Three projects of THE OFFICE OF PENN RUDERMAN ARCHITECTS in Worcester have received awards from the Central Massachusetts Chapter of the American Institute of Architecture. The firm received two Merit Awards and one Citation Award. OPRCH’s Merit Awards went to a project in Mansfield, turning a concrete warehouse into creative office space and 30,000 square feet for manufacturing, along with a project at a private residence in Belmont. The firm’s Citation Award went to its design to convert an alley in downtown Worcester into a public arts corridor.
Ashley LavergneASHLEY LAVERGNE has joined ERA Key Realty Services in Milford as a realtor. Additionally, LaVergne works at the Millbury Public Library as a part-time library page, and she previously worked as a sales associate at Petco. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree from Bridgewater State University.
Thrive Support & Advocacy has selected Marlborough Mayor CHRISTIAN DUMAIS and State Sen. ROBYN KENNEDY (D-Worcester) as recipients of the Worcester-based nonprofit’s 2025 Standing Ovation Award. The award honors outstanding and supportive stakeholders who work to further the organization’s mission to empower those with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
LYNN WHITNEY TURNERLYNN WHITNEY TURNER has been named the incoming chair of the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Women’s Success Network. Turner owns CORE XP Business Solutions, a business, leadership, and culture coaching company.
The Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts, based in Fitchburg, has named DONNA HODGE and KEVIN JOHNSTON to its board of trustees. Hodge serves as the president of Fitchburg State University, bringing her more than 20 years of higher education leadership experience to the board of the North Central Massachusetts Community Foundation. Johnston has a 42-year tenure working in federal and local government finance and administration. Additionally, for the past 44 years, he has volunteered for organizations such as the Massachusetts Special Olympics, Boston Children’s Hospital, and the Shirley Charitable Foundation.
ERA Key Realty Services has hired RITA SALMAN as a realtor at its Worcester office. Salman owns her own e-commerce site MyRita and previously served as a user-focused designer at Thinkful, an e-learning platform based in New York City.
YAN WANGYAN WANG, a professor of mechanical and materials engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, has been selected as a 2025 fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, the highest professional honor bestowed by the Tampa-based members organization. Wang’s research centers battery recycling and sustainable manufacturing, including the industrial-scale recycling of lithium-ion batteries. He was named among 185 U.S. and international fellows.
PIA CORDESPIA CORDES has been promoted to vice president, project & core banking manager at Framingham-based MutualOne Bank after most recently serving as assistant vice president, project and core bank manager. In her new role, Cordes will manage strategic projects, working with key stakeholders through delegating during the projects. She serves on the steering committee of the Massachusetts Bankers Association.
(From left) MARICELIS “MARI” GONZALEZ, JESSICA MANDES, and MAX GERMAN
Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester has named MARICELIS “MARI” GONZALEZ, and JESSICA MANDES, and MAX GERMAN to its board of trustees. Gonzalez works as the executive director of the Worcester nonprofit El Buen Samaritano Food Program and is a member of the Massachusetts Governor’s Council on Latino Empowerment. Mandes serves as the director of multilingual education for Worcester Public Schools and has more than 25 years of experience in youth work and 15 years in public education. German, a QCC alum, is a student at Boston College Law School.
