Bringing more than 25 years of marketing, management, and strategic business consulting experience in the corporate and non-profit fundraising sectors, Leslie Keefe will join the management team at Southwestern Vermont Health Care in January as its vice president of corporate development. Keefe, who is a Rutland native, most recently ran a successful consulting business focusing on organizational development, including strategic planning, governance, fundraising, training, and marketing.

David Provost, deputy commissioner of the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation’s Captive Insurance Division, has been named number one on Captive Review magazine’s “Power 50” list.

The magazine called him the most recognized person in the captive insurance world and praised him for his approachability, captive expertise and leadership. Up from number three in 2012, Provost’s guidance through the process of licensing Vermont’s 1,000th captive this past October “further reinforced his position as 2013’s premier captive figure,” the magazine wrote.

Northwestern Medical Center is pleased to announce that Diane Leach has accepted the position of Vice President of Quality and Medical Staff Services at the hospital.

Leach most recently worked at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington as the Nursing Director for Critical Care and Emergency Services. Leach had 30 years of experience at FAHC, beginning her career as a nurse and spending eight of her years in the Quality Department.

David Grippin, managing partner of Grippin Donlan Pinkham is pleased to announce that Jessica Taylor recently joined the firm as staff accountant.

Jess joined the firm in 2013, as a member of our tax and audit staff. She received her Master’s of Accountancy degree from the University of Vermont in 2011 and undergraduate degree in Biology – Neuroscience from Colby College in 2007. Jess currently serves on the Board of Directors of Dress for Success Burlington.

The Vermont Agricultural & Forest Products Development Board (VAFPDB) has announced the election of Lynn Coale to serve as chair of the board, and welcomes John Mandeville who will occupy the gubernatorial appointed seat of a person with expertise in rural economic development issues. The VAFPDB primarily operates as an advisory and policy board performing in-depth analyses of the gaps, barriers, and opportunities in the agricultural and forestry & forest products sectors that are either preventing or enhancing economic growth and sustainability within these sectors.

Emergency medicine physician Dr. A. Nicole Thran has joined Gifford Medical Center full-time, providing care in the Randolph hospital’s 24-hour Emergency Department.

A native of New York City, Dr. Than attended Tufts University in Medford, Mass., earning her bachelor’s degree in biology. She went on to medical school at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Her internship and residency in emergency medicine were at the University of Massachusetts in Worcester.

VTDigger.org, the online news site for vermont politics and public policy issues, has announced that Diane Zeigler of Montpelier has joined the VtDigger team as co-publisher. Zeigler comes to VTDigger from KSE Partners, a Montpelier communications and government affairs firm.