VOL. 54 NO. 7
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February 18, 2015
This artist rocks!
NEIGHBORHOOD BUZZ IN THIS ISSUE Kiwanis event Northside Kiwanis Club will host a Pancake Jamboree and Bake Sale from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at St. John’s Lutheran Church, 544 N. Broadway. Tickets at $4 ($10 per family, up to four) are available from Northside Kiwanis members or at the door. All proceeds go to support the service activities of the Northside Kiwanis Club. Info: Tom Mattingly, 414-6218.
GOP reorganization The Knox County Republican Party will hold its biannual reorganization with precinct meetings at the polling places at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, unless otherwise scheduled by the precinct chair. Delegates elected at the precincts will meet for the county convention at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 7, at The Crown College in Powell. Info: Ruthie Kuhlman, chair. Gibbs High student Kaitlyn Hartness prepares to paint the guitar to be featured at the Dogwood Arts Festival. Photo by R. White
IN THIS ISSUE Snow mode Shopper-News was composed a bit earlier than usual this week because of the potential for snow. We skipped our final proof-reading, so if you see errors, please call or email and we will correct. Also check for updates on our website, ShopperNewsNow.com
Marvin West Sports columnist Marvin West looks at Tennessee’s new offensive coordinator, Mike DeBord, and his fit in maintaining “the best staff in America.” That’s what Butch promised when he was hired. No reason for him to back down, writes West. His column is on page A-4.
Betsy Pickle Read Knoxville’s best movie critic’s take on this year’s Oscars, and match wits with a professtional. Check out Weekender, inside.
Betty Bean Tyler Harber: Ace political reporter Betty Bean was writing about this youthful politico some 14 years ago and she’s kept up with him ever since. Now he’s probably heading to jail after last week’s guilty plea in U.S. District Court in Virginia. Bean looks back and ahead with “The Rise and Fall of Tyler Harber.” Inside.
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By Ruth White Gibbs High School art teacher Ethan Pignataro encouraged students to submit preliminary sketches for consideration by the Dogwood Arts Festival committee to be the design on this year’s festival guitar. From that group, Kaitlyn Hartness’ work was selected and then chosen best among entries from high schools across the county.
Kaitlyn’s sketch features black and white tribal prints that fade into colorful abstract figures. She will begin work on the actual guitar within the next week and will use acrylics to complete the project. The event is hosted by Rhythm n’ Blooms, and the guitar will be auctioned off during the Dogwood Arts Festival. Congratulations, Kaitlyn!
City continues work at Fountain City Lake times before Davis interrupted: By Sandra Clark “Excuse me, it’s a lake.” If it quacks like a duck … Swanner said, “You’ll have to Don’t visit Fountain City Town excuse me. I’m Hall and call the lake a duck pond. from Kentucky.” You’ll risk the present wrath of Fountain City Charlotte Davis and the possible Lake has been a haunting of Mary Lou Horner. source of pride Ben Swanner of the city’s Engisince its construcneering Department, stormwater tion in 1935. The division, got an earful last week as lake is spring fed he explained the city’s completed and discharges work and future plans for the lake. directly into First Swanner said “pond” three Ben Swanner
Creek. The Fountain City Lions Club has responsibility for upkeep, mowing, landscaping, etc. Ben Easterday of the Lions Club contacted the city about two years ago, Swanner said, asking for help with the algae and serious leaking that had dropped the water level. “We’ve got big problems with muskrats and holes,” Swanner recalled Easterday saying. Mayor Madeline Rogero said previously that the problems were
bigger than the Lions Club could handle. So she put $250,000 into the city’s capital budget for work at the lake. Here’s the plan: ■ The outlet structure was replaced to maintain pond depth; ■ A long-term maintenance program was installed to improve pond water quality; ■ Existing mechanical systems To page A-3
The pros and cons of a balanced school calendar By Wendy Smith Bearden High School students and parents didn’t lament the possible loss of long, leisurely summers during principal John Bartlett’s discussion of Knox County Schools’ proposed balanced calendar. There was little reaction, aside from a few questions about specifics, to the idea that the 20162017 school calendar could have two-week fall, winter and spring breaks and an eight-week summer break. There would still be 180 instructional days. Bartlett began the discussion by reminding students and parents, who attended the evening meeting to discuss scheduling as well as a balanced calendar, that nothing is set in stone. “This is a conversation that is just starting and nobody has decided anything yet.” Other local school systems, like Maryville, Alcoa and Oak Ridge, are already on balanced calendars. The school calendar should be structured around needs of stu-
dents, and the current calendar, with a 53-day summer break, was set up to meet the needs of an agrarian society. Not many students are hauling hay anymore, Bartlett said. The balanced calendar is intended to provide more continuous learning. Remediation would be offered during the first week of fall and spring breaks, which would give struggling students the opportunity to catch up. A shorter summer break would also reduce summer learning loss, which most affects students who spend summers at home watching television and playing video games. Less time spent reading and interacting with adults results in learning loss, which leaves teachers playing catch-up for the first two weeks of fall semester, he said. But studies comparing the academic success of students on traditional and balanced calendars have been inconclusive, especially for students who are engaged during the summer months. Another challenge would be
changing the mindset of parents who grew up with long summer breaks and want their kids to have the same experience. A balanced calendar wouldn’t affect school athletics programs, and teams would continue to practice John Bartlett during fall and spring breaks. Bartlett conjectured that childcare centers would adjust to meet the needs of a balanced calendar. He emphasized that Bearden’s block scheduling wouldn’t necessarily change due to conversion to a balanced calendar. Bearden has four classes each semester, and students receive a full credit for each one, as opposed to six or seven classes each day for a full year. But a balanced calendar could cost more than a traditional calendar due to the expense of transporting students during the remediation periods built into fall and
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spring breaks. If funds currently spent on transporting students for summer remediation can be shifted, there may be no added expense, he said. Block scheduling also costs more than traditional scheduling, and since school budgets are fi xed, it might be reconsidered at some point. Bartlett emphasized that block scheduling will continue at Bearden for the foreseeable future. If the county switches to a balanced calendar, students would be allowed to miss a few days of school in order to attend Governor’s school, he said. School would start a week early, and graduation would be bumped back a week. Mark Wilkerson, whose daughter is a rising sophomore, said that he needed more information before he could form an opinion about a balanced calendar, but that it was presented positively. He’s strongly in favor of block scheduling, which he thinks helps students understand the rigor of a college course load. “That part has got to stay.”
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A close-up of Kaitlyn’s drawing entitled “Recovery.”
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