Oak Ridge Today

Secret City Wildbots going to robotics championship

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The Secret City Wildbots, Team 4265 of Oak Ridge, celebrate their second semifinals win to advance to the finals at the Smoky Mountain Regional in Knoxville on Saturday, March 25, 2017. (Photo by Angi Agle)

The Secret City Wildbots, Team 4265 of Oak Ridge, celebrate their second semifinals win to advance to the finals at the Smoky Mountain Regional in Knoxville on Saturday, March 25, 2017. (Photo by Angi Agle)

 

The Secret City Wildbots won the Engineering Inspiration Award in the Smoky Mountain Regional on Saturday, and the Wildbots, Team 4265 of Oak Ridge, will advance to the FIRST Robotics Championship in Houston on April 19.

The Wildbots had advanced throughout the day on Saturday, said Angi Agle, an Oak Ridge Board of Education member who attended this week’s robotics competition at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville.

The team finished qualifying in third place, so it advanced to the quarterfinals. They won the first quarterfinal 455-273.

They tied the first semifinal round against a Hardin Valley-led alliance and then won the second semifinal against Hardin Valley, Agle said. [Read more…]

Secret City Wildbots start qualification rounds Friday morning at Smoky Mountain Regional

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Members of the Secret City Wildbots crew work on Luna, the 2017 robot, during the opening practice matches on Thursday, March 23, 2017. At left (in black long sleeves) is Eric Thornton; center (also in black) is Jacob LaRose, Luke Buckner (next in yellow) as a graduate advisor, Caden Webb (in pink), mentor Chuck Agle (in black, back to camera), and Olivia Mahathy (in black, back to camera). (Photo by Angi Agle)

Members of the Secret City Wildbots crew work on Luna, the 2017 robot, during the opening practice matches on Thursday, March 23, 2017. At left (in black long sleeves) is Eric Thornton; center (also in black) is Jacob LaRose, Luke Buckner (next in yellow) as a graduate advisor, Caden Webb (in pink), mentor Chuck Agle (in black, back to camera), and Olivia Mahathy (in black, back to camera). (Photo by Angi Agle)

 

The Secret City Wildbots start qualifications rounds Friday morning at the Smoky Mountain Regional in Knoxville.

The first match for the Wildbots, Team 4265 from Oak Ridge, is scheduled at about 9:45 a.m. Friday. It’s Match Number 7 at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The Wildbots are competing in the FIRST Robotics “FIRST Steamworks” challenge, which is scheduled from Thursday, March 23, to Saturday, March 25. Their 2017 robot is named Luna.

There were practice matches on Thursday. [Read more…]

Secret City Wildbots to compete at Smoky Mountain Regional this week

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The Secret City Wildbots are primed for competition this weekend in the FIRST Robotics “FIRST Steamworks” challenge at Thompson Boling Arena in Knoxville from March 23-25, 2017. (Submitted photo)

The Secret City Wildbots are primed for competition this weekend in the FIRST Robotics “FIRST Steamworks” challenge at Thompson Boling Arena in Knoxville from March 23-25, 2017. (Submitted photo)

 

The Secret City Wildbots are primed for competition this weekend in the FIRST Robotics “FIRST Steamworks” challenge.

This year’s event is scheduled from Thursday, March 23, to Saturday, March 25 at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville. It invites teams and their robots to join an adventure club and prepare their airship for flight. Teams were challenged to build their robot for collecting and placing gears on their airship for their pilots (the team’s human player) to populate gear trains to start their airships rotors, scoring fuel (“wiffleballs”) into a low goal or firing them into a high goal of their boiler in order to build up steam pressure, and lastly, climbing a rope to board their airship so they can help their pilots win the race.

The Secret City Wildbots, along with their alliance, were semi-finalists at the Palmetto Regional in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, from March 2-4. [Read more…]

Photos: Secret City Wildbots at Palmetto Regional

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The Secret City Wildbots, an Oak Ridge team, competed in the FIRST Robotics Palmetto Regional in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Saturday, March 4, 2017. (Photo by Angi Agle)

The Secret City Wildbots, an Oak Ridge team, competed in the FIRST Robotics Palmetto Regional in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Saturday, March 4, 2017. (Photo by Angi Agle)

 

The Secret City Wildbots, an Oak Ridge team, competed in the FIRST Robotics Palmetto Regional in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, last week.

The Wildbots, Team 4265, lost in the semifinals, but will likely face many of the same teams at Smoky Mountain Regionals from March 22-25, said Angi Agle, an Oak Ridge Board of Education member who was at the Palmetto Regional.

“The Wildbots made some significant improvements and adjustments in the later rounds, resulting in a robot that is capable of competing consistently at a high level,” Agle said.

The three-day competition was from March 2-4. There were practice matches on Thursday, and qualification rounds on Friday and Saturday. Elimination rounds were Saturday afternoon.  [Read more…]

Photos: Secret City Wildbots at FIRST Robotics Palmetto Regional

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The Secret City Wildbots Team 4265 pit crew makes adjustments between qualification rounds at the First Robotics Palmetto Regional in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Friday, March 3, 2017. (Photo by Angi Agle)

The Secret City Wildbots Team 4265 pit crew makes adjustments between qualification rounds at the FIRST Robotics Palmetto Regional in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Friday, March 3, 2017. (Photo by Angi Agle)

 

The Secret City Wildbots, an Oak Ridge team, is competing at the FIRST Robotics Palmetto Regional in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, this week.

There were practice matches on Thursday, and qualification rounds on Friday and Saturday. Elimination rounds are scheduled for Saturday afternoon. The three-day competition is from March 2-4.

