Oak Ridge Today

Roane State professor wins Outstanding PTA Educator award

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Roane State Community College Associate Professor Emily A. DeLozier has been awarded the Outstanding Physical Therapist Assistant Educator of the Year Award for 2021. (Photo by Roane State)

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

Roane State Community College Associate Professor Emily A. DeLozier has been awarded the Outstanding Physical Therapist Assistant Educator of the Year Award for 2021.

The Tennessee chapter of the American Physical Therapy Association recently announced the award during its virtual spring business meeting.

“It’s a great honor, and I’m very humbled to receive it,” said DeLozier, who is also the academic coordinator of clinical education for Roane State’s PTA program. “Every opportunity I’ve had has been as part of a team,” the Knoxville resident said.

There are more than 2,250 members of the American Physical Therapy Association’s Tennessee chapter. DeLozier said Associate Professor Beth Vowell, director of Roane State’s PTA program, “deserves as much credit as I do.”

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Roane State ends COVID-19 mask requirement for fully vaccinated

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Part of the Oak Ridge branch campus of Roane State Community College is pictured above. (Photo by Roane State)

Roane State Community College is ending its face mask requirement for people who are fully vaccinated. The college also ended its daily wellness screening requirement on campus on Monday.

The changes are updates to the college’s pandemic response plan as COVID-19 cases decline in the area, state, and nation.

“These changes follow updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued on May 13,” Roane State said in a press release. “Over the next few weeks, Roane State will be working to implement these new protocols within its response plan and communicate changes to the campus community.”

Until further notice, Roane State will maintain some of the preventive measures put in place during the pandemic in order to keep campuses as safe as possible. Protocols that will remain in place include:

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Roane State radiology lab named in tribute, memory of donors

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The radiology lab in the Coffey/McNally Building on Roane State’s Oak Ridge Branch Campus now has an official name: the Mary Alice and Wallace Casnelli Radiology Lab. A plaque on the wall outside the lab bears the couple’s names and was recently dedicated. (Submitted photo)

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

The radiology lab in the Coffey/McNally Building on Roane State Community College’s Oak Ridge Branch Campus now has an official name: the Mary Alice and Wallace Casnelli Radiology Lab. A plaque on the wall outside the lab bears the couple’s names and was recently dedicated.

The Casnelli’s estate included a $250,000 endowment for the lab administered through a partnership of The Trust Company of Tennessee and Roane State Foundation, and it’s been “put to excellent use,” according to Dr. Julie Hall, director of the community college’s radiologic technology program.

The gift “made it possible for us to buy equipment for the lab that normally would be outside of our reach,” Hall said. It also will fund professional development options for radiologic technology staff, she said.

Each year, four students in the program are also awarded scholarships from the endowment.

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Roane State men’s basketball coach, athletic director retiring

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Roane State Community College men’s basketball coach and athletic director Randy Nesbit is retiring from athletics but will continue to teach. (Photo by Roane State)

By Roane State Community College/Donnie Hall, Sports Information Writer

HARRIMAN—Since 1993, Randy Nesbit has been the face of athletics at Roane State Community College. As the men’s head basketball coach and athletic director, he has had his hand in virtually all things sports at the college for nearly three decades.

Last week, Nesbit announced to college administration and coaching staff that he would be stepping down from his role as head men’s basketball coach and—as soon as the position can be filled—as athletic director.

Nesbit, who is also a tenured business instructor at the college, said he will be moving to the classroom full time.

According to Nesbit, “Back in the fall, I was in a mindset that I thought I could just continue to coach in perpetuity; I could just never see an end in sight. But then,” the veteran coach added, “after the new year began, I felt like the Lord was showing me that I should step away and look at teaching full time and possible business opportunities to benefit my family that, otherwise, I wouldn’t have the time available to do.”

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Roane State has training exercise Wednesday

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Roane State Community College will have a training exercise on its Oak Ridge Branch Campus on Wednesday.

Law enforcement and emergency vehicles may be on campus during this time, the college said Tuesday.

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Register online now for ORICL summer courses

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Bill Capshaw, master potter and Oak Ridge resident, regularly teaches pottery to ORICL members who attend his classes at the Oak Ridge Art Center. (Submitted photo)

Looking for mental stimulation? Want to learn a new skill or increase your knowledge of history and science?

Online registration for in-person and online courses offered in the summer of 2021 by the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning (ORICL) will open on April 20. The classes will be given between June 7 and July 30.

