Chris Whaley Archives - Oak Ridge Today

Jewelry Television (JTV) donates $5,000 for Roane State Foundation program

Posted at 9:37 pm August 15, 2019
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Jewelry Television (JTV) donated $5,000 to support the Roane State Foundation’s Pay-It-Forward awards program. From left are Kirk Harris, Roane State director of Continuing Healthcare and Safety Education and director of the college’s Knox County Center for Health Sciences; R. Steve Walsh, senior vice president of global operations and logistics for JTV; Scott Niermann, executive director of the Roane State Foundation; Charles Wagner, vice chairman of JTV; and Chris Whaley, president of Roane State Community College. (Photo by Roane State)

Jewelry Television (JTV) donated $5,000 to support the Roane State Foundation’s Pay-It-Forward awards program.

Roane State Pay-It-Forward awards provide emergency aid to students to help them stay in school, including assistance with tuition or books for students near completion of their degrees, assistance for licensure/certification exam fees, and assistance to adult students who do not qualify for any state-funded tuition assistance programs, or whose aid has otherwise been exhausted.

Students who receive Pay-It-Forward scholarships agree to help future students in need at Roane State complete their education, once they are employed and able to give back, a press release said.

JTV is located next door to Roane State’s Knox County Center for Health Sciences, and leaders from both organizations consistently collaborate on ways to help Roane State students succeed. [Read more…]

Roane State’s Technology Building renamed for Sen. Ken Yager

Posted at 12:47 pm August 11, 2019
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Roane State Community College Technology Building

The Technology Building at Roane State Community College’s main campus in Harriman has been renamed in honor of Tennessee Sen. Ken Yager. (Photo by Roane State)

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

One of the first buildings constructed on Roane State Community College’s Roane County campus has been renamed in honor of a lifelong public servant who is now a state senator.

The Tennessee Board of Regents has approved the community college’s request to rename the 41-year-old Technology Building the Ken Yager Building.

“Senator Yager has been an advocate for Roane State students for many years, as Roane County Executive, as a Roane State faculty member and dean, and now as a member of the Tennessee General Assembly,” Roane State President Chris Whaley said. [Read more…]

Roane State receives $496,888 grant to enhance distance learning

Posted at 6:30 pm May 31, 2019
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Students at Roane State’s Scott County campus take a class using Zoom technology. A nearly half-million-dollar federal grant will allow Roane State to expand its use of Zoom technology to give students more access to classes.

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

Roane State Community College has received a $496,888 federal grant to improve distance learning opportunities at three of the community college’s most rural campuses.

For the 2018-19 academic year, Roane State invested in Zoom video conferencing technology to replace legacy interactive video systems at each of its campuses. The Zoom technology allows the college to broadcast a class from one campus to students at other locations. Rather than travel to a campus for a course, students can stay close to home and participate through live interactive video.

The Zoom technology, with its 360-degree cameras, created a more natural classroom experience than the college’s previous distance learning system. Classes taught via Zoom can be easily viewed live on any device, and content can be seamlessly uploaded online for students to access on demand. [Read more…]

Roane State graduation set for May 3-4

Posted at 5:15 pm May 2, 2019
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

David Bunch

Roane State Community College will hold commencement ceremonies on May 3-4.

The ceremonies, to be held in the gym on the Roane County campus in Harriman, will be equal in presentation.

Friday, May 3, 2019—2 p.m. [Read more…]

Safety Fest TN to open with panel on regional workforce development

Posted at 5:53 pm April 22, 2019
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The opening session for Safety Fest TN this year will feature a panel on regional workforce development.

The kick-off event is from 8:30-11 a.m. Tuesday, April 30, at the New Hope Center at Y-12 National Security Complex.

That opening session will include a discussion by influential educators and employers on regional workforce development challenges, a press release said. The panel will be called, “Facing Future Workforce Development Needs Today.”

“Panelists will discuss the challenges associated with attracting, hiring, and retaining the brightest and best of all skill levels to our region while exploring approaches they are implementing to meet those challenges,” the press release said.

[Read more…]

Creswell leaving Roane Allliance

Posted at 11:10 am August 30, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

pat-postma-and-wade-creswell-young-professional-award-dec-9-2016-scaled

Pat Postma, left, presents the Postma Young Professional Medal to Wade Creswell, chief executive officer of Roane Alliance, during an East Tennessee Economic Council meeting on Friday, Dec. 9, 2016. (DOE photo courtesy Lynn Freeny)

Note: This story was updated at 2:25 p.m.

Wade Creswell, president and chief executive officer of Roane Alliance, is leaving his position to begin work with an area business. His last day at the Alliance will be September 21.

The departure was announced Wednesday by Chris Whaley, chair of the Roane Alliance Board of Directors.

Pam May, Roane Alliance vice president, will serve as interim president and CEO until the board decides on the long-term future of the position, a press release said.

