{"id":612752,"date":"2025-02-19T14:24:08","date_gmt":"2025-02-19T19:24:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/?page_id=612752"},"modified":"2025-03-10T16:49:03","modified_gmt":"2025-03-10T20:49:03","slug":"2024-annual-report","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/2024-annual-report\/","title":{"rendered":"2024 Annual Report"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

2024 Annual Report<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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Jump to:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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A note from our CEO<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
A note from our board president<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Impact highlights<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Flooding<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Election 2024<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Healthcare<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Education Finance<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Housing<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Business<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Northern Border<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Israel Protests<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Solar Eclipse<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Election Guide<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
By the Numbers<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
15th Anniversary Cartoon<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Workforce demographics<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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A Note From Our CEO<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Dear Readers and Supporters,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By the spring semester of my first year at what was then Castleton State College, I knew I didn\u2019t want to leave Vermont when classes wrapped for the summer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had found a place of stunning natural beauty, strong civic engagement, and adventurous, entrepreneurial, and welcoming people \u2014 even to me, an out-of-stater. I was absolutely in love with this state and thought it was, in many ways, perfect. I wore my rose-colored glasses, and as the kids say these days, Vermont \u201cbecame my whole personality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I\u2019ve spent a couple of decades in the news business, those glasses have become clearer. I\u2019ve watched as our state has grappled with weighty matters: A warming and wetter climate, substance misuse, declining school populations, social injustices, a lack of affordable homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are some of the key issues that VTDigger\u2019s journalists tackled this year, in an effort to understand and explain what\u2019s happening \u2014 ultimately so Vermonters stay informed, aware and can do something about it. I think of Emma Cotton\u2019s tale of a woman in Lyndonville who survived being swept away in the 2024 summer flooding<\/a>, which vividly showed how the changing climate is becoming life or near-death. Carly Berlin\u2019s deep dive into whether the whispers that Vermont\u2019s motel program is a magnet for out of staters<\/a> untangled a mostly untrue myth that was influencing how people talked about the program \u2014 and the people enrolled in it. Ethan Weinstein\u2019s story about a South Burlington boy with autism and his family\u2019s struggle to find an appropriate educational environment<\/a> illuminated one of the effects of a new law that put a moratorium on state funding for newly formed independent schools. There are many more examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I think about the future of VTDigger, it is inextricably tied to the future of Vermont. When I envision a state where residents are thriving, it\u2019s a place with economic opportunity, access to outdoor spaces, accessible education, and social equity. It\u2019s also one in which residents can find an affordable apartment, a doctor or a plumber. A vibrant Vermont exists when our leaders and voters understand the issues at hand and build solutions. None of this can happen without a thriving independent press.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This independent press is only possible because of you \u2014 our readers and supporters who believe in the power of independent journalism. Your financial support ensures that VTDigger can surface challenges, present varying points of view, show the impact of policy decisions, and hold our leaders \u2014 the ones who decide our laws and set our vision for the future \u2014 to account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m proud of the clarity VTDigger\u2019s reporting brought to these issues in 2024, as difficult as they might be to reckon with, let alone solve. We aim not to sensationalize, but to inform and inspire action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t mourn the loss of my rose-colored glasses. Knowing the truth matters more. Thanks to VTDigger\u2019s journalists, operations team, board of trustees, and the supporters who make our work possible, I can look at the state I love with clarity and hope. After all, understanding the challenges is the first step toward finding solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you for being part of this journey with us. We appreciate your support so Digger keeps digging well into the future, because our state\u2019s future depends on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sincerely,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sky Barsch<\/strong>