You can see the courses in the online Summer 2021 Catalog and register online by visiting the ORICL website at www.roanestate.edu/oricl. If you want to receive a paper catalog, call the ORICL office at (865) 481-8222 between 9 a.m. and 12 noon Monday through Thursday. You can also register by filling out a paper form inside the catalog and mailing it to the ORICL office, Room F-111, Roane State Community College, 701 Briarcliff Ave., Oak Ridge, TN 37830. [Read more…]

Roane State to host COVID-19 vaccination clinics in Oak Ridge for students & employees

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Roane State Community College, in partnership with the Free Medical Clinic of Oak Ridge, is planning a two-part vaccination clinic at its Oak Ridge Branch Campus for Roane State students and employees, a press release said.

The first clinic is scheduled for Wednesday, April 28, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. Eastern time, and it will provide the first dose of the Moderna vaccine to participants. Appointments are available for students and college employees by visiting roanestate.edu/vaccine. R numbers will be required to sign up, the press release said. Students and employees from any campus location are eligible.

The clinics will be held in a drive-through format. Participants should follow signs posted on campus, and they can stay inside their vehicles the entire time. A short waiting period after receiving the shot will be required for safety. Vehicles will park in a designated area during this time.

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Roane State One Stop resumes in-person student services

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Part of the Oak Ridge branch campus of Roane State Community College is pictured above. (Photo by Roane State)

Roane State Community College’s One Stop offices at the Roane County and Oak Ridge campuses have now resumed in-person student services.

Success coaches were returning to all RSCC campuses this week on a mixed schedule, a press release said. When scheduling appointments with success coaches, students will be able to select from in-person and virtual meeting options.

One Stop staff at the Roane County and Oak Ridge campuses moved to virtual operations earlier this year due to COVID-19 protocols. In-person One Stop services remained available at RSCC satellite campuses during this time, the press release said.

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Dr. Michelle Cash is Roane State Outstanding Alumni

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Michelle Cash

By Bob Fowler Roane State staff writer

“I always knew I wanted to teach,” says Dr. Michelle Cash, the winner of Roane State’s prestigious Outstanding Alumni Award for 2019. She was to be recognized on Monday, March 29, as part of the community college’s virtual TBR SOAR Award Celebration.

She serves as the RN-BSN Program Coordinator at King University’s Knoxville campus while also working as a staff nurse in Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center’s newborn nursery. She has also served as an adjunct OB clinical instructor for Roane State Community College.

Cash joins a distinguished group of Roane State alumni honored each year since 2004 for their accomplishments and their widely recognized leadership abilities.

“It’s a great honor to be selected,” the Kingston native said. “I’ve always treasured the education I received at Roane State.”

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Roane State student chronicles harrowing escape from captivity in new book

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Shown is the cover of the self-published book available on Amazon and written by Bella Hope Shiloh, the alias adopted by a Roane State Community College student. (Photo submitted by Roane State)

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

As a child, she endured years of physical and sexual abuse by her father. At age 20, she married a man in a cult-like church who controlled her and removed her and their children from all society—except the church.

For years, they lived in an isolated shack with no electricity, no running water, no toilet, and no phone. Finally, she and her children broke free from the violence and mind control and began the challenging task of becoming familiar with what she calls “the real world.” That’s still an ongoing struggle, she says.

Call her Bella Hope Shiloh. That’s the alias this Roane State Community College student used to write an account of the nightmare she and her children experienced. Her self-published book is titled “Prisoners in the Shed,” and is available on Amazon.

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Roane State re-opening Expo Center in phases

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Roane State Community College prepares to re-open the Expo Center in Harriman. (Photo by Roane State)

Roane State Community College is re-opening its Expo Center in Harriman in phases.

The Henry/Stafford East Tennessee Agricultural Exposition Center is located on the Roane County campus in Harriman.

Beginning Wednesday, March 17, public riding will be offered by reservation only at the outdoor arena, a press release said.

Beginning Thursday, April 1, events will be permitted to resume at all Expo Center facilities, both indoor and outdoor.

The most up-to-date bookings will be posted on the online event calendar at roanestate.edu/expo.

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Roane State partners with Y-12 to host second annual Cybersecurity Summer Camp

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Following a successful first year, Roane State Community College and Y-12 National Security Complex are announcing the second Cybersecurity Summer Camp. (Photo submitted by Roane State)

Submitted

Following a successful first year, Roane State Community College and Y-12 National Security Complex are announcing the second Cybersecurity Summer Camp.

Two sessions will be held this year, one in mid-June for high-school-aged students and another in July for middle-school-aged students. Registration will be available beginning on Monday, March 22.

Roane State partnered with Y-12 in this effort to inspire future workers and help them develop talents that can be used to protect the nation’s most valuable information, a press release said.

During the camp, students learn about digital forensics, IP (Internet protocol) scanning, data reconnaissance, and many other topics—all key components of Y-12’s cybersecurity program, the press release said.

Here are the 2021 camp dates:

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