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Vermont Business Magazine With the help of two recent National Science Foundation (NSF) grants totaling close to $1.2 million for him and collaborators at top universities, Saint Michael’s College astrophysicist John O’Meara will try to “join two powerful tools for exploring the universe: observations from the largest telescopes in the world and simulations from the most powerful supercomputers.”

“The point of the fundamental research is understanding the universe better -- understanding how atoms that make us up got here,” said O’Meara, who regularly uses the Hubble Space Telescope and some of the world’s largest ground telescopes in Hawaii and Chile for his work. This semester, he’s also teaching an astronomy course and Introduction to Physics for Saint Michael’s undergraduates.

NSF only approves about 11 percent of the submitted proposals that it reviews, so this would be a big deal for any scientist, he said.

by Governor Peter Shumlin It is all too easy for those of us who care about protecting our environment, combating climate change, and preserving a sustainable planet for our kids and grandkids to lose hope that we can win the fight. At the national level, powerful fossil fuel interests and their climate-denier allies in Congress prevent meaningful action and work to preserve the status quo. Here in Vermont, however, we are showing that progress can be made and that there is a model for energy that is good for our economy and our environment.

Vermont Business Magazine In October, the Community College of Vermont will begin offering several free workforce development courses and workshops at five of the College’s academic centers across the state. These new training programs are designed to equip students with technical skills and industry certifications in high-demand sectors, with a focus on manufacturing, technology, business applications, and health and human services. These courses will give students and current workers the core skills desired by many Vermont employers, and will allow them to advance their careers in growing fields. CCV has worked with business leaders around the state to assess the practical needs of employers and develop training and credential programs that prepare Vermonters to enter the 21st century workforce.

by Elizabeth Hewitt vtdigger.org Lawmakers are looking to prioritize accommodations that will be needed to house Vermont’s aging prison population. A panel of legislators toured the Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield on Thursday, with an eye toward the supports available for inmates with serious mental illness and complex medical needs. The medical needs of Vermont’s prison population are increasingly complex as inmates age and the portion of incarcerated people with mental health conditions grows.

Rep. Alice Emmons, D-Springfield. File photo by Amy Ash Nixon/VTDigger

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Peter Shumlin's office released a statement Thursday that he and Katie Hunt were recently engaged. The statement said they plan to marry within the next year although they have not yet chosen a specific date. Following the governor’s final term in office they will live in Westminster West, in southern Vermont near where he grew up in Putney. Hunt is an artist and landscape gardener who grew up in southern Vermont and is currently finishing her degree at Mount Holyoke College where she is in the Frances Perkins Program.

Courtesy photo.

“Peter is my best friend and the love of my life,” Hunt said. “I could not be happier to continue on together living in the state we both grew up in and love so much.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Office of Chief Medical Examiner relased its premilnary report on the cause of death for Vermont State Trooper Kyle Young, stating "death was accidental and the result of 'exertional heat stroke' due to 'strenuous physical activity in high environmental temperature.' Governor Shumlin has ordered the Vermont state flag to fly at half staff for three days starting at sunrise on the day of Trooper Young's funeral, which will be Wednesday, September 23 in Brownville, NY (details below).

Vermont Business Magazine Once again, a national rating firm has discovered that Vermont has relatively high taxes. Kiplinger’s yesterday released its rankings of the most tax-friendly states and least tax-friendly states—with Vermont placing seventh on the "least" list. Surprisingly, New Hampshire was not among the "most." The rankings were released as part of Kiplinger.com’s newly launched 2015 Tax Map, which compares taxes across all 50 states. In a statement released with the results, Kiplinger’s said that many taxpayers can save thousands of dollars per year just by moving to a different state. Kiplinger’s has released its ranking of the most and least tax-friendly states. The list was unveiled as part of Kiplinger’s third annual Tax Map—available at Kiplinger.com/links/taxmap—which offers an easy-to-use visual guide that compares income tax, sales tax, gas tax, “sin” tax (for products such as alcohol and tobacco) and other tax types, rules and exemptions across all 50 states.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Chamber has secured several large out-of-state companies to attend the one-day 2015 Manufactured in Vermont Supply Chain Conference & Trade Show on Thursday, September 24 at the Champlain Valley Exposition. Boeing, Siemens Healthcare, Raytheon and Textron Systems top the list of out-of-state companies representing the aerospace, aviation, defense, naval, and medical device industries. With over 475 meetings scheduled, these companies will have the opportunity to consider adding Vermont manufacturers to their supply chain, contributing to the economic growth of the state.

Vermont Business Magazine An analysis of US Census Bureau data released this morning shows that the gender-based wage gap is hurting women and families in every single state. Overall, women who are employed full time, year round in the United States are paid 79 cents for every dollar paid to men, amounting to a yearly gap in wages of $10,762. If the gap were eliminated, on average, a working woman in this country would have enough money for 1.6 years’ worth of food, more than seven months of mortgage and utilities payments, more than 11 more months of rent, or 4,635 gallons of gas.

Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont ranks 59th on the New York Times' College Access Index, a measure of top colleges’ efforts to boost economic diversity at their institutions. UVM is among universities whose scores “indicate the most effort” toward making college accessible to economically disadvantaged students. The ranking scores schools on the share of students who receive Pell grants, the graduation rate of those students, and the price that colleges charge both low- and middle-income students. Only schools with a five-year graduation rate of 75 percent or higher are included on the list.

by Timothy McQuiston Vermont Business Magazine Vermont's unemployment rate has been the same since April, but the numbers from August reveal a weakness in the labor situation, as the labor force decreased, the number of employed decreased and the number of unemployed increased. The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for August was 3.6 percent. The national average in August was 5.1 percent, a decrease of two-tenths of a percentage point. As of the prior month’s initial data, Vermont’s unemployment rate was tied for third lowest in the country. August represents the eleventh consecutive month without an increase to the unemployment rate.

by Olga Peters/The Commons The road less traveled — a reference to Robert Frost’s poem The Road Not Taken — served as a theme that accompanied Kevin FF Quigley as he took the helm last weekend as the ninth president of Marlboro College. Over three days, the college celebrated the inauguration of Quigley, who took over from Ellen McCulloch-Lovell, the college’s president for 11 years. The inauguration weekend kicked off September 11 with an afternoon of service, with approximately 80 students and staff volunteering throughout Windham County that Friday.

Early the next morning, Quigley spoke about how serving and volunteering in one’s community supports democracy.