Oak Ridge Today

MCLinc donation funds ramp for Children’s Museum

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Barry Stephenson, left, Michele Sanders and Beth Shea stand on steps leading to the World of Trains exhibit in the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge. A ramp funded by Materials and Chemistry Laboratory Inc. will be built here later this year. (Submitted photo)

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Barry Stephenson believes the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge is one of the city’s treasures.
The laboratory he leads, employee-owned Materials & Chemistry Laboratory Inc. (MCLinc), wants to make sure this treasure continues to serve children and families well. MCLinc recently made a $50,000 contribution to fund the final ramp needed to make the interior of the historic Children’s Museum building accessible for strollers and those with disabilities.

The ramp will meet standards of the Americans for Disabilities Act, which describes what is needed for a building to be physically accessible to persons with disabilities. The ramp will connect the Selma Shapiro Wing of the Museum to the next level housing the World of Trains exhibit. [Read more…]

Street Painting Festival Saturday helps fund Roane State scholarships

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The Street Painting Festival in Oak Ridge today (Saturday, Oct. 17, 2020) helps fund scholarships at Roane State Community College.

The Street Painting Festival in Oak Ridge today (Saturday, October 17) helps fund scholarships at Roane State Community College.

The theme for this year’s event is “HeART For Heroes.” The festival is being held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at historic Jackson Square in Oak Ridge. Chalking began at 8 a.m.

Materials and Chemistry Laboratory, Inc. (MCLinc) of Oak Ridge recently announced it is sponsoring the Rotary Club of Oak Ridge’s Street Painting Festival at the Platinum Level. The festival was launched in 2000, and this year’s event marks the 19th consecutive year that MCLinc has been a major contributor to the effort, a press release said. MCLinc is an applied research laboratory that provides analyses and consultation services in a wide assortment of fields, including environmental chemistry, industrial hygiene, and uranium chemistry.

Festival sponsors make a tax-exempt donation to the Roane State Foundation, providing funds for scholarships for Roane State students. Sponsorship levels include Platinum, or $5,000 and up; Gold, $2,500 to $4,999; Silver, $1,000 to $2,499; Bronze, $500 to $999; small business, $250 to $499; and individual, $100 to $249.

[Read more…]

MCLinc buys Mitchell Road facility, plans to open new lab next year

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Photo courtesy Akins Public Strategies

Photo courtesy Akins Public Strategies

 

MCLinc has purchased a 41,000-square-foot facility located on Mitchell Road, where it will move its new laboratory and headquarters in early 2019 after remodeling part of the building for lab use.

The building will include a new laboratory and office space, along with about 16,000 square feet of space that will be rented to other tenants.

“While our original plan was to build a new laboratory in Horizon Center, time constraints of construction of the facility made it necessary for us to look at other opportunities,” said Barry Stephenson, MCLinc president and chief executive officer. “We are committed to our employees and to the community of Oak Ridge, where we have operated for the past 20 years, and we’re excited about what the future holds as we expand our laboratory and staff.”

In addition to saving 20 current positions with the move, MCLinc forecasts adding 26 new positions during the first five years of operations in its new facility, a press release said. [Read more…]

ORUD raises money for program that helps families with heating bills

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Emily Rios and Nikki Adkisson of the Marketing Department for Oak Ridge Utility District are pictured above with Barry Stephenson at the MCLinc Valentine’s Day Pancake Breakfast. (Submitted photo)

Emily Rios and Nikki Adkisson of the Marketing Department for Oak Ridge Utility District are pictured above with Barry Stephenson at the MCLinc Valentine’s Day Pancake Breakfast. (Submitted photo)

 

In February, Oak Ridge Utility District hosts its annual “Have a Heart, Heat a Home” fundraiser to raise money for ADFAC’s Project SAFE, a program that helps families struggling to pay heating bills and facing the loss of energy service.

This year’s low temperatures in January meant that heating bills would be on the rise and donations would be greatly needed, a press release said.

“In order to help our neighbors pay these bills, ADFAC counts on the generosity of the community to support the program,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Education Foundation has book project to celebrate 75th anniversary of Oak Ridge Schools

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The Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation is planning to publish a commemorative book to mark the 75th anniversary of Oak Ridge Schools, complete with color photos, stories, and memories as told by teachers and alumni from each class from 1944 to 2018. The book's cover art is by Jim Dodson. (Submitted image)

The Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation is planning to publish a commemorative book to mark the 75th anniversary of Oak Ridge Schools, complete with color photos, stories, and memories as told by teachers and alumni from each class from 1944 to 2018. The book’s cover art is by Jim Dodson. (Submitted image)

 

The Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation is planning a special book project to celebrate the upcoming 75th anniversary of the Oak Ridge Schools.