CEO, VTDigger<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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A Note From Our Board President<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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In 2024 the trustees of the Vermont Journalism Trust, Ltd., which oversees VTDigger, concentrated on fiscal sustainability to ensure the continuation of the award-winning journalism that has defined Digger\u2019s 15 years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2024 we published 2,450 original news stories, reaching 500,000 to 600,000 readers each month on our website, 42,000 newsletter subscribers, 150,000 social media followers, and thousands more who read our stories through our Community News Sharing Program<\/a> or hear about them on radio news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through careful stewardship, our CEO, Sky Barsch, led Digger closer to a break-even year financially \u2014 a key accomplishment after several years of larger losses that were in part the result of a challenging fiscal environment during and after the pandemic, and during the leadership transition when there was increased pressure on our news team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The improvement can be attributed to the strength of Digger\u2019s reader support and several key new funders and advertisers. But the deficits also necessitated significant reductions to both the reporting and business staff in order to bring costs in line with revenues. We continue to seek new support to restore our strength.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout the year, our smaller but mighty team brought award-winning reporting to natural disasters, complex state-wide challenges in housing and education, and changing election dynamics, as well as to the quieter behind-the-scenes stories of Vermonters making a difference in their communities. The New England Newspaper and Press Association awarded Digger top honors for its energy and environmental reporting, photography, newsletters and graphics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During 2024, four trustees each completed the maximum term of nine years of volunteer service to Digger. Don Hooper, Neale Lunderville, Mathew Rubin, and the late Bill Mares all served as enthusiastic supporters of Digger\u2019s nonprofit public service journalism and we are grateful for their guidance, advocacy and hard work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In reviewing how the news landscape has changed over Digger\u2019s 15 years, the board continues to explore the ways Digger can work with other news organizations in the state, even as we sometimes compete with them for breaking news. For example, in 2024 we continued our partnership with Vermont Public, sharing a Report For America housing reporter who writes for both outlets, and also collaborated with VP on a U.S. Senate candidates debate. Students in UVM\u2019s Center for Community News authored a number of stories, and we are exploring how UVM\u2019s research capacity can strengthen our reporting. And while we continue our Community News Sharing Project<\/a> supporting primarily smaller news weeklies around the state by allowing republication of our stories for free, we hope to build our partnership with hyper-local news outlets to ensure the health of that important segment of Vermont\u2019s news ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I so appreciate the commitment of the people behind VTDigger \u2014 the reporters, the editors, the leadership team, and volunteer trustees, as well as our readers, subscribers and donors. We cannot succeed without all of you! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Gaye Symington
<\/strong>President<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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2024 Impact Highlights<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

In 2024, VTDigger continued its commitment to rigorous, in-depth journalism, covering the most pressing issues facing Vermont. From historic flooding and a pivotal election year to major policy developments in healthcare and education finance, our newsroom delivered essential reporting that informed and engaged our readers. Below is a look at our most impactful coverage areas from the past year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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A car sits submerged in floodwater from the Winooski River at the Park & Ride lot in Richmond on Thursday, July 11, 2024. Photo by Glenn Russell\/VTDigger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Flooding: A Year of Extreme Weather<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Vermont endured two significant rounds of flooding in the summer of 2024. The remnants of Tropical Storm Beryl on July 10 devastated north-central Vermont, followed by an unexpected storm on July 29 that struck the Northeast Kingdom. VTDigger provided comprehensive, on-the-ground reporting during these disasters, ensuring Vermonters had the information they needed to stay safe and recover. Additionally, our Downstream<\/em> series, originally focused on the aftermath of the 2023 floods, offered crucial context for understanding Vermont\u2019s ongoing climate challenges. While the 2024 floods took center stage, Downstream<\/em> remains a significant body of work that examines the long-term impacts of extreme weather on communities across the state.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Gov. Phil Scott and his wife, Diana McTeague Scott, speak with attendees of the governor’s election watch event at the Associated General Contractors of Vermont building in Montpelier. Photo by Josh Kuckens\/VTDigger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Election 2024: Informing Vermont Voters<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As Vermont navigated a crucial election year, VTDigger provided comprehensive election coverage through:<\/p>\n\n\n\n