Oak Ridge Today

Updated: Thursday closings—schools, Y-12, Roane State, AC Courthouse

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Turnpike and Bus Terminal Road Snow on Feb. 18, 2015

Schools and many offices remained closed Thursday after a icy winter storm on Monday followed by this snow on Wednesday morning.

 

Note: This story was updated at 10:21 a.m. Feb. 19.

The temperature the next few days is expected to be brutally cold, and schools and some government offices and contractors have announced they’ll be closed Thursday, or for the rest of the week, because of the weather and road conditions.

Schools in Oak Ridge, Anderson County, Clinton, and Roane County will all be closed Thursday. Roane State Community College will also be closed.

Schools in Clinton and Anderson and Roane counties will also be closed Friday. The Central Office in Anderson County will be closed for the rest of the week, and the Central Office in Roane County will not report Thursday. [Read more…]

Updated: More closures, delays Wednesday as snow falls, temperatures drop

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Winter Weather Advisory

Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:56 p.m.

Many offices and schools will remain closed on Wednesday because of the weather and road conditions, and some will open late. The National Weather Service in Morristown has issued a winter weather advisory for snow on Wednesday and a wind chill watch for Wednesday night.

Schools in Oak Ridge and Clinton and Anderson and Roane counties will be closed again Wednesday. So will Roane State Community College campuses. Pellissippi State Community College will also be closed.

Anderson County Schools will be closed the rest of the week, officials said Wednesday, and the Central Office is closed as well.

Anderson County government offices and all courts will be closed Wednesday.

City of Oak Ridge offices will open at 9 a.m. City Hall in Rocky Top will close at noon Wednesday for deteriorating weather conditions. [Read more…]

OR, AC, RC schools closed Tuesday; AC Courthouse, Y-12 closed

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Schools Logo

Note: This story was last updated at 9:30 p.m.

Oak Ridge and Anderson County schools will be closed on Tuesday because of the weather, officials said.

The Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton will also be closed, and the Anderson County Commission meeting has been canceled. All courts will be closed.

The Commission meeting will be rescheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, February 26. [Read more…]

ORHS Ensemble, JazzKats have 1940s concert, dance party with ORHPA Friday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

ORHS Ensemble with JazzKat Trumpeter

Submitted

The Secret is Out, and Swing is In! If you’re In the Mood, catch the Choo Choo Ch’Boogie.

Jump off at Tuxedo Junction, and we’ll Sing, Sing, Sing to Minnie the Moocher!

Grab your Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy and put on your dancing shoes.

Join the Oak Ridge High School Ensemble and JazzKats on Friday, February 13, at 7 p.m. at the Historic Grove Theater for a program of “swingin’ tunes and hot dancing that is sure to please all the hepcats in town.”

It’s a fundraising 1940s concert and dance party. [Read more…]

School Board to discuss Preschool, budget during Thursday retreat

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Schools Logo

The Oak Ridge Board of Education will hear an update on the Preschool and discuss budget scenarios and priorities during a Thursday retreat.

The retreat starts at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, February 12, in the Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building at 304 New York Avenue. The board will have lunch at 11:30, with the meeting being called to order at noon.

See the agenda here.

Glenwood librarian named Teacher of the Year by Oak Ridge Schools

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Amelia Bell

Amelia Bell

Amelia Bell, a librarian at Glenwood Elementary School, has been named Teacher of the Year for the Oak Ridge school system.

Oak Ridge Schools announced their pick on Tuesday.

Bell is a librarian with 20 years of teaching experience, a press release said. She is a member of the Glenwood Leadership Team and has presented at several conferences, including the Tennessee Afterschool Summer Symposium and the American Association of School Librarians National Conference. She has also served as a lecturer in the School of Information Science at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. [Read more…]

Council OKs repair of lead-based paint at Preschool, meant to be temporary fix

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Preschool and School Administration Building

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday 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 has agreed to use $150,000 in red-light camera money to repair the lead-based paint on the city’s Preschool, providing what officials hope will be a temporary fix while they develop a plan to permanently repair, replace, or move the Preschool.

