Oak Ridge Today

Free Medical Clinic receives donation

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Free Medical Clinic Donation

At left, Tanya H. Vargas, co-medical director of the Free Medical Clinic of Oak Ridge, receives a donation from Oak Ridge Panhellenic Alumnae Treasurer Emily Flatau. (Submitted photo)

The Oak Ridge PanHellenic Alumnae Association presented a donation of $1,500 to Free Medical Clinic of Oak Ridge Co-Medical Director Tanya Vargas at a recent meeting. The donation is earmarked to purchase two pieces of much-needed equipment: an ophthalmoscope and an otoscope, a press release said.

The Free Medical Clinic serves residents of Anderson, Morgan, and Roane counties who are uninsured and can’t afford to pay for medical care. The clinic is located at 116 Division Road in Oak Ridge.

The Oak Ridge PanHellenic Alumnae Association is an organization made up of a cross-section of community-spirited women who meet monthly to exchange ideas, learn from programs presented, conduct their business meetings, and have fun, the press release said. [Read more…]

No garbage pickup on Memorial Day

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Waste Connections Inc. will not be picking up refuse or recyclables on Monday, May 26, in observance of Memorial Day. Monday’s routes will be picked up on Tuesday, May 27, and subsequent days that week to follow through Saturday. Please have all refuse and recyclables out by 7 a.m., the city said in a press release.

For additional information you can contact Waste Connections at (865) 482-3656 or visit www.WasteConnectionsTn.com.

DOE looks to UT’s Dongarra for input on computing advances

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Jack Dongarra

Jack Dongarra

KNOXVILLE—The U.S. Department of Energy recently released a report through its Office of Science detailing the Top 10 research challenges in reaching the level of exascale computing, once again calling on Jack Dongarra at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, a press release said.

Dongarra—a distinguished professor in the College of Engineering’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, director of the Innovative Computing Laboratory and one of five National Academy of Engineering members at UT—has long been at the forefront of exascale computing, or computing at roughly a thousand times the capability of recent supercomputers.

An icon in his field, Dongarra is a lead author of the Top500, a list he helped start in 1993 to measure the world’s fastest computers as well as numerous software packages for high-performance computing. [Read more…]

New NNSA administrator to keynote Tennessee Valley Summit

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Frank Klotz

Frank Klotz, the new administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, is pictured above.

CHATTANOOGA—Retired Lt. Gen. Frank G. Klotz, the recently confirmed undersecretary for nuclear security for the U.S. Department of Energy and administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, will be a keynote speaker at the Tennessee Valley Corridor Summit in June. Along with University of Tennessee President Joe DiPetro, Klotz will speak at the event’s Leadership Luncheon, which will conclude the June 4-5 event on the campus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Klotz was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in April to lead the NNSA in its mission to improve national secruity through the military application of nuclear energy. NNSA maintains the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile and is responsible for many nuclear nonproliferation, counter-terrorism, and radiological emergency response efforts for the United States as well as providing fuel for the country’s nuclear Navy. The Y-12 National Secruity Complex in Oak Ridge is one of NNSA’s most important facilities.

“Gen. Klotz occupies one of the most important jobs in the federal government to assure a strong nuclear deterrence for our nation’s security and the safety of our nuclear stockpile,” said Gerald Boyd, TVC board chair and former DOE Oak Ridge site manager. “It’s a great honor for the TVC to host one of his first public addresses as the new DOE undersecretary and NNSA administrator.” [Read more…]

Man flees from deputies in his underwear

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A Lake City man was in custody Wednesday after turning himself in after fleeing from deputies early Tuesday morning, authorities said.

Justin Lee McIntosh, 21, surrendered to jail officers Tuesday evening and was arrested on several outstanding warrants, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department said.

Earlier Tuesday morning, at about 3:30 a.m., patrol deputies went to his residence on Bolin Road near Lake City in an attempt to serve the arrest warrants. McIntosh broke out a side window of the home and fled from deputies—in his underwear, the Sheriff’s Department said. [Read more…]

Guest column: CASA seeks volunteers in Anderson County

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Classes start June 2

By CASA of the Tennessee Heartland

Every day in America:

  • 8,200 children are reported as abused, neglected, or abandoned;
  • 500 children are placed in foster care; and
  • Three children die from physical abuse.

Last year in Anderson County:

  • 186 children were placed in foster care;
  • 592 child abuse cases were reported; and
  • 167 remained in foster care.

CASA volunteers serve as the voice of abused and neglected children who come under the protection of the juvenile court system. Outcomes include reaching safe permanency in less than half the time of children without a CASA volunteer, more services leading to higher success and continued safety after placement. Currently, the Anderson County CASA program maintains a waiting list of more than 100 children. [Read more…]

What’s happening in Oak Ridge from May 22-28

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Here is a summary of events happening in Oak Ridge starting Thursday, May 22, and continuing through May 28.

