Scroll down for session descriptions and speakers.

Note: Watch this page for links to the recorded opening plenary as well as the live streams and hybrid sessions below. Thank you to PEGTV, Vancro Integrated Interpreting Services and White Coat Captioning!

 

Opening Plenary — 9:00–10:35am

 

Breakouts

10:45–12:00

  • P2 (L) — School Building Transformations • Livestream 
  • P3 (H) — Safe Streets, Accessible Recreation, and Inclusive Mobility • Hybrid 

1:15–2:30

  • W7 (L) — Planning Accessible Public Engagements • Livestream 
  • P8 (H) — How Farmers & Foresters are Building Community • Hybrid

2:45–4:00

  • W12 (L) — Fundraising Conversations: Building Relationships the Lead to Giving • Livestream 
  • P10 (H) — Community Gathering Spaces • Hybrid 

 

10:45 – noon

P2(L). School Building Transformations

The closure of a local school is a situation that many communities are facing or experiencing. Come learn from towns that have navigated this transition, and have completed or are in the process of repurposing former school buildings to serve new community purposes.

Moderator: Alyssa Johnson, Vermont Council on Rural Development
Panelists: Shannon Barsotti, Town of Bennington; Kathryn Schenkman, Valley Hub Inc – RHS Repurposing Project;and Meg Streeter, Old School Enrichment Council

 

P3(H). Safe Streets, Accessible Recreation, and Inclusive Mobility

Hear from experts and community members who are working to increase the accessibility of recreation in Vermont communities including playgrounds, interpretive trails and more.

Moderator: Abby Long, NEK Collaborative
Panelists: Nate Besio, Vermont Center for Independent Living; and Caitlin Cusack, Vermont Land Trust
Felicia Fowler, Vermont Adaptive Sports
Randy Richardson, Upper Valley Trails

 

1:15 – 2:30 pm

W7(L). Planning Accessible Public Engagements

Learn fundamental skills to plan a public event, municipal process, or community project welcoming to all. Learn how to integrate accessibility and inclusion into the core of your project, from pathways for participation to inviting and responding to ADA accommodation requests. Leave with skills that will break down barriers and get more of your community engaged!

Presenter: Peter Johnke, Vermont Center for Independent Living

 

P8(H). How Farmers and Foresters are Building Community

While many Vermonters value our working landscape, farmers and foresters have faced many challenges in recent decades. This panel will explore how the people behind our working lands build networks among businesses and strengthen themselves and their communities. This panel will ask what can community leaders learn from their collaboration and how can communities and working lands businesses work together?

Moderator: Jon Ramsey, Center for an Agricultural Economy
Panelists:
amber arnold, SUSU CommUNITY Farm
Megan Browning, Addison County Relocalization Network (ACORN)
Kate Forrer, Vermont Woodlands Association

 

2:45 – 4:00 pm

W12(L). Fundraising Conversations: Building Relationships That Lead to Giving

Raising money in your community starts with relationships. This session focuses on the person-to-person side of fundraising: how to identify the people in your community who care about your project, how to open a conversation with them, and how to move that relationship toward an invitation to give. Relationships also matter in seeking grant support. Using a simple model for donor conversations, you’ll explore how to frame your project’s story and leave with next steps for who to talk to next and how.

Presenter: Jenn Hayslett, Jenn Hayslett Coaching & Consulting

 

P10(H). Community Gathering Spaces

Small towns have opportunities for developing community gathering spaces for community connection, trust building, belonging, and neighborliness. This panel will showcase local leaders creating flexible spaces that often must take on many different forms within the span of a week. From community meals to music and recreation, examples will highlight the partnerships for success and the power of social infrastructure in small towns that utilizes the buildings and spaces already there.

Moderator: Richard Amore, Central Vermont Economic Development Corporation
Panelists: Shannon Barsotti, Town of Bennington; Bebe Bullock, Arlington Common; and Jasmine Yuris, Johnson EATS