Australian Meetings

Town meeting 2010 came with the centuries old traditions upheld in small towns throughout Vermont. Budgets and other issues of concern were discussed with and by the citizens of their towns a the rare present day form of direct democracy continues.

One of the biggest changes this year was the format of the meeting. The Australian Ballot was used for the first time in many places, and Saint Johnsbury even moved their meeting completely to Australian Ballot voting. There is nothing Australian about this voting method, its simply when residents can come in on their own time on town meeting day to vote on ballot, rather than saying "aye" or "nay" in the meeting. Saint Johnsbury last year voted to replace their traditional meeting to an informational meeting the night before town meeting day and make town meeting day itself an election day. Other towns still did their traditional meetings, however, voted on some important measures by Australian Ballot. . Concord also used a method similar to Saint Johnsbury with their meeting being the night before and the actual town meeting day be an election day via the Australian Ballot. Lyndonville vote on their $10.52 million school budget by australian ballot for the first time in its town meeting history.

Several other towns used the Australian Ballot to vote on part of their meeting items, however, the smaller towns, such as Kirby and Bradford still use the traditional approach to town meeting...an "aye" or a "nay" and the voice of the people is heard.

In 2009, town meeting day became recognized as a Holiday. Working Vermonters are now allowed to take an unpaid leave from work to attend town meeting day and students 18 years of age may miss school to attend. Here at Lyndon State College, of course, our News7 team works puts in extra hours, fanning out over our coverage area, and bringing back the results of democracy in action.

Town meeting day is a Vermont tradition that started 238 years ago and it continues to thrive in to this day.  The first town meeting was held in Bennington in 1762. During these times men 21 years of age or older would gather on a weekly and sometimes monthly basis to discuss town issues and business. At this time, they didn't have elected officials as we do now, but as time passed, the towns people elected certain people to take leadership roles. These men would address issues raised by the townspeople and were called Selectmen.These elected officials would take concerns raised by residents and bring them to the table to discuss as a whole. These meetings soon became an annual tradition, called town meeting day. In the late 1700's town meetings decided such things as whether or not to let pigs run free, whether smallpox vaccinations should be allowed within towns, or what goods or labor would be used as payments for taxes. Today town meeting day ballots have come a long way with articles relating to education, roads, construction of buildings. Town meeting has always been a day to socialize with friends and family within your community and also introduce yourself to new families. This strengthens your community, making town decisions in the future that much easier--or at least based on common knowledge. In Vermont, this consensus-building process is always very apparent.

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Meet our Town Meeting Online Reporters
Nick Barnets is a senior television studies major at Lyndon State College.  At LSC-TV News7 he works as an anchor, reporter, and producer. He was born in Queens, NY and has moved around a lot. He’s lived in central Florida and Albany, New York, and spends part of his summers with family in Greece.  Nick grew up watching the news with family every day and has been involved with television production in school since the fourth grade.  He wants to become a broadcast journalist, ideally working as an anchor/reporter in New York or in Greece.
Nick will be covering the town of Bradford this year's town meeting.

RJ Brownell is 20 years old and is from Glastonbury, Connecticut.  He came to Lyndon State College in the fall of 2007 and is in the middle of his junior year.  All of his life he has enjoyed watching television and has always wanted to learn more about it.  So when he heard about LSC’s TV program it was a perfect fit for him.  His first semester at News7 was a great experience and RJ is looking forward to see how his last couple of years of college will work out.  He’s not sure if being a reporter is his calling but he is excited to see what the future has in store for him. He knows there will be a lot to write about Concord.

Jarryd Guinard is a 21 year old junior attending Lyndon State College. He hails from the town of Barre, VT and has been raised in its quiet surroundings. Throughout his life, he has learned that Vermont is a unique and special place. Jarryd aspires to use the skills gained at Lyndon State College to work in the field of professional sports.  This term he’ll be following events and issues in Wheelock.

Lindsay McCarthy is almost halfway through her student career at Lyndon State College. Along the journey she has learned many things about broadcast journalism.  She is studying to be a news reporter. Next semester she will start work at News 7, the school’s television station, which serves fourteen communities.  When not in school, she lives at home with her family in Connecticut.  They are very supportive and always encourage her to do what she loves.  In addition to becoming a reporter in Hartford, she hopes to write and publish a young adult fantasy book.  For this blog, she is covering Danville.

