Current News

Vermont Business Magazine After careful deliberation Monday, Governor Phil Scott chose three Vermont Christmas trees from a Jeffersonville tree farm. The trees will stand in the spirit of the holiday season at the Governor’s home and Montpelier office. In 1962 the Zajchowski family planted their first balsam fir seedlings, over time growing the land into the choose-and-cut Upper Valley Tree Farm. In a timeless tradition, countless Vermonters continue to pick trees at the Lamoille County farm and many other Vermont tree farm destinations.

Vermont Business Magazine Community College of Vermont (CCV) and Brattleboro Memorial Hospital (BMH) have teamed up to provide a direct pathway to hospital jobs in environmental services. At a graduation ceremony last Tuesday at BMH, certificates were awarded to nine participants in the new Environmental Services Training Program, eight of whom have been offered employment at the hospital.

Vermont Business Magazine Home Care Assistance, the premier provider of in-home care for seniors, is excited to announce the next webinar in its widely acclaimed Healthy Longevity Series, “Seven Steps to Managing Your Memory”, led by Andrew Budson,MD, Chief of Cognitive & Behavioral Neurology, VA Boston Healthcare System, Professor of Neurology at Boston University, Lecturer in Neurology at Harvard Medical School, and co-author of Seven Steps to Managing Your Memory: What’s Normal, What’s Not, and What to Do About It. The webinar will be held on Thursday, November 29^that 1:00 PM Eastern.

Vermont Business Magazine Good Human Movement, the makers of “GOOD HUMAN HERE” pins of recognition, has launched a new website; goodhumanmovement.org and a Kickstarter campaign; kck.st/2DJcTLg, aimed at fueling a shift of social change by recognizing all the GOOD one HUMAN at a time through our pins of recognition. The website and Kickstarter campaign share a comprehensive and detailed story of what our movement is about.

Vermont Business Magazine Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc (NYSE: BHLB) the parent company of Berkshire Bank, with branches in southwest Vermont, announced today that Michael P Daly has stepped down as Chief Executive Officer, President and Director. Berkshire Bank President Richard M Marotta has been named Chief Executive Officer and President of the Company and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank; and he has also been appointed as a member of the Board of Directors. Additionally, Berkshire Bank Chief Operating Officer, Sean A Gary has been named President of the Bank.

Vermont Business Magazine Green Mountain Power is preparing for possible outages as a winter storm rolls toward Vermont packing a one-two punch of high winds and heavy wet snow. Forecasters have advisories for strong winds up to 55 MPH along the western slopes of the Green Mountains starting this evening followed by wet snow on the eastern side of the Green Mountains.

Vermont Business Magazine Today the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) announced it has entered into a settlement agreement with LPL Financial LLC (LPL) that requires the firm to pay the State of Vermont $499,000 and to repurchase certain securities sold to Vermonters dating back to October 2006. A $400,000 civil penalty will be deposited into the state’s General Fund with the remaining $99,000 being deposited into the department’s Investor Education Fund.

by Rick Gordon, Westminster School Board Somehow, amidst all the national news on threats to our democracy, actions in Vermont to force mergers of school districts under the guise of Act 46 seem to be going under the radar. The legislative intent of the original Act 46 was clear — the bill offered incentives for districts to “voluntarily” merge and directed a process for districts to form study committees to look at options to more effectively meet goals of equity, transparency, and efficiency.

Vermont Business Magazine Secretary of State Jim Condos and State Archivist Tanya Marshall announced today that the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office, in collaboration with the Vermont Arts Council, has been awarded a $15,000 grant to develop a statewide emergency preparedness and response network for Vermont-based performing arts and cultural heritage organizations. Funded by the Andrew W Mellon Foundation through the Performing Arts Readiness Project, the grant will be administered by the Vermont Historical Records Program of the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermonters in the market for a new appliance this holiday season have a new tool to help find the best deal; both in the store and on their energy bills. Launched this fall, the Efficiency Vermont Marketplace empowers Vermonters to research appliances in a variety of categories including electronics, heating & cooling, home and office, and laundry. The Efficiency Vermont Marketplace is a collaboration between Efficiency Vermont and Enervee, a company that provides a suite of software applications and services designed to drive more energy-smart decisions from consumers.

Vermont Business Magazine Mount Mansfield Ski Patrol, the oldest ski patrol in the United States, celebrates 84 years of service this year. Join Mount Mansfield ski patroller and historian Brian Lindner for a history lesson about the MMSP, followed by a panel discussion with former Director Bill Westermann, current member Dave Flagg who is the longest serving member at 54 years, current MMSP Director Karen Wagner, former patrolman Denny Bender and others. The history of the Mount Mansfield Ski Patrol will be discussed at the Red Bench Series at Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum on December 6.

For decades the Red Bench drew skiers together around the fireplace in the Octagon at the top of Mount Mansfield. The tradition continues today with the Red Bench Speaker's Series that focuses on topics currently relevant to skiing and snowboarding.

Vermont Business Magazine Mikaela Shiffrin skied away with her 45th World Cup victory Sunday, but the fans at Vermont’s Killington Resort were the real winners this weekend. More than 15,000 screaming fans braved mist, rain, and fog to cheer not only the Burke Mountain School graduate and best ski racer in the world to victory, but for the first time in years, three Americans who qualified for the second run, including a second Vermonter.