Oak Ridge Today

Masquers’ fall play: ‘Murder in the Magnolias’

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ORHS Masquers Murder in the Magnolias

By Benjamin Fowler

Oak Ridge High School Masquers, the school’s drama program, will present “Murder in the Magnolias,” an ensemble comedy, in three performances this month.

The performances are scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, November 13, and Saturday, November 15, and 2 p.m. Sunday, November 16, at the Oak Ridge Performing Arts Center. The ensemble comedy blends Southern plays with a dollop of Tara Plantation, delightfully madcap characters, and a garden full of plants with minds of their own. Colonel Rance Chickenwing III passes away, launching a family frenzy to find his buried fortune. [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats basketball team has free clinic Tuesday for 2nd-6th graders

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The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcat basketball team has a free basketball clinic for girls in the second through sixth grade on Tuesday.

The clinic will be in the Oak Ridge High School Arena. It will start at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and end at 7:45 p.m. Tuesday.

There is no registration required, a press release said. The clinic will be conducted by the Lady Wildcat basketball staff and the players on this year’s team.

Boys, girls cross country teams run tough at state championship

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Wildcats Gashaw Duhamel 2014 State Cross Country Meet

Junior Gashaw Duhamel of Oak Ridge finished 11th in the 2014 TSSAA Class AAA State Boys’ Cross Country Championship in Nashville on Saturday. (Photos by Kindell Moore) 

 

The Oak Ridge High School boys’ and girls’ cross country teams, both coming off fantastic first-place finishes at regionals in late October, competed in the state championship 5k run in Nashville on Saturday. The boys’ team finished third, and the girls finished ninth.

Girls Team

The girls ran better than their ninth-place finish suggests. Freshman Katharina Gallmeier led the way in running for the Lady Wildcats with a 46th place finish at 20:30:95, followed shortly by senior Aislyn Peacock. Peacock ran a 20:37:41 and finished 49th.

Following closely behind these two was junior Megan Peters, who finished 57th with a time of 20:49:08. Freshman Robyn Wood finished 70th with a 21:05:81, and sophomore Maddie Zawisza finished 72nd with a 21:10:75. Freshman Esther Gallmeier finished 98th with a 21:42:37, and junior Mallika Vohra rounded out the team with a 22:04:80 finish at 109th. [Read more…]

Van Druff, McGhee finish No. 4, No. 8 in state cross country meet

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Jordan Van Druff

Jordan Van Druff, an eighth-grade student at Jefferson Middle School in Oak Ridge, finished fourth in a state cross country meet in Knoxville on Saturday. (Photo by Nicholas Rhodes)

 

KNOXVILLE—It wasn’t the result that Jordan Van Druff wanted.

He trained diligently at the beginning of the season for this state cross country meet, hoping to finish first. Van Druff also put in extra miles, running up to 25 to 30 miles per week at his peak.

On Saturday, the eighth-grader at Jefferson Middle School led all runners near the one-mile mark in a two-mile boys race during the Tennessee Middle School State Cross Country Championships at Victor Ashe Park in Knoxville. But then, one by one, three runners passed him.

“I didn’t get what I wanted,” said Van Druff, who was undefeated in all of Jefferson’s regular season races during his three-year middle school career. “I wanted to finish first.”

Still, it was an improvement from his fifth-place finish last year and a sixth-place finish the year before, said his mother, Reneé Van Druff.

Van Druff, who finished with a two-mile time of 11:42.55, was one of two Oak Ridge runners who made All State during the state cross country championships on Saturday. The other was Faith McGhee, a fourth-grade student at Woodland Elementary School. She finished eighth in the one-mile girls race during the Tennessee Elementary School State Cross Country Championships. McGhee had a time of 6:19.50. [Read more…]

OREA has ‘Meet the Candidates, Meet the Educators’ at ORHS today

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The Oak Ridge Education Association is having a “Meet the Candidates, Meet the Educators” event at the high school this afternoon.

It’s scheduled from 4 to 5:30 p.m. today (Wednesday, October 22) at the Oak Ridge High School amphitheater.

“Because of the plethora of candidate forums in recent weeks (and the number of candidates), our event will not be so much a traditional candidate forum as much as a ‘conversation’ about public education,” a press release said. “Each candidate will have the opportunity to speak for three-five minutes on their views on educational issues pertinent to the office that he/she is seeking. Once each candidate has spoken, the event will transition into a ‘meet and greet,’ during which you can chat with individual candidates about questions that you have. [Read more…]

Guest column: Running for BOE to give hope, a voice to the 47 percent

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Laurie Paine

Laurie Paine

By Laurie Paine

47 percent.

What do you think of when you hear that number? As a parent, I can tell you that if that was my child’s grade I would be heartbroken, concerned.

“How can I help?” would be my next thought.

Well…

47 percent is roughly how many Oak Ridge students are economically disadvantaged. This is one of the most frequently quoted statistics recently, and sadly, it is often used to justify spending for less-than-stellar results. Rarely, the children behind this number are even given a face or a name…

So who are the 47 percent? [Read more…]

Public meeting Tuesday on proposed roundabout near ORHS

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Oak Ridge Proposed Roundabout

 

The City of Oak Ridge has released a potential design of the proposed roundabout near Oak Ridge High School, and a city board will accept public comments on the possible intersection change during a Tuesday evening meeting.

