PAST ISSUES: August 2006

Editor's Note:  In pursuit of lifelong learning
“NO MORE PENCILS, no more books” was once the refrain to signal the last day of school before summer vacation, a time to forget about learning and just have fun. But, although the modern equivalent of those learning tools of the past would be more appropriately keyboards and laptops, the process of education and training has become ongoing and inevitable to achieve success in life and in business.

Entrepreneur Watch:  Banking on a Solar Success
Talk a few minutes with Bill Poleatewich Jr., the president and COO of Brentwood-based Dawn Solar Systems, and he can barely contain his enthusiasm for the future of his company. Founded in 2004, Dawn Solar Systems has begun to make a name for itself in the growing sector of solar thermal heating systems. Based on the inventive creations of Dawn Solar co-founder and veteran roofing installer Steve Leighton, the company has developed a technological advance that integrates the thermal systems into more than 20 varieties of roofing materials. The result transforms an entire roof into an active solar system.

Featured Article:  Tradeport, Learnport: Six satellite campuses at Pease could teach you a thing or two
To better appreciate the increased sophistication of the education infrastructure at the Pease International Tradeport for the region’s business community, one could start with an Exeter-based company determined to increase its exports to China. Chemtan has exported its specialty chemicals for the leather tanning industry to China for more than 15 years. Chemtan President Jack Mitchell said that his company’s stake in serving the world’s fastest growing industrial economy has been “significant” and likely will grow even more in the coming decade.

Featured Article:  It’s the benefits, dummy: Perks, training top recruiting tools
How many miles per gallon does your company’s benefits plan get? For Tony Formichelli, it’s 36 in the city, 31 on the highway. But that’s for an SUV, a Ford Escape Hybrid. In the constant push to recruit and retain employees, The Timberland Company a year ago rolled out another benefit: a $3,000 incentive for its workers to buy hybrid fuel-efficient vehicles. Foremost, the offer is in keeping with the Stratham-based company’s commitment to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and limit its contribution to global warming. Yet, it is just another example of the cool perks that are out there.

Featured Article:  MBA: The competitive advantage
The numbers speak for themselves. There are nearly 300,000 people enrolled in master of business administration programs in the United States every year. MBAs conferred annually exploded from 5,000 in 1960 to more than 100,000 in 2000, according to Quintcareers.com.

Politics:  Rising college costs a threat to future work force
The relative economic stability that New Hampshire has been able to maintain in an increasingly unstable world is based on a number of factors. There is, of course, the lack of a state income or sales tax (although some would argue the tax on rooms and meals is a form of consumption tax). There is the physical beauty of the state coupled with high-speed Internet availability throughout the area so a company can locate almost anywhere in the state and have access to this technology. And, perhaps above all, there is a well-educated work force capable of filling the employment needs of firms coming to the state or established companies seeking to expand.

Real Estate:  Think training skills
Peter Francese, director of Demographic Forecasts for the New England Economic Partnership looks at how the education and training need of workers changed over the past 10 years.

Last Word:  For the love of it
Class is now in session. Can you tell me what a histocytosalpingeogram is? Brett LeClair knows because it’s his job to know. It’s also his passion to teach college- level students, among many things, about histocytosalpingeograms and other terminological mysteries of the human body. He must be passionate because spare time is at a premium in his life. On most weekdays, LeClair is Dr. Brett LeClair, a chiropractor with a full-time practice in North Hampton. On many late afternoons and weeknights during the school year he can be found teaching students anatomy, physiology and, yes, medical terminology at the Pease campus of the New Hampshire Community Technical College.