Wheaties box will honor the Boston Celtics

General Mills’ Wheaties breakfast cereal will issue a special-edition commemorative package honoring the 2008 NBA Champion Boston Celtics after their victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. The 15.6-ounce Celtics Wheaties box will be available nationally beginning in the next three weeks and features Boston’s 11-time NBA All-Star Kevin Garnett. This package marks the third Wheaties box appearance for Garnett and the fourth Wheaties box appearance for the Celtics organization.

CCRI commission targets high-wage jobs

The General Assembly has approved legislation to create the CCRI 21st Century Workforce Commission, a cooperative effort between the Community College of Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation. The commission will recommend specific actions to strengthen CCRI’s position as a key institution in the state’s effort to create a work force prepared for the high-wage jobs created by knowledge-economy companies. Plans for the commission were first announced in the EDC’s 2008 economic growth plan, which seeks to increase from 40 to 60 percent the number of jobs in Rhode Island that pay above the national average wage of $42,000.

EMC, SkillSoft working on e-learning courses

Hopkinton, Mass.-based EMC Corp., a world leader in information infrastructure, has announced that it is working with Nashua, N.H.-based SkillSoft PLC, a leading provider of electronic learning and performance support for business, government and education to deliver a design and management curriculum designed to provide the skills to become proficient in storage technology. EMC Global Services and SkillSoft have together created 12 Storage Technology Foundation (STF) e-learning courses, which will enable a broad new audience of users to access EMC’s industry-leading storage information and management training. The courses are available immediately as part of SkillSoft’s comprehensive IT Skills Course Collection, which consists of 1,700 online courses.

New mobile stereo system from Hasbro

Tiger Electronics, a division of Pawtucket-based Hasbro, has teamed up with Japanese distributor SEGA Toys to introduce the Automated Music Personality, a mobile robotic music “companion” that stands 29 inches tall and features a sleek black and yellow exterior with stylized chrome detailing. The AMP will put music from any MP3 player through its stereo sound system with five different modes, 62 sound effects, numerous dance moves and 49 LED light animations. SEGA will debut the device at its Tokyo Toy Show booth from June 19-22. “Hasbro is redefining the mobile stereo entertainment system with the introduction of AMP Automated Music Personality,” said Duncan Billing, the company’s global development officer.

Red tide affecting Maine’s Cobscook Bay

Maine officials have closed Cobscook Bay and parts of the Down East coast to mussel harvesting due to red tide. The Department of Marine Resources announced the curbs Tuesday, citing a large plume of toxic algae that blew in from the Bay of Fundy. The closure extends from Point of Maine near Machiasport to the Canadian border and includes all of Cobscook Bay. It prohibits collection of mussels, European oysters and carnivorous snails. While clam harvesting was still being permitted, biologists cautioned that some clam beds within the area could close this week due to the intensity of the red tide bloom.

Vt. offers gas cards in summer promotion

Once again this year, the state of Vermont is giving away gas in hopes people will use it to visit. A summer promotion dubbed “Vermont Fuels Your Vacation” is offering weekly giveaways of $100 gas cards redeemable at gas stations in Vermont. Registration is at www.VermontVacation.com/fuel and will remain open through late September, with the first gas card giveaway set for June 23. Several Vermont inns and lodging properties are also offering fuel-saving packages and gas card promotions in hopes of drumming up summer business.

Fairchild Semiconductors eyes new Maine site

Fairchild Semiconductor is considering Scarborough, Maine, as a possible location for its new headquarters. Fairchild, the largest corporation based in Maine, is now headquartered in South Portland, but its lease expires at the end of the year. The company says it’s exploring several options, one of which is a proposed 90,000-square-foot building near the new Cabela’s store on Haigis Parkway in Scarborough.

Spending freeze urged by Conn. governor

Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell is directing all state agency heads to freeze spending for the final days of the current fiscal year. They are being told to avoid any expenses that are not absolutely and immediately essential to operating their agencies. The current fiscal year ends June 30. The new fiscal year that begins July 1 is already predicted to be about $150 million in deficit because of declining state revenues. On May 1, Rell urged agency heads to target their spending to critical needs. She has also banned out-of-state spending and frozen state hiring.

U. Maine starts energy Web site

University of Maine in Orono has launched an energy information Web site –– www.extension.umaine.edu/energy –– where people can learn how to save money through conservation and alternative energy in this time of high fuel prices. The site, launched by the university’s Cooperative Extension, is aimed at homeowners, business owners, motorists and farmers. It includes information on hybrid vehicles, alternative fuels, public transportation, conservation measures and other energy issues, as well as links to other informational sites.

Goldman Sachs executive gets Harvard post

An executive with Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs & Co. has been named to Harvard University’s new post of executive vice president. Harvard President Drew Faust announced Edward Forst’s appointment Wednesday. He will begin working in September as a senior adviser to Faust. Forst is a 1982 Harvard graduate who most recently served as Goldman Sachs’ global head of investment management, in charge of $895 billion in managed assets. He was appointed to that post earlier this year. At Harvard, Forst will serve on the board that oversees Harvard’s endowment. His other duties will include overseeing financial, administrative and personnel functions.

Industry fights Maine’s recycling program

The electronics industry has taken aim at Maine’s two-year-old program for recycling old TVs and computer monitors, saying it violates federal law governing transportation of hazardous waste. The Electronic Industries Alliance, which represents manufacturers and recyclers, has asked the U.S. Department of Transportation to effectively strike down Maine’s first-in-the-nation program, which requires manufacturers to set up and pay for collection and recycling centers. Environmentalists credit it with keeping lead, mercury and other toxins out of landfills. Other states, including Connecticut, have developed programs modeled after Maine’s. “They’ve gone after the heart of a state trying to be more stringent than the federal government,” said Stacey Ladner of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. “It would undercut nationwide the ability of a state to classify something as a hazardous waste.”