• About
    • About Us
    • What We Cover
  • Advertise
    • Advertise
    • Our Advertisers
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Send News
  • Subscribe

Oak Ridge Today

  • Home
  • Sign in
  • News
    • Business
    • Community
    • Education
    • Government
    • Health
    • Police and Fire
    • U.S. Department of Energy
    • Weather
  • Sports
    • High School
    • Middle School
    • Recreation
    • Rowing
    • Youth
  • Entertainment
    • Arts
    • Dancing
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Theater
  • Premium Content
  • Obituaries
  • Classifieds


Marczak picked as schools director in Maury County

Posted at 9:20 am July 30, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

Note: This story was last updated at 10:50 a.m.

Oak Ridge Schools Assistant Superintendent Chris Marczak has been selected as director of schools in Maury County.

The Maury County School Board voted unanimously to hire Marczak, the Columbia Daily Herald reported Wednesday night. Marczak was the final candidate of the seven interviewed by the school board over a three-day period. Marczak was interviewed Wednesday.

Nine out of 11 board members chose him as their top candidate, board member Wayne Lindsey told the newspaper, which is based in Columbia, Tennessee, south of Nashville.

“I hate to go, but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity,” Marczak said in a telephone interview on Thursday morning. “This has been my home for two years, and I’ve loved it.”
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Front Page News, K-12, Top Stories Tagged With: assistant superintendent, balanced calendar, Bruce Borchers, Chris Marczak, Columbia Daily Herald, director of schools, Maury County, Maury County Alliance, Maury County School Board, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Schools, school director, Seven Keys to Career and College Readiness, Wayne Lindsey

School board to consider budget, balanced calendar tonight

Posted at 9:50 am May 26, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Board of Education will consider the proposed budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1 during a meeting tonight (Tuesday, May 26). It’s the first of two readings of the budget, and tonight’s meeting will include a public hearing.

Also tonight, the school board will consider balanced calendar options for the 2016-2017 school year. Three options have been presented. See the three options here: Oak Ridge Schools 2016-2017 Balanced Calendar, Oak Ridge Schools 2016-2017 Balanced Calendar B, and Oak Ridge Schools 2016-2017 Balanced Calendar B V2.

In other business tonight, the Board of Education will consider: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Education, K-12, Meetings and Events, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, budget, digital kiosks, Discipline Code Handbook, elementary grading policy, fiscal year, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Schools, Oak Ridge Schools Preschool, Oka Ridge Alternative Program, pre-K grant, public hearing, Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building, school board, Secret City Academy, SkoolLive

Oak Ridge Schools hosts first community meeting on fall Intersession

Posted at 7:10 pm April 27, 2015
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

With the passing of the new Oak Ridge Schools’ balanced calendar for the 2015-16 school year, when school starts on August 3 and there are three two-week breaks every nine weeks, Intersession was introduced for students. Intersession is time, during the breaks, when students can come back to school and work with teachers on areas where they struggled with academics. Intersession is also a time when schools can introduce “enrichment,” when students can come and learn extra things that educators would like to teach to students.

Oak Ridge Schools’ first Intersession will take place October 5-9. Each of the individual schools have been working and planning on activities that they could offer to students during this week. Finalized activities will be sent home to all parents in the middle of August 2015. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Front Page News, K-12 Tagged With: Adam Wilson, Alanna Hunsaker, balanced calendar, Boys and Girls Clubs of the Clinch Valley, Cody Wright, Extended Child Care Program, Ingrid Hamm, Intersession, Jennifer Pettyjohn, Jon Hetrick, Oak Ridge Girls Incorporated, Oak Ridge Parks and Recreation Department, Oak Ridge Schools

School board to consider balanced calendar, budget timeline

Posted at 11:03 am March 30, 2015
By John Huotari 8 Comments

The Oak Ridge Board of Education will consider a balanced calendar for the 2016-2017 school year during a regular meeting tonight. The school board will also consider an updated budget timeline for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

The Board of Education could consider salary proposals from the Oak Ridge Education Association and principals during the meeting tonight (Monday, March 30). It starts at 6 p.m. at the Robert J. Smallridge School Administration Building at 304 New York Avenue.

The school board approved a balanced calendar for the 2015-2016 school year in a meeting in April 2014. This fall will be the first time that Oak Ridge has had a balanced calendar. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Front Page News, K-12, Meetings and Events, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, BOE, budget, budget timeline, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge City Council, Oak Ridge Schools, school board

School board approves balanced calendar

Posted at 8:38 pm April 28, 2014
By Sara Wise 2 Comments

Oak Ridge Board of Education

The Oak Ridge Board of Education and school administrators are pictured above during a recent meeting.

Note: This story was last updated at 11:30 p.m.

The Oak Ridge Board of Education on Monday approved a new balanced calendar for the 2015-2016 school year. The balanced calendar, which is different than the traditional school calendar, gives students about nine weeks of classroom instruction at a time. This will be the first time that Oak Ridge has had a balanced calendar.

