Oak Ridge Today

Council agrees to special meeting on school shortfall but wants documentation

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Mark Watson

Mark Watson

The Oak Ridge City Council has agreed to meet in a special session next week to try to resolve a $250,000 school funding shortfall that education officials claim could lead to a loss of millions of dollars in state funding and a temporary school shutdown if it’s not resolved by Oct. 1.

But Council members want documentation to accompany the request, Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson told Superintendent Bruce Borchers in a Sept. 11 letter. It should include an explanation of why the money is needed, information on decisions made by the Oak Ridge Board of Education to close schools on Oct. 1 if the funding is not obtained, and copies of any formal notice from the Tennessee education commissioner that he has agreed to withhold all of the state funding for Oak Ridge Schools starting in October, the city manager said. [Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society has two wildflower walks Saturday

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The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society has two wildflower walks on Saturday, one at 10 a.m. and the other at 2 p.m.

Due to the popularity of the walks in past years, the Arboretum Society will offer a morning walk with Kris Light and an afternoon walk with Charlie Samuels, a press release said. The walks are free and open to the public, but participants must call ahead to register for one of the walks. The phone number is (865) 483-3571. [Read more…]

ORNL’s Stuart Daw elected chemical engineering fellow

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Stuart Daw

Stuart Daw

C. Stuart Daw of Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been elected fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

He was selected by AIChE for his numerous outstanding contributions to the chemical engineering profession.

Daw, a UT-Battelle Corporate Fellow, works in the U.S. Department of Energy lab’s Energy and Transportation Science Division. He lives in Knoxville.

ORNL: Toxic methylmercury-producing microbes more widespread than realized

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Microbes that live in rice paddies, northern peat bogs, and other previously unexpected environments are among the bacteria that can generate highly toxic methylmercury, researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center have learned.

This finding, published in Environmental Science and Technology, explains why deadly methylated mercury is produced in areas where the neurotoxin’s presence has puzzled researchers for decades. Methylmercury—the most dangerous form of mercury—damages the brain and immune system and is especially harmful to developing embryos. Certain bacteria transform inorganic mercury into toxic methylmercury. [Read more…]

Heritage Center Greenway area certified by National Wildlife Federation

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A greenway area at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site, has been designated as a certified wildlife habitat site by the National Wildlife Federation.

The 26-acre area is part of the Heritage Center Greenway, which includes trails, ponds, and close-by rivers, a press release said. The greenway provides public access to meadow and wildlife habitat areas that allow viewing of more than 200 species of birds and water fowl, including nesting pairs of bald eagles and osprey. [Read more…]

Board orders demolition of Price Florist

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Price Florist

A city board on Thursday ordered the owner of Price Florist on Oak Ridge Turnpike to demolish the building within 60 days.

A city board on Thursday ordered the owner of the former Price Florist building on Oak Ridge Turnpike to demolish it within 60 days.

The Oak Ridge Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals had considered whether to issue a demolition or repair order for the once-thriving store at three other meetings this year, but members had given property owner Patricia Warren of Crossville several extensions to allow her time to come back with a sales contract, repair plan, or demolition permit. On Thursday, they said she had run out of time.

“I think we’ve bent over backwards to accommodate you and your property,” board member Philip Nipper said before the 6-0 vote in favor of demolition. [Read more…]

NNSA Production Office tops Feds Feed Families campaign goal

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Second Harvest

NNSA Production Office employees deliver food to the Second Harvest facility in Maryville that serves a multi-county area of East Tennessee.  Shown from left to right are Jim Goss, Julieanne Rendon, Donna Riggs, Rebekah Nwangwa, Ken Rhyne, James Piatek, Mark Sundie, and Steven Wyatt. (Photo courtesy NPO)

Employees of the National Nuclear Security Administration Production Office, or NPO, have donated 17,348 pounds of food as part of the annual U.S. Department of Energy’s “Feds Feed Families” campaign. The campaign, which ended on Sept. 6, surpassed the goal of 17,000 pounds.

“I am extremely proud and moved by the generosity of NPO employees,” said Steve Erhart, NNSA Production Office manager. “Each year, the Feds Feed Families food drive reminds us there are people in our own communities who go to bed hungry. Serving our country starts at home, and that is what this effort is all about.” [Read more…]

Constitution Day lecture on immigration law at Roane State on Tuesday

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Karla McKanders

Karla McKanders

University of Tennessee College of Law professor Karla McKanders will discuss immigration law on Constitution Day on Tuesday at Roane State Community College’s Oak Ridge Campus.

The lecture will be held from 1–2:30 p.m. in the City Room. The event is free, and the public is invited.

McKanders’ research focuses on civil rights, immigration and asylum law, and policy. She has explored the constitutionality of recent state and local laws targeting immigrants and the legal connections between past discriminatory laws and current anti-immigrant legislation. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge accepting race applications for 2014

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The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department is now accepting race applications for 2014. Organizations that wish to host 5Ks, triathlons, marathons, walks, or fun runs next year are strongly encouraged to contact the department to inquire about available dates and courses.

The popularity and frequency of races is increasing. For this reason, the City of Oak Ridge has developed guidelines to permit safe racing on the city’s streets and highways. [Read more…]

UT professor helps discover near-Earth asteroid really a comet

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Don Quixote Orbit

This image displays Don Quixote’s orbit. (Image courtesy University of Tennessee)

KNOXVILLE—Some things are not always what they seem—even in space. For 30 years, scientists believed a large near-Earth object was an asteroid. Now, an international team including Joshua Emery, assistant professor of earth and planetary sciences at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, has discovered it is actually a comet.

Called 3552 Don Quixote, the body is the third largest near-Earth object—mostly rocky bodies, or asteroids, that orbit the sun in the vicinity of Earth. About 5 percent of near-Earth objects are thought to be “dead” comets that have shed all the water and carbon dioxide in the form of ice that give them their coma—a cloud surrounding the comet nucleus—and tail. [Read more…]

Nothing to report yet on Oak Ridge Schools funding, state official says

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Tennessee officials had little to say on Wednesday about the potential loss of state education funding that Oak Ridge school officials have said could cost the school system $1.87 million per month—and lead to a temporary school shutdown on Oct. 1.

“We are starting to have meetings with various people regarding this situation, but at this point, we don’t have anything to report,” said Kelli Gauthier, communications director for the Tennessee Department of Education. [Read more…]

Knoxville Mayor Rogero to speak at Democratic Women’s Club meeting

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Madeline Rogero

Madeline Rogero

Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero will discuss the Democratic Party in East Tennessee during a Sept. 23 meeting of the Anderson County Democratic Women’s Club.

Rogero is guest speaker at the meeting, which starts at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 23, in the Oak Ridge Civic Center Social Room. A meet-and-greet will take place from 5:30-6 p.m., with dinner at 6 p.m., followed by Rogero’s comments, a press release said. [Read more…]