VSAC will be closed Thursday, July 4, 2024 in observance of Independence Day.
Blog Archive: Exploring Career Options
![Halley Riley-Elliott: from diesel shop to pageant stage](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_featured_image_850x300_/public/2023-09/Halley.png?itok=MKug3I2n)
GEAR UP helped Halley Riley-Elliott of Mt. Holly pursue her passions—from diesel shop to pageant stage Every September, VSAC celebrates National GEAR UP Week to make more Vermont families aware of the resources offered through the Vermont GEAR UP program. This federally funded program, which VSAC…
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![John Dell'anno First Day](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_featured_image_850x300_/public/2023-09/John%20Dellano%20FirstDayofSchool_0.png?itok=bTmlXpmB)
Over the last two decades, John Dell’Anno of Shaftsbury had built a career as a carpenter. Employed by a company out of Manchester, John worked on high-end residential job sites, and found plenty of work in towns like Stratton, Windham, and Dorset. But in 2014, after suffering a few accidents (one…
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![Mimi Duong](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_featured_image_850x300_/public/2023-09/Mimi%20Duong%20photo%20resized%204-3%20aspect%20ratio.jpg?itok=Oka1Jyi1)
When Mimi Duong was applying to college during her senior year at St. Johnsbury Academy, she found herself at a bit of a disadvantage, since her parents, who had emigrated to Vermont from Vietnam, weren’t totally familiar with the American college admissions system. When we last spoke with her in…
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![student and adult](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_featured_image_850x300_/public/2023-08/students_adult_image_reduced.png?itok=Vy7eIGah)
If you have a middle school or high school student, you may want to add college and career planning to your annual back-to-school to-do list. It’s never too early for students to start thinking about their lives beyond high school: preparation can start as early as 7th and 8th grade. And if you have…
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![College Dorm Room](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_featured_image_850x300_/public/uploads/blog/College%20Dorm%20Room.png?itok=-fPHAeZq)
Are you wondering, "Do my student loans cover housing?" In addition to paying for tuition and fees, student loans can be used to pay for college living expenses ... and more. Along with school meals, groceries, rent, housing supplies, and utilities, you can also use your loans to buy books, a laptop…
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![David Richardson](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_featured_image_850x300_/public/2023-08/DavidRichardsonBlog.png?itok=n6TYqBSC)
When David Richardson was seven years old, his world turned upside down. His relatively comfortable middle-class household, supported by two parents who both held good jobs – his mom as a substance use counselor, his dad as a corrections officer – changed, literally, with one wrong step. His father…
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When Brody Moran works with kids – either as a substitute teacher at Cabot School in his hometown during his college breaks, or this summer as a counselor at Turtle Island camp – he never asks a child what they want to be when they grow up. “Some people love asking that question, because it provokes…
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In 2018, Bellows Free Academy-St. Albans student Alek Wolfe was sitting next to award-winning sports announcer George Commo in the press box of the Collins-Perley Arena in St. Albans. Alek was there to provide commentary for a women’s high-school hockey game against Rutland. “I was in the middle of…
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VSAC has profiled more than two dozen traditional and adult students over the 2022-23 academic year, and three of them are among the graduating Class of 2023. Two are exceptional high school students who will be entering the health care field, and the third –– a National Guard veteran who served…
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As a young electrician, Aaron Brittain was doing well. He had moved from a small shop in the Northeast Kingdom to a bigger, Barre-based company that did larger jobs. But he didn’t like getting up at 4 AM. “I liked the work, but I didn’t like the lifestyle,” says Aaron, who started electrical work at…
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