Oak Ridge Today

Mentors needed for tnAchieves, a statewide scholarship and mentoring program

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tnAchieves, a statewide scholarship and mentoring program, has accepted 521 scholarship applications from the Class of 2014 in the three local high schools.

The mission of tnAchieves is to increase higher education opportunities for Tennessee students by providing last-dollar scholarships with mentor support. Last year, the program worked with 345 students in Anderson County alone.

Eliminating the funding barrier is important, but tnAchieves believes that the mentoring component is truly the heart of the program. Due to the increase in applicants this year, the program needs more volunteer mentors than ever. Mentors provide encouragement and structure to students as they navigate the college-going process. Current mentors report that the time commitment is only about 10 hours annually.

For more information, visit www.tnachieves.org or contact Graham Thomas at (615) 604-1306 or graham@tnachieves.org.

Former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw to lecture at UT

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Tom Brokaw

Tom Brokaw

Tom Brokaw, one of America’s best-known journalists, will be in Knoxville on Nov. 13 to give the Baker Distinguished Lecture at the University of Tennessee.

Brokaw is a former anchor for NBC News, and he is also an author and special correspondent for NBC News. He will speak at 1:30 p.m. Nov. 13 in the University Center Auditorium.

The lecture is presented by the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy. It is free and open to the public, but reservations must be made. Seats will be held only until 10 minutes before the event begins. Overflow seating will be available on a first-come, first-served basis in the Shiloh Room (Room 235). Visit this Web page to reserve a seat. [Read more…]

Yager presents Brown-Forman donation to Roane Alliance’s Education Matters!

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Brown-Forman Donation to Roane Alliance Education Matters

Tennessee Sen. Ken Yager, center, presents a donation from Brown-Forman to the Roane Alliance’s Education Matters. Also pictured are Rep. Kent Calfee, left, and Allen Lutz of The Roane Alliance. (Submitted photo)

Tennessee Sen. Ken Yager on Thursday announced a new partner for the continued funding of The Roane Alliance’s award-winning Education Matters! program. Yager presented a $5,000 check at the beginning of the Roane County Chamber of Commerce regular monthly board meeting.

Yager presented the check to Allen Lutz, education and workforce development specialist for the Roane Alliance, on behalf of Brown-Forman—the global, multi-billion dollar company that produces and markets Jack Daniel’s Tennessee whiskey.

The Brown-Forman donation comes on the heels of the Alliance’s Education Matters! program receiving an international economic development award earlier this month. The Roane County program won a Gold Award for Excellence in Economic Development (category 25,000-200,000 population) from the International Economic Development Council at their annual conference in Philadelphia. [Read more…]

ORHS hopes to win top reform prize in Nashville on Oct. 28

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Oak Ridge High School

Representatives of Oak Ridge High School, selected as one of the best three public high schools in Tennessee for growth in student achievement, will be in Nashville on Oct. 28, when they hope the school wins top honors at the SCORE Prize event.

Leaders, teachers, parents, and students of Oak Ridge High School, selected as one of the best three public high schools in Tennessee for growth in student achievement, will be in Nashville on Oct. 28, when they hope to win top honors at the SCORE Prize event.

The SCORE Prize, sponsored by the State Collaborative on Reforming Education, or SCORE, is the hallmark award for Tennessee public schools and districts that have made the greatest gains in student achievement. The prize will be awarded during an event that begins at 6 p.m., Oct. 28, at Laura Turner Concert Hall, Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville.

SCORE is an independent, nonprofit, and nonpartisan education advocacy and research institution that works collaboratively to support Tennessee’s work to prepare students for college and the workforce and was founded by Bill Frist, former U.S. Senate majority leader. [Read more…]

Roane State student wins national $21,000 scholarship

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James Davis

James Davis

Roane State Community College student James Davis of Crossville is one of two students in the country to win a $21,000 scholarship awarded to young adults with cystic fibrosis as they pursue higher education.

Davis was among 24 undergraduate students who received a $2,500 AbbVie CF Scholarship. The students then competed for public votes to win an additional $18,500 scholarship and be named a 2013 Thriving Scholar.

In addition to public votes, scholarship awards were based on students’ academic excellence, extracurricular activities, creativity, and ability to serve as a positive role model for the cystic fibrosis, or CF, community. [Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society has Owl Prowl on Oct. 26

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Owl Prowl

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have its annual Owl Prowl on Saturday, Oct. 26.

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have its annual Owl Prowl on Saturday, Oct. 26.

The Owl Prowl starts at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 26 at the UT Arboretum at 901 S. Illinois Ave. (Highway 62) in Oak Ridge.

