Before Zoie Saunders agreed to become Vermont's secretary of education last year, she scanned the internet to learn how often previous education secretaries had been in the news. The role didn't seem particularly high-profile. That came as a relief — she had always preferred to work behin d the scenes. Being in the public eye is "not what I thrive on," she said in an interview earlier this month. So when Gov. Phil Scott introduced Saunders, a Florida native, at a press conference last March, she was caught off guard by the constant, often negative, media attention she received. Newspapers and TV stations zeroed in on her seven-year stint at a for-profit charter school management company. They highlighted the fact that she hadn't served as a teacher, principal or superintendent — experience that most top education officials have. "I was in the news every day," Saunders remembered. "That was uncomfortable for me." Some wondered if the intense scrutiny and public criticism would change her mind about taking the job. It did not. Nor did the Vermont Senate, which refused, 19-9, to confirm Saunders in April 2024. Gov. Scott didn't accept the Senate decision and, minutes after the vote, appointed her as interim secretary, a controversial move that generated more headlines. Two senators challenged the constitutionality of the interim appointment in court, drawing more news coverage, though their suit ultimately failed. Meanwhile, Saunders took the reins of an Agency of Education plagued by deep-seated problems, including low staff morale, numerous vacancies, an inadequate data collection system, and distrust on the part of teachers and administrators in the field. She assumed the role weeks after local voters, angered by projected spikes in education-related property taxes, rejected dozens of school budgets. There was more to come. In January, Scott unveiled an education reform proposal that would fundamentally change the way Vermont schools are governed and paid for. He tapped Saunders to sell the plan to lawmakers. By February, Saunders faced growing opposition to parts of the reform blueprint, both in the Statehouse and among educators who would be most directly affected by the changes. These detractors insist that Scott and Saunders' plan will provide inadequate funding, take away local control and force small schools to close. They're further troubled that it doesn't seem to have been crafted with the input of educators. Now, a year into the job, Saunders faces conflicting… ...read more read less