Current News

Due to high demand for affordable nursing degrees, a new article on the Cheap Nurse Degrees website profiles the cheapest and best RN-BSN programs in the U.S. Hundreds of accredited nursing schools were considered for the piece, but only the "30 Best Affordable RN-BSN Degree Programs" made the list. The University of Vermont ranked 12th on the list. The article makes a concise platform for users to compare degree programs, and it adds informative value to Cheap Nurse Degrees' overall guide to affordable schools.

The search for 30 cheap and affordable nursing schools started with the entire list of fully accredited RN-BSN degree programs in the United States. Any programs costing more than $22,000 per semester (net) were then eliminated to keep costs low. Editors evaluated the remaining schools with a rigorous grading system that included multiple data factors. The article fully explains the many reasons why each of the RN-BSN programs merits inclusion.

The University of Vermont (UVM) Transportation Research Center has been selected to host the Northeast Regional Surface Transportation Workforce Center under a four year grant from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The new Center will be based at the Transportation Research Center (TRC) on the UVM Trinity Campus in Burlington. The new Center will focus on developing programs with partner groups throughout the region to train transportation workers for future needs and to promote participation by underrepresented groups in the transportation industry. It will work closely with private industry and public sector transportation agencies as well as a rich network of education, labor and workforce offices across 11 states and the District of Columbia.

by Morgan True vtdigger.org A new report prepared for the Green Mountain Care Board confirms wide variations in the price of medical services throughout the state and examines policy approaches to regulate them. Prices that Vermont’s 14 hospitals and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire receive from commercial insurers vary by between 72 percent and 132 percent of the average price received, according to the report. The study also found wide variance in payments received by non-hospital medical providers as well.

The board is charged with setting “reasonable rates” for health care services. In setting those rates, the board must work toward uniformity, while taking into account “legitimate differences” in provider costs, such as offering services that wouldn’t be available otherwise or operating in an underserved area, according to its statutory mandate.

At the 11th annual Vermont Fine Furniture, Woodworking & Forest Festival on September 27, 2014, in Woodstock, the finest wood craftspeople in Vermont exhibited their design entries in the Vermont Fine Furniture & Woodworking Design Competition hosted by the Vermont Wood Manufacturers Association (VWMA). The entries were displayed not only for the judges, but for the public to give them an opportunity to see, first hand, the broad scope of work designed and created by the state’s many wood artisans. The panel of prestigious judges included returning judge Eleanor Shepard, an interior designer & owner of Shepard Interior Selections, and Peter Brough, owner of Peter Brough Inc in East Calais, who has been building high quality, custom furniture and architectural woodwork for over 35 years.

by Morgan True vtdigger.org The Brattleboro Retreat psychiatric hospital has reached a preliminary agreement to avoid losing its federal certification, the hospital announced Friday. The Retreat has been under increased scrutiny from state and federal authorities after two suicide attempts and a sexual assault in the past six months in the hospital’s adolescent inpatient unit. One of the patients who attempted suicide later died, and her parents say it was a direct result of her injuries at the Retreat. A notice of termination from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services was issued over the summer that would have ended the Retreat’s ability to participate in those programs on Monday.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital is proud to announce the recertification of its Cardiac/Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR). BMH was recognized for its commitment to improving the quality of life by enhancing standards of care.

Cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation programs are designed to help people with cardiovascular problems (e.g., heart attacks, coronary artery bypass graft surgery) and pulmonary problems (e.g., chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD], respiratory symptoms,) recover faster and improve their quality of life. Both programs include exercise, education, counseling, and support for patients and their families.

Vermont Business Magazine Corporate tax revenue continued to do well and helped offset another sluggish month for the Personal Income tax, leading to a slightly positive result for Vermont's overall revenues in September. The General Fund was up 1.17 percent for the month, the Transportation Fund was up 3.7 percent and the Education Fund was up 2.08 percent. The Corporate results were not enough, however, to make up for slowness earlier in the summer, which have put the state General Fund revenues behind its target so far this fiscal year, which began July 1. The Transportation and Education Funds, on the other hand, are ahead of fiscal year expectations, albeit slightly. Secretary of Administration Jeb Spaulding released the preliminary September and first quarter fiscal year 2015 revenue results today for the General, Transportation, and Education Funds.

The Small Business Administration is extending the fee waiver for 7(a) loans of $150,000 or less for fiscal year 2015. The fee waiver program implemented October 1, 2013, was scheduled to last 12 months, but has been extended to September 30, 2015. Since implemented, 140 Vermont business owners qualified for the fee waiver, collectively saving more than $100,000.

Vermont small business owners have greater potential to take advantage of the fee waiver than those in other states because the average 7(a) loan made in Vermont is approximately $140,000, whereas the national average 7(a) loan is approximately $368,000. Seventy percent of all 7(a) loans made in Vermont qualified for the fee waiver in FY14.

The 7(a) Loan Program is the SBA’s primary program to help start-up and existing small businesses obtain financing when they might not be eligible for business loans through normal lending channels.

Vermont Business Magazine New unemployment claims in Vermont fell last week and remain at a relatively low level. Levels this year, which have been running consistently lower than those of last year, have edged closer to levels from 2013. For the week of September 27, 2014, there were 360 new, regular benefit claims for Unemployment Insurance in Vermont. This is a decrease of 38 from the previous week's total, and 48 fewer than they were a year ago.

Altogether 3,504 new and continuing claims were filed, a decrease of 109 from a week ago and 477 fewer than a year ago. The Department processed 2 First Tier claims for benefits under Emergency Unemployment Compensation, 2008 (EUC08), one fewer from the previous week.

by Hilary Niles vtdigger.org State agencies are being asked to stick to their strategic plans while drafting budget cuts up to 5 percent for fiscal year 2016, which starts next July 1. Instructions from Governor Peter Shumlin’s administration include notification that departments will be expected to absorb higher payroll costs stemming from the Pay Act. Two versions of their proposed budgets — one at level funding and one reflecting a potential 5 percent reduction — are due October 10 for most agencies.

Also next week, administration officials will meet with staff from the Legislature’s Joint Fiscal Office to find consensus on projected budget gaps the state will need to fill. Chief Fiscal Officer Steve Klein said Thursday he expects it will be in the range of $90 million to $120 million.

“It’s definitely not a happy number,” Klein said.

Michael Snyder, the commissioner of the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, announced today that over $700,000 is available in outdoor recreation grants via the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). These funds will be available to municipalities around the state to conserve lands and develop infrastructure dedicated to outdoor recreation. Since 1964, the LWCF program has granted more than $48 million in projects and provided 27,000 acres of land for outdoor recreation in Vermont.“Outdoor recreation is a crucial component of Vermont’s economy and quality of life,” said Commissioner Snyder. “We are pleased to offer this opportunity to communities across the state to preserve and improve their recreation experience.”

Vermont Business Magazine Top Masters in Education, a resource for educators looking to enhance their own educational foundation, has published a list of the top paying school districts per state based on the average pay of all teachers in the district. At the top of the list is New York's Scarsdale School District ($107, 013) which serves students just north of New York City. A distant second, paying almost $30,000 less, is Massachusetts' Nantucket Public Schools ($73,700). Vermont, Maine and New Hampshire were all similar to each other. The Rutland City Public Schools is the highest in Vermont at $54,300; Westbrook Schools (near Portland) is Maine's highest at $57,340; and Stratham (Southwest of Portsmouth) Administrative Unit 16 is New Hampshire highest at $54,810.