Oak Ridge Today

Anderson County teachers disappointed as commissioners delay vote on budget, pay raise

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Anderson County Budget Committee and Rachel Minardo, Chris Phillips, and Connie Aytes

Rachel Minardo, right, a first-grade teacher at Claxton Elementary School and president of the Anderson County Education Association, asks for a 4 percent pay raise for county teachers and school staff during a May 28 public hearing on the county budget. Also pictured are Chris Phillips, left, director of accounts and budgets for Anderson County, and Connie Aytes, deputy budget director.

 

CLINTON—Anderson County teachers were disappointed as they watched county commissioners postpone a vote on the budget and a possible 4 percent pay raise on Tuesday.

But they’ll be back on Monday, June 29, for the next meeting of the Anderson County Commission, said Rachel Minardo, a first-grade teacher at Claxton Elementary School and president of the Anderson County Education Association.

It’s not clear if the 16-member Commission will agree to fund the school system’s request for a 4 percent raise for all teachers and staff. That’s what the Anderson County Board of Education unanimously recommended last month. The request could require the equivalent of an 18-cent increase in the property tax rate.

But during debate over proposed pay raises for some county employees on Tuesday, several commissioners said they want to be consistent and fair to all workers. [Read more…]

Preschool concerns over paint, Head Start funding reaching resolution

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Oak Ridge Schools School Administration Building

Concerns over federal funding, lead-based paint, and the Oak Ridge Preschool appear to be reaching a resolution. And that ought to be good news for parents and staff members who have been worried during the past year that the program could lose federal money and even have part of its program shut down.

There have been two separate concerns, one related to lead-based paint at the Oak Ridge Schools Preschool and the other related to the reported falsification of federal data.

Work to repair the lead-based paint could start June 29, Preschool Principal Charlsey Cofer said after a Monday night meeting of the Oak Ridge Board of Education.

And a one-year probationary period with an on-site monitor for the Head Start program ends the next day, on June 30. That monitor was put into place last year as part of a 10-point plan worked out by Anderson County and Oak Ridge schools in April 2014 after concerns were raised about the falsification of federal data at the Oak Ridge Preschool, specifically reports on the motor skills of children.

Oak Ridge Schools will now do its own monitoring, but Anderson County Schools, which supervises the local Head Start program, can come in at any time. [Read more…]

Forecast: Rain changing to sleet, snow; AC, Clinton schools closed

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Winter Weather Forecast March 4, 2015

Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

 

Rain could change to a wintry mix of freezing rain and sleet and then possibly snow as the temperature drops overnight and Thursday morning, forecasters said.

Anderson County Schools and Clinton City Schools will be closed Thursday, March 5.

Forecasters said rain associated with a cold front will continue over the area through tonight. Arctic air will move in behind the front while the precipitation is ongoing, plunging surface temperatures to below freezing especially over the Cumberland Plateau and southwest Virginia overnight, the National Weather Service in Morristown said. [Read more…]

Friday closings, delays: Anderson, Clinton, Roane, Oak Ridge

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Anderson County Schools will be closed Friday, February 27, due to the weather. The Central Office will follow the inclement weather procedure, and principals are to report to their schools.

Oak Ridge Schools will be on a one-hour delay.

Roane County Schools are closed due to snow and hazardous conditions. “Please stay safe and warm,” a statement said. [Read more…]

Thursday closings: Oak Ridge, Clinton, Anderson, Roane, Roane State

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Snow in Oak Ridge on Feb. 25, 2015

Snow in Oak Ridge on Feb. 25, 2015. Forecasters said heavy snow was expected across the region from Wednesday night through midday Thursday. (Photo by Mike Mahathy)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9:02 a.m. Feb. 26.

Schools in Oak Ridge, Clinton, and Anderson and Roane counties will be closed on Thursday, February 26, because of the weather and road conditions.

The Anderson County Schools Central Office and Roane County Schools Central Office will both be closed.

Roane State Community College campuses will also be closed because of the weather.

ORAU’s Oak Ridge offices will open at noon on Thursday. Employees are urged to drive safely to the office. [Read more…]

Wednesday closings, delays: Anderson, Roane, Clinton, Oak Ridge

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Snow Sweeper at Oak Ridge High School

A tractor with sweeping equipment helps remove snow from the Oak Ridge High School parking lot on Tuesday. (Photo by Julio Culiat)

 

Anderson County Schools will be closed Wednesday, February 25, due to the snow received overnight and this morning. The Central Office is also closed.

