Oak Ridge Today

McNally to chair Finance Committee, Yager to head State and Local Government

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Randy McNally

Randy McNally

Tennessee Senator Randy McNally, an Oak Ridge Republican, will chair the Finance, Ways, and Means Committee, and Senator Ken Yager, a Harriman Republican, will chair State and Local Government.

Lieutenant Governor Ron Ramsey, a Blountville Republican, announced the Tennessee Senate committee assignments for the 109th General Assembly on Saturday. Ramsey was elected to his fifth term as Speaker of the Senate on Tuesday.

“The most important job I have as Speaker of the Senate is appointing the committees that hear and deliberate the legislation before us as representatives of the people of Tennessee,” Ramsey said. “Making sure the right people are on the right committees ensures not only that good legislation gets passed but that all legislation receives a fair hearing and a thorough vetting.” [Read more…]

Video from Friday’s presidential visit by 134th Air Refueling Wing

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President Obama Visits McGhee Tyson

This is a still image from a video of President Obama arriving at McGhee Tyson Airport in Alcoa during a 5.5-hour visit to East Tennessee on Friday afternoon, January 9, 2015. (Video by 134th Air Refueling Wing)

 

The 134th Air Refueling Wing gave assistance to Air Force One during landing and takeoff at McGhee Tyson Airport in Alcoa when President Barack Obama visited East Tennessee on Friday afternoon, January 9.

Air Force Two, carrying Vice President Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden, also landed and departed from McGhee Tyson on Friday.

A third plane, a C-17, was also at McGhee Tyson to carry the presidential motorcade.

Here is a short video Friday’s visit at McGhee Tyson by the 134th Air Refueling Wing and Airman 1st Class Darby Arnold and Senior Airman Jackie Keeney. The video is posted online at DVIDS, the Defense Video and Imagery Distribution System. It includes a short excerpt of Air Force One taking off from McGhee Tyson.

Council, School Board to discuss Preschool, Administration Building today

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Oak Ridge Preschool and School Administration Building

Oak Ridge school officials have previously considered four options to replace or renovated the Oak Ridge Schools Preschool and Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building on New York Avenue. Officials say the building needs to be renovated or vacated for the Head Start program to receive funding in the 2015-2016 school year.

 

The Oak Ridge City Council and Board of Education have a joint meeting this evening (Thursday, January 15) to discuss the Preschool and School Administration Building, a 70-year-old building that officials have been hoping to replace for years.

In December, the City Council and BOE toured a building on Mitchell Road that could be a new home for the Preschool. It’s one of several proposed options that have been recently discussed. Others include repairing the existing building on New York Avenue or building a new facility. Officials have largely ruled out splitting up the Preschool and hosting students in classrooms at the city’s elementary schools.

Education officials say the Preschool has to be renovated or vacated by next year in order for the school system to continue to receive federal Head Start funding. [Read more…]

U.S., Tennessee, community college officials react to president’s education proposal

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Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, U.S. senators Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker, and U.S. representatives Chuck Fleischmann and John J. Duncan Jr., all Republicans, released statements or commented on the East Tennessee visit by President Barack Obama, a Democrat, on Friday and his proposal to make the first two years of community college free to responsible students. Pellissippi State Community College President Anthony Wise and Roane State Community College President Chris Whaley also released statements or commented on the visit and education proposal.

The president’s proposal, America’s College Promise, will be proposed in his State of the Union on January 20, and it is modeled after the Tennessee Promise.

Here’s what the officials from Tennessee said:

Bill Haslam during Presidential Visit at Pellissippi State

Governor Bill Haslam was among the Tennessee leaders who received praise from the president during Obama’s 5.5-hour visit to East Tennessee on Friday. (Photo by Rob Welton)

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam

The president recognizes that good things are happening in Tennessee. We are proud of the Tennessee Promise. It is changing the culture of expectations in Tennessee by encouraging more students to pursue a certificate or degree beyond high school. The Tennessee Promise is focused not just on access but success in terms of making certain that students actually attain their degree. We think having a mentor available for the students is an important part of achieving that success.

