US Senator Patrick Leahy announces retirement
Senator Patrick Leahy announced that he will be retiring from office at the end of his current term. His retirement will mark the end of a long and distinguished Senate career, which began in 1974, when he became the first Democrat and youngest person ever elected to the US Senate from Vermont.
Senator Leahy spoke to his achievements and contributions throughout the years on human rights, agriculture, humanitarian aid, national security, and more, and his commitment to bring Vermont values to issues faced around the world.
“I am proud to be Vermont’s longest serving senator, and I hope that my work has made a difference for Vermonters and beyond. I’ve brought Vermont’s voice to the United State Senate and Vermont’s values around the world,” said Senator Leahy. “While I’ll continue to serve Vermont, Marcelle and I have reached the conclusion that it is time to put down the gavel. It is time to pass the torch to the next Vermonter. who will carry on this work for our great state. It’s time to come home.”
Senator Leahy currently serves as U.S. Senate President Pro Tempore and is in his eighth term. He would have faced reelection in November 2022.
Peter Welch will run for Leahy’s Senate seat
US Representative Peter Welch on November 22 announced he is running for US Senate. Welch called on Vermonters to join him in fighting for a progressive agenda in the Senate. He will run for the seat now held by retiring, eight-term Senator Patrick Leahy, who announced last week that he would not seek another term. The election will be November 2022.
Welch, 74, reaffirmed his focus on ensuring Vermont’s working families have access to childcare and paid family leave, passing a Green New Deal, lowering health care and prescription drug costs, ensuring that women continue to have control over their own health care decisions, and protecting voting rights and our democracy.
Unemployment rate holds at 2.8 percent in October
The Vermont Department of Labor has reported that the seasonally-adjusted October unemployment rate was 2.8 percent. Based on household data, this reflects no change from the prior month. The September unemployment rate was revised down one-tenth of one percentage point during the revision process.
The comparable United States rate in October was 4.6 percent, which was a decrease of two-tenths of one percentage point from the revised September estimate.
The Vermont numbers show modest improvement across the three major metrics, with the labor force gaining 310 people, employment up 598 and unemployment down 288. While these data points are also better than a year ago, the labor force is still down some 25,000 people with nearly that same number of jobs available. The national situation is similar, with a record “quit” rate of 3 percent.
Vermont’s labor force already was tight before the pandemic began.
The seasonally-adjusted Vermont data for October show the Vermont civilian labor force increased by 310 from the prior month’s revised estimate (see Table 1). The number of employed persons increased by 598 and the number of unemployed persons decreased by 288. No changes were statistically significant in the seasonally-adjusted series.
The October unemployment rates for Vermont’s 17 labor market areas ranged from 1.2 percent in White River Junction to 2.6 percent in Bennington.
Personal income lags in October tax revenue report
Vermont’s revenue results for October 2021 show General, Education, and Transportation Fund cumulative revenues were slightly below targets for October 2021, the first month of the second quarter. Revenues remain above targets for the year-to-date.
Notably, the personal income tax, which has been well above targets for months, was off by nearly $4 million in October (-4.5%). The PI is the state’s most important General Fund revenue source. It remains, however, nearly $12 million ahead of targets for the fiscal year (+3.81%).
Consumer-related tax revenues were a mixed bag.
The tourism-related rooms & meals tax was up, while sales and gasoline were down. Motor vehicles sales were up (+4.95%), which, like the PI, is generally seen as a barometer of economic health.
Overall, the state’s General Fund, Transportation Fund, and Education Fund receipts in September were a combined $222.6 million, or 1.8% below monthly consensus expectations.
Cumulative revenues remain 3% above consensus revenue expectations for the first four (4) months of the State’s fiscal year. General Fund revenues collected for the month totaled $136.4 million, or $4.2 million below the monthly consensus revenue target.
Fiscal year-to-date, however, General Fund revenues were $578.5 million, exceeding their target by $24.4 million or 4.4%. Personal and corporate income taxes took a brief respite in October from the brisk pace set in the first quarter of the fiscal year.