The roundabout could be built at the five-way intersection of Providence Road, Pennsylvania Avenue, East Pasadena Lane, and North Tulane Avenue. City officials aren’t fond of the term, but many residents refer to the intersection as “Malfunction Junction.”

During the Tuesday evening meeting, the Oak Ridge Traffic Safety Advisory Board will discuss the city’s grant application for the roundabout under the Tennessee Department of Transportation’s Transportation Alternatives program. The discussion will include an overview of the project, and the public will be allowed to comment. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge cross country competes in Cherokee Invitational

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Cherokee Invitational Cross Country

Cross country runners pictured above are, starting at left, Megan Peters of Oak Ridge, 10th place; Esther Gallmeier of Oak Ridge, 9th; Maddie Zawisza of Oak Ridge, 8th; Selena Robinson of William Blount, 7th; Lauren Cole of Maryville, 6th; Aislyn Peacock of Oak Ridge, 5th; Sara Bowden of Maryville, 4th; and Katharina Gallmeier of Oak Ridge, 3rd. (Photos by Nicole Zawisza)

 

KNOXVILLE—The Oak Ridge High School cross country teams competed in the Cherokee Invitational in Knoxville on Saturday.

Here is an edited version of notes from the meet by Coach Allen Etheridge:

Cherokee Invitational is a small meet that follows up the Knoxville schools’ KIL meet, which was held on Thursday, October 9.

We generally run well at this meet because it’s not as crowded or as intense as the big meets we attend, like the Great American Cross Country Festival earlier this month. [Read more…]

City to apply for state grant to build roundabout at ‘Malfunction Junction’

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Malfunction Junction at North Tulane Avenue in Oak Ridge

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday agreed to apply for a state grant that could be used to help build a roundabout at the five-way intersection of North Tulane and Pennsylvania avenues, Providence Road, and East Pasadena Lane. Though city officials don’t like the name, the five-way intersection is sometimes referred to as “Malfunction Junction.”

 

The city of Oak Ridge plans to apply for a state grant to design and build a roundabout near Oak Ridge High School at a five-way intersection sometimes referred to as “Malfunction Junction.”

The Oak Ridge City Council unanimously approved the grant application on Monday. If approved, the Tennessee Department of Transportation grant would be used to build a roundabout at the intersection of Providence Road, Pennsylvania Avenue, East Pasadena Lane, and North Tulane Avenue.

The total cost of the project is estimated at $748,113. Tthe grant funding would come from the Transportation Alternative Program. TDOT funds 80 percent of those projects, excluding design, and a 20 percent local match is required.

The city’s cost would be about $150,000, and the city would pay for the design, officials said Monday. [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats win District 3 Championship, play for regional title Tuesday

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Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats Volleyball District Champions

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats volleyball team won the District 3-AAA championship on Wednesday night at Central High School and will play for a regional title at Bearden High School on Tuesday. (Submitted photo)

 

Submitted by Coach Carmen Foster

The Oak Ridge High School Lady Wildcats volleyball team went into the District 3-AAA volleyball tournament undefeated.

The Lady Wildcats faced the winner of Powell and Central for their first match last week. Powell overcame a scrappy Central team to advance into the District Round.

The Lady Wildcats beat Powell in straight sets: 25-9, 25-15, and 25-13. They were led by a wonderful serving game led by senior captain Rachel Card and freshmen Reagan Dickens with nine and 10 service aces, respectively. Sophomore Alex Sherles had the most kills of the evening with 10. Sophomore Beth Wyatt, who is currently replacing the injured Emily Lawless in the setter position, added 32 assists. [Read more…]

Applications for Lawler Scholarship due Oct. 31

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The Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation is now accepting applications for the 2014 fall Dr. Adrian R. Lawler Exchange Scholarship, and they are due by October 31.

Applications are available through the Foundation’s website at www.orpsef.org under the Lawler Scholarship tab. They should be returned to the Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation, P.O. Box 117 MS-22, Oak Ridge, TN 37831. [Read more…]

ORHS Lady Wildcats undefeated in district play

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Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats Seniors Volleyball

Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats seniors are, from front to back, Rachel Loeffler, Sami Viau, Mattie Livengood, Rachel Card, and Emily Campbell. (Pictures by Loren Bonds)

 

District JV Tournament this afternoon (Oct. 1)

By Head Coach Carmen Foster

The Oak Ridge High School Lady Wildcats (and Baby Cats) played their last district match this past Thursday versus Gibbs High School.

Leading into this match, both the junior varsity and varsity teams were undefeated in district play. A win this past Thursday would cinch the No. 1 seed in the upcoming district tournaments. Both teams won! The Baby Cats won in straight sets and secured the No 1 spot in the JV District Tournament, which will occur this Wednesday, October 1. ORHS is hosting the District JV Tournament starting at 4:30 p.m.

In the follow-up match, the varsity Lady Wildcats won in straight sets against Gibbs: 25-9, 25-12, and 25-8. Gibbs was led by players Morgan Worley with three kills and four digs, and Michaela Wilson with two kills and two digs. [Read more…]