Regarding the specifics of the president’s plan, we look forward to seeing more details in the coming days about the cost of the program and how it will be covered. [Read more…]

Library has limited tax forms this year

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Submitted

The Oak Ridge Public Library has supplied the community with federal and state tax forms for the past several years. This year, the United States Internal Revenue Service is severely limiting the amount and types of forms the library and other institutions can order for the public.

For tax year 2014, only the 1040, 1040A, and 1040EZ forms will be available at the Library. No instruction booklets or other forms or schedules will be received for the public. No employer tax forms will be available at the Library, including W-2, W-3, W-4, and instructions for these forms. Form 1096, Annual Summary, and Transmittal of U. S. Information Returns, and Form 1099, Miscellaneous Income, will not be available at the Library.

Most tax forms not available at the Library can be printed for the cost of 10 cents a page from the IRS website at www.irs.gov. [Read more…]

Friends of Oak Ridge Library has winter book sale Thursday-Sunday

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Oak Ridge Public Library

The Oak Ridge Public Library is pictured above.

The Friends of the Oak Ridge Public Library has its winter 2015 Book Sale from Thursday evening, January 15, through Sunday, January 18.

The book sale will be held in the Oak Ridge Public Library Auditorium at 1401 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

The sale will include fiction and nonfiction books, magazines, LP records, and other publications, a press release said. Most titles are 50 cents or $1 each. Titles withdrawn from the Library are half-price from Thursday through Saturday. [Read more…]

Obama’s visit: Education, manufacturing, a chance to see the president

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President Barack Obama at Pellissippi State Community College

President Barack Obama announces a proposal to offer two years of free community college to responsible students during a half-hour speech at Pellissippi State Community College in Hardin Valley on Friday. (Photo by Rob Welton)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9:30 a.m. Jan. 15.

HARDIN VALLEY—It was a once-in-a lifetime opportunity for some, a chance to shake hands with the president of the United States of America or wave at his heavily guarded motorcade as it passed by on a local roadway.

For others, it was a chance to hear about a presidential proposal modeled after a Tennessee program that would make the first two years of community college free to students who maintain at least a 2.5 grade point average. That proposal, officially announced at Pellissippi State Community College in Hardin Valley on Friday, expands on the 20th century idea that all children in the United States are entitled to a public education. In the 21st century economy, the White House said, 12 years of school is no longer enough.

For a much-smaller group, Friday’s visit by President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and his wife Jill Biden offered an opportunity to hear an in-person announcement of a new advanced manufacturing hub, the country’s fifth, that will be led by the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and have Oak Ridge National Laboratory as a founding partner. That announcement at Techmer PM in Clinton was highlighted by a 3-D printed carbon fiber replica of a Shelby Cobra that the president joked about receiving for his birthday. [Read more…]

Anderson County hires Alternatives to Incarceration director

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Anderson County Detention Facility

The Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton is pictured above.

Information from WYSH Radio

Anderson County is one step closer to having a full-time director for its Alternatives to Incarceration program.

Last week, the committee in charge of finding someone to head the department unanimously recommended hiring Clinton resident Mary Young to fill the position. She will be responsible for finding ways to reduce the jail population through programs that could include expanded use of electronic monitoring devices, “day reporting” (described as a way to have offenders work on community projects during the day while still sleeping in their own beds at night), and offering more classes like anger management to help offenders deal with some of the underlying issues that led to their arrests and subsequent incarcerations.

Young will operate out of the Anderson County jail and officials say that she has worked in a similar program in California. She is expected to begin work on February 2. [Read more…]

Now Senate education chair, Alexander announces plan to ‘fix’ No Child Left Behind

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U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander

Lamar Alexander

“During the last six years, this committee has held 24 hearings and reported two bills to the Senate floor to fix the law’s problems. We should be able to finish our work within the first few weeks of 2015 so the full Senate can act.” —Lamar Alexander

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senate education committee Chairman Lamar Alexander has announced a plan to fix the No Child Left Behind law, wrapping up six years of committee work and sending a bill to the Senate floor within the first few weeks of 2015, the senator’s office said Tuesday.