Governor Scott signs local mask mandate into law
Governor Phil Scott on November 23 signed the local-option mask mandate bill as passed by the General Assembly. The law gives municipalities the option to impose a local mask mandate. The governor had called back the Legislature for a special session after legislature leaders called for a renewal of the State of Emergency and a statewide mandate. The governor refused that, but offered the local option as an “olive branch” to the leaders. The Legislature passed the measure, but without enthusiasm. Such a local option was also put in place by Scott as an Executive Order during the Emergency in 2020. The State of Emergency expired on June 15, 2021.
The governor maintains that “all the tools” people need to get through the COVID-19 pandemic already exist and a mask mandate is both unnecessary, would not be followed by anyone not following the health protocols already, and would just result in more “divisiveness.” He said Vermonters need to get vaccinated and boosted, wear a mask in indoor public spaces and stay home if sick. He said it is not that complicated to keep everyone as safe and healthy as possible.
Burlington, Brattleboro and some Upper Valley towns were already considering a local mask mandate.
PSD releases draft of Comprehensive Energy Plan
The draft 2022 CEP advances and builds on the high-level goals set in the 2011 and 2016 CEP’s: Meet 25 percent of energy needs from renewable sources by 2025, 45 percent by 2035, and 90 percent by 2050. The greenhouse gas requirements include 26 percent reduction from 2005 levels by 2025, 40 percent reduction from 1990 levels by 2030, and 80 percent reduction from 1990 levels by 2050.
The greenhouse gas requirements include 26 percent reduction from 2005 levels by 2025, 40 percent reduction from 1990 levels by 2030, and 80 percent reduction from 1990 levels by 2050. For instance, for transportation, meet 10% of energy needs from renewable energy by 2025, and 45% by 2040. And for heating, meet 30% of energy needs from renewable energy by 2025, and 70% by 2042.
VSAC gets $2.9M grant for adult learners
The Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC), Vermont’s statewide organization supporting education for Vermonters beyond high school, announced that it has received a significant five-year funding extension for its Educational Opportunity Center, which helps Vermont adult learners connect with college and workforce training.
State completes waterline extensions in Bennington and North Bennington
Residents from Bennington and North Bennington joined Governor Phil Scott, state legislators and officials, local selectboard members, and members of the public to celebrate the extension of municipal waterlines to 445 residences. The waterline extension project was in response to the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination discovered five years ago in Bennington. The local community worked with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), MSK Engineering, and state legislators to extend municipal waterlines that deliver clean water to residents with wells contaminated by PFAS.
In 2016, PFAS were discovered in several water supply wells near a former Teflon-coating facility owned by Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics in North Bennington. In 2017, contractors began laying the first pipes, beginning a multiyear project to extend municipal waterlines to areas where drinking water wells were contaminated with PFAS.
Corrections sees outbreaks at NEK prisons
Six new cases of COVID-19 were detected at Northern State Correctional Facility (NSCF) in Newport in late November. Three of the cases were identified in the incarcerated population and two among staff in outbreak testing conducted on November 22. One additional staff member tested positive in outside testing. A total of 27 incarcerated individuals and 11 staff have tested positive in the NSCF outbreak, which began on November 10. A total of 27 incarcerated individuals and 11 staff have tested positive in the NSCF outbreak, which began on November 10. Active outbreaks are declared at two Vermont facilities: NSCF and Northeast Correctional Complex in St. Johnsbury, where two staff and two incarcerated individuals are currently COVID-positive. Statewide there are currently 26 positive incarcerated cases and 14 positive staff cases across six correctional facilities.
Governor Scott orders ‘Universal Booster Program’
Governor Phil Scott has directed the Agency of Human Services to implement a Universal Booster Program for COVID-19 vaccinations and is strongly encouraging every Vermonter over the age of 18 to get a booster. Anyone who has received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is eligible two months after their first dose. Individuals who received a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine are eligible six months after completing their initial vaccination. The state also will remove the longer list of criteria for boosters on the state’s website and will implement a simplified registration process.
UVM Medical Center to enforce vaccine requirement
UVMMC will follow a federal vaccine requirement for staff. A federal vaccine mandate requires that health care workers at the UVM Medical Center must get a COVID shot or they will lose their jobs. Under new guidance from the federal government, employees at health centers that receive Medicare and Medicaid funding must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the beginning of 2022.
