Monica Benevides

The U.S. House of Representatives on Monday voted to approve the SAFE Banking Act of 2021, an effort to formally allow banks to do business with state-legal cannabis companies while cannabis remains illegal at the federal level.

Owned by friends and business partners Jay Rondeau and Jody Barton — both of whom maintain full-time jobs at TJX Cos. of Framingham — the new brewer specializes in small-batch brewing.

The Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts announced on Monday it has dispersed another $290,575 in grant money to five area nonprofits helping to provide community relief in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce is launching a 30-second commercial promoting Worcester, set to air on stations in the Boston-Manchester-Worcester, Providence and Springfield markets, the advocacy group announced on Monday.

The Gov. Charlie Baker Administration has awarded $1.1 million to Central Massachusetts municipalities and nonprofits as part of a new Regional Pilot Project Grant Program aimed at helping bolster economic recovery by supporting uniquely regional challenges, according to a Thursday announcement. 

The U.S. Small Business Administration is launching a $28.6-billion Restaurant Revitalization Fund aimed at providing financial relief for those negatively impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, the agency announced on Saturday.

Assumption University in Worcester will require nearly all students, faculty and staff to be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus prior to the start of the fall semester, the school said in a community notice distributed on Friday. 

Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester is planning to reopen its Early Childhood Education Lab School in the fall, the school announced on Wednesday.

Open Sky Community Services in Worcester has named Eric Roldan as its director of outpatient services, placing him in charge of oversight of The Bridge Counseling Center, the nonprofit announced on Monday. 

The Downtown Worcester Business Improvement District is looking for artists to help brighten empty storefronts this summer, the organization announced on Tuesday.