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Governor's Institutes of Vermont asks Legislature for 10% funding boost after students describe life‑saving training
Summary
Governor's Institutes of Vermont told an Education Committee it serves about 700 students a year (55% low income), is level‑funded at $384,000, and is requesting a 10% increase to $423,361 to cover rising costs; students and board members described hands‑on training and broadening college and career pathways.
Elizabeth Rescoya, executive director of the Governor's Institutes of Vermont, told the state Education Committee on Feb. 3 that the nonprofit serves roughly 700 high school students a year and is asking the Legislature to raise its current appropriation by 10%, from $384,000 to $423,361, in the governor's FY27 budget.
"My name is Elizabeth Rescoya, and I'm the executive director of Governors Institutes of Vermont," Rescoya said, and she described the program as a mix of one‑to‑two week residential summer institutes held on college campuses designed to expose teenagers to career and college pathways. She said nearly 90% of participants receive some financial assistance and that 55% are low‑income, up from about a third a few years ago.
The institutes work with college partners to provide both classroom instruction and hands‑on learning, Rescoya said, and current partners named in testimony included the University of Vermont, Champlain College, Vermont State University (Castleton and Lyndon campuses) and Norwich University. She described the organization's overall annual budget at about $2.1 million, with roughly 20% coming from state funds, about 30% from sliding‑scale tuition, and the remainder from grants, business donors and individual contributions.
Two recent alumni who spoke to the committee described concrete skills they learned. Evianna Ryder, a GIV alum of the health and medicine institute, said classroom sessions and afternoon skills training taught participants CPR, "stop the bleed" and basic life support. "If something were to happen in this room right now, the two of us could take care of it," Ryder said, describing the life‑saving confidence the training provided.
Board members and alumni emphasized that the program also connects students with mentors and creates pathways into health and other careers. Jeremy Grama, a GIV board member who noted his professional experience in financial management and said he was speaking in a personal capacity, told the committee GIV is "an incredibly good steward of the funds that they have" and argued the organization stretches public dollars through private fundraising and volunteer engagement.
Rescoya said demand exceeds capacity: for every 60 students accepted, about 100 apply, and the health and medicine institute has expanded from roughly 35 to 140 places over recent years by consolidating sessions and working with the College of Medicine, nursing and allied health programs. The organization also runs free one‑day "adventures" year‑round to broaden access beyond the residential summer programs.
The committee requested follow‑up materials to support budget deliberations: members asked GIV to submit a brief, single‑page budget letter within roughly two weeks outlining the request and how the additional funds would be used. No formal vote or appropriation was made at the hearing.
The Education Committee will use the submitted materials in its upcoming budget review schedule.