VHCB awards $1.9 million matched with $2 million to conserve 1,278 acres
The Vermont Housing & Conservation Board has awarded $1,968,509 in state funds matched by $1,411,500 in federal funding from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and $599,500 from the Land and Water Conservation Fund to protect agricultural and recreational land, natural areas and forest land in 11 towns around the state. These investments will help to conserve 1,000 acres of farmland, expand Alburgh Dunes State Park, allow the towns of West Bolton and St. Johnsbury to protect public access to popular local spots, and restore an historic train station in Danville that will become a waypoint on a regional trail system.
Chemfab to pay $34M for Bennington PFOA pollution
The former Bennington Chemfab plant has agreed to pay $34 million to compensate residents of a Vermont town for chemical contamination in groundwater and soil.
The ChemFab plant in Bennington used industrial chemicals that spread throughout the town and into the groundwater supply including for the production of Teflon. PFOA has been known to cause cancers and various diseases according to federal authorities. Plant owner Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics will provide $6 million for medical monitoring for those affected by the toxins in a plume that extended into area drinking wells.
Vermont Electric Co-op files for 2022 rate hike of 1.96 percent
Vermont Electric Co-op (VEC) has filed a request with the Vermont Public Utility Commission for a rate increase of 1.96 percent to take effect at the beginning of 2022. When implemented, a residential customer with a bill of $100/month would see their bill increase $1.96 per month, or $23.52 per year.
The main drivers of this request include: Power purchases. This includes higher costs of existing and new power supply contracts and higher market pricing overall. Transmission costs. Utilities operating in the New England grid all share the cost of transmission of power through the region. These costs are rising in order to ensure system security and reliability. Cost of doing business. As a provider of an essential service, costs of doing business include providing competitive salaries and benefits to attract and retain a skilled workforce. Vegetation maintenance. VEC is accelerating our vegetation maintenance program to ensure reliability of service and to expedite restoration after storms.
Climate Change Study: Vermont is getting warmer and wetter
Vermont is becoming warmer and wetter due to climate change—and these trends are reshaping life in the Green Mountain State.
That’s the big takeaway of the most comprehensive study of climate change in Vermont, the Vermont Climate Assessment 2021. The University of Vermont study finds the state’s average annual temperature has warmed by nearly 2°F, and precipitation has increased by a whopping 21%, since 1900.
The study is Vermont’s first state climate assessment since 2014—and shows that many hallmarks of Vermont life are being impacted by climate change, from farming and maple syrup to long winters and skiing.
The study is also the latest evidence of significant warming and increased precipitation in the US Northeast due to climate change.
Vermont sufficient electric as transpo and heating increase demand
The 2021 Regional System Plan (RSP21), the biennial report that lays the foundation for long-term power-system planning in New England, has been approved by the ISO New England board of directors November 1. RSP21 looks at the expected changes to New England’s power system through 2030 from factors driving grid transformation, including economic decisions of market participants, environmental goals developed to combat climate change, changing patterns of electricity use, and resource adequacy needed to maintain required reliability criteria. For Vermont, peak demand is forecast to grow due to the electrification of heating and transportation. The transmission system has sufficient capacity to serve expected future demand for the first 10 years of the 20-year planning horizon.
J.A. McDonald to pay $637,500 to settle allegations of False Claims Act violations
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont has reported that general contractor JA McDonald, Inc, headquartered in Lyndon Center has agreed to pay $637,500 to the United States and the State of Vermont to resolve allegations that JAM violated the federal False Claims Act by knowingly causing the state to present false claims for payment to the United States in connection with the federally-funded construction of several bridges on Route 279 in Bennington and on Interstate 91 in Guilford. This settlement resolves allegations that, between approximately 2008 and 2010, JAM employees materially altered certain components of the bridges at issue by cutting or burning multiple sections of reinforcing steel out of the reinforced-concrete substructures that support the bridges, and that JAM employees took affirmative steps to conceal such material alterations from the Vermont Agency of Transportation.
