Current News

Vermont Business Magazine UPS (NYSE:UPS), together with its UPS Flight Forward subsidiary, plans to purchase electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft from Beta Technologies (BETA) to augment its air service for select small and mid-size markets. These aircraft will take off and land on-property at UPS facilities in a whisper-quiet fashion, reducing time-in-transit, vehicle emissions, and operating cost. The first ten BETA aircraft are scheduled to begin arriving in 2024, with an option to purchase up to 150 of the aircraft.

Vermont Business Magazine Amid mounting evidence about the toll the coronavirus pandemic is taking on the mental health and well-being of college students, Champlain College today announced a comprehensive collaboration with the Massachusetts General Hospital Child Resiliency Program (MGH CRP) and Harvard Medical School to enhance both mental and physical well-being on its campus. MGH CRP will provide resiliency workshops for Champlain students, teach faculty and staff how to deliver resilience training, provide support for the College’s existing well-being programs, and work with Champlain on a curriculum to promote personal and academic resiliency.

Vermont Business Magazine The Burlington High School Principal Hiring Committee has announced three finalists for the BHS principalship. The candidates are Steve Berbeco, who most recently served as Deputy Commissioner for the Child Development Division of Vermont’s Department for Children and Families; Gregory Kirkland, an assistant principal at Clayton County Public Schools; and Lauren McBride, the current interim principal at Burlington High School.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott has released the Vermont Forward reopening plan to help Vermonters and local businesses see the path for a phased return to unrestricted travel, business operations, and event gatherings. The plan was developed by the Department of Health, the Department of Public Safety, and the Agency of Commerce and Community Development and uses vaccination milestones to ensure a safe easing of restrictions and continued reopening of the state's economy.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) will hold a series of virtual meetings on the American Rescue Plan (ARP) today, April 7, and tomorrow, April 8, with Vermont small businesses, municipalities, and public libraries. The ARP, the coronavirus relief package enacted in March, is bringing substantial federal funding to Vermont, including $1.3 billion in state and local aid, assistance to small businesses, and over $2 million in additional funding for public libraries. The ARP is also bringing direct aid to individuals through stimulus checks, unemployment benefits, food assistance, and critical investments in housing, health care, and education.

Vermont Business Magazine The 21st Century Business Forum will explore unique insights for team building and developing a winning strategy with Alabama Crimson Tide Head Coach Nick Saban.

This webcast, hosted by best-selling author Jon Gordon, will broadcast at 12 PM Wednesday, April 14. Registration is free.

Vermont Business Magazine Bennington College has received a gift of some 500 works of art to benefit Art for Access, an innovative fundraising program launched in 2018. Art for Access celebrates the College’s pioneering legacy in the visual arts by pursuing dual goals: to expand and enhance Bennington’s art holdings for teaching, enrichment, and enjoyment and to raise funds for scholarships through the sale of art, advancing the College’s commitment to equity, diversity, and access.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Transportation (AOT) and Northern Vermont University (NVU) are celebrating 15 years of working together to manage Vermont’s winter road conditions with public safety in mind. Students in NVU’s Atmospheric Sciences program provide daily weather forecasts for AOT maintenance districts from November through April. AOT uses this tailored weather forecast information to help with workforce management and strategies to tackle winter weather.

Vermont Business Magazine Southwestern Vermont Health Care has finalized an agreement with the Town of Bennington for the use and maintenance of playing fields at the former Southern Vermont College campus. The agreement covers the soccer and baseball fields, and is expected to remain in effect until at least December 1, 2021, when it will be reviewed by both parties.

Vermont Business Magazine Health Commissioner Mark Levine said Tuesday that in addition to variants already identified in Vermont — B.1.1.7 and B.1.429 — we learned yesterday that the P.1 variant was found in one specimen. The Broad Institute sent 46 sequences from randomly selected samples. Of these, 23 were identified as variants of concern. “The P.1 variant may be twice as transmissible, like the others, and may have implications for reduced susceptibility to monoclonal antibody therapy,” said Dr Levine. Meanwhile, daily COVID-19 case counts fell to 106, with no new deaths which are holding at 229.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont State Auditor Doug Hoffer has appointed Tim Ashe as Deputy State Auditor. Ashe takes over from Andrew Stein, who served in the Auditor’s Office for almost five years. Stein is leaving for a position in the Vermont Department of Taxes. Ashe joins the Auditor’s Office having recently completed his second term as the President pro tempore of the Vermont State Senate and sixth term overall.