Current News

As expected, the Burlington Board of School Commissioners introduced Yaw Obeng as the new, permanent Superintendent of Burlington Schools on Thursday. Obeng comes to Burlington with more than 20 years educational experience as a teacher, principal, and district administrator in the Toronto and Halton, Ontario Schools. School Board Chair Patrick Halladay announced the hiring decision.

"Throughout our thorough and inclusive search process, we worked diligently to find the best leader for our school district. We sought a leader with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to help us build on our considerable strengths and address our challenges. Yaw Obeng has the experience and enthusiasm we wanted for our District."

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) has been active in the media with talks on whether or not he will decide to run for presidency in 2016. Records from the Federal Election Commission confirmed that Ready for Bernie Sanders 2016 Super PAC is live and active to support a possible run to be the next US president.

New England Federal Credit Union (NEFCU), as part of its ongoing mission of community support, recently made contributions to four important Franklin County organizations. “NEFCU is committed to giving back to the communities that support us,” noted Senior Marketing Executive Cindy Morgan. “We appreciate the opportunity to help these four wonderful organizations fulfill their helping missions.”

Recipients of $5,000 donations included:

• Franklin-Grand Isle United Way

• Franklin County Home Health Agency

• Tim’s House

• Martha’s Kitchen

Mayor Miro Weinberger, accompanied by Governor Peter Shumlin and other community leaders, today announced a partnership with the Permanent Fund for Vermont’s Children, the State Department of Health, the Burlington School District (BSD), and the Visiting Nurse Association (VNA) to create and implement a major new Burlington Early Learning Initiative. The initiative is focused on improving kindergarten readiness for Burlington children, reducing special education and other public spending over time, and breaking the cycle of multi-generational poverty.

HNI Corporation (NYSE: HNI), the new parent company of Vermont Castings, today announced sales for the fourth quarter ended January 3, 2015, of $646.7 million and net income of $7.1 million, or $0.16 per diluted share. Non-GAAP net income per diluted share improved 30 percent from the prior year quarter to $0.65, which excludes restructuring charges, goodwill and intangible impairment, transition costs and gain on sale of assets.

For fiscal year 2014, the Corporation reported sales of $2.2 billion and net income of $61.5 million, or$1.35 per diluted share. Non-GAAP net income per diluted share improved 38 percent from the prior year to $1.97, which excludes restructuring charges, goodwill and intangible impairment, transition costs and gains on sale of assets. HNI acquired Vermont Castings last fall.

Fresh off of two productive events featuring Vermont businesses, Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott is partnering with the Franklin County Regional Chamber of Commerce and other regional organizations to host the “Franklin and Grand Isle County Economy Pitch” on February 16, 2015. During the two-hour session at the St Albans Historical Museum, legislators and the general public from the Franklin County/Grand Isle region will hear representatives of the region’s business community propose steps lawmakers could take which will, in the eyes of businesses, have a positive impact on the State’s economy.

“Vermont’s business community is very good at problem-solving and thinking outside of the box,” Scott said. “In my opinion, no issue on the table right now other than public safety is more important than growing our economy and easing the financial burden on Vermonters, and I’m heartened to see so many lawmakers eager to consider fresh ideas.”

Secretary of State Jim Condos would like to remind all eligible, Vermont voters that early voting is now open for Town Meeting Day. Early voting only applies to those towns that vote by Australian ballot. “Town Meeting Day can be a great opportunity for community members to come together, discuss the issues that are specific to their particular locality, and have important debates before voting. However, many Vermonters have the realities of busy lives to contend with and the flexibility of Early Voting allows these Vermonters to still exercise their constitutional right to vote and, in this way, still participate in local decision making,” stated Secretary Condos.

Condos added, “Many of Vermont’s most important issues are decided on a local level and often the outcome comes down to a very small number of votes. I urge Vermonters to make their voice heard: vote on Town Meeting Day or, for Towns that use Australian ballot, vote early if you so choose.”

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin announced today that "Big Data" enterprise software provider Faraday closed $750,000 in new funding and has doubled its staff to 13 people. Faraday plans to hire an additional 20 employees in 2015, mostly in Vermont, given increasing demand for its data-driven customer recruiting platform.

“Faraday is the latest in a new breed of Vermont businesses tackling big challenges with technology,” Shumlin said. “It’s no secret anymore that this state offers the talent, capital, and infrastructure to help exciting startups like Faraday succeed on a national scale.”

Faraday’s data management platform (DMP) wraps terabytes of data on 100 million US households in a fun, map-driven interface that helps companies reduce their customer acquisition costs through better targeting.

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) Thursday joined a bipartisan coalition of senators in introducing major legislation to lift the Cuba trade embargo. The bill is sponsored by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and cosponsored by Leahy and Senators Mike Enzi (R-WY), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), and Dick Durbin (D-IL). Their bill would eliminate the key barriers to Americans doing business in Cuba.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced Wednesday that Vermont communities, families and businesses benefited from $125 million in USDA Rural Development (RD) grants, loans and loan guarantees in Federal Fiscal Year 2014.

“These funds helped thousands of Vermonters find affordable homes, find good paying jobs, and access vital community services,” said USDA Rural Development State Director Ted Brady. “As the federal government’s only agency devoted to assisting rural communities, USDA Rural Development is a one stop shop for the people, businesses and communities of rural Vermont. The hardworking men and women of the agency have a singular focus, helping our rural communities thrive.”

The Vermont State Colleges Board of Trustees voted today to hire Dr Elaine Collins as the next president of Johnson State College. Dr Collins is currently Dean and Chief Operating Officer of the College of Education at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan. Prior to that, Collins served as Vice President of Arts and Sciences at West Shore Community College, and Interim Vice President of Academic Affairs at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. A first generation college student, Dr Collins holds a PhD in Education Policy and Leadership.

Dr Elaine Collins, Grand Valley State University Photo.

The University of Vermont Health Network – Central Vermont Medical Center has made a significant investment in safe patient handling and mobility which will also reduce staff injuries and improve how we care for our patients. The program named Moving All Patients Safely, or MAPS, addresses a problem that is prevalent in health care facilities across the country – sicker patients and larger patients. Out-patient services have expanded and patients in hospitals are those who are too sick to go through an out-patient department. Obesity is a problem throughout the United States and is reflected in larger people in our patient population.