Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Junior Environmental Studies major Jillian Scannell has been named a 2019 Harry S Truman Scholar, one of only 62 college junior-year students in the country to win the highly competitive national award. The Truman Scholarship recognizes students who want to make a difference in public service and provides them with financial support for graduate study, leadership training and fellowship with likeminded students.

Scannell was selected for her environmental commitment and campus leadership.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont continues its safety streak to remain one of the safest states in the nation, according to research firm SafeWise. The Green Mountain State beats national rates for both violent and property crime. Vermont comes in with 2.07 violent crimes per 1,000, half the national rate of 4.49. And the safest cities did even better—each of them saw fewer than 1.50 violent crimes per 1,000 citizens.

The strong safety record continues when you look at property crimes across the state. Vermont had 19.89 incidents per 1,000, compared to 27.11 nationwide. The state’s safest cities were all below both national and state property crime rates.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and Commissioner of Public Safety Thomas Anderson today announced that the Department of Public Safety (DPS) will partner with Williston company Margolis Healy, to provide school safety planning, training and exercise assistance to Vermont schools. This partnership marks the second phase of a school safety strategy announced by the Scott Administration in February 2018, following the first phase of a statewide school safety assessment overseen by DPS.

Diane & Thomas Leavitt honored with Community Leadership & Activist Award 

Vermont Business Magazine Close to 400 business leaders, supporters and volunteers were on hand to celebrate Diane and Thomas Leavitt as they received the Alzheimer’s Association Community Leadership & Activist Award at the 10th Annual Reason to Hope Dinner on April 18th, at the Hilton Burlington. Thursday’s celebration has raised over $208,000 for Alzheimer’s care, support and research with more donations arriving daily in honor of the Leavitt’s. 

The Reason to Hope Dinner was led by Co-Chairs Donna Austin-Hawley and Nicole Carignan. Dr. Richard Schneider, President of Norwich University, and Honorary Chair Joseph Boutin paid tribute to Diane and Tom’s commitment their family and their many volunteer, personal and professional contributions to our community.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Secretary of State’s Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) filed proposed rules to reform licensing requirements for funeral directors, barbers, cosmetologists, nail technicians, and estheticians this month. These reforms fall under the scope of a Federal Department of Labor grant awarded to OPR last year and are part of a broader effort to update existing licensing regulations to better reflect the needs of Vermont professionals, consumers, and businesses.

“Because of our work on licensing reform at OPR, Vermont has become a national model for other states,” said Secretary Condos. “These rule filings showcase our approach: cutting red tape where it is necessary to find the right-fit regulation, and appropriate career development pathways, to grow our workforce and ensure protection for the public.”

Vermont Business Magazine BETA Technologies, an aerospace company specializing in electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) technology and recharging pad technology, has been granted $78,742.50 by the Department of Economic Development’s Vermont Training Program. The grant will allow the startup company to train staff in critical areas. Specifically, funding will support aviation safety courses; pilot and flight instructor training, advanced software training and industrial high voltage electrical distribution system training.

Vermont Business Magazine The three members of the acclaimed folk trio Mountain Man — Molly Erin Sarlé ’12, Amelia Meath ’10, and Alexandra Sauser-Monnig ’09 — will address the class of 2019 at Bennington College’s 84th commencement dinner on Friday, May 31, at 7 pm on Commons Lawn. The event will be livestreamed.

Vermont Business Magazine According to a press release from 350VT.org, over 130 people attended a public hearing at the State House Tuesday night on bills regarding fossil fuel infrastructure. The largest hearing room quickly filled and an overflow room with live-streaming was set up for others. Sixty people testified in support of bills that would limit any new large-scale fossil fuel infrastructure, while four people testified against the bills. 350Vermont, Sunrise Middlebury, Vermont Interfaith Power & Light and other groups had requested a public hearing with the Vermont House Energy and Technology Committee. This came just two weeks after 350Vermont's Next Steps Climate Walk brought 300 to the State House to push for the hearing and demand action on climate change.

Vermont Business Magazine The Chittenden Solid Waste District/Green Mountain Compost has been awarded a grant worth $500,000 by the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), an arm of the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. The overall purpose of the grant award is to fund an expansion of CSWD’s Green Mountain Compost facility in Williston to include additional composting and organics transfer. The intent is to increase the facility’s food processing capacity and efficiency in keeping these materials out of the waste stream.

Vermont State Police On 04/23/19, the Tunbridge Fire Department and Vermont State Police responded to a Tunbridge address (see below) for a reported house fire. This fire was reported by someone seeing a large glow in the sky and placing a 911 call. The FD was alerted and responded to the area and were unable to find the fire for approximately 45 minutes. The home was behind a locked gate and  a very long driveway which secluded the home from the roadway. Once the FD was able to get to the home it was found totally engulfed in flames along with a nearby garage.  Also found were three out buildings that had been apparently burglarized as they had been forced open. South Royalton FD was also asked to assist at the scene.

American Lung Association’s 20^thannual air quality report finds more than 4 in 10 Americans live with unhealthy air quality, Burlington-South Burlington metro area is 1 of 6 nationwide to record zero bad air days for ozone and short-term particle pollution 

Vermont Business Magazine The American Lung Association’s 2019 “State of the Air” report found Vermont’s Burlington- South Burlington-Barre metro area is ranked as the 12^thcleanest city for year round particle pollution in the US, and was one of only 6 cities nationwide to also record zero bad air days for ozone and short-term pollution.  Vermont is repeatedly considered one of the cleanest state for air quality in the U.S.. The annual air quality “report card” tracks Americans’ exposure to unhealthful levels of ozone or particle pollution, both of which can be deadly. 

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Public Radio has received the award for overall excellence and won five other 2019 Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards, the Radio Television Digital News Association announced Tuesday. The winning entries included a podcast about an averted school shooting (JOLTED), an investigative series on three towns that issue a quarter of Vermont’s traffic fines, and a news documentary covering a Utah developer's attempt to build a utopian community in rural Vermont.