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School board approves change in residency requirement

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The Oak Ridge Board of Education on Monday approved, in the first of two votes, a policy change that would require the superintendent and principals to live in Oak Ridge.

Assistant principals, the executive director of school leadership, and the executive director of teaching and learning would be required to live in Oak Ridge if they are relocating to the region after being hired by Oak Ridge Schools. This would not apply to new administrators in those positions who already live in adjacent counties, such as Knox County.

The policy change would reduce the number of administrative positions with a residency requirement. The current policy requires the superintendent, executive director of school leadership, executive director of teaching and learning, director of pupil services, principals, and assistant principals to live in Oak Ridge “to be thoroughly familiar with the community and to be available beyond the regular day.”

But the current policy is suspected of reducing the number of candidates who apply for jobs at Oak Ridge Schools, according to administrators.

[Read more…]

Renovated Blankenship Field open for public use

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Blankenship-Field-James-Mitchell-Aug-2019
The renovated Blankenship Field—the city’s football field—and its walking track are now open for public use. The main change is that the grass field has been replaced with synthetic turf, but there are other changes as well. The field is pictured above in August 2019. (Photo by James Mitchell via City of Oak Ridge)

The renovated Blankenship Field—the city’s football field—and its walking track are now open for public use.

The main change is that the grass field has been replaced with synthetic turf, but there are other changes as well, including to scoreboards and end zone areas.

The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department and Oak Ridge Schools announced the opening of the renovated field on Tuesday.

The field and track are accessible through a gate adjacent to the lower concession stand, a press release said. Like other public park facilities, public use is permitted from sunup to sundown, except when the field is reserved for special events, the press release said.

[Read more…]

Small RMS satellite to launch into space Oct. 2020

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Robertsville Middle School RamSat CubeSat
The small cube satellite built by Robertsville Middle School students with help from teachers, mentors, and NASA is scheduled to launch in October 2020, and it will be deployed from the International Space Station, Oak Ridge Schools announced Monday, Aug. 29, 2019. (Photo courtesy Todd Livesay)

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

The small cube satellite built by Robertsville Middle School students with help from teachers, mentors, and NASA is scheduled to launch in October 2020, and it will be deployed from the International Space Station, Oak Ridge Schools announced Monday.

The school system said it has received notification of the launch date from NASA.

“We received the official word from Scott Higginbotham at Kennedy Space Center,” Oak Ridge Schools said in a press release. “His letter stated, ‘RamSat is currently manifested to fly on the ELaNa-31 mission aboard the NG-14 Commercial Resupply Services mission to the ISS. Launch is currently scheduled for October of 2020. NanoRacks will be facilitating the deployment of your spacecraft from the International Space Station.’”

Students have determined the mission of the cube satellite, or CubeSat, will be to circle the Earth and capture images to help them study the regrowth of vegetation in Gatlinburg, as the city recovers from the forest fires of November 2016, the press release said. The satellite has been named RamSat.

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Benita Albert to highlight Oak Ridge schools in Aug. 27 talk

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Benita Albert
Benita Albert

Noted educator Benita Albert will speak at Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge on Tuesday, August 27.

The talk is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. in the City Room (A-111) of the Coffey-McNally Building.

Titled “SPECIAL (Students, Parents, Educators: A Community’s Incredible Alliance with Learning),” the talk will highlight the decades in the Oak Ridge public school system from the 1940s to the present, a press release said. Albert will cite exceptional teachers’ contributions, share candid student observations, and relate stories of alumni of Oak Ridge Schools who have become important world citizens, the release said.

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Geothermal well system leaking under ORHS soccer field

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The geothermal well system is leaking under the soccer field at Oak Ridge High School, requiring emergency repairs to prevent classroom heat pumps from shutting down, school officials said.

“Recently, we lost a section of the geothermal wellfield to leaks in the well system that would require extensive exploratory excavation to locate and repair the leaks,” said Allen Thacker, Oak Ridge Schools maintenance and operations supervisor. “This option is not possible due to the location of the wellfield under the soccer field and the extensive cost of excavation and replacement of field damage. The wellfield is now operating at below 80 percent capacity, and the need for the cooling tower to be the primary source of water cooling is imperative to prevent shutdown of the classroom heat pumps.”

Thacker said the heat pumps serve all of the Learning Center, most of Comprehensive Studies, part of the Wellness Center, Visual Arts, and administration areas.

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Bat infestation cleaned from high school during summer

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A bat infestation was cleaned from a third floor ceiling of Oak Ridge High School this summer, school officials said.

