Worcester Business Journal
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Your business news source for Central Massachusetts. Available in print, online, and in person.
WBJ 2025 Champions of Health Care: For the past decade, Kiritsy has been doing exactly that at the West Boylston office: greeting each patient with warmth and respect.
Champions of Health Care: Kiritsy brightens everyone's day
Meridith Kiritsy understands how daunting physical therapy can be for patients. That’s why at Central Mass Physical Therapy & Wellness, she makes it her mission to be an upbeat presence putting…
wbjournal.com
December 9, 2025 at 11:20 PM
WBJ 2025 Champions of Health Care: For the past decade, Kiritsy has been doing exactly that at the West Boylston office: greeting each patient with warmth and respect.
WBJ Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Over the past five and a half years at MassHire Central Region Workforce Board, Mendelsohn has written grant applications generating more than $21 million in awards.
Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Bruce Mendelsohn
Bruce Mendelsohn joined the U.S. Army motivated by his family's history of military service.
wbjournal.com
December 9, 2025 at 10:20 PM
WBJ Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Over the past five and a half years at MassHire Central Region Workforce Board, Mendelsohn has written grant applications generating more than $21 million in awards.
"The first llama I ever met, kissed me. I was at a llama bazaar in Vermont and when I turned around, I got kissed."
Q&A: 350 pounds of excitement at Hubbardston alpaca farm
Founded in 2010, Plain View Farm in Hubbardston is the embodiment of Keith Tetreault’s lifelong love of alpacas and llamas. Each interaction with the animals brought him joy, inspiring him […]
wbjournal.com
December 9, 2025 at 8:45 PM
"The first llama I ever met, kissed me. I was at a llama bazaar in Vermont and when I turned around, I got kissed."
BeneCare Dental Plans, a Pennsylvania-based dental insurance company, is closing its Worcester office and laying off 50 workers at the site, after a company contract with the state was ended prematurely.
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wbjournal.com/article/afte...
After losing state contract, dental insurance firm to shutter Worcester office
The layoffs come after the state announced in October it would transition back to Wellesley-based DentaQuest as its third-party administrator for dental services.
wbjournal.com
December 9, 2025 at 6:20 PM
BeneCare Dental Plans, a Pennsylvania-based dental insurance company, is closing its Worcester office and laying off 50 workers at the site, after a company contract with the state was ended prematurely.
wbjournal.com/article/afte...
wbjournal.com/article/afte...
The 8,400-square-foot parcel contains what was originally a three-family house built in 1895, according to City of Worcester property records.
Holy Cross buys off-campus student rental house for $2.2M with plans for faculty housing
The property at 50 College St. will remain on the City’s tax rolls, said Holy Cross Director of Public Relations Nicoleta Jordan.
wbjournal.com
December 9, 2025 at 6:15 PM
The 8,400-square-foot parcel contains what was originally a three-family house built in 1895, according to City of Worcester property records.
Instead of searching for Segil’s replacement, the nonprofit opted to close its doors and transition models due to what it refers to as a challenging period for small nonprofits.
Worcester nonprofit to close, transition to legacy fund following leader’s departure
ONE Worcester, a nonprofit offering free consulting and coaching services to fellow Worcester-area nonprofits, is closing as the organization has decided to shift to a legacy fund model.
wbjournal.com
December 9, 2025 at 5:25 PM
Instead of searching for Segil’s replacement, the nonprofit opted to close its doors and transition models due to what it refers to as a challenging period for small nonprofits.
The complex, owned by an entity managed by FPA Multifamily, sold the site at 328 Greenwood St. to an entity managed by Bechara Fren in a transaction finalized on Thursday.
wbjournal.com/article/larg...
wbjournal.com/article/larg...
Large California investment firm sells Worcester apartments to local landlord for $14M
The 72-unit Flats at Merrill Pond apartment complex in Worcester is under new ownership, following its sale for $14 million to a prominent landlord in Central Massachusetts. The complex, owned […]
wbjournal.com
December 9, 2025 at 4:50 PM
The complex, owned by an entity managed by FPA Multifamily, sold the site at 328 Greenwood St. to an entity managed by Bechara Fren in a transaction finalized on Thursday.
wbjournal.com/article/larg...
wbjournal.com/article/larg...
A couple months ago, Margaret Wickens Pearce received a string of calls her phone kept flagging as potential spam. After swatting a number away to voicemail, Pearce finally received a text from someone from the Chicago-based MacArthur Foundation.
