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Renovated Blankenship Field open for public use

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Blankenship-Field-James-Mitchell-Aug-2019
The renovated Blankenship Field—the city’s football field—and its walking track are now open for public use. The main change is that the grass field has been replaced with synthetic turf, but there are other changes as well. The field is pictured above in August 2019. (Photo by James Mitchell via City of Oak Ridge)

The renovated Blankenship Field—the city’s football field—and its walking track are now open for public use.

The main change is that the grass field has been replaced with synthetic turf, but there are other changes as well, including to scoreboards and end zone areas.

The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department and Oak Ridge Schools announced the opening of the renovated field on Tuesday.

The field and track are accessible through a gate adjacent to the lower concession stand, a press release said. Like other public park facilities, public use is permitted from sunup to sundown, except when the field is reserved for special events, the press release said.

[Read more…]

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Small RMS satellite to launch into space Oct. 2020

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Robertsville Middle School RamSat CubeSat
The small cube satellite built by Robertsville Middle School students with help from teachers, mentors, and NASA is scheduled to launch in October 2020, and it will be deployed from the International Space Station, Oak Ridge Schools announced Monday, Aug. 29, 2019. (Photo courtesy Todd Livesay)

Note: This story was last updated at 1 p.m. Aug. 20.

The small cube satellite built by Robertsville Middle School students with help from teachers, mentors, and NASA is scheduled to launch in October 2020, and it will be deployed from the International Space Station, Oak Ridge Schools announced Monday.

The school system said it has received notification of the launch date from NASA.

“We received the official word from Scott Higginbotham at Kennedy Space Center,” Oak Ridge Schools said in a press release. “His letter stated, ‘RamSat is currently manifested to fly on the ELaNa-31 mission aboard the NG-14 Commercial Resupply Services mission to the ISS. Launch is currently scheduled for October of 2020. NanoRacks will be facilitating the deployment of your spacecraft from the International Space Station.’”

Students have determined the mission of the cube satellite, or CubeSat, will be to circle the Earth and capture images to help them study the regrowth of vegetation in Gatlinburg, as the city recovers from the forest fires of November 2016, the press release said. The satellite has been named RamSat.

[Read more…]
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UCOR contributing $100,000 to new math, science building at Pellissippi State

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Pellissippi State Bill Haslam Center for Science and Math Groundbreaking May 15 2019 Web Cropped
Former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, eighth from left, joins Pellissippi State Community College to break ground on the new Bill Haslam Center for Math and Science on the college’s Hardin Valley Campus on May 15, 2019. The Tennessee Board of Regents approved the name of the building May 14, and the name was announced, to Haslam’s surprise, at the groundbreaking ceremony. (Photo by PSCC)

UCOR, the federal government’s cleanup contractor in Oak Ridge, is contributing $100,000 to the construction of a new math and science building at Pellissippi State Community College, a press release said.

The contribution was announced by UCOR on Thursday.

“Workforce development is at the heart of a new partnership between UCOR, an AECOM-led partnership with Jacobs, and Pellissippi State Community College,” the press release said. “The collaboration is focused on ensuring that Oak Ridge has a continuing pipeline of trained, qualified workers for environmental cleanup and other future industry needs. To launch the partnership, UCOR is contributing $100,000 toward construction of a new math and science building at Tennessee’s largest community college.”

As part of the partnership, other programs are in the works to strengthen small businesses and the broader workforce as part of the partnership, UCOR said. On Tuesday, August 13, UCOR and Pellissippi State sponsored a Small Business Diversity Summit that presented information from global companies about building more diverse and inclusive workforces, the press release said.

[Read more…]
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Benita Albert to highlight Oak Ridge schools in Aug. 27 talk

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Benita Albert
Benita Albert

Noted educator Benita Albert will speak at Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge on Tuesday, August 27.

The talk is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. in the City Room (A-111) of the Coffey-McNally Building.

Titled “SPECIAL (Students, Parents, Educators: A Community’s Incredible Alliance with Learning),” the talk will highlight the decades in the Oak Ridge public school system from the 1940s to the present, a press release said. Albert will cite exceptional teachers’ contributions, share candid student observations, and relate stories of alumni of Oak Ridge Schools who have become important world citizens, the release said.

[Read more…]

Jewelry Television (JTV) donates $5,000 for Roane State Foundation program

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JTV_donation_Web.jpg

Jewelry Television (JTV) donated $5,000 to support the Roane State Foundation’s Pay-It-Forward awards program. From left are Kirk Harris, Roane State director of Continuing Healthcare and Safety Education and director of the college’s Knox County Center for Health Sciences; R. Steve Walsh, senior vice president of global operations and logistics for JTV; Scott Niermann, executive director of the Roane State Foundation; Charles Wagner, vice chairman of JTV; and Chris Whaley, president of Roane State Community College. (Photo by Roane State)

 

Jewelry Television (JTV) donated $5,000 to support the Roane State Foundation’s Pay-It-Forward awards program.

Roane State Pay-It-Forward awards provide emergency aid to students to help them stay in school, including assistance with tuition or books for students near completion of their degrees, assistance for licensure/certification exam fees, and assistance to adult students who do not qualify for any state-funded tuition assistance programs, or whose aid has otherwise been exhausted.

Students who receive Pay-It-Forward scholarships agree to help future students in need at Roane State complete their education, once they are employed and able to give back, a press release said.

