Category: News

Tennessee lawmakers have cleared a bill they believe will hold teachers harmless in the state’s recent school testing snafus, resolving a lingering issue holding up the legislative session’s conclusion.
The House and Senate lawmakers passed an amended bill late Wednesday that says no adverse action could be taken against students, teachers, schools or districts based on the TNReady test results.
Lawmakers last week passed similar legislation. It addressed teachers by saying decisions about their employment, termination and compensation can’t be based on the 2017-2018 school year tests. But House lawmakers were wary Wednesday that the bill wouldn’t sufficiently protect teachers.
State education officials said last week there appeared to have been a cyberattack on the computer system of the testing company that administers the online test, temporarily affecting student access.

The Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition wants to invite the public to “Drug Take Back Day” Saturday April 28, 2018. Two locations will be available; First Vision Bank in Manchester and Walgreens in Tullahoma from 10am-2pm.
The Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition will be accepting prescription, over-the-counter and or veterinary medications for proper disposal. It is recommended that your cross out your name and address on the bottles before you bring them to the drop-off. Do not cross out the name of the medication.
The Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition conducts the event in conjunction with Manchester and Tullahoma Police along with the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department.
For more information call 931-570-4484.

A 2-vehicle crash on Interstate 59/20 in Alabama took the life of two Coffee County residents. Daniel Gassman, 21, of Hillsboro, Tennessee and Gwen “Savannah” Freeze, 18, of Manchester, Tennessee, were killed in a crash with an 18-wheeler.
According to Alabama State Troopers, the two vehicles collided on Monday night. Gassman was driving a 2008 Honda Civic and an unnamed person was driving a 2013 Volvo tractor trailer.
The truck driver wasn’t injured.
Troopers are investigating the cause of the crash.

Two people were injured Tuesday when a car crashed into the horse-drawn buggy in which they were riding. According to McMinnville Police, the buggy was coming out of the parking lot of Security Federal Bank on Chancery Street and was headed across the road to Chicken Chef when the buggy was struck by a car that was pulling out from Chicken Chef onto Chancery Street. The driver of the car, 24 year old Sandra Taylor, told police she was looking back at the southbound traffic and didn’t see the buggy. The passengers in the buggy, Andy and Lena Byler, were transported to River Park Hospital. Taylor was not injured. The horse was not harmed.
Taylor was cited for failure to yield the right of way.

A former school bus driver is suing the Grundy County School Board and Director of Schools Jessie Kinsey.
The bus driver, Terri Tate, says she was not paid a promised bonus because of strong hostility Director Kinsey has toward the driver’s daughter, School Board Member Kasey Anderson. Tate said Kinsey and an ex-board member sued her daughter in June of 2017.
Tate claims she was the only bus driver who did not receive a bonus after the board voted to allow all bus drivers as non-salaried employees to receive a bonus in the amount of $100 for each year served.
Tate also said bus drivers only received $50 for each year instead of the originally voted on amount.
In addition, Tate explained that Kinsey refused to meet with her and refused to allow her to be placed on a school board meeting agenda.
She also said she believes certain board members requested Kinsey go ahead and pay Tate the money approved by the board, but Kinsey “willfully, maliciously, and wrongfully has refused to pay the plaintiff.”
Tate is suing the school board because its members failed to override Kinsey’s refusal and did not order and direct Kinsey to give the bonus the board had approved.
Tate is suing for the $2,000 bonus, for the 20 years she worked as a driver, and for $100,000 for punitive damages. She also wants her attorney and court fees covered. (WRCB-TV)

Motlow State Community College will host its forty-eighth annual Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 5, inside Nisbett Center on the Moore County campus. The College’s consistent enrollment growth has necessitated expansion of the event to three separate ceremonies.
According to the Motlow office of Admissions and Records, over 1,100 Motlow students have applied to graduate, constituting the largest graduating class in the history of the College. At 10 a.m, Moore County and Fayetteville campus students will graduate. The 1 p.m. ceremony will graduate students from the McMinnville campus and the Nursing class. The day will conclude at 4 p.m. with the Smyrna campus students having degrees conferred upon them.
Presiding over the ceremonies will be Dr. Michael L. Torrence, who will be the new president of Motlow. Torrence is scheduled to take office at the College on May 1.

The Tennessee lottery has a new game coming soon and is looking for photos of dogs to put on the tickets.
The lottery’s “Dog Days of Summer” Facebook contest began Monday and runs through May 7.
The lottery said in a news release that up to 10 dogs will be chosen from entries on the Facebook page. Each winner will be featured on one of up to 10 tickets as part of the new instant game.
Rules and contest details are available at the lottery’s Facebook page .