For the fortieth summer, hundreds of Vermont high school students had a different kind of learning experience. They attended one of eight programs of the Governor’s Institutes of Vermont.

In 1983, the very first Governor’s Institutes of Vermont program was launched. It was focused on the arts, addressing what advisers to Gov. Richard Snelling felt was a dearth of opportunity in arts education in Vermont.

In the four decades since that first program, more than 10,000 students have attended one of the Governor’s Institutes of Vermont, which are now offered at nine locations around the state. Each year, some 500 students attend a governor’s institute. It also runs winter weekend programs, though these were not offered in 2023. The Governor’s Institutes of Vermont has one of the longest running governor’s schools in the country.

On this Vermont Conversation, past and recent alums and their parents talk about this unique enrichment program for Vermonters: Dave Amidon (Arts 1992), his son Nicholas Jamisco Amidon (Arts 2023), River Woods (Arts 2022, Health & Medicine 2023), Jim Michael (whose five children attended the institute) and Elizabeth Frascoia, the executive director of the Governor’s Institutes of Vermont. We also hear from musician Grace Potter, who attended an arts institute while in high school. 

"Never underestimate the power of being completely and utterly embarrassed by the things that you try,” Potter said.