Vermont State University, a union of three struggling colleges, welcomed its first class last week. But with enrollment flagging, the impact of the merger remains uncertain. Students arriving on the former campuses of Northern Vermont University, Castleton University and Vermont Technical College for the start of classes last week were greeted with banners, T-shirts and pennants bearing a different name: Vermont State University, accompanied by the slogan “We Are One.”
The departure from the area of Dr. Rankin and his wife, Judy, to settle into a new home in Maine, has prompted many in the northern Vermont healthcare community to