Current News

Vermont Energy Education Program (VEEP) is teaming up with the Alliance for Climate Education (ACE) to help Vermont high school students learn more about climate change and do something about it. This month, ACE is bringing their award-winning, all-school assembly program to eight high schools throughout the state. The one-hour multimedia presentation is designed to inspire individual actions and school-wide efforts that will reduce energy use, shrink the school’s carbon footprint, and save the school money.
‘The ACE presentation is an extremely effective way to educate students about climate change and inspire them to take action,’ notes Wendy McArdle, Managing Director of the Vermont Energy Education Program (VEEP). ‘The fast-paced presentation includes colorful images, pop music, current events, humor, and even the opportunity to text. It really keeps the kids interested and engaged. I’ve never seen 500 teenagers so riveted!’

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin today joined hundreds of Rutland County residents in Killington to celebrate the opening of Route 4, a critical east-west roadway that until today was closed to through traffic due to damage from Tropical Storm Irene.
Route 4 between Rutland and Killington on August 29, 2011. Photo courtesy Steve Costello, CVPS.
Governor Shumlin was joined by Vermont Agency of Transportation Secretary Brian Searles and Department of Tourism and Marketing Commissioner Megan Smith to celebrate the pride everyone has that road crews repaired Route 4's severe damage in just 19 days, and to spread the message that Vermont has recovered significantly, and just in time for foliage season.

The Vermont Department of Labor announced today the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for August 2011 was 5.9 percent, an increase of two-tenths of a percent from the July rate. Compared to a year ago, the rate is lower by one-tenth of a percentage point. Despite the increase, Vermont still has one of the lowest state unemployment rates in the country and is well below the national average of 9.1 percent. Additionally, the current state rate is well below Vermont’s recent high of 7.3 percent percent in May of 2009 which was during the height of the last recession.
The employment numbers do not include the bulk of Hurricane Irene-related impacts, as the storm hit on August 28. However, the first two weeks of September saw a spike in unemployment claims.

Philip A Conroy, Jr, EdD, will be inducted as the 18th president of Vermont Technical College on Friday, September 30, 2011 at 2 pm in Judd Hall on the Randolph Center campus. Delegates representing colleges and universities from all of New England will join VTC faculty, staff and students in the academic procession and investiture ceremony.
Dr. Conroy comes to Vermont Tech from Mount Ida College in Newton, Massachusetts, where he served as vice president of enrollment management and marketing, responsible for admissions, financial aid, marketing, publications, the web site, public relations, and retention related activities.
President Conroy, who has served in a variety of roles at Mount Ida since 1997, is an internationally recognized expert on higher education management, particularly in the areas of strategic enrollment management and institutional advancement.

Vermont hospital budgets will increase by a system-wide total of 3.8 percent for fiscal year 2012 beginning October 1, 2011, after excluding this year’s increased taxes on hospitals, according to individual hospital budgets approved today by Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration Commissioner Steve Kimbell.
‘Compared to the average annual system-wide increase of 7.2 percent over the span of the past five years, the rate of increase is definitely moving in the right direction,’ said Kimbell.
Budgeted increases ranged from $1,193,974 for Gifford Hospital to $43,324,991 for Fletcher Allen. Meanwhile, Mt Ascutney Hospital's budget shows a decrease of -$1,465,403. The approved system-wide rate increase last year was 5.44 percent.
Information about individual hospital budgets is below. Also included are the FY 2012 and 2011 budgets.

Speaker Shap Smith today announced the appointment of Representative Michael Fisher as the chair of the House Committee on Health Care. Fisher, the current vice chair of the committee, replaces former Representative Mark Larson who resigned from the legislature in August to become the Commissioner of the Department of Vermont Health Access. Representative Sarah Copeland-Hanzas will become the committee’s vice chair.
‘Mike has been a leader in the House for over a decade. His expertise in the field of health and human services is vast, and his enthusiasm to tackle the barriers to the access of quality affordable health care for Vermonters is unparalleled,’ said Speaker Smith. ‘The legislature made great strides last year and Mike’s leadership was crucial to those efforts. His leadership will be needed as we continue to move forward with health care reform.’

The stage is set for a beautiful foliage season as early fall color begins to emerge across Vermont’s higher elevations and low-lying areas.
With the current forecast calling for cool nights through the weekend and the combination of adequate soil moisture and healthy green leaves, Vermont foresters are predicting an excellent fall season. In the early stages of fall foliage, the best color can generally be found in higher elevations, the northern sections of the state, and in low-lying areas where red maples are the early sentinels of the seasonal change.
‘The cool nights that are in the forecast may pop a little more color our way by the end of the week,’ says Ginger Anderson, Chief of Forest Management for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. Early morning temperatures are forecasted to dip into the upper 30s this week.

The Kelly Brush Century Ride raised a record amount and drew the largest turnout in the six year history of the annual event held in Middlebury, Vermont. The 100-mile ride held on Sept. 10, raised over $275,000 for spinal cord injury prevention, adaptive sports and ski racing safety. A total of 721 riders participated in the scenic ride through the Champlain Valley.

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development today awarded $2,475,000 to protect children and families living in Vermont from potentially dangerous lead-based paint and other home health and safety hazards.
The grant funding announced today is part of $93 million HUD is awarding nationwide to clean up lead and other health hazards in nearly 7,000 high-risk homes, train workers in lead safety methods, and increase public awareness about childhood lead poisoning. Lead is a known toxin that can impair children’s development and have effects lasting into adulthood.
‘Protecting the health and well-being of children is a top priority for HUD. We know that housing conditions directly affect the health of its occupants,’ said HUD Regional Administrator Barbara Fields. ‘This grant will help Vermont communities protect families from lead exposure and other significant health and safety hazards.’

The Vermont Money Smart Child initiative was announced today’as school, State government, business and non-profit officials underscored the need for parents to actively teach their kids about money.

Through a three-way partnership between the Vermont Jump$tart Coalition, State Treasurer’s Office, and People’s United Bank, the groundwork has been laid to reach more than 11,000 families with resources parents can use to instruct their children in personal finance. Fifty-seven elementary, middle school and high schools located throughout the state have requested copies of the booklet, ‘How to Raise a Money Smart Child’A Parent’s Guide.’ The schools will distribute the guides to parents this fall.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin today requested a Public Assistance Declaration for Grand Isle County, with damage estimates finalized on Wednesday exceeding the requirement to meet the federal threshold for assistance. If approved, every county in Vermont will have qualified for federal financial help repairing roads, bridges and other public infrastructure damaged in Tropical Storm Irene.
‘Our state and federal assessment for Grand Isle County found extensive damage to the infrastructure, well above the FEMA requirements for receiving the federal match,’ said Gov. Shumlin. ‘We hope to receive approval of this declaration quickly to prevent delays in repairing damage in Grand Isle.’

Governor's office. 9.15.2011

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin joined Comcast officials today for the launch of Internet Essentials, an ambitious and comprehensive broadband adoption program. The Internet Essentials program addresses three of the primary barriers to broadband adoption that research has identified ‘ 1) a lack of understanding of how the Internet is relevant and useful; 2) the cost of a home computer, and 3) the cost of the Internet service. Available to low-income families across Vermont with children who are eligible to receive a free lunch under the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the goal of Internet Essentials is to help close the digital divide and ensure more Americans benefit from all the Internet has to offer.