Tennessee

What Tennessee colleges are doing to fight food insecurity on campus

Published

3 years ago

April 15, 2022

What Tennessee colleges are doing to fight food insecurity on campus

Ekramul Ehite is a busy individual. The fourth-year doctoral scholar from Bangladesh spends a number of time on the College of Tennessee at Knoxville’s Institute for Agriculture, working lab experiments and researching easy methods to remodel agricultural waste into usable bioenergy.

However when he lastly finds time to step away from his work to seize a chunk to eat within the afternoon, the one on-campus eating location on the agriculture campus — Mabel’s at McCord Corridor — is closed by 2 p.m.

Like a shocking variety of Tennessee faculty college students, each graduate and undergraduate, Ehite typically finds himself with out time, entry or cash for his subsequent meal.

“I’ve suffered from meals insecurity,” Ehite mentioned. “And typically the meals insecurity is just not even that I haven’t got cash to purchase meals, but it surely’s typically it is availability and accessibility to nutritious meals.”

A 2018 examine discovered that one in three college students on three of the College of Tennessee campuses – Chattanooga, Knoxville and Martin – do not get sufficient to eat.

At UT Knoxville, that’s greater than 8,300 college students who may very well be looking for the place their subsequent meal will come from or skipping meals fully to stretch out the meals they’ve.

It’s not a brand new downside on faculty campuses, but it surely has been getting extra consideration over the previous 5 years as each universities and group schools change how they deal with college students’ primary wants.

What’s meals insecurity like for school college students?

Meals insecurity can look totally different relying on the coed and the season. Typically, these experiencing meals insecurity don’t at all times have entry to or do not know if they’ll get sufficient meals to fulfill their wants.

“It is particularly saddening when individuals essentially do not understand or acknowledged they’re meals insecure,” mentioned Lucy Langley, a Knoxville native and UT scholar who grew up with out sufficient meals at dwelling. “They’re going to be like, ‘Oh, I’ve ramen noodles,’ or, ‘Oh, I’ve a bunch of TV dinners,’ and every little thing, however … that is not meals safe. … Meals safety is (having) wholesome meals that is inexpensive and accessible.”

Tennessee’s faculty developments align with nationwide developments. No less than 38% of scholars at two-year schools skilled meals insecurity in fall 2020, together with 29% of scholars at four-year schools, in line with the Hope Middle for Faculty, Neighborhood and Justice.

And when college students don’t have sufficient meals, their tutorial success takes a success.

“If you wish to achieve success, you bought to you bought to care for these primary wants,” mentioned John Abel, the assistant vice chancellor for scholar affairs at UT Martin. “Should you (do not) care for these primary wants, it is exhausting to anticipate the coed to be totally targeted and engaged of their research and analysis and all the opposite actions on campus in the event that they’re hungry.”

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Sarah Catherine Richardson, the director of scholar life at UT Southern in Pulaski, Tennessee, says its meals pantry began in 2018 after school members raised issues. They’re typically the primary to know when a scholar goes with out.

“(UT Southern) has a really hometown, household, close-knit group really feel. I feel that that performs to our benefit and drawback,” Richardson mentioned. “I feel the drawback in relation to meals insecurity is that there is a concern that individuals are going to be outed. … I feel just a little little bit of that stigma exists. However the flip facet is that as a result of it is such a small (faculty), it is fairly simple to get the phrase out.”

With extra low-income college students enrolling in faculty and technical faculties due to expanded needs-based scholarships within the state, extra college students on campus may very well be in danger.

Revolutionary methods schools are addressing starvation

As scholar starvation turns into an increasing number of seen on faculty campuses, so much has modified previously 5 years to assist help college students.

In November 2020, UT Knoxville opened Large Orange Pantry, an in-house program for college kids, employees and school. Greater than 3,000 guests have taken half since its opening.

Evan Oliver, coordinator at Big Orange Pantry, organizes items available for pickup. The pantry, located at Grieve Hall, provides groceries and prepared meals for University of Tennessee students with food insecurity.

“Assembly calls for of like faculty, work, household, different commitments will be actually taxing on college students typically,” mentioned Evan Oliver, the coordinator of Large Orange Pantry. “We’re right here to attempt to assist deal with that.”

And with assist from Tyler White, this system supervisor for the UT Culinary Program, a brand new meals reclamation program food4VOLS helps finish starvation and meals waste on campus. Partnering with Vol Eating, food4VOLS collects usable meals from campus eating areas, transports the meals to the UT Culinary Program and creates ready-to-heat and ready-to-eat meals for Large Orange Pantry.

Since food4VOLS launched in September, this system has diverted greater than 25,000 kilos of meals waste from eating halls, soccer video games and different catered occasions on campus. Additionally they present meals to Smokey’s Pantry, a meals help collaboration effort between FISH Hospitality Pantries and the Lutheran and Episcopalian Campus Ministry.

Microwavable premade meals at the Big Orange Pantry are made by the UT Culinary program through food4VOLS, an organization that collects ingredients to redistribute.

