Congressman Peter Welch has joined a bi-partisan group of Senators and House members who want to change the political dialogue in Washington. The State Board of Education is expected to take action today that would pave the way for an independent school in North Bennington — and at the same time close the district’s public school. Advocates for low-income Vermonters are cheering Gov. Peter Shumlin’s call for increased child care subsidies, but many don’t like where the governor wants to get the $17 million to cover the cost. The Department of Fish and Wildlife says no hunters were injured or killed while in the woods last year, a first in 40 years of record-keeping.