Solstice News
The Summer Solstice offers a moment to reflect on seasons and transitions.
A key goal for Headwaters in 2026 is to transition from organizing to operating. The board has worked diligently this year to complete a business plan and to develop and adopt policies and procedures, norms and values, and other frameworks to guide the organization in its work and decision making.
While the plan for 2026 shared by the founding board at December’s first annual Membership Meeting did not include acquiring the Sterling campus, navigating the Sterling process has given the Headwaters board many opportunities to learn by doing, and to practice norms and agreements that embody our organization's values.
Recognizing that a small, all-volunteer board must know its capacities and seek support where it's needed, we developed a Request for Proposals for a Project Manager and conducted a statewide search for candidates. From many applications received, and four candidates interviewed, we chose Carey Crozier. Carey brings diverse experience and a place-based perspective to supporting mission-driven organizations, stabilizing systems, grant writing, and fundraising. Carey has resigned from the board to accept the role, and we are excited to be working with her in her new capacity as contracted Project Manager.
Sterling College
On June 16, the Sterling campus was officially listed through a public Solicitation for Offers process. Proposals are due July 20, and Headwaters is working closely with our advisors to prepare a competitive offer.
In recent weeks, we've continued conversations with Craftsbury Saplings, the former Sterling faculty group, our broader partner network, and so many of you—thank you for your continued support!
While there are no guarantees in a competitive process, these conversations continue to reinforce our confidence that Headwaters is well positioned. And we're working diligently to ensure that, if our proposal is selected, we will be ready to hit the ground running.
With our newly contracted Project Manager and continued support from the Northern Forest Center and Preservation Trust, we've begun project modeling, fundraising, organizational planning, and—critically—developing a process for engaging the broader community to help shape the campus's future. All this groundwork will benefit Headwaters regardless of the outcome with the Sterling campus.
We're approaching this phase with a balance of optimism and realism. We'll continue to share updates as they become available. Thank you to everyone who has offered encouragement and expertise along the way. It is an honor to do this work alongside you!
Bringing Our Mission to Life
As Headwaters transitions from organizing to operating, a key priority is to create pathways for members and friends to get involved in working groups, especially as we begin evaluating opportunities to bring the community land trust model to our corner of the Northeast Kingdom (see the May newsletter for one example).
Putting this longtime goal into practice has had to wait while Headwaters learns to organize effective, volunteer-friendly working groups with a clear charge and structure. With our new Project Manager in place, that goal is now closer than ever. Stay tuned for news about opportunities to get involved!