This opinion piece is by Jackie Spinnell, who was a reporter for UVM’s Community News Service
It was not until my fourth semester at the University of Vermont that I finally saw the beauty of the city around me. Before that, I understood the meaning of the “ivory tower.” I lived and took classes at the top of the hill, surrounded by the stunning architecture and green spaces of UVM, but separated, without fully realizing it, from the community below.
Then, during the spring semester of my sophomore year, I interned at Town Meeting TV, Burlington’s public access network. I spent hours interviewing residents, researching the city’s history, meeting locals, and digging through archives. Through that work, I began to see Burlington’s vibrant culture, its linguistic, professional, and economic diversity, and the richness of its neighborhoods and people.
Burlington is a special place, but many students never experience this. Others don’t discover it until their sophomore, junior, or even senior year. It should not take years to see that, and the university can help bridge this gap.
To understand the scale of this disconnect, I spoke with students, university officials, and Burlington professionals. Their consensus was unmistakable: the gap is real and significant, but fixable.
Shani Weisenberg, a senior nursing major, told me she did not truly see Burlington until junior year, when she did her hospital clinicals.
“I feel so grateful to be a nursing student at UVM because I get to work in the hospital every other day and see the community we help,” Weisenberg said. “Many people do not see Burlington outside of the campus community, and that is very unfortunate.”
Lexi Sussan, a junior social work major, made a similar point. Last semester, she took a course called ‘Working with Refugees’ and learned about refugee resettlement in the Burlington area.
“One of the most powerful moments was watching refugees from refugee camps hop off the plane in Burlington,” Sussan said. “It was through that class that I saw how special this place is, and I am not sure if I would have understood that so early if it was not for that hands-on course.”
Like me, both students only formed meaningful connections with Burlington halfway through their UVM careers, and they wished it had been sooner.
UVM was founded as one of the nation’s first land grant universities, with a special mandate to get outside the ivory tower and bring learning to the entire state. Doing that hasn’t always been easy, said Michele Karode, Manager of Outreach Operations at the UVM Office of Engagement at the Leahy Institute for Rural Partnerships.
“UVM was seen as kind of this bubble that sat on top of the hill and didn’t really talk to everybody,” Karode said. “Our office has worked really hard to create community partners and engage more throughout the entire state.”
Karode’s role focuses on strengthening the professional and educational relationships between Burlington residents, Vermonters across the state, and UVM.
“We try to open the doors to UVM. Students can see the real world and how they can have an impact. I think that’s extremely powerful before you even graduate college,” Karode said.
To benefit from these programs, students have to know about them. But the two students I spoke with were only vaguely familiar with the Office of Engagement, and they had never interacted with it.
Making students aware of the resources offered at the Office of Engagement is something Karode works towards daily.
“I think everyone at the university is trying to figure out the best way to get students involved and make them aware of these opportunities,” Karode said.
Another UVM official connecting students to the community is Gail Shampnois, the founding director of the Office of Student and Community Relations. Her office was developed from a Student Government Association resolution.
“The students wanted more support and resources, but they also felt that it was integral to have this relationship with the city,” Shampnois said.
Her office leads initiatives like block parties, community cleanups and volunteer drives. It also hosts seminars for students transitioning from on-campus to off-campus living.
Shampnois invited me to attend a recent Community Coalition meeting. These monthly gatherings bring together students, neighbors, landlords, city officials, and staff and administrators from UVM and Champlain College.
At the meeting, speakers discussed neighborhood cleanup efforts, housing support sessions, and local safety issues. Representatives from community organizations invited students to attend upcoming community events, such as Neighborhood Planning Assembly meetings and the 2025 Vermont Civil Rights Summit.
This meeting emphasized that the partnership between UVM and Burlington is mutually beneficial: both parties can benefit and make their community stronger when they work together.
Burlington and Vermont has a shortage of workers, and UVM students are an important part of changing that, said Alex Bacheller, the Workforce Development Manager at the Community and Economic Development Office in Burlington.
Bacheller got into this field because she saw the disconnect firsthand while she attended UVM.
“As a student, I felt like Burlington was just Church Street until I was a junior and was in a student teaching position at Edmonds,” Bacheller said.
Now, Bacheller administers different workforce development opportunities, structured specifically for low-income Burlington residents. She sees potential to deepen partnerships with UVM and Champlain College.
“We often feel kind of isolated from UVM, Champlain and all these great organizations that we could be doing a better job partnering with,” Bacheller said. “I don’t know why that is, possibly because it’s hard to pivot and maneuver quickly, and be thoughtful and innovative, but I think that’s a piece of the puzzle, for sure.”
There is a clear need to strengthen the connection between the Burlington community and UVM students. Vermont has the nation’s second-oldest population, and is desperately short of working-age adults.
But most UVM graduates leave Vermont. If they develop relationships with the community while they are here, students are more likely to stay.
Many students do not discover Burlington’s richness until late in their college experience. While several university offices and local organizations are working to bridge this gap, more must be done. The university must make opportunities visible and accessible, and students must be willing to step beyond campus and engage with the city they live in.
As Michele Karode put it, “I don’t think UVM survives unless Burlington survives and vice versa. And I think there’s a lot of challenges right now that Burlington is facing, and we need to be a good neighbor, in my opinion, to come and support that.”
Burlington has so much to offer. It is time students see it sooner.
Jackie Spinnell is a junior at UVM majoring in Political Science.