Oak Ridge Today

Weather: Schools, courts, offices closed; Wildcats sectional game now on Tuesday

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Note: This story was last updated at 1:20 p.m.

Schools in Anderson County, Clinton, and Knox and Morgan counties are closed today (Monday) because of weather conditions and possible icing. And the Wildcats boys’ basketball sectional game in Kingsport, featuring Oak Ridge and Dobyns-Bennett, has been postponed to 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Roane State Community College is closing its Campbell, Cumberland, Morgan, Scott, and Fentress county campuses due to icy roads. The campuses in Oak Ridge and Loudon, Knox, and Roane counties are open, but classes at the Clinton facility have been canceled.

The afternoon docket for the Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton has been canceled starting at 1 p.m. The afternoon docket for Anderson County Juvenile Court has also been canceled. And the Anderson County Courthouse closed at 1 p.m.

Tennessee officials said state offices will be closed the remainder of the day statewide, but mission-critical state employees will report to work as usual. [Read more…]

Weather: Closings, delays for Friday

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Anderson County Schools will be closed Friday because of the weather. The Central Office will follow the inclement weather procedure.

Oak Ridge Schools will open two hours late to allow any ice that forms overnight to melt. The schools will not serve breakfast Friday morning, so parents should make sure their children eat before coming to school.

A 10 a.m. starting time has been authorized for employees of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office, Oak Ridge Environmental Management Site Office, Oak Ridge Nuclear Energy Site Office, Office of Scientific and Technical Information, and Oak Ridge DOE Inspector General, with unscheduled leave (previously referred to as liberal leave) authorized if needed.

Normal hours are in effect for Oak Ridge National Laboratory Site Office employees, with unscheduled leave (previously referred to as liberal leave) authorized if needed.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Guest column: Anderson County Schools recognize principals

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By Anderson County Schools

Students across Anderson County Schools will be using a “Lion King” theme to honor and thank their principals during the month of February 2014. Various activities are being planned to let principals know how much their hard work is appreciated. Student members of the A Team at each school are responsible for leading the show of appreciation and for getting all students involved.

In a society where thanks and appreciation are often overlooked, the students of Anderson County Schools are learning first-hand what it means to have an attitude of gratitude. There are eight different appreciation days scheduled throughout the year to honor and celebrate various employees. Each of the appreciation days are a part of UTrust’s Employee Appreciation Program designed to teach students about gratitude using fun themes to show thanks. [Read more…]

Anderson school system celebrates energy-efficiency project

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Anderson County Schools ESG Groundbreaking

Anderson County officials and ESG representatives celebrate the kickoff of a $9.7 million energy-efficiency project in Anderson County Schools. (Photo courtesy Pam Crawford)

On Friday morning, the Anderson County school system celebrated the kickoff of a $9.7 million energy efficiency project that will make significant improvements to all 17 county schools, all with the aim of improving the learning environment, reducing energy use and, subsequently, the cost of energy across the system.

The Anderson County Commission recently approved a 15-year contract with Energy Systems Group—or ESG—to design and implement a $9.7 million energy efficiency and building modernization project throughout Anderson County Schools. All 17 county schools will receive energy improvements, including upgrades to the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning—or HVAC—systems and electrical systems as well as energy-efficient lights, water conservation measures, and advanced energy management controls—including sensors that will detect when a room is occupied and adjust heating and lighting automatically, and new suspended ceiling systems. [Read more…]

Back roads still have ice and snow, so Anderson schools closed again Friday

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Many Anderson County back roads are still covered with ice and snow, so the school system will be closed again Friday, officials said.

The closure is for the safety of the students, the Anderson County school system said in a statement. The schools closed early Tuesday and have been closed since as snow, ice, and cold temperatures wreaked havoc across the Southeast, particularly in Atlanta.

Many other school systems in East Tennessee, including Oak Ridge, also closed early on Tuesday when it started snowing and remained closed on Wednesday. Oak Ridge students returned to classes on Thursday, although there was a two-hour delay. [Read more…]

More weather-related closings, cancellations

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Here are more weather-related closings on Wednesday and Thursday:

Due to unsafe road conditions, Waste Connections will not be running trash or recycling routes on Wednesday, Jan. 29. They will collect Wednesday routes on Thursday, Thursdays on Friday, and Fridays on Saturday. The convenience center will also be closed today (Wednesday), Oak Ridge officials said.

