Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Tours are under way at Green Mountain Power’s Kingdom Community Wind site in Lowell and will go through August 26. Since the tours started in the beginning of June, Green Mountain Power has brought more than 400 people to the top of Lowell Mountain to get an up-close view of the 21 turbine project. During the free tour, visitors have the opportunity to learn about the project and experience how the turbines operate and harness the power of wind.

“Green Mountain Power is thrilled to once again offer these free tours to the public,” said GMP Spokeswoman Dorothy Schnure. “We’ve enjoyed showing Vermonters as well as many out-of-state tourists how we built the project to high environmental standards.”

Lowell Mountain wind turbines. Photo by Amanda Wormann GMP

Vermont Business Magazine Demonstrating Vermont’s ongoing commitment to flood mitigation, pollution reduction and energy preservation, four Vermont State Agencies and Departments submitted reports to the governor Monday documenting their work to utilize and promote Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI). These reports build on Executive Order 06-12 issued by Governor Peter Shumlin in March 2012 that directed the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, Agency of Natural Resources, Agency of Transportation and the Department of Buildings and General Services to come together to form the Interagency Green Infrastructure Council.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Humanities Council has awarded a $1,000 grant to the Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA) to support its Presidential Writers Conversation Series. The series is one of nine projects that received awards during VHC’s Spring 2015 grant cycle. The Presidential Writers Conversation Series, taking place in August, brings major national literary figures to Vermont to promote the importance of literature and writing, inviting the Vermont community to take part in a big-picture discussion about literature.

VHC’s Grants program supports nonprofit organizations that conduct humanities-related projects; this spring VHC awarded a total of $16,300 to these organizations.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department says several changes in Vermont's deer hunting regulations will become effective in 2016. None of the changes will be effective this year. In 2016, archery deer hunting season will be extended five days. It will begin the first Saturday in October, run for 28 days, and then continue for nine days beginning the first Saturday after completion of the November rifle deer season.

The Franklin County Regional Chamber of Commerce awarded BFA Athletic Director, coach and youth mentor Dan Marlow with their prestigious Tim Bovat Civic Involvement Award in May 2015. The annual event serves as an opportunity for the Chamber’s Board of Directors to recognize members of the local business community who have excelled in commitment and service to our region.

Vermont Business Magazine This year’s sofi Awards, at the Summer Fancy Food Show, were a success for Vermont, goats, and caramel. Fat Toad Farm, a small, family-run, goat dairy in Brookfield, Vermont, received gold for Outstanding Product Line for their Farmstead Goat’s Milk Caramel Sauces, known as cajeta, a traditional Mexican confection. Fat Toad Farm is run by husband and wife team Steve Reid and Judith Irving, and their daughter Calley Hastings. The family has spent the last eight years building a high-quality herd of Alpine milking goats and perfecting the art of caramel making. Their award-winning product line of goat’s milk caramel sauces comprised of eight mouthwatering flavors (Original, Salted Bourbon, Cold Brew Coffee, Spicy Dark Chocolate, Vanilla Bean, Irish Whiskey Cream, Vermont Maple, and Cinnamon), can be found online at www.fattoadfarm.com and in specialty food stores across the United States.

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General William Sorrell joined with 46 other Attorneys General in sending a letter to Congress regarding federal data breach legislation. For the past decade data breaches involving loss of credit card data or social security numbers have generally been the province of state governments. Recently several bills have been introduced that would create a single federal data breach standard which would replace or “preempt” state law while providing much weaker protections for consumers than currently exist in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Labor and Vermont’s Statewide Workforce Investment Board Youth Council have chosen eight Summer Employment Opportunity projects for funding from the US Department of Labor Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Youth funds. All projects will link academics, occupational skills learning, and career pathway guidance, and will provide work experiences for youth ages 16-24. Under WIOA regulations, the priority for the US Department of Labor is to serve out-of-school youth.
The following programs were chosen for funding after submitting applications that were reviewed by the State Workforce Investment Board’s Youth Council and Department of Labor staff.

Vermont Business Magazine Beginning Friday, July 10th, Kristin Carlson, broadcast journalist turned communications and energy expert, and a native Vermonter, returns to TV in a new weekly talk show, “Connect… with Kristin Carlson,” on Vermont PBS. The program is scheduled to air Fridays at 8:30 pm. As part of the station’s commitment to feature more Vermont-based content, Carlson will sit down each week to chat with the people who shape our state and our world, bringing the excitement and variety of life in Vermont into viewers’ living rooms. The program will feature people from varied walks of life: writers, musicians, business and community leaders, entrepreneurs, filmmakers, social visionaries and more.

Vermont Business Magazine Efforts to boost the rate at which Vermonters attain post-secondary education will receive $50,000 in support from the Lumina Foundation. Improving the attainment rate from 45.5 percent to 60 percent is critical to the future of Vermont's economy and to the economic security of those who get a college degree or certificate. The nationally competitive grant proposal was developed by the Vermont State Colleges (VSC) in collaboration with the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC), the University of Vermont (UVM), and the State of Vermont.

Lumina will bring national experts on higher education continuation, access and completion to Vermont to consult with grant partners. With the grant, a working group appointed by the partners will convene stakeholders to develop policy recommendations to help the state reach its goal of 60% higher education attainment by 2020.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Student Assistance Corp, celebrating 50 years of helping Vermonters pursue education after high school, has been selected to receive a $60,000 grant from the J. Warren and Lois McClure Foundation. The VSAC grant will be used to provide professional development training for middle schools, high schools and supervisory unions on implementing personalized learning plans, a key component of Act 77, also known as Flexible Pathways.

“We thank the McClure Foundation for this grant and for their unwavering support of education in Vermont,” said Scott Giles, president and CEO of VSAC. “This grant allows VSAC to continue its assistance to educators in moving forward with personalized learning plans that are focused on building and realizing a student’s education, training and career aspirations.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Bennington Select Board has voted unanimously to become the first public investor in the redevelopment of the former Bennington High School Building. The Town will make a sum of up to $18,000 available from its Economic Development Fund with contingencies. This initial investment will help fund the first phase of a development plan required to move the project into construction.