The school board approved the change in a 4-1 vote on Monday. Board member Jenny Richter was opposed.

A separate motion to outsource substitute teachers died with little discussion.

The vote on the balanced calendar came after input from three community members who were opposed to the change from the traditional calendar, which is now being used at most Oak Ridge schools. The board discussed the calendars for nearly an hour before the vote. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Education, K-12, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, Chris Marczak, Dan DiGregorio, Jenny Richter, Joe Stevens, Keys Fillauer, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Schools, Sara Wise, school board, substitute teachers, traditional calendar

School board considers balanced calendar on Monday

Posted at 2:23 pm April 24, 2014
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

The new “balanced” school calendar has twice been endorsed by a majority of Oak Ridge parents and school staff, and the school board on Monday is expected to consider whether to use the new calendar, which gives students about nine weeks of classroom instruction at a time, in the 2015-2016 school year.

The first vote was conducted through the Skylert callout system in February, and the second vote was in March. Parents and staff were asked whether they favor the traditional or balanced calendar.

The new calendar would apply to all schools, including Willow Brook and the PreSchool for the 2015-16 school year. The first vote callout took place Feb. 10.

The traditional calendar is the calendar that most of the Oak Ridge Schools have had for quite a while. Students come to school in the middle of August, have a one-week fall break, two weeks off for winter, a one-week spring break, dismissal at the beginning of June, and an 11- to 12-week summer. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Education, K-12, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, Chris Marczak, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Schools, preschool, school board, traditional calendar, Willow Brook

Parents, staff again choose balanced school calendar

Posted at 11:23 pm March 14, 2014
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

A majority of Oak Ridge parents and school staff again favored a move from the traditional school calendar to a new balanced calendar that gives students about nine weeks of classroom instruction at a time, officials said.

The first vote was conducted through the Skylert callout system about one month ago in February, and the second vote was Thursday.

See this guest column by Chris Marczak, Oak Ridge Schools assistant superintendent, for more information on the Thursday night vote. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, K-12, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, Chris Marczak, Oak Ridge Schools, school calendar, traditional calendar, voting

Guest column: Parents, staff again choose balanced school calendar

Posted at 11:19 pm March 14, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns Leave a Comment

Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

By Chris Marczak

The second calendar voting for the Oak Ridge 2015-16 results have been counted.

Parents and staff members were called on March 13 and asked if they preferred a balanced calendar or a traditional calendar for all schools including Willow Brook and the PreSchool for the 2015-16 school year. The first vote callout took place Feb. 10.

The traditional calendar is the calendar that most of the Oak Ridge Schools have had for quite a while. Students come to school in the middle of August, have a one-week fall break, two weeks off for winter, a one-week spring break, dismissal at the beginning of June, and an 11- to 12-week summer.

The balanced calendar is a new calendar that Oak Ridge has never had before. It is called a balanced calendar due to the balance that it gives for instructional time in the classroom—about nine weeks at a time. Students typically arrive for school the first week in August, have a two-week fall break, two weeks off for winter, two weeks off for spring break, dismissal at the beginning of June, and a seven- to eight-week summer. The balanced calendar is not like the Willow Brook Elementary or PreSchool calendar where students start school in mid-July and have three-week breaks. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Guest Columns, K-12, Opinion, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, calendar voting, Chris Marczak, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Schools, preschool, school calendar, Skylert, traditional calendar, voting, Willow Brook

Reminder: Second Oak Ridge school calendar survey this evening

Posted at 1:33 pm March 13, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

Parents of students in the Oak Ridge school system will be called this evening for a second opinion poll on a proposed change to the system’s calendar for academic year 2015-2016.

At 6 p.m. today (Thursday), parents will receive a call through the automated Skyward system asking if they want to convert to a “balanced” calendar for all schools or keep the traditional calendar currently used by all but two of the schools in the system. Teachers and other school staff members will be called at 7 p.m. asking for their preferences.

Option No. 1 will be the balanced schedule, which has nine weeks of instruction beginning the first week of August, with two-week breaks in the fall, winter, and spring, and seven to eight weeks off during the summer. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, K-12, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, Chris Marczak, Oak Ridge Preschool, Oak Ridge Schools, school calendar, Skylert, traditional calendar, Willow Brook Elementary School

Guest column: Schools ask for second vote on calendars

Posted at 11:20 pm March 2, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns 6 Comments

Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

By Chris Marczak

We want your vote..one more time! The Oak Ridge Board of Education has asked for one more community vote for the two calendars that are being proposed for the Oak Ridge School system starting for the 2015-16 school year.

The first vote collected on Feb. 10 showed English-speaking parents favored the balanced calendar 1,094 to 183; Spanish-speaking families were split down the middle with a 43-to-43 vote; and staff favored the balanced calendar 395 to 176.