The repairs, which could be done by August 3, were approved in a 6-0 vote. Oak Ridge City Council member Rick Chinn abstained because a family member owns a building on Mitchell Road that the city and schools could consider leasing.

The City Council also endorsed a recommendation from the Oak Ridge Board of Education that could have children in a new building by the 2016-2017 school year. That resolution calls for further study of options for the Oak Ridge Preschools and Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building on New York Avenue. It also would set up a joint city-schools committee, consider buying the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce building for school administration offices, and remodel the G Building at Oak Ridge High School. [Read more…]

Council to consider Preschool paint, special events task force

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Preschool and School Administration Building

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday will consider using $150,000 in unspent red-light camera money 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) 

 

Mark Watson

Mark Watson

The Oak Ridge City Council tonight will consider using $150,000 in red-light camera money to repair the lead-based paint on the city’s Preschool, providing what officials hope will be a temporary fix while they develop a plan to permanently repair, replace, or move the Preschool.

Officials say the building needs to be renovated or vacated for the Head Start program to receive federal funding in the 2015-2016 school year. They are hopeful that their plan to fix the lead-based paint on the decades-old home of the Preschool on New York Avenue by August 3 will satisfy federal officials. A remediation plan could be submitted to federal officials and Anderson County education officials by March 4.

On January 26, the Oak Ridge Board of Education recommended a few first steps that could have children in a new building next year. In addition to asking the city to repair the lead-based paint, the BOE unanimously recommended a new committee be formed to help lay the groundwork for moving into a new preschool by the 2016-2017 school year.

The Oak Ridge Schools Preschool and Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building is owned by the city, and the municipal staff would lead the repair project. [Read more…]

First Oak Ridge Schools on the Run 5k scheduled for March

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Schools Logo

The first Oak Ridge Schools on the Run 5K is scheduled for March 21, organizers said.

“Come join the schools, city, and community of Oak Ridge in their first annual 5k,” the Oak Ridge Track Club said in a notice posted on its website. “The race will be held at the beautiful Melton Lake Park!”

The standard registration is $25. It’s $20 for school and municipal employees, and $10 for students. [Read more…]

DOE East Tennessee Middle School Science Bowl at Roane State on Feb. 7

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

U.S. Department of Energy Logo

The fifth annual U.S. Department of Energy’s East Tennessee Middle School Science Bowl will be hosted on Saturday, February 7, at the Roane State Community College campus in Oak Ridge. It starts at 9 a.m.

Students from 12 local middle schools will participate in a fast-paced academic competition offering students the opportunity to match their wits in math and science, a press release said.

This year 16 teams are registered for the competition. Each team includes four student competitors, an alternate, and a coach. The competition covers numerous disciplines including astronomy, biology, chemistry, earth science, general science, mathematics, and physics, the press release said. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools announces three teachers of the year

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Schools has announced three teachers of the year.

The three building-wide teachers of the year are:

  • Amelia Bell, Glenwood Elementary School;
  • Amy Fuqua, Linden Elementary School; and
  • Lisa Meidl, Willow Brook Elementary School.

In a press release, school officials said they will soon announce the selection of the system-wide Teacher of the Year, selected from one of these three candidates. [Read more…]

Reminder: Fundraiser for Secret City Wildbots features award-winning film on world’s water

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Sling Shot Press Release

A film screening this month will feature an inspirational movie about a tiny technological solution that could be used to clean up the world’s water supply. The screening of the award-winning documentary will also raise money for the Oak Ridge High School’s FIRST Robotics Team 4265, the Secret City Wildbots.

The fundraiser and screening will start at 7 p.m. Friday, February 20, in the Oak Ridge High School Performing Arts Center, a press release said. The Secret City Wildbots will begin the evening with a short demonstration of the team’s robot from 7-7:20 p.m. The screening of the 97-minue film will begin promptly at 7:30 p.m. [Read more…]