Oak Ridge Today

Schools release Oak Ridge to Maryville comparisons

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There was much discussion comparing the Oak Ridge and Maryville school districts during budget deliberations in Oak Ridge this year. Among the data compared between the two systems was the number of administrators working for each district.

Last week, Oak Ridge Schools released information that compares the two systems in a variety of areas, including number of administrators, average teacher and principal salaries, ACT scores, student-teacher ratios, and percentage of economically disadvantaged students, among other things.

Read the information here: Oak Ridge to Maryville Comparisons.

Tuesday morning forum features Anderson County Commission candidates

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Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce

A Tuesday morning election forum at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce will feature candidates for Anderson County Commission in the three Oak Ridge districts.

A Tuesday morning election forum will feature candidates for Anderson County Commission in the three Oak Ridge districts.

The Election Selection forum at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce will start at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday. It will feature candidates for Anderson County Commission in Districts 6, 7, and 8 in Oak Ridge. It’s open to the public, all the candidates in those three districts have been invited to participate, a press release said.

“There will be time to meet the candidates during unstructured social time followed by a structured question and answer session,” the release said. “This is a wonderful opportunity to talk with candidates and learn first-hand their thoughts and positions on key issues facing our community.”

For additional information, contact Greta Ownby.

Fleischmann, Wamp at Q&A session at Chamber on Monday

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U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann and his Republican challenger Weston Wamp will take part in a question-and-answer session at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce on Monday morning.

The event starts at 7:30 a.m. Monday.

Fleischmann is running for his third term as a congressman in Tennessee’s Third District, which includes Oak Ridge. Wamp is challenging him for the second time.

The two are running in the Aug. 7 federal Republican primary. [Read more…]

Investigators search 200 miles of desert for pregnant Oak Ridge woman missing in California

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Erin Corwin

Erin Corwin (Photos courtesy San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department)

Investigators searching for an Oak Ridge woman who now lives in California and disappeared under suspicious circumstances two weeks ago have covered more than 200 square miles of remote desert, authorities said Friday.

The search for Erin Corwin, who is 19 years old and pregnant, has been concentrated around the Joshua Tree National Park in southern California. The vast high desert reserve is east of Los Angeles and just south of the Twentynine Palms Marine Corps base, where Corwin lives with her husband, U.S. Marine Cpl. Jonathan Wayne Corwin, who is also from Oak Ridge.

The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department said the search has found no sign of Corwin, and her disappearance does not appear to be voluntary.

The search will continue as necessary throughout the weekend using search and rescue volunteers from the San Bernardino County, Los Angeles County, and Kern County Sheriff’s Departments, and Joshua Tree National Park Service rangers, authorities said.

Investigators said they haven’t released much information about Corwin’s disappearance because of its suspicious nature. [Read more…]

Longtime businessman Anderson running for County Commission

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Joey Anderson

Joey Anderson

Longtime local businessman Joey Anderson has announced he is running for Anderson County Commission in District 6 in the Aug. 7 election. District 6 includes the City Hall, Robertsville, and West Hills voting precincts in Oak Ridge.

Anderson is a 1986 graduate of Oak Ridge High School and earned a BBA in business management from East Tennessee State University.

Growing up active in the Boy Scouts of America, earning the prestigious Eagle award, and being involved with the Boys and Girls Club of Oak Ridge has carried over to remaining active in the community, a press release said. He is currently serving as president of the Oak Ridge Boys and Girls Club Alumni. He was also treasurer for many years for the alumni. Anderson is also a member of the Oak Ridge Quarterback Club.

Anderson’s roots are deep in Oak Ridge, the release said. He operated and managed Anderson’s Hilltop Market for 18 years, carrying on the family business started in 1944 by his grandfather, Joe Anderson. Anderson said his small business background would help him navigate managerial and budgetary challenges on the Commission if elected. [Read more…]

Former Manhattan Project headquarters, Groves home damaged in fire

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Luther Brannon Oak Ridge Turnpike House Fire

The historic Luther Brannon House was damaged, but no injuries were reported in this house fire on Oak Ridge Turnpike early Monday morning. Gen. Leslie R. Groves, commander of the top-secret Manhattan Project during World War II, once lived here, and he had his headquarters in this single-story bungalow, which was built in 1941 and soon acquired by the federal government.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 1 p.m. July 8.

A historic house that once served as a home and headquarters for Gen. Leslie R. Groves during the top-secret Manhattan Project in World War II was heavily damaged in a fire early Monday morning.

No injuries were reported in the house fire, which was reported at 1:36 a.m. Monday.

The one-story stone bungalow at 151 Oak Ridge Turnpike is known as the Luther Brannon House, and it’s just west of Melton Lake Drive and next to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Scientific and Technical Information. It’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and it was the first home in Oak Ridge to be privately owned.

Oak Ridge Fire Department Chief Darryl Kerley said it appears that the Monday morning fire started in the kitchen. Owner Danny Brannon and his daughter were returning from a movie when they found the home on fire. They opened the front door and found the home filled with hot, black smoke, an ORFD press release said. Brannon opened the basement door to find that area clear, but he found fire coming from the kitchen window in the back of the house. The family called 911.