Five live bats and more than 20 dead bats were removed, according to Allen Thacker, maintenance and operations supervisor for Oak Ridge Schools.

Maintenance workers had learned of the possible infestation on June 5, Thacker said. A pest control contractor said the infestation was contained in a third floor level of a 1994 addition.

The contractor said the bats were a common brown bat that migrates though the area, and the bats were most likely part of a larger colony that moved through the area, leaving a small group of sick or weakened bats behind.

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No tax rate increase requested for Oak Ridge schools budget

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The Oak Ridge Schools budget approved in the first of two readings, or meetings, on Wednesday does not request a property tax rate increase from the City of Oak Ridge.

There is also no request for an increase in the “maintenance of effort” funds, the amount of money that, once appropriated, has to continue to be funded year after year.

But school officials would like, if they are able to get it, an increase in capital improvement funds, money that could be used to fix and improve buildings but wouldn’t be recurring. No number has been attached to that request, but school officials would like the Oak Ridge City Council to consider it. During Wednesday’s meeting, the school board discussed ways to “get past conversation,” possibly with a collective effort, roundtable discussion, and comprehensive plan.

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New principal named at Glenwood Elementary

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Ginny Rigell Boles

Ginny Rigell Boles has been named principal of Glenwood Elementary School in Oak Ridge.

The appointment was announced Monday by Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers.

Boles will become principal effective July 1. She will replace Pearl Goins, who recently retired, a press release said.

An interview committee comprised of Glenwood and central office staff selected Boles after applications were screened and some candidates were interviewed.

[Read more…]

County Commission has special budget meeting Monday

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The Anderson County Commission will have a special budget meeting on Monday afternoon. The meeting is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. Monday, May 6, in Room 312 of the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

During the special meeting, the Anderson County Commission will review the recommendations of the Budget Committee, discuss them, and then send the Commission’s recommendation’s back to the Budget Committee.

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Borchers to discuss Oak Ridge Schools on Tuesday

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Bruce Borchers
Bruce Borchers

Bruce Borchers, superintendent of Oak Ridge Schools, will give an update that covers activities and programs in the school system during a lunchtime meeting on Tuesday.

Borchers will be the featured speaker at Lunch with the League on Tuesday, May 7.

The meeting will be held from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, which is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

The presentation will begin at noon. Lunches will be provided by the Soup Kitchen, and they will be available at 11:30 a.m. on a first-come basis for $8, or you may bring your own, a press release said. Coffee and tea will be provided.

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ASAP of Anderson, Oak Ridge Schools, ORPD collaborate to launch new school safety app

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Oak Ridge Schools is collaborating with Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention of Anderson County and the Oak Ridge Police Department to launch a new monitoring program that will allow parents and students to anonymously report concerns about student safety 24 hours a day, seven days per week.

The program includes an anonymous tip reporting application, which is part of the P3 Campus family of apps designed specifically for use in schools as part of student safety and mental health, a press release said. The local version app will be branded AlertORS, and will be available to all students in the Oak Ridge School district on Tuesday, April 2. Reports can be made through the P3 Campus mobile app or through any web browser at P3Campus.com.

“AlertORS will help students and community members be proactive in the emotional and physical well-being of their peers by giving them a tool to make anonymous reports quickly, easily, and interactively,” the press release said. “Users can report a wide range of concerns from mental health issues to threats of violence. ORS has designated team members for two-way communication when a tip is reported so that staff members are able to respond to students directly through the P3 Campus app and keep the conversation completely anonymous.” [Read more…]

Beckendorf-Edou of OR Schools selected as superintendent of Washington district

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Tracey Beckendorf-Edou

Tracey Beckendorf-Edou

 

Tracey Beckendorf-Edou of Oak Ridge Schools has accepted the position of superintendent of Cascade School District in Washington state, pending successful contract negotiations, starting in the 2019-2020 school year, a press release said.

Beckendorf-Edou is currently the executive director of teaching and learning for Oak Ridge Schools. She has worked for Oak Ridge Schools since the 2012-2013 school year, the press release said.

Beckendorf-Edou and her husband Kirk have been residents of Oak Ridge since 2010. Before she worked for Oak Ridge Schools, Beckendorf-Edou worked for ORAU, the press release said.

“Tracey thanks Bruce Borchers, the School Board, the entire staff of Oak Ridge Schools, and the Oak Ridge community for their support and friendship,” the press release said. [Read more…]

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