Current News

Only one state outperformed Vermont in eighth-grade math and only two states outperformed Vermont in fourth-grade math on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), according to results released by the US Department of Education today.
Highlights for Vermont results include:
· Vermont students were only outperformed by students in New Hampshire and Massachusetts on the fourth-grade exam.
· Vermont students were only outperformed by students in Massachusetts on the eighth-grade exam.
· Vermont was one of only five states or jurisdictions to show growth in scores in both grade levels, and all three New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) participants were included in that group of five (Vermont, Rhode Island and New Hampshire). The other two were Nevada and the District of Columbia.

VeriFone Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: PAY) has announced that its PAYware Transact has been selected as the PCI-compliant payment engine for the Vermont Systems (VSI) RecTrac facilities management system that is deployed worldwide to US Army and Navy recreational facilities.
VSI, of Essex Junction, VT, provides software for managing recreation and parks operations for municipal, county, state and federal military governmental entities. Its global deployment to Army and Navy facilities supports a wide range of activities, from court and locker reservations to childcare, with comprehensive reporting and financial management capabilities.

Citizens Bank and City Market partnered with the Burlington Free Press for the fourth consecutive year in a food drive at participating schools known as Kids CAN Help. The food drive was designed to help raise awareness among school children that hunger is a year-round struggle for many families in our communities, especially with rising food and fuel prices.
The campaign running Oct. 12-16, encourages children at 26 participating schools to compete to collect the most food. The school that collects the most non-perishable items will be thanked in a special ceremony at the school. Last year, students at the Robinson School in Starksboro were the winner, collecting 1,014 lbs. of food, which averaged over 7 lbs. of food per student! The total amount of food collected from all the schools, Citizens Bank branches, City Market and the Burlington Free Press was 8,894 lbs.

Burlington, Vermont, is one of the top 10 places to find a "green job," according to a new study. Green Dream Jobs and green workforce development consultant Jim Cassio released data that shows the top green job titles posted by employers and in which cities over the past year - during the recession.

Although a plethora of studies show the potential for green jobs going forward, many note the dearth of data on current green jobs in the U.S. economy. Green Dream Jobs, online since 1996, collects concrete historical and current data on the job titles employers are actually looking to fill.

ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center, at the Leahy Center for Lake Champlain in Burlington, today welcomed US Senator Patrick Leahy, philanthropist Lois McClure, and other dignitaries, donors and supporters, for the launch of The Little Fund: Honoring George E Little’s Vision for ECHO’s Strategic Innovation and Growth. The comprehensive fundraising initiative will spawn capital improvements, new exhibits, and interactive spaces critical to ECHO’s mission.

The Upper Valley Haven, Inc in White River Junction has been awarded $250,000 by The Kresge Foundation as part of its effort to offset the effects of the recession. Feeding the hungry, assisting those least able to pursue a college degree, and advancing energy efficiency in low-income communities exemplify The Kresge Foundation's desire to improve the long-term life circumstances of the poor and, in response to the nation's severe economic contraction, bring some immediate relief to those in greatest need.
At their September board meeting the Trustees of the foundation approved 208 awards totaling $43,698,088 for nonprofit organizations in 26 states, the District of Columbia and South Africa in the areas of human services, education, environment, arts and culture, health and community development.

The Putney School, a college preparatory boarding high school in southern Vermont, cut the ribbon Saturday on its 16,800 square foot net-zero energy field house that will produce as much energy as it uses over the course of a year.There are only a handful of net-zero energy buildings in the United States—The Putney School Field House is the nation’s first net-zero energy secondary school building and Vermont’s first commercial net-zero energy building. Of the project’s $6 million budget, $5.1 million was spent on building construction.
“We want to show the world that net-zero energy technology for public buildings exists right now,” says Putney School Director Emily Jones. “It’s time to move net-zero energy buildings from the theoretical realm into reality.”

The Agency of Administration released Friday details of the Legislature-approved Retirement Incentive Program and Joint Fiscal Committee approved Labor Saving Plan. As a result, the administration plan calls for only 37 actual layoffs instead of upwards of 300 in order to save the state $7.4 million in the current fiscal year. The administration and the union had failed several times to reach agreement on a downsizing plan to avoid any layoffs throughout the summer. The administration had sought pay and benefit concessions this fiscal year and an agreement of a similar nature going into the next biennium. The union balked at pay cuts, instead offering similar savings through unpaid holidays and furloughs, but declined to look beyond FY 2010 and instead wait for negotiations on a new, two-year contract. The administration had sought some guarantee of savings going forward because what is expected to be a large state shortfall in revenue the next two years.

Former governor Madeleine Kunin, currently a James Marsh Professor-at-Large at the University of Vermont, has been selected as one of three recipients of the 2009 Eleanor Roosevelt Val-Kill Medal award given annually to individuals and organizations who live the values espoused by the former first lady in her public life including human rights, social justice, and racial and gender equality.
Gov. Kunin, former ambassador to Switzerland and the first woman in U.S. history to be re-elected governor three times, is being recognized for her "inspiring and energetic leadership and commitment to the principles that Mrs. Roosevelt championed for women, children and community," according to Dana vanderHeyden, co-chair of the Medals Ceremony and ERVK board member. Gov. Kunin was cited for her efforts to improve the quality of education by creating early education programs for low-income children and for establishing state-wide kindergarten programs for all public schools.

Plasan, a global leader in survivability and combat-proven armor solutions for vehicles, airborne platforms and personal protection, today announced it has won yet another contract for the delivery of 923 armor kits for the U.S. Army's MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV) as sub-contractor to Oshkosh Defense. Today's announcement of additional orders comes just one week after Plasan announced meeting a significant delivery milestone of 750 armor kits on the M-ATV contract.
Mr. Dan Ziv, CEO of Plasan, said of the contract: "Plasan continues to expand our operations, creating jobs and protecting warfighters. As soldiers building for soldiers, Plasan understands that these armor solutions are critically needed."

Seeing Lake Champlain from a different perspective Clean and Clear was reason to celebrate for over 150 Friends of Chittenden County Republican Legislators when they met October 7, on the shore of Lake Champlain. Vermont s top Republican, Governor Jim Douglas, was honored for initiating one of the most significant water quality plans the state has ever undertaken, Vermont s Clean and Clear Action Plan. The first comprehensive plan of its kind, Clean and Clear was introduced in 2003 with the goal of accelerating the reduction of phosphorus pollution in Lake Champlain and reducing related pollutants in waters, state wide.
The Burlington waterfront s ECHO Center, a program partner of Clean and Clear and whose exhibits, programs and activities revolve around environmental science, provided the backdrop to celebrate the protection of Vermont s waters.

The Board of Northwestern Medical Center has appointed Jill Berry Bowen as the hospital’s new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). A native of Maine, Berry Bowen most recently served as Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer at Mercy Hospital in Portland, ME. Before that, she was Chief Operating Officer for more than 10 years at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington, ME. Berry Bowen is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and has been an active leader in state and local health initiatives and community organizations. She has a master’s degree in nursing (MSN) and a master’s degree in business (MBA). Her official start date at NMC is still to be determined.