Josh Peterson

Motlow State’s Dual Enrollment (DE) program, already featuring the highest enrollment of any community college in the state, set another milestone in May. The number of students who graduated from Motlow the same semester as they graduated high school grew a phenomenal 800%.

Partnerships with secondary schools are at the forefront of Motlow’s mission to serve the community, and as a result, Motlow leads the state in dual enrollment headcount. Dual enrollment partnerships allow high school students to take college courses in their junior and senior year to get a jumpstart on their college education.

“Motlow continues to create partnerships with high schools in our service area so any student that wants to take college courses while in high school has the opportunity to do that,” said Sally Pack, Dual Enrollment Director. “We appreciate the professionals in these high schools and in industry who help support and promote dual enrollment to their students. The growth that we are experiencing is exciting.”

After eight students accomplished dual graduations in 2019, Pack, working with partners from area high schools and industry, focused on increasing that dual graduation rate. In May 2020, 65 students graduated from Motlow and their high school, an increase of 800%. Leading the way in this growth was LaVergne High School, where 42 students graduated with associate degrees in General Studies.

“We are so pleased that our dual enrollment efforts are providing these wonderful opportunities for students,” said Melody Edmonds, assistant vice president of Academic Affairs. “The team is dedicated to student success, and the students are supported throughout their dual enrollment experience. We look forward to further expanding dual enrollment avenues in the future.”

One significant driver of the dramatic increase is Motlow’s Dual Enrollment Mechatronics program. Designed for high school juniors, the program allows students to obtain a degree in Mechatronics at no cost while completing their final two years of high school. In May 2020, 11 high school seniors became the first graduates from the Middle College Mechatronics program, funded by a grant awarded to Motlow in 2018.

A second factor in the rising rates of Motlow DE is the early scholarship opportunities it offers. Student who sign up for DE classes are often eligible for several tuition-free courses. DE students are more likely to enroll in college after high school graduation as opposed to taking a ‘gap’ year, or a year off. Studies show that taking a gap year can cost students over $90,000 of their lifetime earning potential.

The 11 Middle College Mechatronics graduates included students from Oakland, Franklin County, and Warren County high schools.

Additional high schools with 2020 dual enrollment graduates were Tullahoma, DeKalb County, Cannon County, and F.C. Boyd Christian School in McMinnville.

For further information contact Debbie Jennings at 931-393-1793 or djennings@mscc.edu.

The City of Manchester has announced that there will be a special called meeting on Monday, Oct. 19 at 7:30 p.m. at Manchester City Hall – located at 200 W. Fort St.

The only item on the agenda is to address the vacancy in the Manchester Mayor’s office, as required by article IV, section 4 of the Manchester Charter.

Currently, vice mayor Marilyn Howard is serving as city mayor after the passing of Mayor Lonnie Norman on Monday.

Thunder Radio feature story by Susan Campbell

Across the country, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) work to support children who have suffered from abuse or neglect, with the goal of providing safe, permanent homes and the opportunity to thrive.

Locally, CASA Works advocates for children in Coffee, Bedford and Franklin counties as they make their way through the foster care system. With a staff of three, much of the nonprofit’s work relies on the 46 dedicated volunteers in the three counties who work with the children. In 2019, CASA Works volunteers and staff advocated for 532 children, according to Executive Director Wanda Strayhorn.

“There are not enough volunteers, but many of our volunteers serve more than one case at a time, with supervisors accepting cases until a volunteer is available,” Strayhorn said. “I am proud to report that all children receive effective advocacy. As of June 2020, we are serving a total of 421 children in all three counties. We are happy to announce many of the children from last year have either been reunited with parents, are living with family, have found long time placement or were adopted.”

According to Strayhorn, volunteers are just ordinary citizens with a heart for children. But there are a few requirements. Those volunteering must be at least 21 years old; submit to finger-printing and a background check; attend 35 hours of pre-service training; monitor court proceedings; attend in-service education and on-going training as scheduled, with a required minimum attendance of 12 hours per calendar year; and commit at least one year to their service. Pre-service training is done by CASA Works staff, and covers everything from the judicial system to child welfare education.

CASA Works volunteers act as independent investigators, according to Strayhorn. Under the supervision of the CASA staff, they interview all parties involved with their assigned cases and record all findings as investigation progresses; confer with the staff during this process; keep a log of case hours and mileage; prepare reports to court, and attend and testify in court hearings and Foster Care Review Board hearings.

Those interested in learning more about becoming a CASA Works volunteer may visit the website at www.casaworks.org, or email Strayhorn at wanda@casaworks.org.

