Tech Tidbits From Around NH

Jenny Levy, vice president of people, community and environment at Hanover-based industrial cutting products manufacturer Hypertherm, has been named the next president of the Hypertherm Owners’ Philanthropic Endeavors (HOPE) Foundation. She succeeds Barbara Couch, who founded the nonprofit a decade ago. The HOPE Foundation provides money for nonprofit organizations and projects in the Upper Valley. The three focuses of the organization are STEM education, substance use disorders and early childhood development.

Southern New Hampshire University has launched its first MicroBachelors programs in collaboration with edX, a massive open online course provider created by Harvard University and MIT. Offered at $498 per course, the new SNHUx MicroBachelors programs are Business Analytics Foundations and Data Management with Python and SQL. MicroBachelors programs are a first credit-backed stackable credential, The SNHU programs are worth up to six credits apiece. For more information, visit the SNHUx pageon edX.

New Hampshire is one of four states receiving a federal grant to prepare students for careers in fields related to science, technology engineering and math. The $2.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education will fund the New Hampshire Out-of-School-Time Career Pathways Initiative, which will work with industry partners and the Conway, Hinsdale, Laconia and Manchester school districts. The five-year program is designed to help students earn industry-recognized credentials for remote work and to complete paid internships in in-demand fields.

Sara Fung, a student at The Founders Academy charter school in Manchester, has received the National NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing. The award, presented by the National Center for Women & Information Technology recognizes students in the 9^ththrough 12th grades who self-identify as women, genderqueer, or non-binary for their computing-related achievements and interests, as part of an effort to encourage a diverse range of students to choose careers in technology.

Merchants Fleet in Hooksett says it plans to add 12,500 new electric vans for use in the delivery of goods and services. The company will get the electric light commercial EV600 vehicles from BrightDrop, a new business launched by General Motors, which itself recently announced that it would only be selling electric vehicles by 2035. Merchants Fleet said it expects BrightDrop EV600s to be available for clients in early 2023. It hopes to have 50% of its mobility fleet portfolio electric by 2025, and 50% of its managed fleet portfolio fully electric by 2030.

Claremont-based IT provider Red River has been awarded a contract with the California Department of Technology’s California Network and Telecommunications program to provide cloud-based data network and communication services to the state. Red River will provide voice over internet services through Cisco’s Unified Communications Manager Cloud platform.