VPR News

Last Tuesday, Gov. Phil Scott and the Agency of Commerce and Community Development announced the creation of the Economic Mitigation and Recovery Task Force . This hour, we will talk with leadership and team members about what they're doing to help move Vermonters and businesses toward reopening sectors of the economy.

Updated 7:10 p.m. Vermont State Colleges System Chancellor Jeb Spaulding has withdrawn a controversial recommendation to close Northern Vermont University's campuses in Johnson and Lyndon, as well as the Vermont Technical College campus in Randolph.

How food assistance programs are preparing to help a growing number of Vermonters. Plus, the latest COVID-19 numbers, and a birthday party.

A superior court judge heard arguments on April 21 in Windham County about whether the court should consider a detainee’s medical vulnerability to COVID-19 and the increased risk of infection behind bars when setting bail pre-trial. The case was brought by defendant Frank Sanville and has been consolidated with those brought by other defendants.

Champlain College , in Burlington, has a new president. The college announced today that Benjamin Ola. Akande will lead the school starting on July 1. Akande has a PhD in economics and currently serves as the Assistant Vice Chancellor for International Affairs-Africa, and the Associate Director of the Global Health Center at Washington University, in St. Louis. He grew up in Nigeria, and first came to live in the United States to go to college 40 years ago, at the age of 17.

Record numbers of people have filed for unemployment in Vermont due to the COVID-19 pandemic — officials estimate the unemployment rate could be at least 20%. During the week of April 11, there were nearly 41,000 claims filed with the Department of Labor

The coronavirus has touched every aspect of our lives, including — and for some, especially — our finances. Vermonters are facing job losses, an increased reliance on food shelves , backlogs for unemployment benefits , and ballooning grocery bills . We're talking about navigating personal finances and a changing financial picture amidst the pandemic.

When Gov. Scott called a state of emergency in March, towns across Vermont responded locally to the COVID-19 outbreak.

In an ideal world, the best way to determine who in the country has the new coronavirus would be to simply test everyone. So far, though, the United States does not have the capability to do that and has been mostly focused on testing people who are symptomatic or find themselves in specific risky situations.

As the coronavirus pandemic inflicts a mounting toll on the Vermont economy, state officials have begun to develop a “mass feeding plan” for residents who can no longer afford to put food on the table.

Wednesday marks the 50th annual Earth Day, and what better way to celebrate than with a (socially distanced) citizen science activity the whole family can enjoy? This hour, we learn about several nature-focused science initiatives across the state, including the Vermont Spring Backyard BioBlitz and Vermont eBird , and we also hear from you.

How one town government is responding to the COVID-19 crisis. Plus, covering prisons during a pandemic, and a traffic jam to protest the proposed closure of three state college campuses.

Facing financial headwinds and an uncertain future after the COVID-19 pandemic, the chancellor of the Vermont State College system made a dramatic recommendation last week: closing Northern Vermont University, both the Lyndon and Johnson campuses, and the Vermont Tech campus in Randolph Center. We talk with chancellor Jeb Spaulding about his proposal, the reaction to it and hear from students and others who'd be affected if the closure goes through.

Vermont's major utilities have received millions of dollars from the federal government under a program designed to keep paychecks flowing at small businesses.

A vote originally scheduled for Monday on a plan to close three campuses in the Vermont State Colleges System has been postponed. Chancellor Jeb Spaulding said closing Northern Vermont University’s campuses in Johnson and Lyndon, as well as Vermont Technical College’s campus in Randolph will be necessary to address budget gaps caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Spaulding has said there is no backup plan. Ben Luce, who teaches physics at NVU , organized a protest in the form of a car parade in