“I would like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation of the great work that Wade has done in his four and a half years leading the Roane Alliance,” Whaley said in a statement sent to the Board of Directors for the Roane Alliance, Chamber of Commerce, and Industrial Development Board. “His passion, vision, and love for Roane County have fueled his tireless work for this county and region, and I sincerely appreciate all he has done.” [Read more…]

Small businesses invited to learn how to work with NASA

Posted at 1:15 pm April 22, 2018
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Small businesses have many opportunities to support NASA’s space flight mission—such as the Space Launch System that will be used for deep space exploration and new missions to the moon—and additional NASA projects. Learn more at the June 19 NASA networking conference “Think Big: Learn How To Do Business with NASA” at Roane State’s W.H. Swain Scott County Center in Huntsville, Tenn. (Artist’s concept courtesy of NASA).

Small businesses are invited to a conference in June that will offer information on how to do business with NASA.

It’s an all-day networking conference titled “Think Big: Learn How To Do Business with NASA.” It’s scheduled for Tuesday, June 19, at Roane State’s W.H. Swain Scott County Center, which is at 410 W.H. Swain Boulevard in Huntsville. It was organized by U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann, a Tennessee Republican, and Congressman Hal Rogers, a Kentucky Republican.

At the conference, small businesses can meet with NASA officials and representatives from NASA prime contractors, a press release said. Conference participants will learn about various small business opportunities provided by NASA.

“NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, is just four hours from Huntsville, Tennessee,” Roane State President Chris Whaley said in the press release. “Opportunities with NASA are abundant for businesses of all shapes and sizes in this region. We want to raise awareness that big agencies such as NASA want and need services from small businesses. A business from a small community in a rural county can think big because NASA may be interested in your products.” [Read more…]

Tuition-free college for adults is here; Get Reconnect Ready at Roane State on March 1

Posted at 7:34 am February 22, 2018
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Roane State Community College’s Oak Ridge campus is a great place for adult students to reconnect with their education, a press release said.

And the timing has never been better. Beginning this fall, the Tennessee Reconnect grant will provide eligible adults with the opportunity to attend Roane State tuition-free.

To learn more about Reconnect, come to Roane State’s free Reconnect Ready event at the Oak Ridge campus, 701 Briarcliff Avenue, on Thursday, March 1, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. [Read more…]

Roane State eligible to compete for prestigious Aspen Prize

Posted at 12:10 pm December 27, 2017
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Chris Whaley

Roane State Community College officials will learn in May if the college is among 10 finalists for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, among the nation’s most prestigious awards for community colleges, a press release said.

Roane State is among only 150 community colleges nationwide eligible to compete to become a finalist, the press release said. The college was selected from a pool of approximately 1,000 two-year colleges using publicly available data on student outcomes.

After a rigorous application process, the top 10 finalists for the 2019 Aspen Prize will be named in May 2018. Aspen Institute officials will then conduct site visits to each of the finalists and collect additional data, the release said. A distinguished prize jury will select a grand prize winner, finalists with distinction, and rising stars in spring 2019. [Read more…]

Roane State Tennessee Promise students lead state in persistence

Posted at 10:00 am October 16, 2017
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Data recently presented to the Tennessee Board of Regents indicated Tennessee Promise students are outperforming their peers in various success measures, and Roane State’s students are leading the way, a press release said.

The first class of Tennessee Promise students entered college in the fall of 2015. Through the spring semester of 2017, 56.2 percent were still enrolled, have earned a college credential, or transferred to a four-year university, the press release said.

At Roane State, the persistence rate was 65 percent, the best among Tennessee’s 13 community colleges, the release said.

“We are proud that Roane State’s Tennessee Promise students have shown the grit and determination to stay in school and complete,” Roane State President Chris Whaley said. “I also greatly appreciate the efforts of our faculty and staff to make sure students have the support they need to be successful.” [Read more…]

ORICL has 20th anniversary celebration Thursday

Posted at 9:09 am September 4, 2017
By Carolyn H Krause Leave a Comment

Members of an early ORICL board are, standing from left, George Jasny, Janet Evans, and Martha Hobson; sitting from left, Jeannie Cole, Reeva Abraham, Harwell Smith, and Murray Rosenthal, founder and first board president. (Submitted photo)

In recognition of the 20th anniversary of the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning (ORICL), a celebration will take place on Thursday (September 7) at its home base, the Oak Ridge Branch Campus of Roane State Community College (RSCC).

Tennessee Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally will read a proclamation in honor of ORICL’s 20 years of providing educational experiences for hundreds of retirees in and around Oak Ridge.

RSCC President Chris Whaley will speak on “Lifelong Learning: the Roane State Commitment to ORICL and Oak Ridge.” He will mention Tennessee Reconnects, the state-funded program that will start in fall 2018 to provide a free two-year education to willing adults in Tennessee who have no degrees. [Read more…]

Regional symposium for community college leaders, educators

Posted at 10:29 pm March 18, 2017
By Jutta Bangs Leave a Comment

The National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship, the nation’s leading organization focused on promoting entrepreneurship through community colleges, and the Appalachian Regional Commission will co-sponsor a regional symposium for community college leaders and educators in Appalachia who are interested in enhancing economic growth in their areas.

The summit, “Leveraging Assets in Your Local Community to Promote Economic Development,” will be held March 30-31 at Pellissippi State Community College in Knoxville.

The keynote speaker for the event is Randy Boyd, former Tennessee Commissioner of Economic and Community Development.

Chris Whaley, president of Roane State Community College, and Anthony Wise, president of Pellissippi State Community College, are among those scheduled to present at the symposium. [Read more…]