Vermont Governor Comes Home to Middlebury

Author: Kate Doorley

Every year at Homecoming, the Middlebury College Alumni Association presents achievement awards to alumni who have reached milestones in their professional or personal lives. Last Friday, Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas '72 was presented with this award before he addressed a sizeable audience in Mead Chapel. Douglas' address, titled "Vermont in 2003: Reflections from the Governor's Office," touched on many different topics and themes as he reflected on the path that took him from Middlebury to Montpelier.

Governor Douglas is the ninth Middlebury College student and the eighth Middlebury College graduate to have served as Governor of Vermont. (Fletcher Proctor, who served as Governor of Vermont from 1906-1908, attended the College for his first two years before leaving and graduating from Amherst College.) At Middlebury College, Douglas was a Russian major and a member of the College Republicans. He became the leader of the Vermont Young Republicans, as well as a member of the statewide Republican Committee, all during his undergraduate years.

Douglas has served in public office for the past 29 years. He was elected as a first-time representative to the Vermont House of Representatives only a few months after graduating from Middlebury College in 1972. During his second term in the House, Douglas served as Assistant Majority Leader and was later chosen to be Majority Leader during his third term at the tender age of 25. In 1980, he was elected Secretary of State, a position to which he was reelected five times.

Douglas was elected State Treasurer in 1994, where he served until he was elected Governor in 2002.

Douglas began his speech by emphasizing the importance of maintaining ties with his alma mater, citing how fellow Middlebury College alumni have contributed to the development of Vermont. He cited a conference held earlier that day in which Middlebury College alumni and parents who work in finance helped generate ideas about how best to "sell" Vermont to businesses and corporations.

While noting the importance of economic development, Douglas did not hesitate to stress the need of continuing Vermont's environmental record and preserving the natural settings that attract so many people to the state. According to Douglas, Vermont needs to balance environmental concerns with business concerns. If Vermont fails to consider environmental issues, its tourist industry will suffer. On the other hand, if business concerns are ignored, the state won't have the resources to protect the environment.

"It is not jobs or the environment, but both or neither," Douglas said. To uphold the balance, Douglas introduced his Clean and Clear Action Plan for Lake Champlain, an effort to lower phosphorus levels in the lake and to fight a plan by the International Paper Company in Ticonderoga to burn tire chips for fuel.

On the economic side, Douglas noted that Vermont is the only state not required to have a balanced budget, even though it is among the few that has one. In addition, Douglas highlighted the fact that Vermont is one of the few states that can boast having more jobs now than a year ago. Finally, Douglas addressed how he has been working with the New England Governors and the premiers of several of the eastern Canadian provinces to improve economic relations, especially with Quebec, one of Vermont's biggest trading partners.

Douglas has served as the moderator for the annual Middlebury town meeting for many years. "I believe town government in Vermont is alive and well," said Douglas, adding that it's "important to our ethic, our culture and our heritage." Douglas also noted a requirement unique to Vermont and Mississippi - that the Governor be elected by a majority of the popular vote as opposed to a plurality. In other words, if the governor does not receive at least half of the popular vote, the result of the election is decided by the legislature. Douglas himself was formally elected by the legislature only a few hours before his inauguration.

In response to a question on the topic of the majority requirement, Douglas stated that he would support a constitutional amendment to allow for the Governor to be elected by a plurality, noting that only the offices of Lieutenant Governor, Governor and Treasurer have the requirement for vote by majority.

Once he concluded his prepared remarks, Douglas accepted questions from the audience. Among the topics he discussed was judicial oversight. He said that he would not oppose a push to allow public opinion into the judicial retention system.

Douglas also discussed education, in particular focusing on the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). He stated that he hoped the NCLB would bring educators together to focus on ways to improve schools and provide a better education for the Vermont youth, rather than serving as a point of division.

He further stated that he will support it as it is the "law of the land," and that state resources will be allocated to fill in gaps for schools that may lose their Title One funds due to being labeled by NCLB as failing or needing improvement. Douglas noted his desire to gather increased resources to help educators and stressed his commitment to improving Vermont schools.

Douglas' speech highlighted the many accomplishments of his young administration as well as his many notable achievements throughout his political career. Focusing solely on his political record, it is easy to understand why the current governor of Vermont received this year's alumni achievement award.