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5 Things You Need to Know Today in Worcester – July 29

By TWIW Staff | July 29, 2021
Last Updated: July 29, 2021

In today’s daily 5 Things You Need to Know feature, ThisWeekinWorcester.com explores five important items and stories that Worcester and Central Massachusetts residents should keep a close eye on.

These five things can cover a whole range of subjects and issues that we feel are pertinent to understanding what’s going on in the city and the cities and towns surrounding Worcester.

In today’s edition – Thursday, July 29 – StartUp Worcester announces its 2021 – 2022 cohort, the Kennedy Community Health Center announces expansion plans, Worcester Center for Crafts reveals its fall class lineup, Polar Park tours on Autism Acceptance Day and Quinsigamond Community College receives a credentialing success award.

StartUp Worcester 2021-2022 Cohort Selected

The Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, The Venture Forum, and WorcLab announce 2021-2022 cohort of StartUp Worcester.

StartUp Worcester helps launch new businesses by providing support and physical workspace for the region’s entrepreneurs. The initiative helps to incubate new businesses and retain graduates of the area’s college and universities.

  • A Sneakerhead’s Paradise – a concierge dashboard that allows customers to search and purchase sneakers during and following sold-out retail releases all on one website
  • Barn Owl Technologies – chemical-free agriculture; provides alternative pest control solutions for farmers
  • Cat in the Box LLC – designer and manufacturer of whimsical cardboard box playhouses for cats
  • Munq LLC – a creative agency helping clients shape their brand identity
  • Penny Wise PPE Protection – sterile mask storage; provides health care workers with a sanitary and safe paper bag alternative to store their face masks
  • Reach – a social media company aiming to change the social media landscape by encouraging the users of the platform to engage with their environment
  • Routi – an all-in-one, cloud-based communication software that provides government agencies with a single place to communicate with partner agencies and the public in the same process
  • Spicy Water Distillery – a micro-distillery focused on crafting spirits for adult consumption
  • Sympal, Inc. – the “new braces;” an orthodontic clear aligner system
  • TaqHawk, Inc. – a community-based resale marketplace for buying & selling used items in communities
  • Urban Spice World LLC – curator of ready-to-cook meal kits for busy families; making cooking easy and bringing families together
  • X Therapeutics, Inc. – a biotech company developing novel antivirals

The 12 companies selected receive a full-year memberships to all three organizations (Worcester Chamber, Venture Forum, and WorcLab) effective September 1, 2021, through August 31, 2022. Participants also have access to mentors from SCORE, a service of the Small Business Administration (SBA), through which they can receive entrepreneurial support, guidance, and mentorship. Each StartUp Worcester membership awarded is valued at more than $14,000.

Kennedy Community Health Center Announces Expansion

The Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center purchased a 30,000 square foot building at 605 Lincoln Street. The Veteran’s Administration [VA] currently occupies the building and is moving to a facility at UMass Medical Center.

Kennedy Community Health plans to renovate the Lincoln Street building and support behavioral health, dental, optometry, urgent care, a small pharmacy and other ancillary services with an opening of some services as early as the spring of 2022.

The Kennedy Community Health flagship site at 19 Tacoma Street will also receive renovations to expand primary care and other related services, including the pharmacy.

Worcester Center for Crafts Fall Registration Opens August 3

The Worcester Center for Crafts, at 25 Sagamore Road, opens registration for its fall session classes and workshops on Tuesday, August 3 at noon.

Classes and workshops included areas such as ceramics, metals, glass, and photography. Classes or adults and teens are available.

Brochures for the adult classes and youth and teen classes are available now.

Autism Acceptance Day at Polar Park

Ou Autism Acceptance Day, Saturday, July 31, the Worcester Red Sox offers a tour of Polar Park for families and groups with autistic individuals who plan to attend that day’s game.

Early entry for these tours will open at 1 PM at Gate C. Fans will be required to show a ticket for that day’s game, and will receive a free tour of Polar Park’s innovative UNUM Sensory Friendly room and other areas and accommodations.

Registration is required.

QCC’s Respiratory Care Program Receives Credentialing Success Award

Quinsigamond Community College’s Respiratory Care Program received the distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist [RRT] Credentialing Success Award from the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC).

The College has joined a select group of programs that received this national recognition based on a high-level performance of key accreditation metrics.

The award requires a program have three or more years of outcome data, hold accreditation without a progress report, document RRT credentialing success of 90% or above, and meet or exceed core thresholds for the Therapist Multiple Choice (TMC) examination high cut score and retention.

QCC had a three-year (2017 – 2019) average of 100% of students who achieved the high cut score. The CoARC threshold for retention is 70% and QCC had a 96% retention rate for the same three-year average (2017-2019).

Visit QCC’s Respiratory Care Program to learn more about the program.

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