Castleton University was chartered as the Rutland County Grammar School in 1787, making it the oldest Vermont State University campus.
Vermont Technical College was founded in 1806 as Orange County Grammar School; Johnson Academy was founded in 1828, later becoming
Johnson State College;
Lyndon State College was founded in 1911 as a
normal school. The
Vermont General Assembly created the
Vermont State Colleges System (VSCS) in 1961, creating a "loose confederation" of colleges that also included the
Community College of Vermont after its founding in 1970, but never included the
University of Vermont. Beginning in 1977, the Vermont State Colleges adopted a more centralized model, with its trustees overseeing the operations of all its constituent schools. This began to reverse somewhat beginning in 2000, when the system allowed more autonomy for the schools while still encouraging cooperation, including uniform course numbering so students could take courses from different VSCS institutions. In 2018, financial challenges led to the merger of Johnson State College and Lyndon State College, creating
Northern Vermont University. In 2020, continuing budgetary constraints led Vermont State Colleges Chancellor
Jeb Spaulding to propose closing Northern Vermont University, closing Vermont Technical College's Randolph campus, and laying off almost 500 employees. Additionally, the Vermont State Colleges would require an emergency infusion of $25 million, regardless of Spaulding's proposed closures. Spaulding withdrew the proposal amid fierce opposition and the state appropriated additional funds to keep all campuses and colleges operating, but lawmakers asked VSC to come up with a way to fix its financial situation. VSCS formed a committee, named the Select Committee on the Future of Public Higher Education, which ultimately recommended a similar proposal to Spaulding's closure plan. Instead of closing campuses, however, the committee recommended merging all three of the system's four-year colleges into a single institution with multiple campuses. While the committee did not recommend including the Community College of Vermont in the merger, it did recommend that it focus more on workforce education and adult learning. The proposal was projected to save the system $25million over five years. Students, faculty, and staff protested these planned changes, leading the university to change aspects of its merger plan. In July 2023, Castleton University, Northern Vermont University, and Vermont Technical College merged to form Vermont State University. The combined institution included the roughly 5,500 students at its three predecessor institutions. Interim President Mike Smith announced an initiative in September 2023 to "examine our list of academic offerings" and consider combining or closing additional degree programs. == Academics ==