Vermont small businesses received $1 billion from SBA in FY21
The Small Business Administration Vermont District Office supported approximately $1 billion in loans and COVID-19 relief funds from October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021, the agency’s fiscal year.
The SBA assisted small business obtain loans through its traditional 7(a), 504 and microloan programs, but the vast majority was through the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loans. In Vermont, small businesses received 9,541 PPP loans worth $564,206,007.
VEDA approved $81.1 million for 806 Vermont businesses in 2021
The Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA) has released its annual report for the 2021 fiscal year, which ended June 30. In that time, the organization was able to help 806 Vermont businesses by approving $81.1 million in financing — positively impacting about 6,000 jobs.
All 14 Vermont counties and 19 different industries benefited from VEDA’s financial support during Fiscal Year 2021. This included $51.2 million in commercial, small business, renewable energy and broadband loans, to a total of 632 businesses. Loans for the Paycheck Protection Program accounted for $30.8 million of that.
This year showed the resilience of Vermonters as they faced the COVID-19 pandemic, and highlighted how hard local businesses continuously work to stay afloat — even when uncertainty looms overhead.
Aside from the COVID-19 crisis, a warm start to spring affected maple syrup producers and commodity prices continued to present challenges for dairy farmers — still, VEDA was able to approve $14.3 million in loans for agricultural and forestry businesses, a $.4.1 million growth from the previous year.
Vermont minimum wage to increase in 2022 to $12.55
The Vermont Department of Labor has announced an increase to the State’s minimum wage. Beginning January 1, 2022, the state’s minimum wage will become $12.55 per hour. This is an increase of $0.80 from the current minimum wage of $11.75. This annual adjustment also impacts the minimum wage for tipped employees. The Basic Tipped Wage Rate for service, or “tipped employees,” equals 50% of the full minimum wage. On January 1, 2022, the tipped minimum wage will increase from $5.88 to $6.28 per hour.
Four CUDs get $9.9 million to help expand broadband
The Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) is awarding $9.9 million in grants to accelerate broadband expansion in four Vermont Communication Union Districts (CUDs). The Broadband Preconstruction Grant Program is to provide grants to Communications Union District (CUDs) for preconstruction costs related to broadband projects that are a part of a universal service plan.
Eligible costs include expenses for feasibility studies, business planning, pole data surveys, engineering and design, and make-ready work associated with the construction of broadband networks, including consultant, legal, and administrative expenses.
The Vermont Community Broadband Board will issue grants for construction costs (materials, equipment, labor) early next year. Three of the four groups awarded in this first round of grants expect to begin construction in the spring of 2022.
These first grants provide nearly $10 million to preconstruction activities that will accelerate the construction timeframe in several Communications Union Districts. Currently, 200 of Vermont’s 251 towns are members of a Communications Union District.
These volunteer-run municipal organizations are committed to building fiber-optic broadband networks exceeding the state’s goal of 100 Mbps symmetrical internet speeds to all underserved addresses in their communities. Additional grants will be announced in the upcoming weeks.
VTel service area now eligible for USDA ReConnect funding
On October 25, 2021, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Utilities Service (RUS) informed the Vermont Telephone Company, Inc (VTel) that a significant portion of their service area in Vermont will now be considered eligible for USDA ReConnect funding. VTel’s service areas that do not meet the current minimum broadband service speed threshold of 100 Mbps Download x 20 Mbps Upload will be removed from RUS Protected Borrower Status and considered eligible under the new ReConnect rules.
Because VTel has a large USDA loan to provide WI-FI service in much of the state, that shut most providers in Vermont, public and private, out of this funding stream. Now they can access it. This could be a big boost for broadband in Vermont, especially when combined with ARPA and other funding.
Separately, there is about $250 million in infrastructure money available from ARPA that is designated for broadband deployment.
JA McDonald agrees to pay $637,500 to settle allegations of False Claims Act violations
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont has announced that general contractor JA McDonald, Inc, headquartered in Lyndon Center has agreed to pay $637,500 to the United States and the State of Vermont to resolve allegations that JAM violated the federal False Claims Act by knowingly causing the state to present false claims for payment to the United States in connection with the federally-funded construction of several bridges on Route 279 in Bennington and on Interstate 91 in Guilford. This settlement resolves allegations that, between approximately 2008 and 2010, JAM employees materially altered certain components of the bridges at issue by cutting or burning multiple sections of reinforcing steel out of the reinforced-concrete substructures that support the bridges, and that JAM employees took affirmative steps to conceal such material alterations from the Vermont Agency of Transportation.
