About Me

My name is David Gratton. I have lived on Big Hollow Rd. for 18 years. I live with my wife Wendy and two daughters: Ashley and Hannah. Ashley is a junior at Mount Abe and Hannah is a 5^th grader at Robinson.

Wendy and I

I have done many things throughout my life for work including maintenance technician, heating plant operator, snowboard instructor, and Educational Assistant in the High School Special Education Department. I have been actively involved volunteering at Robinson in a number of capacities over the years including as a snowboard instructor for the Robinson After School Ski and Ride program at Cochran’s, and as a volunteer educator in the Four-Winds program for several years. I also reestablished the Mt. Abe Bolton afterschool program.

Hannah and Ashley

$-Winds Puppet Show

While working full time the last five years I have earned and Associates degree in Education from CCV and obtained a degree in Cultural, Historical, and Social Studies from Union Institute and University in Montpelier. I majored in education, history and environmental studies at Union where I developed a great interest in environmental history. Having also studied education I have had the opportunity to focus on education policy and the history of educational policy and law that has led to the current educational system we have today.

Rotting Logs Workshop

For the last two and a half years I have had the great pleasure of working as an Educational Assistant in the Special Education Department at Mount Abraham High School. This, along with my experience while studying education at college has given me a unique perspective of how education works in the classroom.

One thing that bothered me about how educational policy was taught is that there is no cost accountability applied to any kind of strategy. Nobody asks the question: How does this affect the taxpayers?

What about: What do we really need to give our kids a quality education?

Or: Is the administrative structure in the district, county, and state the most efficient way to be spending our limited education funds?

In my next posts I will give you an idea of where I stand on what I feel are the most important issues facing the education system today and how I feel we should become active in shaping a meaningful change in that system.