According to Strayhorn, CASA Works benefits the communities it serves because its focus is on the child who is facing one of the most traumatic times in his or her life.

“CASA Works monitors all parties who have influence with the child, but our goal is to be the voice for the child in court, school, with the Department of Children Services, physicians, mental health providers and their families,” she said.

“We work with the authority of the county juvenile judge. When CASA is assigned a case, our observations and monitoring provide us with fact-based, objective information that is submitted to the juvenile judge in a written court report. This court report provides information about everyone that has been interviewed, recommendations for the best Interest of the child and the current status of the child’s placement. This report aids the judge in making more informed decisions about the next steps to take for the good of the child and parents.”
In addition to Strayhorn, Teresa Barber services as Coffee County supervisor. She may be reached by email at teresa@casaworks.org.

Funding for the nonprofit comes primarily from grants, fundraisers, and the solicitation of donations from community organizations and individuals. In order for CASA Works to continue performing the quality advocacy for children, donations will be greatly appreciated and individuals who may be interested in becoming a volunteer are welcomed, according to Strayhorn.

Funeral arrangements have been released for Manchester Mayor Lonnie Norman, who passed away in the early morning hours of Monday, Oct. 12.

The family will receive friends on Saturday, Oct. 17 at the Rotary Park Amphitheater (next to the Manchester Recreation Complex) from 1-4 p.m.

Funeral Services will be conducted at the Rotary Park on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 1 p.m. For those who wish to attend the funeral services, social distancing is strongly encouraged and face coverings will be required.

Thunder Radio will broadcast the services live on the air – 107.9 FM, 106.7 FM, 1320 AM, Manchester Go app and thunder1320.com. Thunder Radio will also video stream the service on the Thunder Radio Facebook page. Read the full obituary here. 

(Pictured, Tennessee first lady Maria Lee gives a high-five to Westwood Elementary student Naveyah McCord during a visit with students Wednesday morning. –Thunder Radio photo by Josh Peterson). 

On Wednesday, October 14, Tennessee first lady Maria Lee and Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn stopped to visit Westwood Elementary to assist the Manchester City Schools Family Resource Center in processing and packaging student needs fulfilled through the Tennessee Serves Purposity campaign.

“We launched Tennessee Serves with the goal of mobilizing Tennesseans to serve their neighbors and volunteer in their communities, and through this partnership, Tennesseans can know exactly what a student or family needs and how to help,” said first lady Maria Lee. “We are honored to highlight the districts and Family Resource Centers participating in this campaign, and we hope that Tennesseans will use Purposity to serve their neighbors in need across the state.”

The first lady’s Tennessee Serves initiative has partnered with the Department of Education and Purposity, a free app, to streamline how Tennesseans can serve individuals, families, and students by fulfilling needs directly from their phone. Over 40 districts have joined the Tennessee Serves campaign on the Purposity app to post the needs of the students and families their communities.

Manchester City Schools has posted hundreds of needs through the district’s Family Resource Center. First lady Lee and Commissioner Schwinn will help prepare the needs that have been fulfilled by users on Purposity. These items will then be delivered to students and families.

“We are so thrilled the first lady has launched this effort to engage Tennesseans to help meet student and family needs across our state,” said Commissioner Penny Schwinn. “In these uncertain times, the work of our Family Resource Centers is so important, and we are grateful for the opportunity to visit Manchester City Schools and be a small part of the amazing work they are doing to ensure students have what they need.”

(Pictured below, Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn works on an exercise with Westwood Elementary School Student Justus Ferrell. –Thunder Radio photo by Josh Peterson)

Beginning on Nov 1, 2020, Elk River Public Utility District (ERPUD) will be offering a voluntary program known as the Project Help-Round Up program. This program is designed to help Franklin and Coffee counties.

Customers who choose to participate in this program will have their monthly natural gas bills automatically rounded up to the next highest whole dollar amount. Monies collected from Project Help – Round Up will be disbursed using the following guidelines:

• Relief to ERPUD District Customers to Pay Natural Gas Bills
• Promotion of Social Welfare
• Assistance for Economic Development
• Advancement of Education

If you would like to participate in this program please email us at contact@erpud.com or call 931-455-9311. You can choose to opt out at any time. There will be a flyer with all of this information inside with your monthly gas bill. Remember you must choose to participate in this program.

Wednesday was the first day for early voting across Tennessee for the November elections and large crowds were visible at polling locations.

Many voters reported wait times of 30-minutes or more and lines were visibly backed out of the door at the Coffee County Election Commission office.

Historically, the first and last days of early voting are the busiest, according to the Tennessee Secretary of State. Early voting runs Monday through Saturday and ends on Oct. 29.