One other answer is meal plan sharing applications. Beginning in 2017, UT Martin’s Skyhawks Share program permits college students to donate unused meal plan swipes to college students who want them as a short-term meals entry answer.

However not all schools assist

Whereas all of Tennessee’s four-year universities have meals help applications, that is not the case for all group schools and technical faculties the place college students could also be at a good increased threat of being meals insecure.

Monetary help and applications akin to Tennessee Promise and Tennessee Reconnect may also help pay for tuition, however the rising prices of meals, gasoline and lease make it powerful to fulfill some hardworking college students’ primary wants.

A meals survey performed at Roane State Neighborhood Faculty’s Cumberland County campus discovered that over 65% of scholars have been recognized as being meals insecure in 2018. This led to the launch of a grant program provided by the Tennessee Division of Setting and Conservation Increased Training Sustainability Initiative to fund the start-up prices for meals pantries at group schools.

“The Increased Training Sustainability Initiative’s beneficiant help of Roane State’s pilot meals pantry helped develop a mannequin for increasing the school’s efforts to help college students in want,” mentioned Karen Brunner, Roane State’s vp of institutional effectiveness and scholar success initiatives and one of many meals pantry venture organizers.

Two Tennessee Schools of Utilized Know-how in Elizabethton and Jacksboro received the meals pantry grant for 2021 and opened up their areas for college kids final fall.

However till all schools have knowledge about how persistent meals insecurity is on campus, they cannot deal with it in probably the most environment friendly means.

What’s nonetheless to be achieved?

That knowledge may very well be coming. A invoice launched this legislative session, prepared for signature by Gov. Invoice Lee, would require the Tennessee Increased Training Fee to guage and submit particular person stories about meals insecurity on the state’s schools and universities, one thing that primary wants advocates say is a large step in recognizing a persistent however typically hidden downside on faculty campuses.

“UT has achieved a very nice job accumulating knowledge and actually having assets and attempting to help college students,” mentioned Ashlyn Anderson, the president of the Scholar Fundamental Wants Coalition at UT Knoxville. “However we’re one unit, (one) college, throughout the entire state.”

The data may assist justify the necessity for meals pantries on all faculty campuses. Whereas many faculty meals help applications have began previously 5 years, Austin Peay State College in Clarksville has been serving college students since 2010.

“We have been one of many first meals pantries at a school campus in Tennessee. We actually sort of figured it out with out a number of position fashions inside the state,” mentioned Alexandra Wills, the director for group engagement and sustainability at Austin Peay.

The invoice would hopefully create a streamlined system for reporting meals insecurity in schools throughout the state, Anderson says, and result in extra schools launching meals help applications of their very own.

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Tennessee

Tennessee reading law: Less than 1% of third graders held back in 2024

Published

24 mins ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Tennessee reading law: Less than 1% of third graders held back in 2024

Just 0.88% of Tennessee public school third graders were held back this year under the state’s controversial reading law, despite 60% of the class falling short of a state reading benchmark this spring.

With around 74,000 third graders enrolled in the 2023-24 school year statewide, that works out to 655 students who were retained, according to data from the Tennessee Department of Education. The state reading law took effect last year and led to the retention of 1.2% of third graders in 2023, which came out to 898 students.

The law primarily determines children’s reading proficiency by their English language arts scores on the standardized Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or TCAP, test.

The 60% who fell short on this year’s TCAP represent roughly 50,000 students. However, that number does not include students who were exempt from being held back. Here are those exemptions, including how many students met them:

11,468: Students with disabilities or suspected disabilities that may impact their reading
3,511: Students who are English learners with less than two years of English language arts instruction
2,596: Students who were held back in a previous grade
2,345: Students who had other exemptions determined by their local education leaders

Exemptions were up to the districts to sort out. The remaining students had to successfully take one of the state’s many “pathways” to avoid being held back.

Here’s a look at how those students fared.

How Tennessee third graders moved on to fourth grade

Third graders who scored “below” or “approaching” expectations on the English language arts section of the TCAP had several options to avoid being held back.

Retakes were offered to third graders shortly after the spring TCAP. A total of 3,274 made a passing score and moved on to fourth grade. Another 99 students won an appeal because they faced a catastrophic circumstance around the time they took the TCAP.

Third graders who scored as approaching proficiency had three options to move on to fourth grade. Here’s how many qualified for each one:

1,124: Enrolled in summer school, met 90% attendance and showed adequate growth
7,426: Opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade
3,262: Scored in the 50th percentile or higher of a state-approved universal reading screener and opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade
2,895: Won a parent appeal and opted into an academic remediation plan in fourth grade, which includes tutoring

Third graders who scored as below proficiency had one option to move on to fourth grade. Here’s how many qualified:

3,411: Enrolled in summer school, met a 90% attendance rate and opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade

Students who qualified for tutoring in fourth grade must meet an individualized growth goal by the end of fourth grade. This growth goal does not apply to two groups who opted into tutoring: Those who won an appeal, or those who scored as “approaching” on the third grade TCAP and scored in the 50th percentile or higher on the third grade universal reading screener.

