Category: News

The summer driving season is in full swing, and it opened with the most expensive gas prices in four years. But those prices at the pump are beginning to trickle lower.
The national average price of $2.95 per gallon is 2 cents less than last week. The discount at the pump is being driven by strong declines in the price of oil-which influences about half the price of gasoline.
Gas prices in Tennessee declined nearly 3 cents last week. The state average of $2.70 is 10 cents more than a month ago and 60 cents more than this time last year.
AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said gas prices could drop 10 to 15 cents, based on recent oil declines. However, it will not happen overnight. Jenkins said it usually takes a couple of weeks for shifts like this to play out at the pump.
The low price in Manchester this week as of Tuesday afternoon was $2.59 and in Tullahoma the low price per gallon is $2.64.

Tennessee children continue to confront poverty, infant mortality and decreased educational opportunities – particularly in the rural areas. That’s according to the End of Childhood Report released this week by Save the Children – which ranks the state 40th for quality of childhood.
Mark Shriver, senior vice president, U.S. Programs & Advocacy for Save the Children, says a big factor in Tennessee is its large number of rural communities.
“Clearly there’s a lot more work that needs to be done to get Tennessee at the top of the list, to make sure that the children in Tennessee are prepared not only to enter kindergarten ready to learn, but to succeed in life,” says Shriver.
Internationally, the United States ranks 36th in the world – between Belarus and Russia on the list. The report recommends increased access to early childhood education and improved access to health care. The five states in the top five when it comes to quality of childhood are in the Northeast.
According to the report, 597 babies died before their first birthday in 2016, and Shriver says it’s what happens after babies make it past their first year that also deserves attention.
“We really do need to do more in the Volunteer State,” says Shriver. “One of the ways of helping kids in rural Tennessee lift themselves out of poverty is to have high quality early childhood education services and that’s from birth right up to and including entering kindergarten. ”
Tennessee did do well when it comes to high school graduation rates, with 88 percent of students graduating on time, making the state eighth best in the nation in that category.

The new leader of the Tennessee Highway Patrol has assumed his new role with the agency, succeeding Col. Tracy Trott, who retired after 40 years in the post.
Safety and Homeland Security Commissioner David W. Purkey announced Monday that Col. Dereck Stewart was named to the position. He is the first African-American to lead the highway patrol.
Stewart has been in law enforcement for 30 years and was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 2011. He has been responsible for the agency’s daily operations for the last seven years.
Stewart is a Tennessee native and graduate of Middle Tennessee State University.

Recently WMSR News reported that Manchester-Coffee County Conference Center Manager Rebecca French requested more operating money for budget year 2018-19. Two proposals were presented to the Coffee County Budget and Finance Committee. County officials have turned down the proposals, opting to put a cap on the deficit spending at $252,000.
One option that French presented totaled $416,000. French says this one includes in-kind discounts given to nonprofit organizations and schools that rent the center. The second option, totaling about $316,000, did not include continued in-kind contributions.
French informed WMSR that $94,000 of the proposals was for repairs and maintenance of the building.
Coffee County Budget and Finance Committee says that if conference center management fails to keep losses below this target, officials have said the county will seek legal advice to determine its options – including whether the loss-covering agreement can be terminated.
With Coffee County and the City of Manchester equally responsible for covering the center’s losses, each entity would have to provide about $126,000 to cover expected losses in the upcoming fiscal year.
The center was built in 2002 for $3.5 million dollars with $1.5 million still owed. Losses at the center have topped $1 million over the last three years combined.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation and the Tennessee Highway Patrol are working alongside Manchester Police and the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department to keep traffic flowing on Interstate 24 while thousands of fans flock to Coffee County for the 17th Annual Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. The festival kicks off on Thursday night and continues through Sunday and extra state troopers are scheduled to be in town beginning Wednesday. The speed limit will be decreased to 55 miles-per-hour on I-24 between mile marker 104, just west of Exit 105, and mile markers 129, during the duration of the festival. Officials say exit 111 will be used as the main festival exit. Exits 97, 105, temporary exit 112 along with permanent exit’s 117 and 127 will be used as alternative exits if congestion begins to occur.
Bonnaroo will open at least one gate to enter the grounds on Wednesday night beginning at 8pm.
During the festival motorists should call 511 from any mobile or land line phone for traffic updates or visit the TDOT website at www.tn.gov/tdot where they can also find information on alternate routes.

Motlow State Community College Testing Center will administer the Residual ACT exam on June 15 and 21, July 20, and August 10 from 8:30 a.m. – noon, and on July 31 from 12:30 – 4 p.m. The test will be administered in room 1043 of the Crouch Center on the Moore County campus.
The Residual ACT is for individuals under 21 years of age who are planning to attend Motlow State and were unable to take the ACT on a national test day. A Motlow admission application must be on file prior to taking the Residual ACT.
To be eligible to take the test, applicants must complete the ACT application online at mscc.edu/testing and pay the $45 registration fee. Applicants must present a valid picture identification the day of the test.
Any student who plans on attending another college must take the National ACT or take the Residual ACT on the campus of their prospective college, as scores for the Residual ACT cannot be transferred to another college or university.
For more information or for test registration, visit the Motlow Testing Center website at mscc.edu/testing, or call 931-393-1763 or 800-654-4877, ext. 1763.

The best place to view the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is going to be closed for a portion of June.
The Asheville Citizen Times cites a park official who says the Clingmans Dome Observation Tower will be closed beginning Monday so a rehabilitation project which began last year is completed. It is scheduled to remain closed through June 15.
At 6,643 feet, the observation tower provides the most sweeping view of the park.
The parking overlook at the observation tower will remain open, as well as the visitor contact station and store.

The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development’s American Job Center in Tullahoma is hosting a multi-employer “Celebrate Summer Hiring Fair” Thursday, June 14, 2018, from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. at the Tullahoma Business Center.
Two dozen companies and organizations from the greater Tullahoma area will participate in the event and many will have recruiters on-site. Companies participating in the event include Tyson, Walmart Distribution Center, Great Lakes Cheese, Bridgestone, and many others.
American Job Center staff will be available to help job seekers with job applications and to provide instruction on how to improve resumes. Staff will also work with job seekers to help them register on Jobs4TN.gov, Tennessee’s one-stop job portal that has more than 100,000 current openings across the state.
American Job Center hiring events are free and open to the public. Job seekers are encouraged to dress appropriately for a job interview and to bring a current resume.

A Grundy County pastor is facing charges of attempted rape of a child.
Grundy County Sheriff Clint Shrum says that 48-year-old William E. “Tim” Smith, Jr. was taken into custody after Sheriff’s investigators found him and a 12-year-old girl in a remote wooded area, engaged in sexual conduct.
Smith also had legend and Schedule II prescription drugs in his possession according to Shrum.
Smith identified himself as the pastor of the Church of God in Palmer.
Smith’s bond has not been set; he has an initial court date of July 12th.