a straw poll of 10-0-1 in favor of the revised language.

Committee members also discussed administrative details: whether the added slot would affect per diems or premiums (one member mentioned a $6,200 figure but did not provide a definitive source), and whether naming the Vermont State College System might exclude other institutions unless language was crafted to allow broader higher‑education representation. Dickinson said she would work with counsel to produce a clean amendment and noted she will bring the proposal to the Appropriations Committee as required.

The discussion was procedural and focused on membership language and scope; no final floor action on S.56 was recorded in the committee transcript excerpt.