“Patience is appreciated,” they said.

Oak Ridge Schools will operate on a two-hour delay Thursday.

Anderson County Schools will be closed again Thursday due to the weather. All central office staff will follow the inclement weather procedure. [Read more…]

Widespread snowfall could taper off tonight

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Sledding at Blankenship Field

A few people enjoy the snow near Blankenship Field on Tuesday evening.

Many schools, including in Oak Ridge, dismissed students early on Tuesday because of the snow, and Anderson County Schools will be closed on Wednesday.

(Update: Oak Ridge Schools will also be closed Wednesday.)

The snow that started late Tuesday morning is expected to continue through the evening in the valleys, tapering off around midnight in the mountains, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.

Snow and ice caused traffic problems on slippery roads across the region. Some cars and trucks had trouble driving up hilly roads in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Anderson County Schools closed Wednesday because of low temps, wind chill

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Anderson County Schools will be closed Wednesday because of extremely low temperatures and a predicted wind chill factor of zero or below, officials said.

Central Office employees will follow inclement weather procedures, a press release said.

Weather: Anderson, Roane schools closed Tuesday, Lunch with League canceled

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Anderson and Roane county schools will also be closed Tuesday due to hazardous road conditions, record low temperatures, and negative wind chills.

As reported earlier, students at Oak Ridge Schools will not return from Winter Break on Tuesday, but will instead start on Wednesday.

The Lunch with the League scheduled for Tuesday has been canceled due to the cold weather.

Anderson County Schools said its Central Office staff will follow bad weather procedures. Roane County Schools said the Central Office staff will report to work at 10 a.m. Tuesday.

Wind chill values Monday night could range from -3 in Chattanooga to -16 in Oneida, with the forecast calling for -9 in Knoxville, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown. Wind chill values near Oak Ridge are forecast to range between -7 and -12.

Oak Ridge Schools opening delayed to Wednesday, press conference rescheduled

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Dangerously Cold Wind Chills

Students at Oak Ridge Schools will return to class on Wednesday, rather than Tuesday, and the Keys to College press conference that had been scheduled for Monday afternoon has been rescheduled due to the weather. And the Anderson County Schools Central Office is closed Monday, officials said.

As reported earlier, Roane County Schools are closed Monday.

The Oak Ridge Schools’ press conference on the Keys to College and Career Readiness program has been rescheduled to 2 p.m. Tuesday in the Oak Ridge High School lobby. [Read more…]

County, school officials start campaign to protect children from online predators

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Officials in Anderson County and at local schools have announced an educational campaign designed to protect children from online sexual predators.

Among the concerns are sexting, or the exchange of explicit photos, usually using smart phones, District Attorney General Dave Clark said in a press release.

Clark is working with Anderson County Sheriff Paul White and the Anderson County, Clinton, and Oak Ridge school systems. He said a letter is being sent out to the parents of every child in grades five through 10 in those three systems.

“We want to make parents aware of the dangers posed by online predators and provide them with some strategies to help keep their families safe,” Clark said. [Read more…]

Five confirmed bullying cases in Oak Ridge last year, state report says

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Oak Ridge Schools School Administration Building

Oak Ridge Schools reported five confirmed cases of bullying in the 2012-2013 school year. The Oak Ridge Schools’ School Administration Building is pictured above.

There were five confirmed cases of bullying in Oak Ridge Schools last year, a number that is much lower than in many other school districts across the state and in some other nearby districts.

The numbers were reported in a new, first-of-its kind report that said there were 7,555 reported cases of bullying in Tennessee schools last year. Nearly 73 percent of them—or 5,478 cases—were confirmed after investigation.

The report said Oak Ridge Schools had 14 bullying cases reported in the 2012-2013 school year, but only five were confirmed after investigation. All five of those were related to sex or gender discrimination, the report said. [Read more…]