Oak Ridge Today

More snow closings: Oak Ridge Schools, Roane State, Anderson County govt.

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Oak Ridge Schools are closed today (Wednesday, January 20) due to the snow and winter weather.

So are Anderson County government offices and courts. Roane State Community College campuses are also closed, including the one in Oak Ridge.

In addition to its schools, Anderson County Schools has also announced its Central Office will be closed.

The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce office is closed until noon Wednesday.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Copyright 2016 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Clinton City Schools also closed Wednesday

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Clinton City Schools will also be closed on Wednesday, January 20, because of the weather, which includes a forecast for a few inches of snow across East Tennessee.

Schools in Anderson County and Roane County have also announced they will close, and so have other school districts in East Tennessee.

Oak Ridge Schools have not announced any plans to close, but Oak Ridge Today will post any updates when we receive them.

See the seven-day forecast near Oak Ridge here. [Read more…]

With snow in forecast, Roane County Schools closed Wednesday

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Roane County Schools will be closed Wednesday, when a few inches of snow are possible in East Tennessee.

Anderson County Schools are also closed.

Oak Ridge and Clinton have their own school districts, and neither has announced plans to close.

The National Weather Service in Morristown said winter weather is expected across the region on Wednesday, and again later this week. [Read more…]

City puts down brine to prepare for snow

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School-Bus-Woodbury-Lane-Brine-Jan-19-2016

Oak Ridge city workers have put down brine to help prepare roads for the snow that is forecast for Wednesday. Above, the brine is visible on Woodbury Lane in front of the Oak Ridge Central Services Complex on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 19, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge city workers have put down brine to help prepare roads for the snow forecast for Wednesday.

The salt and water mix is visible on many city roads.

On Tuesday morning, the National Weather Service in Morristown said there is a 20 percent chance of snow showers after 1 a.m. Wednesday near Oak Ridge, and snow is likely before 3 p.m. Wednesday. A new snow accumulation of one to three inches is possible in Oak Ridge, forecasters said. [Read more…]

Anderson County Schools closed Wednesday due to snow forecast

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Anderson County Schools will be closed Wednesday, January 20, due to a winter weather advisory from the National Weather Service that includes a prediction of snow, officials said.

The Central Office will follow the inclement weather policy and procedure, a statement said.

The National Weather Service in Morristown has forecast one to three inches of snow across the area, and a winter weather advisory is in effect from 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday as a fast-moving storm system is expected.

See the seven-day forecast near Oak Ridge here. [Read more…]

Borchers to discuss school improvement, STEM, Access Oak Ridge in Tuesday lunch

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Bruce Borchers

Bruce Borchers

Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers will discuss school improvement, STEM, and Access Oak Ridge during a lunchtime meeting on Tuesday.

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Oak Ridge Schools officials have previously said they would like to transform the school system into the premier preK-12 STEM school district in the nation. Borchers is expected to highlight that plan and other programs during a Lunch with the League on Tuesday, January 19, at Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church.

Access Oak Ridge is the program that has, so far, provided convertible laptop computers to every middle school student. Borchers is expected to give an update on that program during the Tuesday meeting, which starts at noon.

Borchers will also review areas of focus and strategic initiatives for school improvement, a press release said. The public is invited. [Read more…]

Clinton Schools: Violette to retire in June

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Vicki Violette

Vicki Violette

Information from WYSH Radio

Last Wednesday, Schools Director Vicki Violette informed the Clinton Board of Education, Clinton Mayor Scott Burton, City Manager Roger Houck, and members of Clinton City Council that she will retire in June.

Violette’s educational career has spanned 36 years, the last 10 of which she has spent at the helm of Clinton City School District.

Violette said she had been thinking about retiring for some time and plans to spend more time with her family. [Read more…]

With Foster retiring, AC school board approves search committee

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Larry Foster at Anderson County Commision

Larry Foster, Anderson County schools director, is retiring at the end of June, and a search committee has been formed to find his replacement. Foster is pictured above during a July 2015 meeting of the Anderson County Commission. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

Anderson County Board of Education Chair John Burrell announced at last week’s school board meeting that he has appointed a search committee to find the next director of schools. The next director will replace Larry Foster, who is retiring at the end of June.

