HALLS/FOUNTAIN CITY
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Life Stories about active seniors.
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Powell Playhouse A loan broker, a harmonica player from France and a wooden smart arse sit at the bar. Which will draw the most applause at the Powell Playhouse?
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See Sandra’s story on page A-2
Women’s League Jake Mabe’s elementary school teacher Terry Carr got a big award, and the local schools got big bucks at the annual luncheon of the Halls Women’s League.
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See Jake’s story on page A-3
Fellowship North Fellowship Church Knoxville has branched into North Knoxville, opening a second campus on Churchwell Ave. Cindy Taylor has the details.
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See Cindy’s story on page A-7
Catching Vandy So it’s come to this. Vanderbilt football, which has never won an SEC championship, not in eight decades, is leading the Vols in football recruiting. Marvin West ponders this and other “borderline inconceivables.”
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See Marvin’s story on page A-6
Basketball action Not a great night for the basketball teams from Halls as both girls and boys fell to Hardin Valley Academy. But the boys pushed their game to overtime and Ruth White was there.
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See Ruth’s pictures on page A-8
NEIGHBORHOOD BUZZ
R. Larry Smith sets commissioner’s night out Knox County Commissioner R. Larry Smith has scheduled his quarterly commissioner’s night out from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 7, at the Powell Branch Library on Emory Road. All concerned residents of the 7th District are invited to attend to discuss community or countywide issues. Info: 922-5433.
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January 28, 2013
Red Nation robotics School club building robot for competition By Jake Mabe Halls has it! And, in this case, the “it” is robotics. Halls High School has been recognized over the years for academic and athletic success, but if pre-engineering teacher Morgan Everett has anything to say about it, the school will also be known for its Red Nation Robotics club. “I can’t talk straight, I’m so excited about it,” Everett says. Everett started the club this year along with help from physics and chemistry teacher Erica Johnson, life sciences teacher Carolynn Clemons and math teacher Thomas Pendleton, all of whom serve as mentors. The club, which began meeting for 30 minutes on Friday mornings last September, is building a robot under a strict timeline and set of guidelines. The team will compete with its robot at the FIRST Robotics Competition’s Smoky Mountain Regionals on March 28-30 at the Knoxville Convention Center. The kickoff event was simulcast by NASA. Per the rules of the conRobotics team member Bryan Sharpe looks over the prototype for an test’s guidelines, the team could not upcoming robotics competition. Sharpe has been involved with computers begin building the robot until Jan. since he was seven years old and has enjoyed learning how they work during 5. Work must be stopped by mida technology class. “This robotics competition will help me learn more about night Feb. 19. “And we have to bag and tag the bringing computers into the mechanical world.” Photos by Ruth White robot, much like police evidence.” The competition will consist of heat matches, in which the robots must perform for two minutes and 15 seconds, at first on autonomous mode and afterwards while driven by a student. It plays a game called Ultimate Ascent, which Everett describes as a “combination of climbing and playing Frisbee.” The team is organized through U.S. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), a nonprofit organization co-founded by inventor Dean Kamen to encourage students to become interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). But don’t get the idea that this Wyatt Brown, Bryan Sharpe, Terry Braasch and mentors Carolynn Clemons and club is all about fun and games. Morgan Everett go over steps for the next phase of building their robot during The club is split into financial/ a recent Red Nation Robotics club meeting. Brown is excited about the team’s marketing and engineering groups. first competition and knows that it is a learning process. “The longer our group To his surprise, Everett found that is in this type of competition, the more we will learn and grow.” Also involved the greatest interest was on the in the planning were team member Tristan Brock and mentor Erica Johnson. marketing side, with 15 of the team’s
UT sophomore Derek McClardy rode a bus to Washington, D.C., to see President Barack Obama’s second inauguration. He had quality time with his family and rubbed shoulders with a few celebrities, but he was most impacted by the speeches. The discussion of issues made him realize that he has a role to play in the political process. “It affects me now,” he says.
The trip came about because Derek’s mother, Arvetta McClardy, wanted her family to experience the inauguration. She requested tickets from Tennessee’s U.S. Rep. Diane Black, and booked the family on a chartered bus trip. Arvetta and Mike McClardy, who live in Murfreesboro, boarded in Nashville. The bus picked up Derek and his brother Shawn, also a UT student, in Knoxville at 1:30 a.m.
TITAN A SELF-STORAGE
current 21 student members joining that part of the club. Everett says the marketing group has created a budget and sought sponsors to supplement the startup money secured by the Knox County Schools science department. Meanwhile, the students are also getting to work with professionals in various fields, including Brian DeBusk of DeRoyal, who holds a Ph.D.; Dr. Joe Pole, assistant professor of physics at LMU; Dr. Nate Paul, who specializes in computer science; Lee Mynatt, a parent volunteer who graduated from ITT in electronics; and Rick Spears, owner of Malibu Collision and Repair in Halls. “The benefits for the students are it gives them an inspiration to achieve, to become contributors in the areas of science, technology and engineering and even in the business world, learning how to keep books, do financial planning, marketing, safety and legal. The kids are getting to work with artisans from industry, engineering and several Ph.D.s, and the best part is being a member opens up a chance for them to earn $16 million in scholarships.” Although robotics is a club activity, Everett has talked with his counterpart at Farragut High School about creating a curriculum. “It’s been done elsewhere successfully.” The club would like to qualify for the championships in St. Louis, but Everett says the “victory condition is to have a robot that is robust enough to make it through the competition and do what we’ve designed it to do.” After the competition season ends, the robot will be retrofit to become a t-shirt launcher that Everett plans to take to school and community events. Students, mentors and parents have been putting in long hours to get the robot built by the deadline. Everett says he’s been amazed at their excitement and dedication. “We’re looking for this to be here at Halls and hopefully it will get if not exceed the attention of a major sports team.”
on the Saturday before the inauguration. They arrived in D.C. that evening. On Monday, the family arose at 3 a.m. to travel from their Maryland hotel to D.C. They stood in line from 5-7 a.m. to get into the inauguration area, and
Mr. McClardy goes to Washington By Wendy Smith
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VOL. 52 NO. 4
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Arvetta McClardy and her son, UT student Derek McClardy, pose in front of the U.S. Capitol. The McClardy family travelled to Washington, D.C., for President Obama’s second inauguration. Photo submitted
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