Clinton City Schools will be closed on Wednesday due to winter weather conditions.

Oak Ridge Schools will start two hours late on Wednesday, weather permitting and with no roads refreezing, but will dismiss at the regular dismissal time—not the typical Wednesday dismissal time. [Read more…]

Anderson, Roane, Clinton schools closed Monday

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Note: This story was last updated at 6 p.m.

Anderson County Schools will be closed Monday, February 23, due to icy conditions on many of the county’s back roads. The Central Office will be closed as well.

Roane County Schools will also be closed Monday. The Central Office status will be determined at a later time.

Clinton City School Schools will also be closed Monday due to weather. [Read more…]

Regions Foundation donates $20,000 for new Emory Valley Center building

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Regions Capital Donation to Emory Valley Center

Pictured above from left are Dottie Thompson, Emory Valley Center Capital Campaign co-chair; Jenks Bostic, Regions Bank consumer banking executive for East Tennessee and North Carolina presenting check to Emory Valley President Jennifer Enderson; Janet Wood, Emory Valley Center development director; Gene Caldwell, Emory Valley Center Capital Campaign co-chair; and Kevin Crateau, Regions Bank East Tennnessee and North Carolina Area marketing director. (Submitted photo)

 

Regions Foundation recently presented a check for $20,000 to President Jennifer Enderson for Emory Valley Center’s Capital Campaign for a new building on Emory Valley Road.

Jenks Bostic, Regions Bank consumer banking executive for East Tennessee and North Carolina. and Kevin Crateau, Regions Bank East Tennessee and North Carolina area marketing director, recently participated in a tour of Emory Valley Center and were inspired by the people supported by the agency to request a donation from Regions Foundation.

Bostic also has a personal connection to Emory Valley Center. His mother, Bertie Bostic, was a well-respected, longtime teacher at the Daniel Arthur Rehabilitation Center (DARC) and his father, Paul Bostic, was the superintendent of Anderson County Schools under whose administration both the DARC and the Emory Valley School operated for many years. Bostic is well acquainted with the work and mission of Emory Valley Center, a press release said. [Read more…]

Snow dusts Oak Ridge; Anderson, Roane schools closed

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Oak Ridge Snow January 27, 2015

A light layer of snow dusted Oak Ridge on Tuesday morning. (Photo by Sarah Johnson)

 

A light layer of snow dusted Oak Ridge on Tuesday morning, and schools were closed in Anderson and Roane counties.

The Anderson County Schools’ Central Office was following its bad weather procedures. The Roane County Schools’ Central Office opened one hour late.

Oak Ridge Schools opened on time.

Clinton City Schools reported that roads were clear in Clinton—”and school buildings are warm”—and schools would open on time. [Read more…]

Anderson County, Clinton schools closed Friday due to icy conditions

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Light Snow Image

Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown.

 

Anderson County Schools will be closed Friday, January 16, due to icy conditions in many parts of the county, officials said. The Central office will follow the inclement weather procedure.

Clinton City Schools will also be closed Friday, January 16, because of the expected weather conditions, officials said.

The forecast near Oak Ridge calls for decreasing clouds and a low of 29 degrees Fahrenheit on Thursday night. Friday is expected to be sunny, with a high near 47 and a calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph.

Oak Ridge Schools on two-hour delay Thursday as temperature plummets

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Bitterly Cold Temperatures

Images courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

Note: This story was updated at 7:12 p.m.

The temperature in Oak Ridge is expected to drop to 7 degree Fahrenheit Wednesday night, and Oak Ridge Schools will be on a two-hour delay on Thursday morning because of the cold weather.

The high on Thursday is forecast at 25 in Oak Ridge, and it’s expected to climb to 34 on Friday, when President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and Biden’s wife Jill visit Pellissippi State Community College in west Knox County and Techmer PM in Clinton. [Read more…]

AC, Clinton schools closing early Friday; police prepare for presidential visit

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President Barack Obama

President Barack Obama

Schools in Clinton and Anderson County will close early on Friday so buses can miss the traffic congestion and closed roads that are expected when President Barack Obama visits.

Dozens of intersections along the motorcade’s expected route will have to be covered, Clinton Police Chief Rick Scarbrough told WYSH Radio.

Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and Biden’s wife Jill will visit Clinton manufacturer Techmer PM after the president speaks at Pellissippi State Community College in west Knox County. The visit to Clinton will be the first for a president. [Read more…]