The board voted unanimously to approve the makeup of the committee, which will be chaired by Gail Martin, who is also the committee’s representative for Claxton. Curtis Sexton will represent Rocky Top, while Glenda Langenberg will represent Oak Ridge. Jim Stewart will represent Clinton, Dail Cantrell will represent Andersonville/Norris, and Robert McKamey will serve as the representative for the Anderson County Commission, Dutch Valley, and Norwood. [Read more…]

Four Oak Ridge students sing in Bijou Awards competition

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Bijou-Awards-Composite-Photo-Jan-16-2016

Four Oak Ridge students sang in the Bijou Awards competition at the Bijou Theatre in Knoxville on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016. They are, clockwise from top left, Oak Ridge High School seniors Jacob Moreno and Treston Henderson; Marian Vacaliuc, a 7th-grader at Jefferson Middle School; and Sarah Hepler, an 8th-grader at Robertsville Middle School. (Photos by Savanna Schubert)

 

KNOXVILLE—On Saturday night, students from all over East Tennessee gathered for a night of competition at the Bijou Theatre. Students from across the region had the chance to audition to win a spot to perform on stage at the historic location.

The Fourth Annual Bijou Awards was a competition to showcase students and their performing arts talents, such as singing and acting. The competition had five different categories, and five students were selected for each category. The categories were: Rising Star, Male Acting, Female Acting, Male Singing, and Female Singing.

Four Oak Ridge Schools students were chosen to compete in this year’s awards. Sarah Hepler, an eighth-grader from Robertsville Middle School, and Marian Vacaliuc, a seventh-grader from Jefferson Middle School, sang in the Rising Star competition. Treston Henderson and Jacob Moreno, seniors from Oak Ridge High School, competed in the Male Singing category. [Read more…]

Video: Four Oak Ridge students compete in Bijou Awards

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Bijou-Awards-Jan-16-2016

Four Oak Ridge students competed in the Bijou Awards at the Bijou Theatre in Knoxville on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016. (Photo by Savanna Schubert)

 

KNOXVILLE—Four Oak Ridge students competed in the Bijou Awards in Knoxville on Saturday.

Freelance contributor Savanna Schubert interviewed the four students and organizer Jay Apking at the Bijou Theatre. The four students are Jacob Moreno and Treston Henderson of Oak Ridge High School, Sarah Hepler of Robertsville Middle School, and Marian Vacaliuc of Jefferson Middle School.

See the video by Schubert here:

See this story for more information about the Saturday night Bijou Awards.

Copyright 2015 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Council agenda: Preschool report, Waste Connections contract extension

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Elm Grove Park Oct. 21, 2015

Elm Grove Park in east Oak Ridge has been proposed as a site for a new preschool, and it’s considered the best potential location. The Oak Ridge City Council will consider accepting a report recommending that site during a 7 p.m. meeting on Monday, Jan. 11, 2016. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Other items on the Oak Ridge City Council agenda tonight include possible acceptance of a report that recommends building a new preschool at Elm Grove Park and a five-year contract extension for Waste Connections of Tennessee, the city’s garbage and recyclables contractor.

As previously reported, tonight’s meeting (Monday, January 11) will also include a report on city manager evaluations, with possible discussion of a one-year contract extension and 2 percent pay raise, and a brief update on Main Street Oak Ridge, the $80 million project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall.

The preschool report was presented to Oak Ridge City Council and Oak Ridge Board of Education in October. It came from the Joint City/Schools Preschool Planning Committee, which determined whether to remodel the 70-year-old Preschool building on New York Avenue, lease and renovate a building, or build a new one. [Read more…]

OR Schools asks for state help with military program, consistency for teachers

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McDonald-McQueen-Ragan-ORHS-Jan-7-2016

Tennessee Education Commissioner Candice McQueen, center, visited Oak Ridge High School on Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016. Also pictured are ORHS Principal Martin McDonald, left, and Tennessee Rep. John Ragan, an Oak Ridge Republican. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge Schools could use help with a military program, one of the so-called “seven keys” to college and career readiness, education officials told a state official on Thursday.

State officials can also help by “keeping teachers on the same path for more than one year,” Oak Ridge Board of Education Chair Keys Fillauer told Tennessee Education Commissioner Candice McQueen during a Thursday afternoon tour of Oak Ridge High School.

“Let’s give them (teachers) some consistency,” Fillauer said. McQueen’s path is called TNReady, Fillauer said. That’s described as a “new and improved” TCAP (Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program), which students have taken since 1988.

McQueen is visiting all districts as part of a statewide tour. On Thursday, it was Oak Ridge’s turn. In addition to Oak Ridge High School, McQueen toured Glenwood Elementary School and Robertsville Middle School. [Read more…]