Q&A with the MacArthur genius from Clark University
A Citizen Potawatomi Nation tribal member, today she owns Studio 1:1 in Maine, creating maps that highlight Indigenous land: telling stories of travel, collaboration, erased narratives, and…
wbjournal.com
December 8, 2025 at 10:40 PM
A couple months ago, Margaret Wickens Pearce received a string of calls her phone kept flagging as potential spam. After swatting a number away to voicemail, Pearce finally received a text from someone from the Chicago-based MacArthur Foundation.
WBJ 2025 Champions of Health Care: When Shanan Stratis talks about her career in nursing and education, the first word that comes to mind is care.
Champions of Health Care: Stratis brings compassion and innovation to QCC
For nearly three decades, Stratis has built her work around caring for patients, students, and the Greater Worcester community. Today, as assistant dean of healthcare at Quinsigamond Community…
wbjournal.com
December 8, 2025 at 9:45 PM
WBJ 2025 Champions of Health Care: When Shanan Stratis talks about her career in nursing and education, the first word that comes to mind is care.
WBJ Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Helder Machado joined the U.S. Army to get money for college through the GI Bill. What he gained was far more valuable.
Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Helder Machado
Over 32 years of service, Helder Machado became a combat veteran, received the Combat Infantryman's Badge, and served overseas in Iraq with the highly decorated Third Infantry Division.
wbjournal.com
December 8, 2025 at 8:30 PM
WBJ Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Helder Machado joined the U.S. Army to get money for college through the GI Bill. What he gained was far more valuable.
Bay State Bank has tapped former Clinton Savings Bank executive Richard Hayward to be the Worcester-based institutions’ new chief financial officer.
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wbjournal.com/article/bay-...
December 8, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Bay State Bank has tapped former Clinton Savings Bank executive Richard Hayward to be the Worcester-based institutions’ new chief financial officer.
wbjournal.com/article/bay-...
wbjournal.com/article/bay-...
November’s score was 9.2 points lower than the immediate post-election score of 57.7 in November 2024.
Mass. business confidence has dropped 16% since November 2024
While Massachusetts’ business confidence ticked slightly upward in November, it marked the commonwealth’s ninth consecutive month in pessimistic territory.
wbjournal.com
December 8, 2025 at 6:00 PM
November’s score was 9.2 points lower than the immediate post-election score of 57.7 in November 2024.
Concord-based real estate firm Arris Partners has made another purchase in Worcester’s Green Island neighborhood, buying the site of a 19,420-square-foot warehouse for $2.4 million.
Arris Partners buys second Canal District warehouse site for $2.4M
“It was a natural extension of a property we already owned,” said John Garofalo, manager and co-founder of Arris Partners.
wbjournal.com
December 8, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Concord-based real estate firm Arris Partners has made another purchase in Worcester’s Green Island neighborhood, buying the site of a 19,420-square-foot warehouse for $2.4 million.
Despite changing federal attitudes and some grumbling from the development world, Worcester’s stretch codes are here to stay, said John Odell, chief sustainability officer for the City.
wbjournal.com/article/stic...
wbjournal.com/article/stic...
Sticking with sustainability: Despite business and political pressure, Worcester's specialized stretch codes for buildings are here to stay
In September 2023, the Worcester City Council voted 10-1 to adopt specialized stretch codes, part of its mission to create the greenest midsized city in the country. The most stringent […]
wbjournal.com
December 8, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Despite changing federal attitudes and some grumbling from the development world, Worcester’s stretch codes are here to stay, said John Odell, chief sustainability officer for the City.
wbjournal.com/article/stic...
wbjournal.com/article/stic...
WBJ Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Leblanc started at All One Credit Union in 2018 as a risk manager, overseeing and enhancing the credit union’s cybersecurity posture.
Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Andrew Leblanc
After his time in the Coast Guard, Leblanc started at All One Credit Union in 2018 as a risk manager.
wbjournal.com
December 5, 2025 at 9:25 PM
WBJ Notable Veteran Executives 2025: Leblanc started at All One Credit Union in 2018 as a risk manager, overseeing and enhancing the credit union’s cybersecurity posture.
Hayley Cotter of Mirick in Worcester shares what businesses should know about the state's pay transparency rules.
10 Things I know about ... Massachusetts pay transparency requirements
10) Growing trend. Massachusetts became the 14th state to enact a pay transparency law. The pay range disclosure requirement of the new law became effective on Oct. 29. 9) Applies […]
wbjournal.com
December 5, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Hayley Cotter of Mirick in Worcester shares what businesses should know about the state's pay transparency rules.
WBJ Champions of Health Care 2025: Penney joined the Gardner-based hospital system in 2019 as its chief certified registered nurse anesthetist, and in just four years time, she had become its CEO.
