Current News

Responding to internal complaints about the lack of financial oversight and poor governance at an Upper Valley charity, the Attorney General’s Office filed a petition in Windsor Superior Court to remove members of the Emerge Family Advocates governing board for violating their duties as board members or for gross abuse of discretion. The Attorney General also requested a preliminary injunction to halt Emerge’s provision of services and prevent it from spending more charitable assets until the superior court appoints a special trustee to review Emerge’s current finances and has received the trustee’s recommended course of action.

The National Park Service (NPS) recently selected RSG, based in White River Junction, to serve as the nation’s lead contractor for visitor use and social science research in the national parks through a five-year, up to $20 million contract. This provides RSG with a unique opportunity to help the NPS with the stewardship of America’s national treasures, the national parks. The National Park Service’s mission is to preserve “the natural and cultural resources and values of the national park system for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.” From managing snowmobiling use in Yellowstone and rafting on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, to traffic congestion and crowding in Yosemite Valley, RSG will work with the NPS through this contract to help address the agency’s most complex and high-profile management challenges.

A $600,000 award from the US Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) is the final investment in the Flexible Capital Fund’s capitalization goal of $4 million. Known as Vermont’s only royalty financing fund, the Flexible Capital Fund L3C (Flex Fund), provides flexible debt in the form of revenue-sharing loans and technical assistance to growth stage value-added agriculture, forest products, and clean technology companies with socially responsible missions.

Vermont ranks number one in energy efficiency according to a study undertaken by wallethub.com. Energy constitutes one of the biggest expenses for consumers. The study was based on “home-related energy efficiency” and “car-related energy efficiency.” According to wallethub, the average American household spends more than $2,200 a year on energy bills, almost half of which goes to heating and cooling expenses.

Vermont's eight mayors today endorsed Governor Peter Shumlin for a third term. The mayors represent municipalities from around the state and political points of view from Republican to Democrat to Independent. The governor has frequently been seen with the mayors at many events, groundbreakings and ribbon cuttings over the last few years and frequently cites their accomplishments in downtown development projects. In 2012, Shumlin received the endorsement of seven of Vermont's mayors. The mayors endorsing Shumlin this year are Bill Benton, Vergennes; Liz Gamache, St Albans; John Hollar, Montpelier; Thom Lauzon, Barre; Chris Louras, Rutland; Paul Monette, Newport; Mike O’Brien, Winooski; Miro Weinberger, Burlington.

The Jay Peak Biomedical Research Park received an Act 250 Permit in September authorizing construction of the 84,934-square-foot, four-story, AnC Bio bio-medical manufacturing facility at 172 Bogner Drive in Newport, according to the Northeastern Vermont Development Association. Work will begin in October and hundreds of area construction workers will be employed. AnC Bio will conduct cutting-edge research on stem cells; manufacture artificial organs like portable dialysis machines and heart-lung machines; and operate clean rooms. The building will be FDA certified throughout the construction process and biomedical projects that will take place in the facility will be FDA approved before work begins.

Q Burke Mountain Resort:

Dealer.com, a Dealertrack Technologies solution (Nasdaq: TRAK), proudly announced it has been selected for the third time as one of OUTSIDE's Best Places to Work 2014. This year, the company ranked No. 84. Each year, OUTSIDE recognizes the top 100 companies in the United States that help their employees strike the ideal balance between work and play. These companies encourage employees to lead an active lifestyle, are eco-conscious, and prioritize giving back to the community.

OUTSIDE noted Dealer.com's emphasis on full-body holistic fitness, recreational sports and health facilities as well as the locally-sourced food choices on-site. Employees stay active and healthy by participating in on-site fitness classes like CrossFit, playing on the indoor tennis courts or outdoor sand beach tennis court, or enjoying the bike path along Lake Champlain. In winter months, the company offers discounted ski/ride passes to several local mountain resorts.

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.