A total of 1,950 third graders who fell short on the spring TCAP either did not enroll again or had data that has not been reported to the state. The data reflects reports from districts as of Sept. 6, according to the state department of education.

How the Tennessee reading law affected fourth graders

Fourth graders who enrolled in yearlong tutoring to avoid being held back in third grade must pass the English language arts section of the TCAP or hit individualized growth goals set by the state. However, the reading law does not mandate that they be held back if they do not meet those goals.

Instead, it requires the student’s parents or legal guardians, principal and English language arts teacher to determine what’s best. They can either decide to retain the child or promote them to fifth grade with state-provided tutoring in place.

According to the state department of education, here’s how fourth graders enrolled in tutoring this year fared:

5,389: Promoted to fifth grade with tutoring in place
3,996: Met adequate growth goals
1,740: Scored proficient on their spring TCAP English language arts section
132: Retained in fourth grade

A total of 906 fourth graders either did not enroll again or had data that was not reported by their district, according to the state education department.

Where can I learn more?

More information on the third grade reading and retention law from the Tennessee Department of Education can be found at tn.gov/education/learning-acceleration.

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Tennessee

Former Titans Coach Named Top Candidate for Jets

Published

8 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Former Titans Coach Named Top Candidate for Jets

Former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel remains a hot name, and he may have another head-coaching job as soon as next season.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated recently named a bunch of potential candidates for the New York Jets job in 2025, and Vrabel was at the top of his list.

“Mike Vrabel makes the most sense to me, mostly because he won’t stand down to an owner, and that’s exactly what the New York Jets need,” Breer wrote.

The problem with that is Jets owner Woody Johnson is known to be a meddler, so he a Vrabel-Johnson partnership may never actually come to fruition.

Still, Vrabel could end up being a perfect fit for the Jets from a stylistic perspective given that New York is built upon a strong defense.

It’s not the first time that Vrabel has been linked to Gang Green, either.

Vrabel actually did a very solid job during his time with the Titans, going 54-45 while making three playoff appearances—including a pair of AFC South titles—across five seasons.

Things went south over Vrabel’s final two years in Tennessee, with the Titans going just 13-21 during that span. However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the problem was not with Vrabel.

Vrabel is currently serving as an assistant for the Cleveland Browns, but it seems like only a matter of time before he lands a better job elsewhere.

The 49-year-old also had a 14-year NFL playing career from 1997 through 2010, spending time with the Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. He won three Super Bowls with the Patriots and also made a Pro Bowl with the squad in 2007.

The Jets have been one of the league’s most disappointing teams this season, as they are just 3-8 in spite of having one of the most star-studded rosters in the sport.

Make sure you bookmark Tennessee Titans on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

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Tennessee man convicted for Jan. 6 riot found guilty of plotting to kill FBI agents who investigated him

Published

16 hours ago

November 20, 2024

Press Room

Tennessee man convicted for Jan. 6 riot found guilty of plotting to kill FBI agents who investigated him

A Jan. 6 rioter who breached the U.S. Capitol was convicted of trying to have law enforcement personnel, including the FBI agents and employees who were investigating him, murdered, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Edward Kelley, 35, of Maryville, Tennessee, who was convicted of assaulting law enforcement officers and other crimes during the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021, was found guilty on Wednesday of conspiracy to murder employees of the United States, solicitation to commit a crime of violence, and influencing or retaliating against federal officials by threat.

The jury agreed on a verdict after an hour of deliberation following the three-day trial, WBIR-TV reported.

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Jan. 6 rioter Edward Kelley seen at the U.S. Capitol. Kelley was convicted this week of plotting to kill the FBI agents who investigated him. (Justice Department)

Federal prosecutors at his trial in Knoxville, Tennessee, said Kelly developed a “kill list” of FBI agents and others who participated in the investigation into his conduct on Jan. 6 while awaiting trial for his involvement in the Capitol riot.

He distributed the list, as well as videos containing images of FBI employees identified on the list, to a co-conspirator as part of his “mission,” authorities said.

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A scene from the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in 2021. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)

Kelley’s co-defendant Austin Carter, who pleaded guilty in November 2023 to conspiracy to kill FBI agents and is awaiting sentencing, testified that Kelly said he needed to “take out” the FBI. He said that he and Kelley planned attacks on the Knoxville FBI Field Office using car bombs and incendiary devices appended to drones.

He also testified that the conspirators strategized about assassinating FBI employees in their homes and in public places such as movie theaters.

Edward Kelley inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (Justice Department)

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Recording introduced by prosecutors showed Kelley directing the plan, and giving instructions to “start it,” “attack,” and “take out their office” in the event of his arrest. He was also recorded stating: “Every hit has to hurt. Every hit has to hurt,” authorities said.

Kelley is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7, 2025. He faces up to life in prison.

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