GM board votes down sole candidate; to restart the process of filling Chester vacancy

By Shawn Cunningham
© 2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC

In yet another in a collection of remarkable meetings, the Green Mountain Unified School District Board last Wednesday voted down the only candidate for the open seat representing Chester.

Patricia “Penny” Benelli, a longtime Chester resident who holds a degree in education and recently retired from practicing family law, became the last person standing after John Keller pulled his name from consideration during the meeting. And by a vote of 5 to 4, the board rejected Benelli.

Now, according to Layne Millington, superintendent of the Two Rivers Supervisory Union, the board will restart the process by looking for candidates.

During its regular meeting a week prior,  the board had decided not to appoint either candidate, citing the “politicized nature of the proceedings.” This arose in part from controversy surrounding Keller who had pled guilty to domestic assault in late April and is on 12 months’ probation. The GM board then decided to invite the Chester Select Board to meet and set a special election for the post. It appears that these actions, decided in executive session in violation of the Vermont Open Meeting Law, were taken to “insulate” the board from controversy, a word used by board chair Adrienne Williams. But state law [16 VSA 731(a)(1)] prescribes the time frame within which a school board “shall” appoint a replacement and the GM board had already passed it.

At the special meeting last Wednesday, the board “voided” its previous actions to redo the selection process and executive session.

In an unusual move, board chair Adrienne Williams rose from her seat at the beginning of public comments to speak from the lectern “as a member of the public.” In addressing the board directly, Williams said that the board had been called upon to “make hard decisions” and that a small number of people had disagreed with the decisions.  “Mainly from online voices,” she said, they had “sought to insult, demean, and publicly bully” the board and called the board “disappointing, incompetent, cowardly and politically motivated” and accused them of “kicking the can, punting and abdicating your duty.”

Williams called these accusations bullying and assured the board members that they are not cowards and thanked them for showing up every month.

One candidate drops out

Keller was not present at the outset of the meeting so Benelli was asked to make a statement, then answer each board member’s questions. Most of these were similar to the questions asked of both candidates in the May 15 proceedings, although a few – including one that asked if Benelli’s motives were political – had a sharper tone. These came from members who would later vote against Benelli, two of whom interacted with their electronic devices while Benelli spoke.

Keller arrived 45 minutes into the meeting, saying he had been delayed by a medical issue. He said he wanted to “contribute positively to our community” and was deeply disheartened at the “negativity directed toward” the Chester Select Board and the GMUSD board.

Keller said that a “very personal matter … was recently and deliberately made public … with seemingly divisive and vengeful intent,” apparently referring to the domestic assault charge and his guilty plea. Keller added that since his serving on the GM board would be a source of tension in the community, “stepping aside is the most responsible course of action.”

Calling it an act of “terrorism,” Keller also cited the appearance of a pamphlet from the Women’s Freedom Center of Southern Windsor County on his truck. The center advocates for and supports women who have been the victims of violence. Keller said his domestic partner was frightened and disturbed by the appearance of the pamphlet and that she was being terrorized.

Following his speech, the board went into executive session for 23 minutes. Upon returning, Cavendish board member Lisa Sanders moved to appoint Benelli to the vacancy. There was a voice vote, then a roll call.

Three Chester representatives — Jeff Hance, Rick Alexander and Katie Murphy — voted no along with Andover representative Scott Kendall. Lisa Sanders, Kate Lamphere and Donovan Nichols, all of Cavendish, voted in favor of the appointment along with Chester representative Lois Perlah. Williams, of Baltimore, broke the tie by voting against adding Benelli to the board.

Absent from the meeting was Chester representative Casey Leahy.

As audience members filtered out of the library following the vote, board member Kendall asked Chester Police Chief Tom Williams to “go outside and watch our vehicles to make sure they won’t be damaged.”

Asked about that a few minutes later in front of the school, near the parking lot, Chief Williams shrugged off Kendall’s request and said he just came outside “for some fresh air.”

On Thursday, when asked by The Telegraph about “next steps” the board would take, TRSU Superintendent Layne Millington said, “The district should proceed with pursuing a candidate to ensure that Chester has complete representation. During last night’s discussion, a question was raised regarding what constitutes a majority vote when there are vacancies on the board. This matter is currently under review, and once clarified, it will guide the district on the appropriate next steps to fill the open seat.”

Asked if that meant a new search for candidates Millington wrote, “Based on our understanding at this point in time, that would be correct.”

The Chester Telegraph has asked the Vermont Secretary of State’s office for clarification on a few points and is awaiting an answer.

Cynthia Prairie contributed to this article.