VHB has announced that Meghan Lout has joined the VHB’s South Burlington, Vermont office as an Environmental Scientist. Meg brings over ten years of professional experience in wildlife biology, with a focus on avian and bat ecology and research. Most of her experience relates to the design and implementation of pre and post-construction wildlife studies at proposed and operational wind facilities, although she has also worked on solar projects, oil and gas developments and natural gas pipelines.

Grace B. Pazdan, a consumer rights attorney at Vermont Legal Aid, has been awarded the prestigious Henry J. Sommer Scholarship for the 2016 National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA) Annual Convention to be held in San Francisco May 19-22, 2016.

Based in Vermont Legal Aid’s Montpelier office, Pazdan defends clients throughout Vermont against foreclosure and advocates for consumer rights.

Merritt & Merritt has announced that Andrew D. Grosvenor has joined the firm’s practice as a new Associate. Andrew began his career practicing corporate law with a mid-size New Hampshire law firm. At Vermont Law School, Andrew was Technology Editor of the Vermont Law Review and served as a judicial external to Justice James P. Bassett of the New Hampshire Supreme Court.

For over 26 years, Merritt & Merritt has collaborated with growth companies, as well as the angel, venture capital and private equity investors that support them, to build and guide their businesses.

Vermont Mutual Insurance Group has announced that Mark J McDonnell has been promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Group. Mr. McDonnell is an industry veteran with 30 years of property casualty experience, having held a variety of management positions of increasing responsibility with both regional and national carriers prior to joining Vermont Mutual as Senior Vice President in 2014.

Certified nurse-midwife Julia Cook has joined Gifford’s team of midwives, and is now seeing patients in our Randolph and Berlin clinics.

Cook received a Master of Science in Nursing from Frontier Nursing University in Hyden, KY. Her clinical interests include adolescent care, patient education, and helping women to be active participants in their ob/gyn care.

Rebecca Sananes has joined VPR News as the Upper Valley reporter. Sananes will deepen VPR’s coverage of the Upper Valley and Northeast Kingdom.

Lyndon State’s News7 has again been recognized by the Boston/New England Chapter of the National Association of Television Arts & Sciences. The organization selected Lyndon State College's daily student newscast and two stories that appeared on those newscasts for awards in their 2016 College/University Awards programs.