Brian Shields

When some students go to college this fall, they will do so at a campus surrounded by farms and fields. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is working with colleges in rural areas, providing funding to keep them up to date and competitive with larger, urban-based institutions. U.S.D.A. Deputy Undersecretary Doug O’Brien was at Fulton-Montgomery Community College in the town of Johnstown yesterday to dedicate a new residence hall at the school, Raiders Hall. It was built with the help of 11-point three million dollars from the U.S.D.A.

One year after Tropical Storm Irene, repair crews remain busy in Greene County New York, where the reconstruction is expected to cost as much as $15 million on roads, bridges and culverts. For an update, WAMC’s Brian Shields spoke with Gary Harvey, the superintendent of the Greene County Highway Department.

With the school year starting for students across New York State in the coming weeks, there are several new programs being implemented. WAMC's Brian Shields spoke with Tim Kremer of the New York State School Boards Association about the new policies, including teacher evaluations and anti-bullying programs.

Republicans will end their national convention in Tampa tonight with a speech by their presidential nominee, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. The polls suggest that New York is well out of play for Romney, with the Obama-Biden ticket holding a strong lead in one of the bluest of blue states. Still it’s been a busy few days for the New York delegation in Tampa. WAMC’s Brian Shields spoke this morning with Jimmy Vielkind of the Albany Times Union, who is covering the Republican National Convention.

Whenever a government charter is revised, elected officials pay close attention to determine how they could be affected by the changes. That seems to be the case in Ulster County, New York, where the charter revision commission has finished its work, and now it’s time for public hearings and a vote. One commission member issued a warning to the county legislature saying the charter revisions should not fall prey to political whims, but the chair of the revision commission, Cynthia Lowe, says that was just one persons opinion. She spoke with WAMC’s Brian Shields.

Schoharie County in New York took perhaps the hardest hit from Tropical Storm Irene compared to any other upstate county. One year later, the recovery continues, but it could take another four years before all the damage has been repaired. The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is one federal agency involved in the recovery, but it is local and state officials who have been on the front lines for the past year. For an update on Schoharie County, WAMC’s Brian Shields spoke to the chairman of the county board of supervisors, Howard Vroman.

At one point after Tropical Storm Irene moved through upstate New York one year ago, national grid reported 156,000  customers without power. For a look back, and a look at what has changed since the storm, WAMC’s Brian Shields talked today with Bill Flaherty, a regional executive with National Grid, who recalls the preparation before the storm hit.

One year ago today, Tropical Storm Irene moved into the northeast leaving flooding and destruction on a scale rarely seen in the region.

Homes and farmland were washed away, bridges and roads were destroyed, and trees and power lines were leveled leaving hundreds of thousands of people without service for days , and even weeks .

A computer virus named Stuxnet has drawn the attention of security and utility experts around the globe over the past two years or so. The experts say the virus has the potential to knock out power grids, leaving millions in the dark. It has already been used against the Iranians to slow down their nuclear development programs. Dan D’Ambrosio, a business reporter for the Burlington Free Press has been researching the story of Stuxnet. He spoke with WAMC’s Brian Shields.

It’s been one year since Tropical Storm Irene came up the coast and into the northeast, leaving behind damage that most people and most communities had never witnessed before. One year later some the scars remain, but people have been slowly putting back their lives and towns. Dutchess County, in New York's Hudson Valley was hit hard by the wind, the rain and the flooding. Dutchess County executive Marc Molinaro spoke with WAMC’s Brian Shields about how the county has fared one year later.