Oak Ridge Today

Presentation on opioid drug epidemic Wednesday evening at RMS

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Chasing the Dragon Flyer Nov 29 2017

There will be a presentation on the opioid drug epidemic this evening at Robertsville Middle School.

The presentation is hosted by the offices of Safe Schools and Coordinated School Health. They are inviting the Oak Ridge community and friends of Oak Ridge Schools to the presentation, which is this evening (Wednesday, November 29) in the Robertsville Middle School Auditorium.

The evening will include a screening of the film “Chasing the Dragon,” a press release said. Following the film, the group will engage in a panel discussion with former Drug Enforcement Administration agent Neil Morgenstern as well as representatives from Oak Ridge Police Department, Oak Ridge Fire Department, Ridgeview Behavioral Health, and ASAP of Anderson County.

The doors will open at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday to provide those who attend an opportunity to visit with area mental health, drug prevention, treatment, and recovery agencies. The program will start promptly at 6 p.m. [Read more…]

Adams, RMS principal, moving to job in Hamilton County

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Garfield Adams

Garfield Adams

Garfield Adams, Robertsville Middle School principal, has accepted a position with the Hamilton County Department of Education as the exceptional education director.

Adams will continue in his role as RMS principal until December 31, a press release said.

Effective January 1, 2018, Tonya Childress will serve as the interim principal of Robertsville Middle School, and David Scott will serve as interim administrative assistant, the press release said.

Childress has both doctor of education and educational specialist degrees from Lincoln Memorial University. She received both her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from the University of Tennessee Knoxville in technology education, the press release said. Childress has served as the vice principal of Robertsville since July 2017. [Read more…]

Great American Eclipse in Oak Ridge Schools

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Glenwood Elementary School students worked with OBED Park Rangers and practiced safe use of a telescope for viewing during the total solar eclipse on Monday, Aug. 21, 2017. (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge Schools)

Glenwood Elementary School students worked with Obed park rangers and practiced safe use of a telescope for viewing during the total solar eclipse on Monday, Aug. 21, 2017. (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge Schools)

 

Submitted by Oak Ridge Schools

The Great American Eclipse was unique in Oak Ridge, as we were on the coveted path of totality. Some solar eclipse fanatics will travel thousands of miles and spend thousands of dollars just to get themselves into The Path. We took advantage of this rare opportunity that came to our back yard for the breathtaking experience of totality with our students and staff.

We had an interesting challenge, though. The edge of the path of totality cut through town in such a way that four of our schools would only experience a partial eclipse if students and staff stayed on campus. The total solar eclipse has several attributes that are not visible outside the path of totality, such as the sudden appearance of stars and planets, the solar corona becoming visible, and a temperature drop. To ensure all of our students had the opportunity for this rich total eclipse experience, we provided transportation to move everyone who wanted to participate into The Path. [Read more…]

Robertsville Middle School vice principal appointment announced

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Tonya Childress

Tonya Childress

 

Tonya Childress was selected to serve as the Robertsville Middle School assistant principal beginning July 11, 2017.

Childress holds both doctor of education and educational specialist degrees from Lincoln Memorial University. She received both her master of science and bachelor of science degrees from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in Technology Education.

During the past 18 years, Childress has served as a teacher and administrator with Knox County Schools.

This press release was submitted by Holly Cross.

Families in need appreciate ADFAC backpacks, school supplies

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Oak Ridge Utility District employees packed 156 backpacks for Robertsville Middle School students. (Submitted photo)

Oak Ridge Utility District employees packed 156 backpacks for Robertsville Middle School students. (Submitted photo)

 

Becky Hook’s back-to-school shopping list includes 3,500 backpacks, 5,100 dry erase markers, and 700 clipboards, among thousands of other items. That’s because she is shopping for ADFAC, which is giving away the backpacks filled with supplies to children whose families can’t afford them.

A mother of six students at Sunbright School in Morgan County said the backpacks and school supplies ADFAC recently provided for her children came just at the right time.

“This has been an extremely difficult summer. I lost my job and am going through a divorce, but regardless of what is happening in my life, my children still have needs and lives that go on,” Mary Ann Massey said. “These backpacks have been a godsend.”

ADFAC (Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties) is distributing the 3,500 new backpacks with supplies to children in need at 33 schools in Clinton, Oak Ridge, Anderson County, and Morgan County.

“I wish you could see the joy that students have when they come to pick out their backpack and the relief that their grown-ups feel to know that their children have the supplies they need to start the school year,” said Jo Bruce, director of Oak Ridge Schools Family Resource Center. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools registration starts today

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All students new to Oak Ridge Schools need to register at their respective schools sometime between Monday, July 10, through Wednesday, July 19, a press release said. Registration hours on those days are from 9 a.m. to noon. Parents who pre-registered kindergartners in May also need to complete the registration process on those dates, the press release said.

Registration for new students in grades 9-12 will be made by appointment only, the press release said. For more information regarding high school registration, contact the registrar at (865) 425-9524.

Information necessary for new student registration includes the following: [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools first in state to earn AdvancED STEM certification for all elementary, middle schools

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Students at Jefferson Middle School collaboratively plan problem-based learning (PBL). (Submitted photo)

Students at Jefferson Middle School collaboratively plan problem-based learning (PBL). (Submitted photo)

 

Oak Ridge Schools is the first district in the state to earn AdvancED STEM certification for all of its elementary and middle schools, a press release said.

