Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Permanent Fund for Vermont’s Children is pleased to announce the finalists for the third annual Early Educator of the Year Award, which recognizes and celebrates early educators who have gone above and beyond to positively impact the lives of children, and have been a valuable resource for families. The 2017 Early Educator of the Year finalists are: Cheryl “Cookie” Danyow, of Addison, and Ellen Kraft, of Richmond.

Both finalists will be honored at the Vermont Association for the Education of Young Children (VAEYC) Annual Conference on Thursday, October 12^th at the Killington Grand Hotel, where one will be named the Early Educator of the Year and receive $5,000 and all expenses paid to attend the 2018 VAEYC conference as well as one national conference. The runner-up will receive $1,000 and all expenses paid to attend the 2018 VAEYC conference.

Vermont Business Magazine Justin Johnson has been elected to the Brattleboro Retreat's Board of Trustees. Johnson, a native of Australia, is currently the head of Global Strategic Markets at MMR, LLC, a government relations, advocacy, and public relations firm based in Montpelier, where he oversees efforts to help international businesses and governments meet their goals under the 2015 Paris Climate Accord.

“The Brattleboro Retreat is a critical part of Vermont’s system of mental health care,” said Johnson. “The staff is incredibly dedicated, and as a trustee I hope to help the Retreat build its programs and continue providing critical services to Vermonters and others who need treatment for mental health and addiction issues.”

Vermont Business MagazineFollowing the close of a two-week campaign for donations, Vermont Attorney General TJDonovan announced the completion of the inaugural “Lawyers Fighting Hunger” food drive.” The Lawyers Fighting Hunger food drive is a collaboration between the Office of the Attorney General, the Vermont Bar Association (VBA) and the Vermont Foodbank. The drive ran the last two weeks of September during Hunger Action Month in Vermont. Thirty-two Vermont law firms and law offices signed up in advance to participate in this first-ever event.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Interfaith Power and Light (VTIPL), through the Katy Gerke Memorial Program (KGMP), has recently awarded matching grants for energy efficiency projects to three churches. The Katy Gerke Memorial Program (KGMP) is administered by VTIPL and was established by Dr Paul Gerke in memory of his wife, the late Dr Katy Gerke of Thetford. The purpose of the program is to improve the energy efficiency of Christian churches in Vermont and twelve (12) Upper Connecticut River Valley Towns in New Hampshire: Bath, Charleston, Claremont, Cornish, Hanover, Haverhill, Lebanon, Lyme, New London, Oxford, Piermont and Plainfield.

KGMP matching grant funds are available for professional energy audits and the installation of efficiency measures identified through an energy audit. In the near future, VTIPL will announce the availability of KGMP matching funds for renewable energy projects.

Vermont Business MagazineGreen Mountain Power is excited to launch its second Inspire Space contest to attract the next round of energy entrepreneurs to Vermont after a wildly successful first year. Winners receive a year of working space at GMP’s state-of-the-art open concept space in Colchester, VT, as well as access to mentoring and other support services from the team at GMP and its partners. GMP is also announcing that its Inspire Space co-working space is available to people looking for a cool and motivating space to work.

Vermont Business MagazineSkiers should be generally happier in key states assome chilly winter weather is in store for the Northeast and mid-Atlantic, with January threatening to bring the coldest air of the season, according toAccuWeather. Although however cold, low temperatures will pale in comparison to those in the northern Plains where the mercury is set to dip to minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit at times.Meanwhile, the southern Plains, Southwest and California can expect a milder and drier winter than last season. Meanwhile, aLa Niña is expected to bring more snow to the Rockies.

Vermont Business Magazine Carrying the momentum of a two-year commitment to host the Audi FIS Ski World Cup in 2017 and 2018, Vermont’s Killington Resort, the largest ski and snowboard resort in Eastern North America and part of the POWDR adventure lifestyle company, will offer a number of guest experience upgrades this coming season. POWDR has invested $5.7 million in capital improvements at Killington and Pico across the properties year-round attractions. The investments in 2017/2018 will further enhance snowmaking equipment and infrastructure, upgrade and rebuild lifts, expand summer activities at the resort and improve the overall experience at both resorts.

Vermont Business Magazine Mayor Miro Weinberger released the following statement today regarding the City and Devonwood’s release of the draft Burlington City Place Development Agreement:

Vermont Business MagazineOn Monday, the Bennington Superior Court granted the State of Vermont’s motion to enter the Consent Order between the state and Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corporation. The Consent Order memorializes the settlement agreement between the state and Saint-Gobain for PFOA contamination in western portions of Bennington and North Bennington. Under the settlement, Saint-Gobain will fund municipal water line extensions costing an estimated $20 million and conduct an expedited investigation in the eastern portion of the Bennington site.

Vermont Business MagazineAt a signing ceremonyWednesday, Governor Phil Scott proclaimed October as Employee Ownership Month in Vermont. The proclamation recognizes the value of employee ownership to Vermont’s economy and in creating opportunities for Vermont workers.

Vermont Business Magazine Norwich University’s Career and Internship Center has received $15,000 in grant funding from the Vermont Department of Labor to support student internships by providing partial reimbursements for gas mileage. The funding will support about 50 students with up to $800 in mileage reimbursement during the calendar year of 2018. Students qualify by applying to the Career and Internship Center. Eligible students are reimbursed at rate of $.535/mile.

by Paul Cillo, Public Assets Institute Since July, the Minimum Wage Study Committee has spent a lot of time discussing the possible effects of raising the minimum wage. Their time might be better spent discussing the effects of not raising it. In our 2016 State of Working Vermont report, Public Assets found that nearly 20,000 working families with children were not earning enough to meet their basic needs, including two-thirds of single parents. Even in families with two working adults more than a third were struggling to make ends meet.