Macon Phillips, Warren, who was appointed to serve on the Harwood Unified Union School District board until Town Meeting next week, is running as a write-in candidate for that same open seat in Warren at Town Meeting next week.
He and his family returned to Vermont during the pandemic. He’d worked, 20-years prior, for AmeriCorp*VISTA in Winooski, Barre, and other communities. They moved to Warren where he’s served on the planning commission, coaches Little League, basketball, and other sports. He served under the Obama administration as the founder of the Office of Digital Strategy and later served at the State Department. Most recently he was Chief Digital Officer at CARE USA. Currently he runs Starling Strategy, a consulting firm that helps mission-driven organizations connect with the people they serve.
His priorities include preparing students for a changing world, schools as community anchors and moving beyond the budget battle.
“The world our children will enter is changing fast, and our schools need to keep up – not just with technology, but with new approaches to learning. That means being creative: embracing computer science and emerging technologies, but also building connections to vocational programs, career pathways, and hands-on learning,” he said.
“I was heartened to see Harwood students grappling with the Middle East conflict through the CARE club – and responding to community concerns with real maturity. Our schools can help students learn to work through difficult conversations and connect with the wider world,” he explained.
“For too many Vermonters, public education has become a yearly ordeal around budgets and property taxes. I want to understand the real drivers behind costs, including unfunded mandates from Montpelier and rising health care expenses. We can’t simply cut our way out of this,” Phillips said.