AdvancED uses a research-based framework and criteria for the awareness, continuous improvement, and assessment of the quality, rigor, and substance of STEM educational programs, the press release said. STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

In the spring of 2016, three Oak Ridge elementary schools earned AdvancED STEM certification: Glenwood, Linden, and Woodland. These schools were the first in the district to demonstrate the capacity to prepare students for STEM fields of study and work, the press release said.

In the spring of 2017, three more schools in Oak Ridge received this distinction: Willow Brook Elementary, Jefferson Middle, and Robertsville Middle.

“Our district is the first in the state to certify every elementary and middle school in the district,” the press release said. “We are committed to preparing our learners for the careers of tomorrow by perpetuating their enthusiasm for STEM disciplines today. Our focus on STEM demonstrates our continued commitment to ensure every Oak Ridge student is prepared for college, career, and life success.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools registration, orientation information

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All students new to Oak Ridge Schools need to register at their respective schools Monday, July 10, through Wednesday, July 19, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Parents who pre-registered kindergartners in May also need to complete the registration process on those dates.

Registration for new students in grades 9-12 will be made by appointment only. For more information regarding high school registration, please contact the registrar at (865) 425-9524. Information necessary for new student registration includes the following:

  1. Child’s birth certificate (a certified copy for school records, not the hospital copy or mother’s copy)
  2. Child’s Social Security number (optional)
  3. Health insurance provider
  4. The Tennessee Department of Health Certificate of Immunization available from your doctor or Health Department consisting of two parts:
    • Immunizations—A Tennessee Department of Health Certificate of Immunization form showing the complete dates (month, day, and year) immunizations were administered.
    • Health examination—A physical examination is required for all children entering Tennessee schools (K-12). Oak Ridge Schools require a physical examination current since January 1 of the year the student will enter kindergarten. Students entering the seventh grade will also need to provide proof of the T-dap immunization.
  5. Grades 1-12 only—Provide the name, address, and phone number of the school(s) where your child previously attended or provide report cards or withdrawal forms.

[Read more…]

Hobby appointed principal of Woodland Elementary

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Donald “D.T.” Hobby has been appointed principal of Woodland Elementary School in Oak Ridge, starting July 1.

Hobby has a bachelor’s degree from Tennessee Technological University in wildlife and fisheries science, a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction, and an educational specialist in educational administration and supervision, both from Lincoln Memorial University.

He has been employed with Oak Ridge Schools since August 2008, serving as both a teacher and administrator at Secret City Academy and most recently as assistant principal at Robertsville Middle School.

Before he started working at Oak Ridge Schools, Hobby was a science teacher in Knox County Schools from 2004-2008.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

This press release was submitted by Holly Cross.

Cast your vote in ‘Dream It. Do It.’ middle school competition

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CLINTON—The videos are in, and it is now time to vote in Anderson County’s “Dream It. Do It.” middle school competition. The program is in its second year and has grown from four to six schools, including two from the Oak Ridge school system.

“Dream It. Do It.” is sponsored by the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce, Anderson County Schools, Oak Ridge Schools, and Consolidated Nuclear Security LLC, or CNS, the managing contractor at Y-12 National Security Complex. It is designed to bring student awareness of job opportunities in advanced manufacturing, a press release said.

Using GoPro cameras provided by CNS, six teams of eighth-graders were paired with area industries to create videos to tell the companies’ stories. These videos are then posted online for public voting. Each winning team member receives a GoPro camera, also provided by CNS.

This year’s participant teams included: Clinton Middle School and Aisin, Jefferson Middle School and Protomet, Lake City Middle School and Techmer PM, Norris Middle School and Eagle Bend, Norwood Middle School and Clayton Homes, and Robertsville Middle School and SL America. [Read more…]

Three Oak Ridge teachers named outstanding educators by Humanities Tennessee

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Benjamin Fowler and Julie Golden of Oak Ridge High School and Scot Smith of Robertsville Middle School have been named as Outstanding Educators for 2017 by Humanities Tennessee. Three of this year’s six recipients of the award are from Oak Ridge Schools. According to Humanities Tennessee, the Outstanding Educator Awards recognize teachers who have demonstrated excellence in teaching the humanities and who encourage the humanities to be an important part of their students’ lives. Each of the recipients, selected from a pool of nominees from across the state, receive a $2,000 fellowship to further their professional development in the humanities; their schools receive $1,500 for humanities programs and materials, a press release said. [Read more…]

Education Foundation to award more than $90,000 in grants in April 26 ceremony

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A photo from a grant award last year for a 3D printer for Robertsville Middle School. (Submitted photo)

A photo from a grant award last year for a 3D printer for Robertsville Middle School. (Submitted photo)

 

In the final year of its “Making the Critical Difference” campaign, the Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation will award more than $90,000 in grants to Oak Ridge teachers at a ceremony on Wednesday, April 26, a press release said.

Shirley Raines, president emeritus of the University of Memphis, will be the featured speaker, the press release said. She will give a talk titled, “Dreamers, Thinkers, Doers.”

The grants ceremony is open to the public, and it will be held in the Oak Ridge High School cafeteria beginning at 4 p.m. April 26.

Demonstrations and displays of some of the projects and technology funded by the Foundation will be given after the formal ceremony, the press release said. Light refreshments will be provided courtesy of Oak Ridge Utility District.

The 2017 grant recipients are as follows: [Read more…]