Vermont Agency of Education releases 2021 assessment results
While overall results are being called “invalid,” because of the impacts of the pandemic, the assessments provide evidence that substantial performance gaps between students in historically marginalized groups, when compared to their non-historically marginalized peers, remain.
The Smarter Balanced assessments are administered annually in the spring to students in grades three through nine. They are designed to measure students’ mastery of the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts and Mathematics. The Vermont Science Assessment is given to students in grades five, eight, and eleven measuring students’ mastery of the Next Generation Science Standards.
The Agency is releasing the assessment results as part of the regular update schedule for the Vermont Education Dashboard along with new interactive visualizations providing data on exclusionary discipline, and academic course participation.
The 2021 Smarter Balanced Assessment and Vermont Science Assessment were administered in Spring of 2021 under extraordinary pandemic conditions. The difficulty of administering these federally required assessments during the 2020-21 school year, coupled with lower and uneven participation rates caused by the challenges of remote and hybrid learning mean that Vermont’s 2021 Smarter Balanced and Vermont Science Assessment scores cannot be compared to prior year performance.
$9.7 million from DOT will fund footbridge over I-89 in South Burlington
the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has awarded the City a Rebuilding American Infrastructure With Sustainability And Equity (RAISE) grant totaling $9,768,834, to build a bicycle and pedestrian bridge over Interstate 89. The project will provide a safe and protected way for bicyclists and pedestrians to travel between South Burlington and Burlington.
The RAISE grant for the City of South Burlington will provide $9,768,834 for the construction of a pedestrian and bicycle crossing bridge over Interstate 89 for East-West travel. Currently, pedestrians and bicyclists must transverse four on- and off-ramps next to high-speed traffic at the busiest interstate exchange in Vermont to cross the Interstate on U.S. Route 2. This bridge will allow residents the choice of active, fuel-free, lower-cost and on-demand transportation, contributing to improved health and environmental outcomes. By increasing transportation options in Chittenden County’s busiest transportation corridor, the investment will support South Burlington’s once-in-a-century downtown project to shift community growth away from sprawl and toward the newly developed City Center.
Home grown food on the rise as families deal with pandemic food insecurity
Pandemic food insecurity remains elevated in the Northeast – affecting over 27% of households in Vermont and Maine – and in response, many families have increased the amount of food they grow, fish, raise, forage or hunt themselves. New research from the University of Vermont and University of Maine shows nearly 60% of households in both states engaged in some form of home food production since the COVID-19 pandemic, half of whom did so with increased intensity or for the first time. While the prevalence of food insecurity in Vermont and Maine has decreased since the height of the pandemic, when nearly 1 in 3 households were experiencing food insecurity, it remains significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels, according to new survey data from spring and summer of 2021.
USDA announces funding for the Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced an investment of $20.2 million in the Dairy Business Innovation (DBI) Initiatives. DBI awarded $18.4 million to three current Initiatives at the University of Tennessee, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, the University of Wisconsin, and $1.8 million to the California State University Fresno. Grants to dairy businesses will include access to professional marketing and branding services, on-farm and processor innovation, and sustainable packaging innovation.
UVM celebrates $3 million gift to support cancer research
A $3 million gift from the Juckett Cancer Research Foundation will benefit the inaugural J. Walter Juckett Chair in Cancer Research at the UVM Larner College of Medicine. This formal ceremony marks Holcombe’s stature as a national cancer care leader and the respect the Juckett Foundation holds for the Cancer Center’s mission to prevent, treat, and cure cancer. The Juckett Foundation, formerly based in Upstate N.Y., is a private grant making foundation in Essex Junction, Vt., which has a longstanding history of supporting cancer research at UVM.
