Live streaming of the First Robotics Competition in St. Louis, Missouri—a contest that includes the Secret City Wildbots from Oak Ridge—can be viewed here.
Secret City Wildbots (Team 4265) are in the Hopper Division. Today’s qualification rounds were scheduled for #12 at 9:47 a.m., #23 at 11:04 a.m., #38 at 2:44 p.m., and #48 at 3:54 p.m.
There are 600 teams competing in this year’s international championship.
Reminder: The City of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge Schools will have a Community Wellness Fair today (Wednesday, April 22).
The Wellness Fair is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 22 at the Oak Ridge Civic Center. It includes a wide range of activities that include blood pressure checks, doctor’s chats, exercise tips, shingle vaccines, breast and men’s health, and dental, hearing, and diabetic foot screenings.
There will be a Medic Mobile blood drive from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Civic Center. [Read more…]
This summer, Oak Ridge Schools will host the first Discovery Energy Camp for rising seventh- and eighth-grade students. This camp is open to students from Oak Ridge Schools or any other school as long as they meet the grade level requirement.
“Registration availability is limited, so please register soon!” a press release said.
During this camp, students will investigate how energy works and how small bursts of creativity can unlock huge potential for the future. This camp combines hands-on labs, engineering challenges, digital investigations, and more, the release said. It will be taught by Chris Layton, social studies teacher and STEM coach, and Chris Jaeger, Diversified Technology teacher, both from Jefferson Middle School. It will take place from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. from June 8-12 at Jefferson Middle School.
Registration is being accepted until May 1. The cost is $120 for the week. Applications are available on the Jefferson Middle School website at http://jefferson.ortn.edu/?PageName=LatestNews&Section=LatestNews&ItemID=395661&ISrc=School&Ity pe=News.
To the Editor:
Each year in March a special group of generous company sponsors pool their resources and, along with individuals from our community, support the annual literacy program of the Altrusa International Club of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary Club. The Lunch 4 Literacy event raises between $15,000 and $20,000 routinely, which allows our community to support exceptional projects that promote literacy and ensure attention is given to the literacy needs that, without the generosity of our sponsors and individual contributors, could go unmet.
The lack of literacy skills is a serious problem within our communities. The reality is that often simple but effective programs can have a profound impact on individuals that enable them to realize their full potential in life. Without these very effective efforts made possible by grants from Lunch 4 Literacy, people in our communities, limited by a lack of basic skills, continue to fail in areas many of us take for granted. Until you have personally encountered illiteracy and its awful adverse impact, it is hard to fully appreciate the value of simply reading and understanding what is read. Through the continuing supportive efforts of our sponsoring companies we are making a difference in our communities! [Read more…]
Submitted photo
The Robertsville Middle School chapter of the Technology Student Association, or TSA, attended the 2015 Tennessee State Conference in Murfreesboro from Thursday, March 5, to Saturday, March 7. Robertsville had the largest chapter in attendance with 30 seventh- and eighth-grade students competing.
This was the second year in a row that all of the chapter’s students finalized in every event that required multiple rounds of judging, a press release said.
The RMS TSA chapter earned first place in seven events: [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge City Council has agreed to use $150,000 in unspent red-light camera to repair the lead-based paint on the Oak Ridge Schools Preschool and Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building on New York Avenue. Officials say the building needs to be renovated or vacated for the Head Start program to receive funding in the 2015-2016 school year. (File photo)
The Oak Ridge City Council had agreed to use $150,000 in red-light camera money to repair the lead-based paint on the city’s Preschool, but the low bid came in significantly lower—$24,700, Public Works Director Gary Cinder said Monday.
The five bids ranged up to about $112,000, Cinder told the Oak Ridge City Council.
The low bidder has done some of this type of work at the Preschool before, Cinder said.
The work is expected to be done by this fall. It provides what officials hope will be a temporary fix while they develop a plan to permanently repair, replace, or move the Preschool. [Read more…]
The City of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge Schools will have a Community Wellness Fair on Wednesday, April 22.
The Wellness Fair is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 22 at Oak Ridge Civic Center.
The Wellness Fair includes a wide range of activities that include blood pressure checks, doctor’s chats, exercise tips, shingle vaccines, breast and men’s health, and dental, hearing, and diabetic foot screenings. [Read more…]
Note: This is a copy of comments by Oak Ridge Education Association Co-President Steve Reddick during a March 30 meeting of the Oak Ridge Board of Education, when teachers and principals requested a 4 percent salary increase in the fiscal year that starts July 1.
2015 OREA Salary and Benefits Proposal
Good evening,
On behalf of the certified teaching staff of the Oak Ridge Schools, OREA is honored to present to you our FY ’16 salary and benefits proposal.
As in years past, we make this proposal with eyes wide open and without illusions: [Read more…]
In a 4-3 vote Monday, the Oak Ridge City Council approved a contract to install a traffic signal at the Oak Ridge High School on Oak Ridge Turnpike.
Note: This story was updated at 8:42 a.m. April 15.
The City Council approved a contract to install a stoplight on Oak Ridge Turnpike in front of Oak Ridge High School in a 4-3 vote on Monday.
Public Works Director Gary Cinder said the light will be green most of the time on Oak Ridge Turnpike. But it will turn red when cars are leaving the High School, giving those drivers a green light.
And the traffic signal lights will turn all-red when pedestrians are crossing, Cinder said. [Read more…]
The application period for renewing or applying for tuition and cross boundary applications for the Oak Ridge Schools is April 6-24.
The approved applications are good for one year. If your child remains in good standing during that time period, you will not need to complete a cross boundary application for the upcoming school year.
If your child is exiting fourth grade or eighth grade, a new application will need to be completed for the middle school or high school. Notification will be sent to you regarding your child’s renewal status. [Read more…]
The next meeting of the Oak Ridge Schools 2020 Planning Committee will be Tuesday, April 14, at 1 p.m. in the School Administration Building.
“The Oak Ridge School District is committed to providing its students many opportunities and experiences through which to become aware of, explore, and plan for college and career,” a press release said. “In order to define our focus over the next five years, we are creating a five-year plan to be delivered to the Board of Education for consideration. Representatives from the business and industry community, parents, students, school staff, and board members have been selected to have an opportunity to provide input and serve on this committee.
Members include: [Read more…]
By Oak Ridge Schools
We have all heard the phrase “going one-to-one,” but what is one-to-one all about? And why are Oak Ridge Schools interested in one-to-one?
The overall idea behind one-to-one is not about having specific devices; rather, it’s about providing personalized learning experiences to students aligned to the Seven Keys to College and Career Readiness in which students can collaborate, learn, reflect, and solve problems in ways that engage and motivate them. Highly effective teachers are essential in the development of personalized learning; they facilitate learning experiences both within their content area and spanning beyond the classroom and into the community. With personalized learning under the direction of highly effective teachers, student engagement increases, discipline problems decrease, attendance increases, and students become even more prepared for college and careers.
Most importantly, students who may not have access to technology due to financial or other considerations will have equal opportunities as their peers. [Read more…]
