Pop-up community universities may spread to other towns BETHEL — Last March, Bethel University launched and became the first community pop-up university of its kind. Next year it’s coming back – and spreading to other nearby towns. Bethel University is a community pop-up university. For one month last year, Bethel University offered free “mini-courses” that…

LUDLOW – Okemo Mountain Resort opened for skiing and riding on Sunday, Nov. 16. Four Okemo Mountain School students were the first in line to earn first-chair bragging rights. They ripped through a banner that welcomed snow-loving guests to the start of winter and Okemo’s 2014/2015 season. Okemo opened with top-to-bottom skiing and riding on…

Green Mountain Power President-CEO Mary Powell was recently named one of three national finalists for the Power-Gen 2014 Woman of the Year Award. The Woman of the Year nominees were judged in three categories, with the most weight given to how the nominee advanced the power generation industry. In addition, judges considered the impact that…

Vermont PBS’ web-original series, “Makin’ Friends With Ryan Miller,” announces Season Two on vermontpbs.org. The series, which launched its first season in May, shadows Miller, a noted film composer and lead singer of the band Guster, in his quest to make friends in his newly adopted home of Vermont. After relocating from New York City…

WOODSTOCK–On Thursday, Nov. 13, Lucy Mackenzie Humane Society joined the Village of Woodstock police in the rescue of nearly two dozen seriously malnourished horses from a Woodstock farm. A warrant granting search and seizure rights for the endangered animals–mares, geldings, and stallions of various ages–was approved earlier in the week after the organization ask the…

By Laura Krantz, VTDigger.org A Rutland man who was quarantined for the past three weeks since he returned from West Africa was released Monday, Nov. 17, the state health department said. Peter Italia, 61, was transported Monday to an undisclosed location, he said via a private Facebook message. Italia said he will not live in…

By Polly Lynn KILLINGTON — On Tuesday, Nov. 11, the Police and Fire Departments presented their budget drafts to the Killington Selectboard. Police Chief Whit Montgomery presented a Power Point presentation with statistics on the past year’s policing efforts. He showed charts and graphs of call volume analysis, ticket analysis and officer incidents analysis as well…

By Stephen Seitz KILLINGTON – Vito Resenas, Andrew Salamon, and Steve Finneron are the three Killington residents who have been named to the Killington Volunteer Fire Department Facilities Review Committee. Killington’s fire department no longer meets state standards, or the needs of the department. “We have to assemble before Thanksgiving to establish an agenda and…

By Robin Alberti On Friday, Nov 14, the Rutland Town Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) sponsored a creative fundraiser, “Stuck For A Buck.” The students were really attached to the idea of taping their principals to the wall. “Stuck For A Buck” raised close to $500 in less than two hours for the PTO. School Principal…

RUTLAND — On Nov. 13, two weeks before she was diagnosed with breast cancer, Jackie Dutil purchased two pair of socks. The socks, made in Northfield by Darn Tough Vermont, were a practical necessity, but soon proved to be an inspiring choice. “While receiving chemo treatments at the Foley Cancer, I kept noticing two little…

Max Landon walks up the Peak Walkway after this first day on the slopes for the season. Last year, 6-year-old Landon rode over 100 days! Photo by Robin Alberti

By Stephen Seitz KILLINGTON – No, there isn’t blood on the snow. Carnagecon, now in its second year at Killington Mountain Resort, brings game enthusiasts together for a weekend of gaming, socializing, and general fun, Nov. 7-9. The annual convention began in 1998 at the Radisson Inn in West Lebanon, N.H., and has grown steadily…

By Lee J. Kahrs PROCTOR — Voters in Proctor approved a ballot question Tuesday that will shift local government to a town manager format by a vote of 307-213. Former Selectwoman Sue Feenick initiated the petition in order to get the question on the November ballot. She said she met many like-minded voters while gathering…

By Hilary Niles, VTDigger.org Almost all school districts in the Chittenden East Supervisory Union will merge next summer, voters decided Tuesday, Nov. 4. In Bolton, Jericho, Richmond and Underhill, poll results showed overwhelming support for a voluntary unification. All schools in the district except Brewster Pierce Elementary School in Huntington will be controlled by one…

Awarded an “A” in Fall 2014 Hospital Safety Score RUTLAND — Rutland Regional Medical Center was honored with an “A” grade in the Fall 2014 Hospital Safety Score, which rates how well hospitals protect patients from errors, injuries and infections. The Hospital Safety Score is compiled under the guidance of the nation’s leading experts on patient…