Here are photos from the Palmetto Regional by Angi Agle. [Read more…]

School board picks Scarboro Park for new preschool

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The new preschool could be located at Elm Grove Park in east Oak Ridge or Scarboro Park in central Oak Ridge, pictured above on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017, and the city's school board expects to recommend one of the two sites on Monday, Feb. 27, a school official said Friday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The new preschool should be built at Scarboro Park, the Oak Ridge Board of Education said in a unanimous vote on Monday, Feb. 27, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The new preschool should be built at Scarboro Park, the Oak Ridge Board of Education said in a unanimous vote on Monday.

The site selection in a 5-0 voice vote came after about 15 minutes of discussion during a school board meeting on Monday.

The other option was Elm Grove Park. That park on East Tennessee Avenue in east Oak Ridge had been identified as the preferred site after a preschool report was published in October 2015.

With one exception, school board members said the two sites are relatively equal as measured by a number of factors outlined by BOE Vice Chair Bob Eby, including learning environment, building and transportation costs, safety and security, expandability and impact on parks, and community and City Council support. The one significant difference: There has been opposition to building the new preschool at Elm Grove Park, while the Scarboro community has welcomed the idea of building the new preschool at Scarboro Park.

“The difference is very stark,” Oak Ridge Board of Education member Angi Agle said. “The community support from Scarboro does make a huge difference.” [Read more…]

City, schools could pick preschool site soon

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Elm Grove Park Preschool Conceptual Site Plan Jan 2017 Large

A conceptual site plan for a new preschool at Elm Grove Park on East Tennessee Avenue in east Oak Ridge. Officials said the plan would keep the park and the walking trail. (Image courtesy Studio Four Design/City of Oak Ridge)

 

Oak Ridge municipal and school officials could start selecting a site for the new preschool as early as this month. There are two options being considered: Elm Grove Park and Scarboro Community Center.

Financing for the project, which would include bonds, could be included in the budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

In the meantime, a petition drive has been started to oppose building the preschool at Elm Grove Park.

The park had previously been announced as the preferred site for the new preschool, which has been on the city’s wish list for many years. Elm Grove Park is a city-owned parcel in east Oak Ridge off East Tennessee Avenue. It’s the site of a former school, it’s relatively flat, and it has city-owned utilities. Also, there aren’t many obstacles that would affect construction, and site borings have already been done, city officials said last week. [Read more…]

ORHS pantry provides food, clothing, toiletries, cleaning products to students in need

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Oak-Ridge-High-School-RISE-Pantry-8-Jan-4-2017-Web

A pantry started about a year ago at Oak Ridge High School provides food, clothing, toiletries, and cleaning products to students in need. The Oak Ridge Board of Education toured the pantry with ORHS administrators and teachers on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2017. From left to right are Laura McLean, Angi Agle, Allen Etheridge, Beth Estep, Leslie Shelton, Bruce Lay, Bob Eby, Bruce Borchers, and Keys Fillauer. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:25 p.m. Jan. 26.

A pantry started about a year ago at Oak Ridge High School provides food, clothing, toiletries, and cleaning products to students in need.

It’s known as the RISE Pantry. RISE stands for Raising Individual Students to Excellence.

The pantry started with a cabinet. It’s now housed in a former classroom on the third floor of the high school.

Items stored there include, among other essentials, backpacks and notebooks, pants and shirts, shoes and boots, and soup and beans.

“You can’t learn if your basic needs aren’t met,” said English teacher and coach Allen Etheridge, one of those who started the pantry. “(If) a kid asks, we will bring them down here.” [Read more…]

Gooch re-appointed mayor, Chinn replaces Smith as mayor pro tem

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Warren Gooch

Warren Gooch (File photo by Savanna Schubert)

 

Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch has been elected by City Council to a second two-year term as mayor, and City Council member Rick Chinn was appointed mayor pro tem, replacing Ellen Smith.

No other City Council member sought to be appointed mayor, and Gooch, who was first appointed after he was elected in 2014, was unanimously elected by the new City Council.

Smith and Chinn both sought to be appointed mayor pro tem. The mayor pro tem serves as mayor when the mayor is temporarily unavailable. [Read more…]

New Council members to be sworn in Monday

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Two new members of the Oak Ridge City Council and one incumbent will be sworn in Monday. Two incumbents re-elected to the Oak Ridge Board of Education will also be sworn in.

The two new City Council members are Jim Dodson and Hans Vogel. The incumbent is Chuck Hope.

The two school board members who were re-elected in the November 8 municipal election are Angi Agle and Keys Fillauer. [Read more…]

Agle, Fillauer re-elected to Oak Ridge Board of Education

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Angi Agle

 

Angi Agle and Keys Fillauer, the two incumbents on the Oak Ridge Board of Education, have been re-elected to four year-terms, according to unofficial election results in Anderson and Roane counties.

Agle received the most votes, a total of 7,830 in the two counties. She earned 6,643 in Anderson County and 1,187 in Roane County.

Fillauer, the current school board chair, collected 7,196 between the two counties. He had 6,049 votes in Anderson County and 1,147 in Roane County.

A third candidate, Myra Mansfield, finished with about 1,800 votes fewer than Fillauer, or 5,686. She received 4,657 in Anderson County and 729 in Roane County. [Read more…]

Agle, Fillauer lead in early voting for school board

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Angi Agle

 

Note: This story was updated at 11 p.m.

Angi Agle and Keys Fillauer, the two incumbents for Oak Ridge Board of Education, lead in early voting in Anderson County, according to unofficial results posted on the Anderson County Election Commission website on Tuesday evening.

Agle had 4,591 early votes, and Fillauer, the current board chair, had 4,195.

A third candidate, challenger Myra Mansfield, had 2,992.

Agle and Fillauer also have leads in early voting in Roane County, according to unofficial results posted at 8:33 p.m. Tuesday. Agle leads with 973 early votes, and Fillauer had 960.

[Read more…]