Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The dedication of the Mamadou N’Diaye Resource Center brought the Northern Vermont University Johnson Campus community together to celebrate this new space for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students. Created by the Coalition of Minority Students (COMS) as a safe place for people of color in a predominantly white campus community, the resource center is named in memory of a former NVU student.

by Fred Kenney, Executive Director, ACEDC Labor force shortages continue to be foremost for every employer. The factors that got us to where we are developed over a long period of time and were exacerbated by COVID-19. The shortages are driven primarily by individual and family choices, such as early retirements. These are choices that are difficult for policymakers to impact and results that are difficult to change.

​Vermont Business Magazine Vermont State Surplus Property has launched a new online showroom at that can be found at bgs.vermont.gov. The new service provides an opportunity to browse surplus items available for sale, current online public auctions, and active bids. Office supplies, furniture, audio visual equipment, computer supplies, vehicles, scientific instruments, books, and more are available to the public through the state surplus program.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health today is reporting 150 cases of COVID-19 for Monday (43 Sunday, 141 Saturday, 168 Friday, 158 Thursday, 171 Wednesday, 200 Tuesday, and 87 last Monday.) The VDH reported one additional death Monday for 620 statewide, in the 70-79 age range. VDH has also reported that March (16) had the fewest COVID-related deaths since last July (2). The official report lists no April deaths so far, as the reporting of a cause of death tends to lag.

Vermont Department of Health High school members of Our Voices Xposed (OVX) – Vermont’s youth-led movement to reduce youth smoking and vaping prevalence – will march with community partners and supporters from Montpelier City Hall to the steps of the Vermont State House to speak out against the dangers of youth e-cigarette and tobacco use, and against flavors that are designed to attract youth and create the next generation of people with life-long nicotine addiction. In collaboration with Prevention Works!VT, a network committed to preventing substance misuse in Vermont, this public event is part of the CounterBalance campaign, working to end tobacco’s influence in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine VSECU, a member-owned cooperative and not-for-profit credit union for all Vermonters, is donating a total of $50,000 to five Vermont non-profits through its member-directed giving program, We Care 2. The awards, ranging from $7,800 to $12,700, will help these organizations continue to help Vermonters and support communities, with a particular focus in the areas of food, shelter, and financial education. Since the inception of the We Care 2 giving program in 2013, VSECU members have used their votes to direct $311,000 to non-profit organizations working to improve the quality of life for all Vermonters.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) are teaming up in a cooperative effort with Vermont hunters to look for the Lone Star tick (Amblyomma americanum), a tick believed to be in Vermont but one that has eluded capture through standard surveillance methods. However, this tick species has been found on turkeys in other northern states. This will be Vermont’s first turkey tick survey. Volunteers will staff several reporting stations around the state on Youth Turkey Hunting Weekend (April 23 and 24) and opening day of 2022 Spring Turkey Season (May 1).

Senator Bernie Sanders Corporate greed is nothing new. It has been going on for the past 40 or 50 years. It manifests itself in the extreme wealth and income inequality that we have been seeing in which the 2 wealthiest people in America own more wealth than the bottom 42 percent – over 130 million Americans. It manifests itself in corporations paying their CEOs 350 times more than their average worker as they receive huge salaries, stock options, “golden parachutes” and a wide range of perks while workers struggle to pay their bills, send their kids to college and save for their retirement. In the 1950s, CEOs made about 20 times more than the average worker. In the 1980s, CEOs made 42 times more than the average worker. In 2000, CEOs made about 120 times more than the average worker. And today they make over 350 times what the average worker makes.

Senator Patrick Leahy I am glad that we have reached a bipartisan agreement to provide $10 billion in desperately needed funding to address the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Through great personal sacrifice by the American people, in particular our many brave healthcare workers, and an unprecedented mobilization of federal resources, we are slowly returning to a sense of “normal.” But this pandemic is far from over. This needed funding will allow us to purchase additional vaccines, testing, therapeutics and treatments like monoclonal antibodies as we brace for a potential surge in the coming months.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger delivered the annual State of the City address Monday night, stating the State of the City “remains strong, and is getting stronger every day as we work to recover from the pandemic’s setbacks.” The speech focused on economic recovery; children and families; racial equity and justice; infrastructure; housing; public safety; and the climate emergency.

Vermont Business Magazine The peer-reviewed article “Partnering to Improve Pediatric Asthma Quality” was published in the April volume of the journal Academic Pediatrics. The article was authored by three pediatricians including Dr. Michael Cabana, professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and member of the United States Preventive Services Task Force, Dr. Keith Robinson of the University of Vermont Children’s Hospital, and Dr. Josh Plavin, the Vice President and Chief Medical Officer at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont. Childhood asthma is often managed in an office setting, but when they are in a crisis, kids head to an emergency room.

​Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Corrections is conducting an internal review, to include administrative and medical reviews, following the death of an incarcerated individual at Northeast Correctional Complex (NECC) in St. Johnsbury on Sunday. Dustin Dunkling, 29, of St Albans, was found unresponsive by Vermont DOC staff at approximately 9:30 PM on April 3, 2022. Correctional and medical staff first responders began life-saving efforts and immediately called for outside medical assistance. Fire and EMS crews arrived and attempted to revive Dunkling, who was pronounced deceased at the facility. The official cause of death will be determined by the Vermont State Medical Examiner but, at this time, the cause is suspected to be suicide.