The book will be a collection of memories as told by teachers and alumni across all classes from 1944-2018. The Foundation has identified people to serve as anchor authors for each of the 75 classes, a press release said. Anchor authors have the option to share their memories, and they will help collect memories from classmates. Each class will submit two to three pages for publication in the book.

“This is a timely project to still be able to tell first-hand stories from the early beginnings and to cross-pollinate and historically savor and preserve the collected experiences from the first 75 years,” said Benita Albert, Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation board member. Albert, a retired math teacher, has found it to be very rewarding interviewing alumni and researching stories from the earliest years, the press release said. [Read more…]

MCLinc sponsors ADFAC, Bow Tie Event

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Pictured above from left, ADFAC representatives Annie Cacheiro and Louise Mixon accept a corporate contribution from McLinc representatives Barry Stephenson and Michele Sanders. (Submitted photo)

Pictured above from left, ADFAC representatives Annie Cacheiro and Louise Mixon accept a corporate contribution from McLinc representatives Barry Stephenson and Michele Sanders. (Submitted photo)

 

Materials and Chemistry Laboratory Inc., or MCLinc, is a sponsor for ADFAC’s 2017 Corporate Membership Campaign, and the company is also a sponsor for this year’s Bill Wilcox Bow Tie Event, which will be held Saturday, November 11, a press release said.

MCLinc’s President and Chief Executive Officer Barry Stephenson and Laboratory Manager Michele Sanders met recently with ADFAC representatives to celebrate their corporate support for the local agency.

MCLinc is a commercial applied research company providing high-quality consulting and analytical testing for industrial forensics, materials characterization, environmental chemistry, and process optimization, the press release said.

“As MCLinc is an employee-owned company, all corporate charitable gifts are generously supported by the employees,” Stephenson said. “I am so pleased that our company and our employees are able and excited about supporting such a worthy cause as ADFAC. We are very much looking forward to the Bow Tie Award Event this year as we all celebrate local volunteer Tom Row.”

See previous story on the Bow Tie Award Event here. [Read more…]

IDB approves tax abatement as MCLinc plans to build at Horizon Center

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Barry Stephenson, president and chief executive officer of MCLinc, discusses the analytical testing laboratory's plan to build a 29,000-square-foot building at Horizon Center during an Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board meeting on Monday, Oct. 2, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Barry Stephenson, president and chief executive officer of MCLinc, discusses the analytical testing laboratory’s plan to build a 29,000-square-foot building at Horizon Center during an Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board meeting on Monday, Oct. 2, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A city board on Monday approved a six-year, 50 percent property tax abatement for a company that plans to move from Heritage Center, the former K-25 site, to Horizon Center, a few miles northeast.

MCLinc is now in Building K-1006 at Heritage Center, which is also known as East Tennessee Technology Park. A conference center at ETTP’s main entrance is leased for special events, and MCLinc has the next building on the right. It’s been home to a laboratory since 1965. MCLinc (Materials and Chemistry Laboratory) has been there since 1998, when the company started.

But the building is owned by the U.S. Department of Energy, and it is slated for demolition, said Barry Stephenson, MCLinc president and chief executive officer. Attempts to acquire the building have not panned out, Stephenson told the Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board on Monday.

Three years ago, the company, an analytical testing laboratory, received notice that they have to move, Stephenson said. He told the IDB that MCLinc has to be out of the building by September 2018. [Read more…]

Education Foundation book project will celebrate 75th anniversary of Oak Ridge Schools

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Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation has a kick-off meeting with Anchor Authors in April 2017. Pictured above is Jessica Steed, standing, and ORPSEF Board Member Benita Albert. (Submitted photo)

Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation has a kick-off meeting with Anchor Authors in April 2017. Pictured above is Jessica Steed, standing, and ORPSEF Board Member Benita Albert. (Submitted photo)

 

The Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation is planning a special book project to celebrate the upcoming 75th anniversary of the Oak Ridge Schools. The book will be a collection of memories as told by teachers and alumni across all classes from 1944-2018. The Foundation has identified people to serve as anchor authors for each of the 75 classes. Anchor authors have the option to share their memories, and they will help collect memories from classmates. Each class will submit two to three pages for publication in the book.