Caleb Noble is a 20-year-old sophomore at Lyndon State College. Coming to college in Vermont from 30 minutes north of Boston was a big change for him. “When I first arrived I disliked everything about this place,” he recalls.  “Over time my outlook on the Northeast Kingdom has changed. When malls and trains surround me at home in Massachusetts I miss the slow pace of Vermont living.” Caleb prides himself on his work ethic, and he is committed to informing locals about their town meetings through in-depth analysis. He’s looking forward to learning more about Lyndonville.

Chris Peltier was born in Canton Massachusetts, and after graduating from Canton High School in 2007 continued his education at Lyndon State College in Vermont. An active reporter in the schools News 7 program, Chris enjoys a number of hobbies in his free time. These include playing hockey, wiffle ball, listening to music and exploring the flowing scenery of the North East Kingdom. For the upcoming town meeting day, Chris will be covering the town of Haverhill, New Hampshire.

Dylan Schlossberg is a sophomore Broadcast Journalism major at Lyndon State College, new to the school’s News 7 reporting team this semester. Dylan was born in Augusta, Georgia, but has lived in Vermont since he was just a few months old. When not at school, he lives in Saint George (the smallest town in the state), about 20 minutes outside Burlington. In his free time, if not lazing around, he can often be found rock climbing, mountain biking, and swimming - enjoying the natural beauty of the Green Mountain State. He’s long had an avid interest in both local and national politics, and looks forward to covering Vermont’s unique and indispensable town meetings this spring. He'll be keeping an eye on St. Johnsbury.

Chris Shadrock is a third year student at Lyndon State. Born and raised in South Texas, he decided to come to school in Vermont. His decision is still a mystery to him and his friends. However, growing up with a family farm, he feels close to home in rural northern Vermont. He says ya’ll, and occasionally repeats words in a conversation. He traces his roots by eating as much Mexican food as possible. Since he is a diehard San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Cowboys, and University of Texas Longhorns fan, he has conceded that he could never be a bias-free sports reporter. That being the case, he has decided to stick with news and politics. This spring he will be covering Ryegate.

Michael Woodward has lived in Vermont his entire life.  He resides in Barre, Vermont, but has come to Lyndon State College to study broadcast journalism. In high school, especially in his senior year, he took many graphic design, photography and video production classes to prepare himself for his major. Now, almost half way through his college career, he has built upon his knowledge, picking up many new skills, such as producing news broadcasts and reporting stories. He will keep an open mind to learn as much as he can through the rest of his college career. He’ll report on Sheffield.

Michelle Wilcox is a sophomore at Lyndon State College majoring in the Television Studies Program. She wants to become a broadcast reporter. Ambition and motivation are her driving forces. She is a recent addition to the News 7 television station at the college and is active in the school’s athletic program. Coming from a rural town in Vermont, she understands how important the sense of community is in the Northeast Kingdom. Her goal is to provide extensive coverage for the town of Barnet and address vital issues that are at the heart of the everyday life.

Jared Richardson is a producer, co-anchor, and general assignment reporter for News 7 and joined the Emmy Award winning station in January 2009. Jared covers a variety of news stories, ranging from car accidents to arts and entertainment features. Jared earned his high school degree from Mount Mansfield Union High School in Jericho, Vermont. Currently, he is attending Lyndon State College for a B.S. degree in Broadcast News. Jared grew up in Richmond, Vermont, and moved to Jericho, Vermont several years after. He has always had a huge interest in television news, and has always wanted to be a news reporter and anchor. In his spare time, he loves to go out to eat, run, ski, listen to music, and root for the Boston Red Sox. He also works part-time at Jericho Center Country Store, Vermont’s oldest country store.  He'll be our roving reporter, with special attention to Newbury.

Brian Howe was born in Norwich, Connecticut. He was raised in south eastern Connecticut where he learned to enjoy sailing and heading to the beach whenever he had a chance. When he isn’t at the beach you can find him tucked away in Northern Vermont, where he is studying to be a television news reporter. He enjoys reporting on politics and anything that has town residents in an uproar. One of his favorite activities while he isn’t reporting is observing and studying the weather. He says that he chose Northern Vermont because he wanted to experience a real winter. No wonder he chose to cover Burke, home of one of Vermont's prized ski areas.

George Ramos was born in Wareham, Massachusetts. He is a Junior attending Lyndon State College in Vermont. He’s majoring in Television Studies and concentrating in the Broadcast Production track. For town meeting this year, he will be covering Kirby. George plans to become a photographer and someday hopes to work in either Boston or Providence. When he’s not operating a camera, you can find him either hiking, camping, backpacking, biking, or kayaking.