Champions of Health Care: Penney's dedication, honesty, and transparency led Heywood out of bankruptcy
Penney joined the Gardner-based hospital system in 2019 as its chief certified registered nurse anesthetist, and in just four years time, she had become its CEO.
wbjournal.com
December 5, 2025 at 6:45 PM
WBJ Champions of Health Care 2025: Penney joined the Gardner-based hospital system in 2019 as its chief certified registered nurse anesthetist, and in just four years time, she had become its CEO.
“Denise and I literally grew up just up the street from the Koopman Lumber store in Whitinsville,” Koopman wrote in the LinkedIn post announcing the change.
Koopman Lumber CEO’s sister to take over top role of family business from her brother
Dirk Koopman is stepping down as CEO of Koopman Lumber, with his sister Denise Brookhouse taking over the role.
wbjournal.com
December 5, 2025 at 6:20 PM
“Denise and I literally grew up just up the street from the Koopman Lumber store in Whitinsville,” Koopman wrote in the LinkedIn post announcing the change.
The program was designed by the National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity, a federally-managed initiative creating cybersecurity educational programs.
WPI launches bachelor’s degree program in cybersecurity
Worcester Polytechnic Institute has added a bachelor of science in cybersecurity to its degree offerings, nearly five years after the university introduced a cybersecurity master’s degree track in…
wbjournal.com
December 5, 2025 at 5:35 PM
The program was designed by the National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity, a federally-managed initiative creating cybersecurity educational programs.
A former equestrian farm on Route 20 in Marlborough is now a 140-unit apartment complex, as the site has begun welcoming new residents.
wbjournal.com/article/marl...
wbjournal.com/article/marl...
Marlborough 140-unit apartment complex opens first building, starts accepting residents
Vesa Apartments were built on the former site of the McGee Farm and Jordan Stables.
wbjournal.com
December 5, 2025 at 5:04 PM
A former equestrian farm on Route 20 in Marlborough is now a 140-unit apartment complex, as the site has begun welcoming new residents.
wbjournal.com/article/marl...
wbjournal.com/article/marl...
"It’s not just about earning a degree; it’s about discovering your potential through a community that truly cares," Jennifer Hernandez, CEO of GEM Marketing Solutions in Worcester, wrote of her time at QCC.
Viewpoint: How community college helped me find my voice and my purpose
Between working full time and raising an elementary school–aged child, I needed a college offering flexibility, understanding, and structure. Quinsigamond Community College gave me exactly that: a…
wbjournal.com
December 4, 2025 at 10:15 PM
"It’s not just about earning a degree; it’s about discovering your potential through a community that truly cares," Jennifer Hernandez, CEO of GEM Marketing Solutions in Worcester, wrote of her time at QCC.
WBJ 2025 Champions of Health Care: One of the very few things that irritates Dianne Walsh is when her staff call her boss.
Champions of Health Care: Walsh elevates community voices to trauma-response mental health care
Walsh oversees 27 clinicians, managing five directly, as the vice president of clinical services & director of the Center for Behavioral Health at RFK Community Alliance in Lancaster.
wbjournal.com
December 4, 2025 at 9:15 PM
WBJ 2025 Champions of Health Care: One of the very few things that irritates Dianne Walsh is when her staff call her boss.
The USDA’s administrative funds, which could be withheld, cover the costs states incur to operate SNAP, including processing applications, verifying eligibility and ensuring compliance.
State refusing Trump demands to hand over SNAP data
Healey said Massachusetts already verifies eligibility for SNAP beneficiaries and considers the federal request unnecessary.
wbjournal.com
December 4, 2025 at 8:20 PM
The USDA’s administrative funds, which could be withheld, cover the costs states incur to operate SNAP, including processing applications, verifying eligibility and ensuring compliance.
UMass Memorial Health is adding a new C-Suite position to its executive team, as the Worcester-based hospital system is searching for its inaugural chief of medical management.
UMass Memorial searches for first-ever chief of medical management
UMass Memorial Health is adding a new C-Suite position to its executive team, as the Worcester-based hospital system is searching for its inaugural chief of medical management.
wbjournal.com
December 4, 2025 at 7:40 PM
UMass Memorial Health is adding a new C-Suite position to its executive team, as the Worcester-based hospital system is searching for its inaugural chief of medical management.
The Museum of Worcester has selected its incoming executive director, marking the museum’s first leadership transition in half a century.
Museum of Worcester names incoming executive director
The Museum of Worcester has selected its incoming executive director, marking the museum’s first leadership transition in half a century.
wbjournal.com
December 4, 2025 at 7:20 PM
The Museum of Worcester has selected its incoming executive director, marking the museum’s first leadership transition in half a century.