“We have not been able to determine what the cause is,” Kerley said. The Fire Department is waiting for an insurance company, which is sending an investigator and claims adjuster, before continuing its investigation. [Read more…]

Iwanski announces re-election campaign for County Commission

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Myron Iwanski

Myron Iwanski

Myron Iwanski is seeking re-election to Anderson County Commission in District 8, which includes the Woodland, Emory Valley, and Hendrix Creek precincts in Oak Ridge.

Iwanski was appointed in 2011 to serve as mayor by County Commission early in his current term on County Commission. This was a 19-month appointment until a mayor could be elected for the remaining two years of former Mayor Rex Lynch’s term.

“It was an honor to be selected by my peers on County Commission to serve as chairman of County Commission for three terms and then as mayor during a difficult time for our county government,” Iwanski said in a press release.

“We had to work together to make some tough decisions,” Iwanski said. “We put several initiatives in place that will expand our retail and industrial tax base, promote tourism, and create jobs. This included setting funds aside for industrial land and infrastructure and creating a public/private partnership to hire a retail recruiter. We also put initiatives in place that are slowing the growth in the county jail population while helping reduce the crime rate. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge voters can meet county, district candidates on Thursday

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Oak Ridge voters are invited to a “Meet the Candidates” event on Thursday, July 10, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the Oak Ridge Civic Center Gymnasium. Democracy for East Tennessee is sponsoring this event so residents of Oak Ridge can become better acquainted with the candidates for offices serving Oak Ridge in the upcoming August 7 election. Early voting begins July 18.

The offices on the ballot are chancellor; Circuit Court clerk; District 4 constable; county commissioners for Districts 6, 7, and 8; county clerk; county mayor; Juvenile Court judge; Criminal and Circuit Court judge; district attorney; General Sessions judge; public defender; register of deeds’ Republican and Democratic State executive committee members; road superintendent; county school board; sheriff; Tennessee House of Representatives in the state’s 33rd District; and trustee.

Time and space will be provided for citizens to talk to candidates. There will be a table for each candidate to display literature and campaign gear. Light refreshments will be provided.

For more information, call Tom Burns at (865) 385-7063 or Joan Cassens at (865) 220-8900.

What’s happening in Oak Ridge from July 4-9

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Here is a summary of events happening in Oak Ridge from Friday, July 4, and continuing through July 9.

This weekly listing of events is compiled by the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau: [Read more…]

Air, ground search under way for pregnant woman missing in California

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Erin Corwin

Erin Corwin (Photo courtesy San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department)

A dozen search and rescue volunteers and a helicopter crew are searching Joshua Tree National Park in California for a pregnant 19-year-old woman from Oak Ridge who was reported missing on Sunday.

Erin Corwin was last seen leaving her Twentynine Palms, California, home on her way to Joshua Tree National Forest at about 7 a.m. Saturday, the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department said. Her husband, Jonathan Corwin, reported her missing on Sunday.

The Sheriff’s Department said it began an extensive air and ground search using volunteers and search and rescue teams. The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Homicide Detail is assisting in the investigation.

Specialized investigators, detectives from Morongo Basin/Twentynine Palms station, and patrol personnel are also at the scene, the Sheriff’s Department said in an update posted late Thursday morning. The search area continues to be in and around the Joshua Tree National Park, authorities said.

KTLA-TV in Los Angeles said Corwin was going to the park to see if it would be a good place for a family outing during a planned visit with her mother, Lore Heavilin of Oak Ridge. Heavilin had planned a trip there to celebrate Erin’s birthday on July 15.  [Read more…]

Roane State to offer new programs in medical informatics, financial services

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Roane State Community College Harriman Campus

The main Roane State Community College campus in Harriman. The college also has a branch campus in Oak Ridge.

 

Roane State Community College will offer two new programs beginning in fall 2014: an associate of applied science in medical informatics and an associate of applied science in financial services.

The Tennessee Board of Regents approved the programs at its June meeting.

The two-year medical informatics program combines information technology, or IT, and health care. As health care providers increasingly use complex computerized records, they need qualified employees with computer skills and expertise in digital health care record-keeping.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of medical records and health information technicians is expected to grow 20 percent through 2018. Technicians who also have IT skills are expected to be in particularly high demand. [Read more…]

Mayor Beehan to report on recent trip to Washington, D.C.

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Tom Beehan, Madeline Rogero with Local Motors at White House Maker Faire

Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan, right, and Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero, center, are pictured above with Local Motors at the Maker Faire at the White House in June. (Submitted photos)

 

Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan and Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero recently went to Washington, D.C., to attend the Maker Faire.

During that first-ever event, President Barack Obama celebrated innovators, entrepreneurs, and tinkerers of all ages from across the country. The Maker Faire featured new and innovative projects, inventions, and designs, and technologies such as 3D printers, laser cutters, and easy-to-use design software.

Beehan will discuss his trip during a Thursday, July 10, meeting of the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association. That meeting starts at 7 p.m. July 10 at the Midtown Community Center at 102 Robertsville Road.

Tom Beehan at White House Podium

Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan standing near the podium that President Barack Obama uses when he speaks.

Besides the Maker Faire, Beehan also met with elected officials and was involved in numerous interactions where he expressed the desires of the city of Oak Ridge, an ORHPA press release said.

“He also assured our nation’s leaders of our intent to continue serving our nation in the special role that Oak Ridge holds,” the release said. “His meeting with the Secretary of Energy, Dr. Ernest Moniz, was of special significance to us. He will present some of the details of that conversation.” [Read more…]