This weekly listing of events is compiled by the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau: [Read more…]

Guest column: Big Ed’s Memorial Golf Tournament a success

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By Community Mediation Services of Anderson County

The successful 13th Annual Big Ed’s Memorial Golf Tournament on April 25, 2014, continued a long tradition that combines a great day of golf with active commitment to Anderson County youth and families through Community Mediation Services. The Oak Ridge Country Club provided a beautiful setting for 140 golfers. Team winners for the first flight were Mike Malicote, Jeff Golliher, Jake Reeves, and Roger Claiborn. The team winning the second flight included Benjie Shuler, Jackson Vaughn, Mark Bragg, and Luke Cabbage.

Community Mediation Services of Anderson County is the beneficiary of Big Ed’s Memorial Golf Tournament, emphasizing the importance David Neusel and Big Ed Neusel placed on helping youth and families in our area in a constructive and positive way. Community Mediation Services has worked with youth and families in Anderson County for 28 years, promoting the peaceful resolution of community conflicts, using community resources. Our four programs include Victim Offender Reconciliation Program (VORP), Visitation Mediation, Teen/Parent Mediation, and Attendance Mediation. Mediators don’t take sides or make decisions, but do help people solve problems in ways that are decided and agreed upon by all. According to Executive Director Cindy Helton, the tournament raised more than $15,000, which enables CMS to continue to provide no-cost services to the families of Anderson County. [Read more…]

‘Fore’ the Girls!: Girls Inc. Golf Classic on May 30

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Girls Inc. Golf Tournament

Girls Inc. of Oak Ridge is hosting its 17th Annual Golf Classic on Friday, May 30, at the Oak Ridge Country Club.

The Golf Classic this year will feature a Hole-In-One Car Prize sponsored by Sexton Automotive, first- and second-place team prizes, division prizes, prizes for closest to the pin, longest drive, and a putting contest, a press release said.

“Our fun day on the course will include refreshments and snacks as well as a fabulous dinner from the Oak Ridge Country Club,” the release said.

This year, the funds received from the Golf Classic sponsors and team fees will all support the new Girls Inc. Golf Program, the release said. Girls Inc. will be starting their first-ever golf season for girls ages 5-15 years old who are interested in building skills, learning to play, and increasing their interest in golf. [Read more…]

Spotlight: Norwood teacher part of state Innovative Educator Network

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Amy Gaskins

Amy Gaskins

Submitted

Amy Gaskins, a teacher at Norwood Elementary School, has been named a participant of the Tennessee Department of Education’s Innovative Educator Network.

The network will bring together high-performing educators eager to re-think the way they use their finite time, unique talents, and emerging technologies to transform the educational experiences and achievements of the students they serve. The network will expose participants to innovative approaches currently underway nationwide, guide them through a rigorous, hands-on design process, and facilitate connections with local and national leaders in order to plan, implement, and evaluate their ideas within classrooms.

Gaskins is one of 50 high-performing educators currently teaching in Tennessee public schools chosen to participate in the network. For her participation, Gaskins will receive a $2,500 innovation fund to purchase necessary technology for her fourth-grade classroom, and Norwood Elementary School will also receive a $7,500 grant to purchase necessary hardware and software to support the personalized learning model developed by the network.​

More than 100 jobs terminated as B&W work on USEC centrifuge project ends

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American Centrifuge Technology Manufacturing Center

The American Centrifuge Technology Manufacturing Center in south Oak Ridge is pictured above. (Photos courtesy USEC)

But hundreds of jobs maintained in Ohio and Tennessee, USEC says

Babcock and Wilcox has terminated the employment of more than 100 workers who had been involved in the American Centrifuge project with USEC, and Monday was the last day of work for most of them, a spokesperson said.

“B&W’s involvement in the American Centrifuge Manufacturing LLC has transitioned fully to USEC, which will result in the termination of all 122 employees B&W had engaged in the effort,” said Aimee Mills, B&W media relations lead.

Mills said roughly 25 employees will be released during the next two months as the “final steps of demobilization take place” on the advanced uranium enrichment project, which has included centrifuge manufacturing in Oak Ridge and the American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio.

“Some of those affected have been reassigned within B&W,” Mills said. “We have also provided assistance by way of job fairs and workshops to update resumes.”

Meanwhile, USEC has notified a small group of its Oak Ridge employees who worked on manufacturing activities that they would be laid off, Communications Manager Jeremy Derryberry said Tuesday. Several were transferred to other parts of the centrifuge program. [Read more…]

Clinton Council approves budget on first reading

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Information from WYSH Radio

Meeting Monday night, the Clinton City Council approved the budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 on first reading. The $10.7 million budget keeps the city’s tax rate steady at 76 cents per $100 of assessed value while allowing the city to give its employees 2 percent pay raises and continue to cover 100 percent of those workers’ health and dental benefits.

The second and final reading of the budget is set for June 19.