Alexander, a Tennessee Republican, announced his plan on the Senate floor, a press release said.

“No Child Left Behind has become unworkable—and fixing this law, which expired over seven years ago, will be the first item on the agenda for the Senate education committee,” Alexander said. “I look forward to input from all sides on this proposal as we move forward with a bipartisan process that will keep the best portions of the law, while restoring responsibility to states and local communities and ensuring that all 50 million students in our nation’s 100,000 public schools can succeed.” [Read more…]

Pellissippi State transcript: Obama proposes free community college for two years

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President Barack Obama

President Barack Obama

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT ON AMERICA’S COLLEGE PROMISE

This is a transcript of remarks made by President Barack Obama at Pellissippi State Community College in Hardin Valley in west Knox County on Friday, January 9. The president was at Pellissippi State to announce a proposal that would make community college free for two years to responsible students across the country. The proposal is modeled on the relatively new Tennessee Promise.

Friday’s visit was the first by a president to Pellissippi State.

Pellissippi State Community College

Knoxville, Tennessee

2:05 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, everybody!  (Applause.)  Hey!  Thank you!  (Applause.)  Thank you so much.  Thank you.  Thank you, everybody.  Thank you.  Everybody, please have a seat.  Please have a seat.  Well, it is good to be back in Tennessee.  I hope you guys aren’t getting tired of me.  I’ve been coming around a lot lately, because there’s a lot of good stuff happening here.

I want to begin by thanking Joe and Jill Biden.  They’re not just good friends and good partners, but they really believe in the power of education and they really believe in creating those kinds of ladders of opportunity that gave all three of us and Michelle the chances, the incredible opportunities that we’ve had today.  And they understand the promise of America’s community colleges.  Well, Jill really understands it, and Joe — (laughter) — he doesn’t really have a choice.

Before I get into the reason that I’m here today, I want to begin by saying just a few words about the tragic events that we’ve watched unfold in France over the last several hours and days.  And because events have been fast-moving this morning, I wanted to make sure to comment on them. [Read more…]

Guest column: President Obama’s manufacturing announcement—what it means for UT, ORNL, East Tennessee

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Jimmy Cheek and Martin Keller and Shelby Cobra

University of Tennessee Knoxville Chancellor Jimmy G. Cheek, right, stands with Martin Keller, associate laboratory director at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, in front of a Shelby Cobra printed as a collaboration between ORNL and UT personnel. The car served as a highlight of President Obama’s visit to the area on Friday. (Photo courtesy UT) 

 

KNOXVILLE—President Obama’s announcement on Friday that the University of Tennessee in Knoxville would be the lead institution in a $259 million advanced composites manufacturing project known as the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation, or IACMI, was met with applause, but also a few questions.

Many wondered what advanced composites manufacturing really means, why the UT-led consortium was selected, and what the impact for the area might be.

Here are some answers.

What is IACMI?

IACMI is the newest federally funded institute for manufacturing innovation. Its focus is on advancing innovation in the manufacturing of composites used in automobiles, wind turbines, and compressed gas storage tanks. [Read more…]

Family Day at the Civic Center on Valentines Day

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The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department will host the Third Annual Family Day at the Civic Center on February 14 from noon to 4 p.m.

All activities except public swim and concessions will be free, a press release said. Concession items will include hot dogs, nachos, chips, juice, and soft drinks. A free cookie decorating activity will be offered.

Discounted public swim times, in 30-minute increments, will be offered for $1. Children 2 and under are free. The public swim is open to everyone and is scheduled at the indoor swimming pool from 12:30-1 p.m., 1:15-1:45 p.m., 2-2:30 p.m., and 2:45-3:15 p.m. [Read more…]