Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Investments in Vermont’s 529 college savings plan have reached another milestone, topping 22,000 accounts and $400 million in assets, according to Vermont Student Assistance Corp., which administers the Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan.

Vermont Business Magazine Weekly unemployment claims have been bouncing up and down this spring, but are at a typical level of around 500 now. Claims for the week of April 6, 2019, rose from a relatively low level of 397 the previous week to 519 last week. But claims were 104 fewer than they were at this time last year.

Altogether 5,194 new and continuing claims were filed, a decrease of 44 from a week ago, and 285 fewer than a year ago. For most weeks of 2017 and 2018 claims were lower than the year before, but have been up and down in 2019. Vermont, like the nation as a whole, is locked into a historically low period of unemployment and a tight labor market.

Vermont Business Magazine Marlboro College’s 72nd commencement will take place on the morning of May 12, 2019, when community members will gather to celebrate the accomplishments of both undergraduate and graduate students. Radio producer and Marlboro alumnus Sean Cole ’93 will give a commencement address, and renowned artists Emily Mason and Wolf Kahn will also receive honorary degrees.

Vermont Business Magazine One of the largest gatherings of tourism professionals in the state was held last Thursday and Friday at the Doubletree in South Burlington. Throughout the two-day event, keynote speeches and breakout sessions focused on the need for increased tourism marketing funding, the importance of industry collaborations, and how private-public partnerships can extend marketing resources.

Vermont Business Magazine Norwich University’s School of Nursing, in collaboration with the University’s College of Graduate and Continuing Studies (CGCS), has launched a new online bachelor’s degree completion program, Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN to BSN), designed for licensed RNs who want to pursue their degree while balancing work and other life responsibilities. The program is set to begin its first trimester in August 2019.

Vermont State Police On 04/11/2019 at approximately 1307 hrs Troopers from the Vermont State Police New Haven Barracks, were detailed to a reported motor vehicle crash near 6552 VT Rt 125, Addison, VT.  According to State Police Dispatch, a vehicle had gone off the roadway and was submerged in Lake Champlain. Preliminary investigation indicates the operator, Richard Finnessey, was traveling south on VT RT 125 when his vehicle left the travel portion of the roadway, travelled down an embankment and ultimately into Lake Champlain.  Neither speed nor impairment appear to be contributing factors in this incident.   It is believed that Finnessey suffered an undetermined medical event prior to crash. 

VSP photo.

Vermont Business Magazine WhistlePig, the No. 1 distiller in the fast growing, ultra-premium and luxury rye whiskey category, has announced that it received a $55 million revolving line of credit from JPMorgan Chase, extending the existing $40 million line with JPMorgan Chase, which was received in April 2018. The credit facility will provide the company with incremental funding to accelerate the production and aging of premium rye whiskey.

Vermont Business Magazine Tim Burke, of White + Burke Real Estate Investment Advisors, Inc in Burlington, is pleased to announce the signing of a long-term office lease of 60,000 square feet for Country Home Products, Inc. at 800 Hinesburg Road in South Burlington. Country Home Products, Inc is moving from Vergennes and will occupy the entire building in Spring 2019 after completing renovations. 

Burke represented the tenant, Country Home Products, Inc., in the lease transaction. Pizzagalli Properties, LLC is the owner/landlord. 

White + Burke Real Estate Investment Advisors Inc. specializes in commercial real estate development services, brokerage, permitting, and asset management.

Source: SOUTH BURLINGTON, VT (4/11/2019) - Tim Burke, of White + Burke 4.11.2019

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has joined Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and John Boozman (R-Ark.), members of the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee, in introducing the Montgomery GI Bill Parity Act, legislation that would enable members of the Guard and Reserve to concurrently use GI Bill benefts and Federal Tuition Assistance (FTA) programs to fund their education.

Vermont Business Magazine Poetry at Bennington, a program of short-term residencies that brings established and emerging poets to Bennington College for public readings and close work with students, has been endowed with a gift of $4 million from longstanding donors to the College. This gift advances the endowment goal of the recently announced $150 million Bennington College capital campaign.

Vermont Business Magazine Speaking before some 1,000 alumni, parents, and friends last Tuesday at New York’s Lincoln Center, President Philip J Hanlon ’77 announced that supporters have committed more than $2 billion to The Call to Lead: a Campaign for Dartmouth, putting the historic fundraising effort at two-thirds of its overall goal. Attaining this milestone just 11 months after the campaign’s public launch—during Dartmouth’s 250th anniversary year—demonstrates the community’s shared commitment to Dartmouth’s distinctive model of education, to driving change that will improve the human condition, and to preparing students for lives of wise leadership.

“We are grateful for every gift to The Call to Lead,” President Hanlon told the cheering audience. “All gifts matter, not just the ones you read about. This is not a campaign where a handful of individuals or families determine our destiny. The best things we accomplish at Dartmouth we do as a community.”

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Olympic Snowboarder Alex Deibold will join leaders from iconic Vermont winter recreation businesses and advocates from Protect Our Winters (POW) to meet with the Vermont Legislature’s Climate Solutions Caucus to discuss the disastrous impact of climate change on the state’s winter economy and the urgent need for legislative action this year.