Oak Ridge Today

City, schools could resolve high school debt, discuss Blankenship bleachers

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Oak Ridge High School

Municipal and school officials could resolve a long-running dispute over sales tax revenues and how they should be used to repay the debt on the $66 million renovation of the Oak Ridge High School, pictured above.

Oak Ridge municipal and school officials could resolve a long-running dispute over sales tax revenues and high school debt payments, and they will discuss a proposed resolution during a joint work session Friday.

The non-voting work session will include the Oak Ridge City Council and Board of Education. Also on the agenda is an update on the visitor bleachers at Blankenship Field, which are being demolished. It’s not clear yet how replacement bleachers will be funded.

The meeting starts at noon Friday in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Training Room.

The sales tax dispute has centered on how to spend new revenues collected in Anderson County, but outside Oak Ridge, under a sales tax increase approved by county voters in a May 2006 referendum. School officials had argued they can keep that money, but municipal officials had said the revenues should be used for debt payments on the $66 million renovation of the Oak Ridge High School. [Read more…]

Weather: Closings, delays for Friday

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Anderson County Schools will be closed Friday because of the weather. The Central Office will follow the inclement weather procedure.

Oak Ridge Schools will open two hours late to allow any ice that forms overnight to melt. The schools will not serve breakfast Friday morning, so parents should make sure their children eat before coming to school.

A 10 a.m. starting time has been authorized for employees of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office, Oak Ridge Environmental Management Site Office, Oak Ridge Nuclear Energy Site Office, Office of Scientific and Technical Information, and Oak Ridge DOE Inspector General, with unscheduled leave (previously referred to as liberal leave) authorized if needed.

Normal hours are in effect for Oak Ridge National Laboratory Site Office employees, with unscheduled leave (previously referred to as liberal leave) authorized if needed.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Oak Ridge Schools dismissing early

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Oak Ridge Schools will dismiss early today (Wednesday) because of the incoming winter storm, a press release said.

Here are the dismissal times:

  • Oak Ridge High School CDC and Jefferson Middle School/Robertsville Middle School CDC dismissed at 10:45 a.m.
  • ORHS and JMS/RMS dismissed at 11:05 a.m.
  • Elementary CDC dismissed at 11:45 a.m.
  • PreSchool dismissed at 11:50 a.m.
  • Elementary schools dismissed at 12:45 a.m.
  • Alternative dismissed as soon as a bus can get there between 12:05-12:15 a.m.

Guest column: Majority of families, staff favor balanced calendar

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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…]

Guest column: Remember to vote on school calendar Monday evening

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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…]

Guest column: Time to vote for school calendars for 2015-16 school year

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Christopher J. Marczak

Christopher J. Marczak

By Chris Marczak

It’s that time of year again: the time to vote for school calendars for the 2015-16 school year. As we move into this time of change, there are two calendars that are being proposed for the Oak Ridge School system.

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; Bruce Borchers, the superintendent; and myself. Both calendars give staff and parents a choice in the type of calendar they want for the children of Oak Ridge.

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…]

School board approves demolition of visitor bleachers at Blankenship

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The Oak Ridge Board of Education on Monday will consider whether to demolish the visitor bleachers at Blankenship Field.

The Oak Ridge Board of Education on Monday approved the demolition of the deteriorated visitor bleachers at Blankenship Field.

The city’s school board on Monday unanimously agreed to demolish the deteriorated visitor bleachers at Blankenship Field.

Inspections have determined that the bleachers are no longer safe for fans, would cost too much to repair, and should be demolished immediately, a school official said this month.

“There is a very, very significant issue that we need to get on with,” said Bob Eby, Oak Ridge Board of Education vice chair, before the 5-0 voice vote on Monday.

The board hasn’t approved a replacement plan yet, but Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers said the goal is to have new bleachers by the start of the next football season this fall. The school system is looking at all options in case the bleachers aren’t available by then, Borchers said. [Read more…]

School board to consider demolition of Blankenship visitor bleachers

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Visitor Bleachers at Blankenship Field

The Oak Ridge Board of Education on Monday will consider whether to demolish the visitor bleachers at Blankenship Field.

The visitor bleachers at Blankenship Field are no longer safe for fans, would cost too much to repair, and should be demolished immediately, a school official said this month.

The Oak Ridge Board of Education will consider the proposed demolition during a Monday evening meeting.

The visitor bleachers would be too much of a liability risk if they continue to be used, said Allen Thacker, maintenance and operations supervisor for Oak Ridge Schools. In addition, the main stairs from the dressing rooms to the field on the home side of Jack Armstrong Stadium/Blankenship Field are seriously aged and suffer from erosion. [Read more…]

Principals appointed at Oak Ridge High, Jefferson Middle

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David Bryant

David Bryant

Phil Cox

Phil Cox

Interim principals at Oak Ridge High School and Jefferson Middle School have been named principals, Oak Ridge Schools announced Wednesday.

David Bryant, who has been interim principal at Oak Ridge High School, has been named principal, and Phillip Cox, interim principal at Jefferson Middle School, has been named principal at the middle school.

Bryant has been interim principal at the high school since July 2013. He was an assistant ORHS principal from 2006 to 2013, and before that, he was an administrator at the Alternative Program.

Bryant began his career with Oak Ridge Schools as a special education teacher in 1985. He has a bachelor’s degree in special education from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and a master’s degree from Lincoln Memorial University. [Read more…]

ORNL, DOE, Roane State, Borchers to take part in STEM Night at Woodland

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Bruce Borchers

Bruce Borchers

Representatives from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the U.S. Department of Energy, and Roane State Community College—as well as Superintendent Bruce Borchers—will take part in a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Night for students at Woodland Elementary School on Thursday.

The STEM Night for students is being hosted by the Woodland Parent Teacher Organization, a press release said. It will be in the school’s gymnasium. Borchers will kick off the event with opening comments at 5:15 p.m. Thursday.

A press release said Borchers is pursuing avenues to make Oak Ridge “the” premier STEM school district in the country. [Read more…]

JMS briefly locked down as police search area for person with handgun

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Jefferson Middle School

Jefferson Middle School

Jefferson Middle School was briefly locked down early Thursday afternoon as police searched for a person armed with a handgun at a nearby business.

The Oak Ridge Police Department began searching for the person at about 12:30 p.m. Thursday after receiving information that the individual, who is not identified in a press release, had just left the Clinton area and might be on the way to the west end of Oak Ridge.

“Oak Ridge police personnel from the Patrol, Criminal Investigations, and Administration divisions immediately deployed throughout the city to locate the individual, and at approximately 12:52 p.m., information was received that the individual may have been in a vehicle in the Home Depot parking lot in Oak Ridge,” an ORPD press release said. “Oak Ridge police unmarked units identified a vehicle matching the description of the individual’s vehicle in the parking lot and requested the Jefferson Middle School initiate a lockdown, as it was nearby. [Read more…]

Borchers to discuss Oak Ridge Schools at Lunch with League

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Bruce Borchers

Bruce Borchers

Superintendent Bruce Borchers will discuss Oak Ridge Schools at Lunch with the League on Tuesday.

The meeting starts at noon Tuesday in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, located at 1500 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Borchers will focus on the theme “Building on Excellence: Where we were, where we are, and where we are going.” He will highlight achievement data, changing demographics, and initiatives that will help Oak Ridge students be successful in the 21st Century, a press release said. [Read more…]