The two calendars being proposed are called a traditional calendar and a balanced calendar. Both of these proposed calendars have been looked at and discussed by the district’s Curriculum and Instruction team; a district Calendar Committee comprised of teachers and administrators; the Superintendent’s Parent Advisory Board made up of parents from all schools; Superintendent Bruce Borchers; and me. Both calendars give staff and parents a choice in the type of calendar they want for the children of Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Guest Columns, K-12 Tagged With: balanced calendar, Bruce Borchers, Calendar Committee, calendars, Chris Marczak, Curriculum and Instruction, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Schools, parents, school year, schools, staff, Superintendent’s Parent Advisory Board, traditional calendar

Guest column: Majority of families, staff favor balanced calendar

Posted at 4:12 pm February 11, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns 14 Comments

Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

By Chris Marczak

The voting results for the 2015-16 school calendar year in Oak Ridge have been counted.

Parents and staff members were called Monday, Feb. 10, and asked if they preferred a balanced calendar or a traditional calendar for all schools, including Willow Brook and the PreSchool, for the 2015-16 school year.

The traditional calendar is the calendar that most of the Oak Ridge Schools have had for quite a while. Students come to school in the middle of August, have a one-week fall break, two weeks off for winter, a one-week spring break, dismissal at the beginning of June, and an eleven- to twelve-week summer.

The balanced calendar is a new calendar that Oak Ridge has never had before. It is called a balanced calendar due to the balance that it gives for instructional time in the classroom—about nine weeks at a time. Students typically arrive for school the first week in August, have a two-week fall break, two weeks off for winter, two weeks off for spring break, dismissal at the beginning of June, and a seven- to eight-week summer. The balanced calendar is not like the Willow Brook Elementary or PreSchool calendar where students start school in mid-July and have three-week breaks. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Guest Columns, K-12, Top Stories Tagged With: balanced calendar, calendar voting, Chris Marczak, Oak Ridge Schools, preschool, school calendar, traditional calendar, Willow Brook

Guest column: Remember to vote on school calendar Monday evening

Posted at 12:54 am February 9, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns Leave a Comment

By Donato “Dan” DiGregorio

To staff of the Oak Ridge Schools and parents of students:

The thoughts and views expressed below are mine and may or may not reflect the thoughts and views of the other Board of Education members.

Currently, our Oak Ridge School system operates on two different calendars, the “Willow Brook (WB)” calendar and the “traditional” calendar. Consideration is being given to unifying the school calendar. Two proposed calendars, “the traditional” calendar and “balanced” calendar, are the options. The decision will be left to the Board of Education after much input. Included in this input are staff and parent preferences.

The main question that I hope folks ask themselves is: Of these two calendars, which will be the most helpful to promote student learning?

This coming Monday (Feb. 10) evening at 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., respectively, Oak Ridge Schools parents and staff will have the opportunity to express their preferences for a possible new school calendar from the two proposed calendars. See this story for Dr. Chris Marczak’s brief description of each and how the telephone “vote” will occur. You may also view these calendars in more detail and how the telephone “vote” will take place by visiting the Oak Ridge Schools website. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Education, Guest Columns, K-12 Tagged With: balanced calendar, Chris Marczak, Dan DiGregorio, Oak Ridge Board of Education, Oak Ridge Schools, school calendar, telephone vote, traditional calendar, Willow Brook calendar

Next Page »

Search Oak Ridge Today

Classifieds

Public Notice: NNSA announces no significant impact of Y-12 Development Organization operations at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

ADFAC seeks contractors for five homes

Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC) is a non-profit community based agency, … [Read More...]

Public notice: Draft environmental assessment for Y-12 Development Organization at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

Recent Posts

  • ORAU launches new app with a variety of resources available, including hundreds of STEM internships, fellowships and research opportunities
  • Disposing of uranium waste could cost at least $7.2 billion
  • Y-12 now getting power from Pine Ridge substation
  • Man sentenced to 8 years after fleeing, crashing, attempting carjackings
  • Three Ohio residents die in two-vehicle crash
  • DOE picks Idaho for nuclear test reactor
  • TBI investigating man’s death
  • Luminarias to feature peace messages
  • Oak Ridge tennis court dance is Thursday
  • DOE bus tours restart in Oak Ridge
A Twitter List by OakRidgeToday

Recent Comments

  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Mark Caldwell on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Mark Caldwell on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Tracy Powers on Planning Commission to consider Main Street apartments, plan revisions
  • johnhuotari on Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council
  • Levi D. Smith on Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council
  • samuel hopwood on Housing: Apartments proposed on former AMSE site
  • Matt Bailey on Robin Smith named Oak Ridge police chief

About Us

About Oak Ridge Today
What We Cover

How To

Advertise
Subscribe

Contact Us

Contact Oak Ridge Today

Copyright © 2022 Oak Ridge Today