JTV is located next door to Roane State’s Knox County Center for Health Sciences, and leaders from both organizations consistently collaborate on ways to help Roane State students succeed. [Read more…]

UCOR, Pellissippi State present East Tennessee Small Business Diversity Summit on Tuesday

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Small businesses in East Tennessee are invited to attend a half-day summit on Tuesday to gather tools and tips on building a more diverse, inclusive work force, a press release said.

“Because of their mutual commitment to workforce development, UCOR and Pellissippi State Community College are offering a free program featuring speakers from global companies providing insights on diversity,” the press release said.

Pellissippi State President Anthony Wise and UCOR President and Chief Executive Officer Ken Rueter will open the event, the East Tennessee Small Business Diversity Summit. The morning’s key speaker is Pat Harris, former global chief diversity officer and vice president of community engagement for McDonald’s Corporation. Harris led the evolution of McDonald’s diversity and inclusion function and has documented that experience in her book “None of Us is As Good As All of Us: How McDonald’s Prospers by Embracing Inclusion and Diversity.” 

[Read more…]

Roane State students win bronze medals at SkillsUSA national competition

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Roane State Skills_usa Competition

Roane State Community College’s Cory Watson and Dylan Tipton (cybersecurity) and Kevin Spakes (programming) won bronze medals in the SkillsUSA national competition this summer. From left are Spakes, Watson, professor George Meghabghab, and Tipton. (Photo by Roane State)

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

Competing for the first time on a national stage, three Roane State Community College students won two bronze medals at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference.

Kevin Spakes, who graduated in May and had a full-time internship at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, won his honor for programming, while Cory Watson and Dylan Tipton took home the bronze for cybersecurity.

Watson also interned full-time at ORNL after his graduation in May, while Tipton is a rising sophomore at Roane State.

The 2019 National SkillsUSA conference was held in June in Louisville, Kentucky, and some 6,500 students from across the country competed. [Read more…]

Roane State’s Technology Building renamed for Sen. Ken Yager

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Roane State Community College Technology Building

The Technology Building at Roane State Community College’s main campus in Harriman has been renamed in honor of Tennessee Sen. Ken Yager. (Photo by Roane State)

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

One of the first buildings constructed on Roane State Community College’s Roane County campus has been renamed in honor of a lifelong public servant who is now a state senator.

The Tennessee Board of Regents has approved the community college’s request to rename the 41-year-old Technology Building the Ken Yager Building.

“Senator Yager has been an advocate for Roane State students for many years, as Roane County Executive, as a Roane State faculty member and dean, and now as a member of the Tennessee General Assembly,” Roane State President Chris Whaley said. [Read more…]

Enrich your life through ORICL

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Submitted

What is ORICL? It is the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning, and it is sponsored by Roane State Community College. It is open to people of all backgrounds and educational levels who reside in Oak Ridge, Clinton, Norris, Rocky Top, Knoxville, and the surrounding areas. ORICL offers programs to appeal to many different interests. Membership is $100 for a full year, consisting of three terms beginning in September; $80 for two terms beginning in February; and $45 for the summer term only.

Learn more about ORICL at https://www.roanestate.edu/?8465-ORICL-Oak-Ridge-Institute-for-Continued-Learning. Call the ORICL office at (865) 481-8222 to ask questions or to request a catalog. Online registration began on August 6, and paper registrations are being accepted starting August 7. [Read more…]

Tamke-Allan Observatory has public stargazing Saturday

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Linda Fippin
Linda Fippin

Tamke-Allan Observatory at Roane State Community College continues its Summer Public Stargazing with an examination of light and light pollution on Saturday, August 3.

The gates open at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, and a public lecture will be presented at 8 p.m. by guest lecturer and retired clinical researcher Linda Fippin.

“For the vast majority of human history, nighttime lighting was limited to the hearth fire,” a press release said. “As villages, towns, and eventually cities developed, lighting was still limited to oil lamps and candles. Gas lighting was not invented until the late 18th century, and electric street lights have only been in use for about 140 years. Nighttime lighting has many benefits, but excessive and inappropriate use has led to light pollution, which not only has negative effects on people, quality of life, and the natural environment, but also wastes energy resources. This talk will cover a brief history of nighttime lighting, the effects of light pollution, and what can be done to lessen them.”

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Roane State to offer extended business hours

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Roane State Community College will offer extended business hours to help students get ready for the fall semester. [Read more…]

Geothermal well system leaking under ORHS soccer field

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The geothermal well system is leaking under the soccer field at Oak Ridge High School, requiring emergency repairs to prevent classroom heat pumps from shutting down, school officials said.

“Recently, we lost a section of the geothermal wellfield to leaks in the well system that would require extensive exploratory excavation to locate and repair the leaks,” said Allen Thacker, Oak Ridge Schools maintenance and operations supervisor. “This option is not possible due to the location of the wellfield under the soccer field and the extensive cost of excavation and replacement of field damage. The wellfield is now operating at below 80 percent capacity, and the need for the cooling tower to be the primary source of water cooling is imperative to prevent shutdown of the classroom heat pumps.”

Thacker said the heat pumps serve all of the Learning Center, most of Comprehensive Studies, part of the Wellness Center, Visual Arts, and administration areas.

[Read more…]

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