Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Cathedral Square has received a 2022 AARP Community Challenge Grant, which will be used to install a Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) at an existing crosswalk on Route 116 in Hinesburg near Kelley’s Field, a Cathedral Square and Evernorth affordable-housing community for older adults. Cathedral Square was one of just 260 grantees selected from 3,200 applications submitted nationwide.

Vermont Business Magazine As communities across the country grapple with access to health care, and with longstanding disparities negatively impacting the health and wellness of historically marginalized groups, the University of Vermont Medical Center released the findings of its 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment. This year’s report, conducted every three years, was the most inclusive and robust in the organization’s history of conducting the assessment. The top six community health priorities and key findings identified in the 2022 CHNA are: accessible and coordinated care, cultural humility and inclusive health care, food access and security; safe, affordable and healthy housing; mental health and wellbeing; and workforce development.

Vermont Business Magazine Comcast today announced it will expand its fast, reliable and fiber-rich network to five new communities – Elmore, Eden, Hubberdton, Stratton and Wardsboro – and further into four communities it already serves – Jamaica, Sudbury, Wolcott and Morristown – as part of its latest project to make broadband available to more Vermonters. This network expansion delivers Comcast’s innovative portfolio of Xfinity and Comcast Business services, including residential broadband speeds up to 6 gigabits per second (Gbps) and business speeds up to 100 Gbps.

Vermont Business Magazine Along with more than 100 environmental and community groups around the US, the Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC) has signed on to a United States Supreme Court brief in a case that will determine which waters will receive protection under the Clean Water Act (CWA), to protect small tributaries and wetlands. The brief is filed in support of the Environmental Protection Agency in the case, Sackett v. EPA.

Vermont Business Magazine The VNA & Hospice of the Southwest Region is pleased to partner with the Stratton Foundation, a community-based non-profit organization caring about the health and welfare of children and families in Southern Vermont. Through the Stratton Foundation’s “Feed the Community” initiative and outreach in times of crisis, the agency received $2000 in gift cards for groceries and gas. The cards will be distributed to patients served in Arlington, Danby, Dorset, Manchester, and Sunderland.

“Our care teams see firsthand the effects of poverty, the pandemic, and inflation,” said Sara C. King, CEO. “This generous gift for our patients who face financial challenges and hardships will provide some relief in these challenging times.”

by John McClaughry The US Supreme Court’s June 21 decision in the Maine pupil tuitioning case (Carson v. Makin) brings to a head a long-simmering issue in Vermont education. Under what circumstances, if any, may public money find its way into sectarian elementary and secondary schools? Like Vermont, Maine has many lightly populated school districts that do not contain a public secondary school. For over a hundred years Maine and Vermont law has allowed such districts to tuition secondary and sometimes elementary school pupils to schools of their choice, even schools in other states or abroad. In Vermont some 7,000 K-12 pupils benefit from tuitioning.

Vermont Business Magazine Starting this summer, Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and its partners will implement a piece of landmark legislation, revamping how funding is distributed to clean water project implementers. Vermont’s Clean Water Service Delivery Act (Act 76 of 2019) establishes a decentralized network of entities called “Clean Water Service Providers” who, under advisement of "Basin Water Quality Councils,” will administer Water Quality Restoration Formula Grant funds to project implementers to identify, implement, and maintain clean water projects at a river basin level (eg, the Winooski River basin). June 30th, 2022, from 12:00 to 1:00 pm.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott announced today an agreement with the federal government cementing Vermont’s role as a national leader in health care innovation. The Global Commitment demonstration increases Vermonters’ access to health care services, strengthens the health care system, and supports health care providers recovering from disruptions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The agreement, which begins July 1 and extends for five and half years, provides Medicaid coverage to 200,000 Vermonters and grants Vermont flexibility in its use of federal Medicaid dollars. This funding is critical to the state’s goal to build a more accessible, equitable, and coordinated system of care.

​Vermont Business Magazine Shaun McNiff, PhD—artist, art therapist, professor, and author—is the next guest on Medical Matters Weekly. Viewers are invited to tune in at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, July 6. The show will address the power of art as a component of health and wellbeing in addition to the mental and physical healing processes.

Vermont Business Magazine Today The Vermont Flannel Company and All American Clothing Co. announced a new partnership to support domestic apparel production in the United States. The strategic partnership, called USA Brands, will: Combine two of the country’s best-known USA-made brands of blue jeans and flannel clothing; Provide quality-made domestic clothing to consumers on a national scale at reasonable prices; Strengthen Vermont Flannel and All American Clothing’s commitment to American jobs and American craftsmanship.

​Vermont Business Magazine Michael Roizen, MD, chief wellness officer emeritus at the Cleveland Clinic and leading health and wellness communicator, is the next guest on Medical Matters Weekly. Viewers are invited to tune in at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, June 29. The show will address the power of everyday choices in preventing disease and prolonging productive and enjoyable lives.

​Vermont Business Magazine Sascha Mayer, co-founder of Mamava, announced today that Thomas Witschi has been retained as her successor and will oversee and lead the company moving forward. Mayer will stay on in the capacity of Chief Brand Officer and Chairperson of the Board, working with Witschi on strategic initiatives and direction of the brand. Witschi’s appointment comes at a time of rapid growth for Mamava, which acquired its manufacturing facility—Mamava Manufacturing in Springfield, Vermont—last fall. The company is expected to more than double its revenue this year ($10.1 million in 2021).