It will start at the Program Shelter with a program presented by the Clinch River Raptor Center, featuring owls found in East Tennessee. Kathy Strunk and Katie Cottrell will bring live birds for display and will give information about their natural history. [Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society has fall plant sale Saturday

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University of Tennessee Arboretum Society Plant Sale

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society’s Fall Plant Sale is Saturday at the UT Arboretum in Oak Ridge.

The plant sale is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the arboretum, which is at 901 S. Illinois Ave.

“Fall is the ideal time to add plants to the landscape,” a press release said. “Milder temperatures, more dependable rainfall, and the fact that plants are not putting energy into their top growth, but devoting all their resources to developing a stronger root system, will give them a head start in the spring and a much better survival rate.” [Read more…]

Roane State receives Dollar General Literacy Foundation grant

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Roane State Community College Harriman Campus

Roane State Community College has received a grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation to offer more classes that help adults earn their high school equivalency diplomas. Pictured above is the college’s main campus in Harriman. (Photo courtesy RSCC)

Roane State Community College received a grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation to offer more classes that help adults earn their high school equivalency diplomas.

The $8,000 grant will be used to assist with the cost of instructors, supplies, and instructional materials.

“We very much appreciate the support of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation,” said Melissa Browder, Roane County Adult Education supervisor. “Their contribution allows us to offer adults a path to a high school diploma, an accomplishment which can lead to better career opportunities and open the door for adults to continue their education.” [Read more…]

UT study finds climate change threatens North American turtle habitat

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Eastern Box Turtle

A Terrapene carolina, or eastern box turtle, near Lake Poinsett, Ark., in 2013. (Photo by Beth A. Reinke)

KNOXVILLE—Although a turtle’s home may be on its back, some North American turtles face an uncertain future as a warming climate threatens to reduce their suitable habitat.

A new study conducted at the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville reconstructs the effects of past climate changes on 59 species of North American turtles and finds that the centers of the turtles’ ranges shifted an average of 45 miles for each degree of warming or cooling. While some species were able to find widespread suitable climate, other species, many of which today are endangered, were left with only minimal habitat.

Species in temperate forests and grasslands, deserts and lake systems, primarily in the central and eastern United States, were more affected by climate change than species along the Pacific Coast, in the mountain highlands of the western United States and Mexico, and in the tropics, according to the study, published in the journal PLOS ONE. [Read more…]

UT professor, ORNL staff member to be honored for supercomputing accomplishments

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Jack Dongarra

Jack Dongarra

KNOXVILLE—Jack Dongarra, distinguished professor of computer science at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, is being honored for his leadership in high performance computing.

He will receive the Association for Computing Machinery-Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society Ken Kennedy Award on Nov. 19 in Denver at SC13, the International Conference on High Performance Computing.

Dongarra, who is also a distinguished research staff member at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, is being recognized for designing and promoting standards for mathematical software used to solve numerical problems common to high-performance computing. His work has led to the development of major software libraries of algorithms and methods that boost performance and portability in high-performance computing environments. [Read more…]

McNally, Yager named honorary members of Roane State Foundation board

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Randy McNally

Randy McNally

Ken Yager

Ken Yager

State senators Randy McNally and Ken Yager have been named honorary members of the Roane State Foundation’s board of directors.

McNally and Yager have lengthy records of civic involvement, a press release said. McNally has received the Legislative Hero 2012 award from Tennessee Association of Mental Health Organizations; received the CASA President’s 2012 Award; was named a Rotary International Paul Harris fellow; and received the 1996 Distinguished Service Award from the University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy.

Yager serves as a board member of the Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee and the Roane County Heritage Commission. In addition, he is a member of the chambers of commerce in Dayton and Spring City, and in Campbell, Fentress, Morgan, Pickett, Roane, and Scott counties. He was named 2013 Legislator of the Year by the East Tennessee Development District. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools reassigns middle school principals

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Oak Ridge Schools Principals

Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers, center, announced reassignments of middle school principals on Wednesday, including James Hundertmark, right, who has been Robertsville Middle School principal. Also pictured is Christopher Scott, vice principal of curriculum and instruction at Oak Ridge High School.

Principals at Robertsville and Jefferson middle schools have been reassigned, education officials said Wednesday.

Robertsville Middle School Principal James Hundertmark is moving to the School Administration Building, where he will be the special projects administrator, Superintendent Bruce Borchers said.

Meanwhile, Jefferson Middle School Principal Bruce Lay has been reassigned as RMS principal, Borchers said. Philip Cox, who has been JMS vice principal, will become interim principal. [Read more…]