U.S. Commission on Civil Rights appoints Tom Little to state advisory committee

WINOOSKI (June 20, 2014) – The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights has appointed Tom Little, vice president and general counsel of the Vermont Student Assistance Corp., to its Vermont State Advisory Committee.

State advisory committees conduct reviews and provide reports and recommendations concerning local civil rights issues, including justice, voting, discrimination, housing and education. Congress mandates that the federal commission establish advisory committees in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Appointees to state advisory committees serve two-year terms.

Past Vermont State Advisory Committee reports addressed racial harassment in public school, racial profiling, and disparities in the justice system. The committee will meet for the first time in July to consider its plans and priorities.

“Vermont is a state that historically has been proactive in addressing civil rights issues and I am confident this committee will continue to make significant contributions.” Commission Staff Director Marlene Sallo said.

Little, a resident of Shelburne, was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1992 to 2002, serving on the Fish & Wildlife, Ways & Means, and Judiciary committees, as well as on the Judicial Retention and Joint Fiscal committees. In 2007-2008, he chaired the Vermont Commission on Family Recognition and Protection. He has served on the following boards: University of Vermont, Shelburne Zoning, ECHO at the Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, Visiting Nurse Association, Converse Home, Cathedral Square Housing Corporation, Vermont Center for the Book and Snelling Center for Government.

He has been chairman of the District 4 Environmental Commission (Vermont’s Act 250 land-use permit commission for Chittenden County) since 2003. Tom is the chancellor of the Episcopal Diocese of Vermont, chaired the Lawyers Caucus of the National Council of Higher Education Loan Programs, and was a member of the Commission on the Future of Vermont’s Justice System. He serves Shelburne as Town Meeting moderator and Justice of the Peace.

About the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights is an independent, bipartisan agency charged with studying and advising the President and Congress on civil rights matters and issuing a federal civil rights enforcement report. For information about reports and meetings of the Commission and its State Advisory Committee, visit http://www.usccr.gov.

About VSAC

Vermont Student Assistance Corporation is a public, nonprofit corporation created by the Vermont Legislature in 1965 to help Vermonters plan and pay for education or training beyond high school. VSAC administers Vermont’s 529 college savings plan; outreach services to encourage low-income students to aspire to and complete college; college and career planning services for all Vermonters; need-based state grants for full-time, part-time and non-degree study; public and private scholarship programs; and private education loans. Find us at www.vsac.org or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/VermontStudentAssistanceCorporation.

This entry was posted on Friday, June 20th, 2014 at 6:54 am and is filed under News & Views, Recommended Reading, VSAC News Releases. Both comments and pings are currently closed.