“This is a timely project to still be able to tell first-hand stories from the early beginnings and to cross-pollinate and historically savor and preserve the collected experiences from the first 75 years,” said Benita Albert, Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation board member.

Albert, a retired math teacher, has found the project to be very rewarding while interviewing alumni and researching stories from the earliest years, a press release said.

The Foundation’s Board approved the special project at its March board meeting. A kickoff meeting was hosted by the Foundation for all anchor authors in April. A few stories have already been submitted and many others are in the works. It is anticipated that the book will be about 250 pages long. In an effort to conserve any unpublished stories, the Foundation will offer a virtual archive where those stories can be accessed. [Read more…]

Fire destroys unoccupied home on Marlow Circle

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Marlow Circle Fire Oct. 2, 2015

A fire destroyed an unoccupied home on Marlow Circle on Friday night, Oct. 2, 2015. The Marlow and Oliver Springs fire departments both responded to fight the fire. (Photo by Tom Scott)

 

A fire destroyed an unoccupied home on Marlow Circle on Friday night.

The fire was reported at 516 Marlow Circle at about 10 p.m. Friday.

The house was engulfed in flames when the first Marlow Fire Department units arrived, fire photographer Tom Scott said. Two Marlow Fire Department engines and a tanker responded and so did two Oliver Springs Fire Department engines and a rescue unit, which responded on a mutual aid call.

The house was close to the roadway, and at the height of the fire, the contents of a mailbox across Marlow Circle caught on fire, Scott said. [Read more…]

Centrus donates $2,500 to ADFAC

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Centrus Donates to ADFAC

Centrus Energy Corporation’s Jeff Cooper, right, presents the 2015 Corporate Membership contribution to ADFAC’s Executive Director Annie Cacheiro, left, and Corporate Committee members Ray Smith, second from left, and Barry Stephenson. (Submitted photo)

 

Centrus Energy Corporation donated $2,500 to ADFAC and became the first 2015 Grand Benefactor Corporate Member, the nonprofit organization’s Corporate Committee announced this week.

Jeff Cooper, Centrus’s Lead Cascade Project Manager, recently presented the donation to Ray Smith and Barry Stephenson, ADFAC Corporate Committee members.

“This corporate contribution is going to help lead the way for other corporate contributions for ADFAC,” said Smith, who is a member of the ADFAC Board of Directors. “It’s so appreciated and will truly help AFDAC fulfill their mission of ‘neighbors helping neighbors.'” [Read more…]

Three ORHS seniors win Brad Sturm scholarships

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Brad Sturm Scholarship Winners

Two Rotarians and the winners of the Bradley Sturm Memorial Scholarships are, from left, Barry Stephenson, chair of the Brad Sturm scholarship selection committee, Rotary Club of Oak Ridge; Diane “Grace” Malone; Megan Pitz; Holly Gubanc; and Mel Sturm, scholarship sponsor. (Submitted photo)

 

The three Oak Ridge High School seniors who won the Bradley Sturm Memorial Scholarships for 2015 are Holly Gubanc, Diane “Grace” Malone, and Megan Pitz.

Mel Sturm, a local businessman for years, said he started the endowment for the scholarship fund in 1976 for two reasons. He wanted to give back to the community that had supported his businesses. And he was determined to combat the tendency of Oak Ridge students, many of whom have parents who work for the federal government or government contractors, to view “free enterprise” and the “profit motive” with suspicion.

The scholarship program is administered by a Rotary Club of Oak Ridge committee consisting of Barry Stephenson, chair, and Jim Sumner, Larry Beeman, Jim Charles, Hal Schmitt, and Mel Sturm. ORHS economics teachers Beverly Baumann and Teresa Seals play key roles in the program. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation names new director

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Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation Jenna Whitney and Lila Metcalf

Lila Metcalf, left, former director of the Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation, welcomes the new foundation director, Jenna Whitney. (Submitted photo)

The Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation has named a new director.

Jenna Whitney started Jan. 1, the foundation’s board of directors announced this week. Whitney has more than 15 years of general management experience in the professional services industry and the U.S. government.

Whitney replaces the foundation’s first director, Lila Metcalf, who has announced that she is leaving the position after almost 10 years with the foundation. She will return full-time to her nursing career.

Whitney recently served as a program manager at a defense contracting firm with oversight of more than $59 million in U.S. government contracts, and she has directed a portfolio of engineering and technical support contracts, a press release said. She has worked overseas for the U.S. State Department, managing financial operations and leading strategic and technical initiatives. [Read more…]