Senate committee confirms Zoe Saunders as Vermont secretary of education after yearlong review

Montpelier — The Vermont Senate Education Committee voted 5-1 on March 11 to confirm Zoe Saunders as secretary of education following a confirmation hearing that reviewed her first year leading the Agency of Education.

Saunders told the committee she would continue work to improve literacy, strengthen data quality, resolve federal compliance issues and bolster the agency’s capacity to support districts. "I see my confirmation as a chance to celebrate the accomplishments of the Agency of Education over the past year and also to share lessons learned," Saunders said during opening remarks.

The hearing centered on the agency’s response to long‑standing challenges: declining enrollment, rising property tax pressures, uneven academic results and a backlog of administrative tasks. Saunders described a multiphase engagement process she called a "listen and learn tour" that engaged more than 1,000 Vermonters and more than 250 education leaders, and yielded a 120‑page report she said has guided agency priorities.

Saunders highlighted Read Vermont, an agency initiative built on Act 139 intended to improve literacy outcomes, including support for job‑embedded coaching for educators. "Read Vermont aims to ensure every child can read by third grade," she said, and the program will include on‑the‑ground coaching and training drawn from educator input and the Literacy Advisory Council.

She told senators the agency has worked to stabilize struggling supervisory unions, increase special education training and monitoring, and improve budgeting supports. Saunders acknowledged errors in a recently published State Education Profile Report, saying the agency performed a time‑intensive validation process and reissued corrected data with accompanying "recipe cards" to show methods and promote transparency.

Committee members pressed Saunders on three broad topics: federal compliance, the governor’s education transformation proposal and the agency’s use of consultants. On compliance, Saunders said the agency had been in "needs assistance" status on special education and that it had submitted a corrective action plan; she said some accountability issues tied to the state assessment and methodology adjustments for very small schools had been addressed but remained work in progress.

On the governor’s transformation proposal, senators sought detail about the modeling behind proposed district configurations, the source of projected $180 million in savings cited by the administration, and whether the plan would produce painful cuts for some districts. Saunders said the administration was preparing side‑by‑side budget modeling for the five regional configurations in the plan and would provide detailed analyses accounting for district differences in staffing and programming. "We are looking at transforming how we deliver and operate education," Saunders said, adding the agency would supply additional modeling "this week or next" to clarify fiscal and operational impacts.

Senators also asked about consultants and sustainability. Saunders said the agency has used consultants where internal capacity or unique expertise was needed — for example, to provide job‑embedded coaching under Read Vermont — and that the agency is preparing a report listing contracts and their rationale. She said some consultant work was funded with federal COVID dollars or philanthropy while the agency develops a five‑year sustainment plan and explores transitioning some roles in‑house where budget and hiring capacity allow.

Across the hearing, Saunders emphasized staff culture, stating she had worked to increase cross‑agency collaboration, institute regular all‑staff meetings and improve transparency. She said the agency had secured $4,000,000 in the governor’s budget to increase capacity to support field implementation during any potential transition associated with a transformation plan.

Committee members who questioned Saunders varied in tone: some pressed for more specifics about metrics and timelines for implementation, steady oversight and how the agency would protect student‑level improvement work from being sidetracked by large policy changes; others signaled support for Saunders’ leadership and asked colleagues to consider examples of improved service from district leaders.

The committee recorded the confirmation as approved, 5-1. The committee also heard that agency staff would report to House Ways and Means on special education corrective actions and that the administration expects to supply additional modeling and timelines to the legislature ahead of any floor decisions.

The confirmation completes the committee stage of Saunders’ appointment; the full Senate will consider the nomination as part of its confirmation calendar. Saunders said she will continue outreach to districts and stakeholders as the agency finalizes its strategic plan and measures for student success.