HMS News

The snow is finally here, just in time for the much-anticipated winter break. The effortsand challenges that Hilltop staff have experienced during this first part of the year havebeen both remarkable and heartbreaking. Working in the middle of a pandemic will be,for many of us, one of the biggest achievements and challenges in our careers...Read More

Our lives are constructed by multiple stories, but sometimes we can’t, or aren’t, allowedto tell them all. Sometimes we have the power to lock up the stories that we don’t wantto remember, or simply can’t remember. Sometimes we hold on to the stories that helpus continue going with our days, or sometimes we tell the...Read More

Dear Hilltop Community, We have come to the close of yet another ever-changing week in a year of constant change and adjustment. Once again we would like to thank you for your support, cooperation, and understanding. As things are constantly evolving here at Hilltop, they are evolving beyond as well. The Vermont Department of Education...Read More

I remember that my first Thanksgiving in this country was celebrated in agas station in New Jersey, eating a turkey sandwich with a can of ginger ale.Of course, that didn’t mean anything to me – neither the food nor theholiday. I was not from this country, this culture, this history. Later on, Iunderstood that Thanksgiving...Read More

Last Friday, during our In-Service Day, faculty and staff participated in the zoomworkshop “Capoeira as Cultural Competence Builder” with the Brazilian CapoeiraMestre, Fuá Nascimento. Mestre Fuá and the Hilltop staff discussed the history andphysical movement of capoeira, considered one of the largest Black resistancemovements. Capoeira is a cultural ritual practice that involves fighting, dancing, singing,rhythm,...Read More

This has been a year with an emphasis on health and safety and on the actions of the individual impacting the community. Our community has done an amazing job. As a staff, we have been so careful and we have been thrilled with how seriously and responsibly all of our families are taking the commitment...Read More

New Winter Break Dates 12/21/20 – 1/8/21 Last day of school Friday, December 18 Students return on Monday, January 11 The main considerations for these changes are needing to: Allow for safe quarantine time after possible increased travel/visitors/socializing over winter breakClose the campus for the final HVAC updates (testing and balancing) However, we still need...Read More

Seeing our own biases can be a difficult and uncomfortable experience. When talkingabout biases we mean beliefs, ideologies, social patterns, and social structures thhave been directly or indirectly institutionalized as part of who “we” are and how webehave in society.The construction of individuals in society has long been determined by institutionswhich have developed laws to...Read More

It is already time for parent teacher conferences! October conferences are for all families, new and returning, from the Toddler Program through Middle School. Conferences will, like most things these days, happen over Zoom. Families will have received sign ups this week, and Zoom invitations will follow next week from your student’s teachers. There will be...Read More

A land acknowledgment is an act of conciliation, a statement that recognizes indigenouspeople as the traditional stewards of the lands. “When approached humbly, in authentic consultation with indigenouspeople as equals, land acknowledgments can help pave the way to honouringthose with whom we share this land” -Selena Mills Hilltop Montessori School, in the work for understanding...Read More