Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Education announced today that nominations are now open for 2025 Teacher of the Year program. All Vermonters are invited and encouraged to fill out a short form to nominate a teacher to apply to be Vermont’s next Teacher of the Year. The mission of the Vermont Teacher of the Year Program is to promote the teaching profession and recognize educators who are modeling exemplary teaching practice in Vermont’s schools. The 2024 Teacher of the Year is Aziza Malik. The nomination link will be open through Sunday, April 14. Nominees can be either self-nominated or nominated by someone in their community. Nominated teachers can submit their application starting Monday, April 15 through Monday, May 13.

Vermont State Police The Vermont State Police has obtained an arrest warrant for a Massachusetts man on a murder charge arising from a fatal stabbing Feb. 6, 2024, in Pownal. The suspect is identified as Elizah Coppedge, 18, of Chicopee. He is facing a charge of second-degree murder in the killing of Casey Gras, 36, of Bennington. A Vermont Superior Court judge in Bennington County signed the warrant this week and ordered that Coppedge be held without bail upon his arrest. Coppedge is described as Black man, 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighing 200 pounds, with brown eyes and brown hair. A photo of him is attached to this release. His last known whereabouts were in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, on the night of Feb. 6. The police investigation indicates this was an isolated incident that arose from a drug-related dispute.

Vermont Business Magazine The National Institute for Innovation and Technology—the nation's leader in semiconductor talent pipeline development and U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) national Intermediary responsible for establishing and expanding Registered Apprenticeships (RAs) throughout semiconductor and nanotechnology-related industry supply chains—on Thursday awarded two semiconductor industry giants, GlobalFoundries and Applied Materials, Inc. for their work in establishing semiconductor manufacturing RAs. Representatives from both companies were presented with the awards during "Texas Transistors: Building a Stronger Semiconductor Talent Pipeline," a live-panel event held in Austin, TX, with stakeholders in the semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries. GlobalFoundries was awarded for instituting the nation's first semiconductor Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP), which graduated its first apprentices last year at the company's manufacturing facility in Malta, New York. The company also has a successful RAP at its Essex Junction, Vermont, manufacturing facility.

by Busy Anderson, Community News Service The shoulders of Ferry Road are patched with gravel and uneven pavement. Parked cars overtake sections on either side. For pedestrians, though, those obstructed shoulders are the only option for navigating Charlotte’s West Village. Charlotte has debated the addition of sidewalks in its West Village for more than a decade. The quarter mile between Greenbush Road and state Route 7 contains Charlotte Town Hall, a U.S. post office, Charlotte Public Library, the Old Brick Store, Charlotte Children’s Center and Charlotte Senior Center. Now, the sidewalk topic is likely to resurface with two state and regional grants worth more than $85,000 allocated last year for Charlotte infrastructure improvements. The funds for the town’s Village Master Planning Project will determine land use regulations and promote “smart growth” development, under the guidance of community input. 

Vermont Business Magazine Join Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility and their panel of experts on April 15 for this important discussion exploring proposed revenue strategies and their impact on Vermont. One of the critical questions emerging from Vermont’s 2024 legislative session is how to address our state budget. Vermont is once again experiencing budgetary constraints reminiscent of pre-COVID fiscal challenges as lawmakers work with a budget no longer infused with pandemic-era federal aid. VBSR and our allies continue to advocate for policy shifts that address the urgent and essential changes needed to support our people, planet, and prosperity. We also recognize that to meet this vision for Vermont additional revenue will need to be generated. 

Vermont Business Magazine Green Mountain Power (GMP) is making tremendous progress restoring power to more than 46,000 customers since high winds hit Vermont Wednesday, followed by heavy wet snow that is forecasted to continue into Friday. The Nor’easter is causing severe damage and new outages, even as crews make repairs in extremely tough conditions. The National Weather Service has extended the Winter Storm Watch into Friday due to the continuing storm conditions in Vermont. The Nor’easter is a large storm system affecting the entire northeast region, with damage leaving more than 630,000 customers without power regionwide.

Vermont Business Magazine On Wednesday, April 3, 2024, the Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB) approved Copley Hospital’s mid-year budget adjustment, granting a 7% rate increase effective this month. Copley initially sought a 12.7% increase in its current prices in January of this year. The motion, which was approved unanimously by the five-member board, includes a stipulation that Copley provide a three-year projection of expenses and an analysis of historic operating expense growth.

Vermont Business Magazine After gaining extensive experience creating programs in Seattle to help students with disabilities transition into the workforce, John Boyd came back to Vermont in 2019 to develop a similar model at U-32 Middle and High School. He established the U-32 High School Transition Academy and began working to form partnerships with local organizations, including Central Vermont Medical Center (CVMC). The Transition Academy at U-32 is a results-oriented program focusing on improving the academic and functional achievement of local Vermont students with disabilities. The program aims to facilitate their movement from school to post-school activities and provide connections to postsecondary education, integrated employment, including supported employment, and continuing adult education through the Washington Central Unified Union School District. 

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Peter Welch has secured $1,776,000 in federal appropriations to expand the SASH (Support and Services at Home) embedded mental health program across Vermont. The program is currently operating in affordable housing and serving low-income older Vermonters and those with disabilities. This expansion will provide access to on-site mental health support for up to 1,200 participants, in partnership with the local designated community mental health agencies within the Vermont Care Partners network around the state. This embedded mental health program in SASH housing sites statewide is modeled after the successful pilot between Cathedral Square and the Howard Center, which added a full-time SASH Emotional Wellness Clinician (SEWC) to two housing sites in Burlington, improving access for older adults to receive emotional and mental health services, while diminishing the stigma and other barriers often experienced with older adults accessing these services. 

Vermont Outdoor Business Alliance Outdoor businesses continue to be a force behind the economic and social impact that outdoor recreation provides the Green Mountain State. Together, we have the opportunity to chart a path forward for the outdoor activities and sector growth we want to realize in 2030. Over the coming months, VOBA is gathering input from the outdoor sector as a partner in Move Forward Together Vermont (MFTV), a statewide planning initiative to create a shared vision for Vermont's outdoor recreation future and a set of priorities and action steps for the next five years. Register for the upcoming in person discussion with peer-to-peer sharing and networking: MFTV 2030: Outdoor Business Opportunities and Career Pathways. April 12, 12:30 - 3:00 pm, Community College of Vermont, Montpelier. 

Vermont Business Magazine Average gasoline prices in Vermont are $3.37 per gallon, unchanged from last week. They're 15 cents/g higher than a month ago and 1 cent/g lower than this time last year. The lowest price in the state is $3.15/g in Rutland, while the highest is $3.59/g in Burlington. The national average price of gasoline is $3.57, up 3 cents/g from last week. The national average is up 21 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 7 cents per gallon higher than a year ago.

Vermont Business Magazine With spring cleaning underway in some parts of the state, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) wants to remind Vermonters to follow a few guidelines for on-premise or backyard open burning. DEC in general discourages burning. However, on-premise or backyard burning of brush, deadwood, or tree cuttings collected from normal property maintenance is allowed under the Vermont Air Pollution Control Regulations, as long as no public or private nuisance, such as excessive smoke, is created. DEC asks those who burn to follow their guidelines during backyard burning.