Dr Elizabeth Bundock appointed Vermont’s Chief Medical Examiner
Health Commissioner Mark Levine, MD has announced the appointment of Dr Elizabeth Bundock as Vermont’s Chief Medical Examiner. Bundock, who joined the Department of Health in 2007 as deputy chief medical examiner, takes over the state office that oversees death investigations, following the retirement of long-time Chief Medical Examiner Steven Shapiro, MD.
Governor makes key appointments at the NRB and Department of Liquor/Lottery
Governor Phil Scott has appointed Sabina Haskell as the chair of the Natural Resources Board (NRB), Wendy Knight as commissioner of the Department of Liquor and Lottery (DLL), and Andrew Collier as deputy commissioner of DLL. The three appointments will be effective December 13.
Extra cash for families enrolled in Reach Up
The Department for Children and Families (DCF) has announced that 3,463 families enrolled in the Reach Up and Post-Secondary Education (PSE) programs have received a one-time payment of $375. This one-time payment of $375 per family is in addition to monthly cash grants families receive and will help pay for increased costs related to the pandemic. Households who had active Reach Up grants between September 1, 2021 through October 15, 2021 are eligible for the benefit.
SVMC launches website for ER renovation and expansion project
A $25.8 million project to renovate and expand the Emergency Department and Main Entrance of Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), part of Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC), requires a lot of coordination and communication. The health system has launched a website to facilitate sharing news and developments about the project directly with patients.
Governor Scott relaunches Vermont Lights the Way
Governor Phil Scott is again encouraging Vermonters to help show Vermont Lights the Way, an effort to literally brighten communities and neighborhoods around the state by decorating homes, businesses, buildings or other creative ideas to help celebrate the holidays during the pandemic. In addition to decorating, Vermonters should share pictures of their displays - or favorites from around the community - on social media using the hashtag #VTLightsTheWay. This will allow those who are unable to tour the lights to take part in the celebration, and photos will be shared through the governor’s channels and at his weekly press conferences.
Auditor identifies up to $16.3M in potential savings in state health plan
Vermont State Auditor Doug Hoffer has released a plan that could reduce health care costs in the state health insurance plan by upwards of $16 million a year. Health care spending for the 25,000 people on the state plan matters because it’s a significant and growing expense for Vermont. From 2010 to 2019, annual medical payments for state employees, retirees, and their families increased by 51%, from $94 million to $142 million. That’s a combined $245 million in increased payments.
The auditor examined two strategies Vermont could pursue to reduce the cost of state employee health care by addressing price variation.
1) Reference-based pricing: Reference-based pricing occurs when a health care purchaser, in this case a state, sets a maximum amount they are willing to pay for a service rather than merely paying the prices negotiated by insurance companies and hospitals. The auditor estimates that if reference-based pricing was implemented for just the 39 services they sampled, savings could reach $2.3 million annually, with an average savings of 13% per service. If this level of savings was achieved across all services, total savings could reach $16.3 million annually.
2) Incentives to select cost-effective care: Under this model, insurers provide employees with comparative price information and a cash incentive when an employee selects a lower priced provider. The auditor estimates that if the state implemented this program for seven types of shoppable services in their sample, savings could reach approximately $202,000 annually, with an average of 3% savings per service; with each added service (there are hundreds), the state would enjoy additional savings.
iSun announces investment in Encore Renewable Energy
iSun, Inc (NASDAQ: ISUN), a leading solar energy has announced it has reached a definitive agreement to make a strategic minority interest equity investment in Encore Renewable Energy, a leading innovator in community-scale clean energy and Top 20 US commercial solar developer. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Shiffrin wins fifth consecutive Killington slalom
In yet another exciting battle between Mikaela Shiffrin and Slovakia’s Petra Vlhova, Shiffrin has once again been crowned the Queen of Killington, winning her fifth consecutive slalom race November 28 on home snow in Vermont. Shiffrin came out in her second run guns a-blazin’ to close the gap between her and her closest rival, who led the field by two-tenths after the first run. Thanks to an aggressive push, and an agile recovery in the mid-section of the course, Shiffrin was able to best Vlhova by 0.75 seconds, after Vlhova made a significant mistake second run. Switzerland’s Wendy Holdener rounded out the podium in third. Shiffrin graduated high school from the Burke Mountain School.