Park invites the public to help document the Smokies Most Wanted
Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Discover Life in America (DLiA), the nonprofit science research partner, are inviting the public to participate in the Smokies Most Wanted program. This initiative allows visitors to help preserve park species by recording sightings of animals, plants, and other organisms from their smartphones using the iNaturalist app. Using the nature app iNaturalist, Smokies Most Wanted encourages […]
Students Arrested by Jefferson City Police Department following potential or planned acts of violence.
Administrators at Jefferson Middle School discovered information that was immediately shared with the school’s SRO. Administrators acted on the information and removed one student from the general population of the student body. A second student was identified and attends Jefferson Academy, the alternative school for Jefferson County Schools. The second student was also properly monitored. […]
Gov. Lee, Commissioner Schwinn Unveil Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement Act
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn released the details of the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) Act (SB2396/HB2143) that would transition Tennessee’s K-12 public schools to a student-based funding approach. Starting in the 2023-24 school year, the TISA would invest an estimated $9 billion in education funding for the […]
Campbell Confirmed As Tennessee Supreme Court Justice
Sarah Keeton Campbell is officially the newest justice on the Tennessee Supreme Court. Justice Campbell was confirmed today during a joint session of the Tennessee General Assembly, the final step in the appointment process, and took the oath of office. She was nominated by Governor Bill Lee on January 12 after being one of three […]
Amazon Prime launches Carson-Newman University feature
Carson-Newman University is featured on Amazon Prime. Inclusion on the platform comes with the launch of Season 3 of The College Tour. Carson-Newman University is one of a limited number of universities in the southeast featured in the TV series. The program is the creation of Emmy-nominated and multi-award-winning producers. Hosted and produced by Amazing […]
Luna’s Farmhouse Opens In Historic Downtown Dandridge
The Historic Town Square in Dandridge has a new business to celebrate. Luna’s Farmhouse had their grand opening and ribbon cutting on Tuesday, February 15, 2022, located at the corner of Meeting Street and Gay Street in the Historic Thomas Tavern building. Luna’s will offer beautiful handcrafted furniture, décor and gift selections. The ribbon cutting […]
To Elect or Not To Elect? Commission Votes To Support Choice For Counties
The Jefferson County Commission recently passed Resolution 2022-11 on a 13-6 margin. Motioned by Commissioner Colemen and 2nd by Commissioner Blevins, Resolution 2022-11 requests that the State of Tennessee Legislature provide the option for counties to return to elected School Superintendents of Education, rather than appointed Director of Schools. This resolution is in support of […]
Oral Antiviral Therapeutics More Readily Available In Tennessee
The Tennessee Department of Health continues to receive increased bi-weekly allocations of oral antivirals to treat mild to moderate COVID-19. There are currently two oral antiviral medications available for COVID-19 treatment. Paxlovid® by Pfizer and molnupiravir by Merck are available to treat mild to moderate disease in individuals at high risk of progression to severe […]
New Online Dashboard Tracks Redistricting Changes in Tennessee
Tennesseans can now see how the 2021-2022 redistricting process has impacted them through a simple address search. The Tennessee Comptroller’s Office has created a new online dashboard entitled Tennessee District Lookup that makes it easy to see which legislative districts are now assigned to each address in the Volunteer State. The new dashboard includes updated legislative district […]
Jefferson County Schools Recognizes Sandi Ramey as Principal of the Year and Michelle Walker as Supervisor of the Year
Jefferson County Schools is proud to recognize Mrs. Sandi Ramey as the 2021-22 Principal of the Year. Mrs. Ramey is the principal of Talbott Elementary School. She has been the principal there for the past five years. She has an Ed.S from Lincoln Memorial University. This is Mrs. Ramey’s twelfth year working in education. Talbott […]
Andrew Farmer appointed to Southern Legislative Conference Committee
Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, has appointed State Rep. Andrew Farmer, R-Sevierville, to serve on the Human Services & Public Safety Committee of the Southern Legislative Conference (SLC) of the Council of State Governments (CSG). “Chairman Farmer’s extensive knowledge and his professional experience related to public safety will be extremely beneficial to the Human […]
VITAL POLICY – OPINION – Appointed School Superintendents, A Revolving Door of Instability
The system of appointed school directors has become a stepping-stone, a rung on the ladder, an instrument of promotion for individuals seeking to advance their school management careers. Small counties are just a place for would-be school directors to gain experience for a bigger and better gig. Five East Tennessee counties are currently in the […]
TN Attorney General, Commerce & Insurance Join CFTC to Stop $68 Million Precious Metals Scheme
The Tennessee Attorney General’s Office and the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (TDCI) are participating in a consolidated enforcement action to stop a fraudulent precious metals scheme that resulted in solicitations exceeding $68 million from at least 450 investors nationwide. The Tennessee Attorney General’s Office- on behalf of the TDCI- joined the U.S. Commodity […]
Texas A&M study shows paternal alcohol use increases frequency of fetal development issues
Prenatal visits have traditionally focused almost exclusively on the behavior of mothers, but new research from the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVMBS) continues to suggest that science should be looking more closely at the fathers’ behavior as well. Dr. Michael Golding, an associate professor in the CVMBS’ Department of Veterinary Physiology […]
Director of Schools Announces Plans To Resign
Director of Jefferson County Schools, Dr. Shane Johnston, has unofficially announced his intent to vacate his position. Though he has not tendered his resignation, Dr. Johnston has plans to submit his letter of resignation early next month. Johnston has led the Jefferson County Department of Education since July 1, 2018. During his tenure at the […]
TBI Agents Investigating Jefferson County Officer-Involved Shooting
Just before 11:00 a.m., the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office received a request to perform a welfare check on a man at a residence in the 1400 block of David Swann Drive in Dandridge. Upon arrival, the man was not cooperative with officers and refused to come outside. Preliminary information indicates the man eventually came outside […]
