2016

Saint Thomas Stones River Hospital’s annual Weight Loss Challenge is partnering with the Cannon County Chamber of Commerce to bring you the Biggest Loser Community Challenge. NBC and The Biggest Loser are launching The Biggest Loser Community Challenge for 2016. Teams of four are invited to join this eight-week, online health & wellness community challenge. The challenge is for people of all fitness levels and is designed to get the community moving, eating better and having fun!
The event kick-off on Monday, January 25th at Saint Thomas Stones River Cafeteria anytime from 5pm to 6pm.  Everyone is encouraged to participate in this event.

Governor Haslam has declared Jan. 24-30, 2016 as School Board Appreciation Week in Tennessee. This week helps build awareness and understanding of the vital functions our locally elected boards of education play in our community. Cannon County is joining public school districts from across the state to celebrate School Board Appreciation Week and honor local board members for their commitment to Cannon County and its children.
 
“Our school system is the backbone of our community, and these men and women devote countless hours to making sure our schools are helping every child,” Director of Schools Barbara Parker said. “They spend countless hours studying the issues and regulations and make the tough decisions when called upon to ensure the type of accountability people expect.”
 
Director Parker said the key work of school boards is to raise student achievement by:
 
Creating a vision for what the community wants the school district to be and for making student achievement the top priority;
Establishing standards for what students will be expected to learn and be able to do;
Ensuring progress is measured to be sure the district’s goals are achieved and students are learning at expected levels;
Being accountable for their decisions and actions by continually tracking and reporting results;
Creating a safe, orderly climate where students can learn and teachers can teach;
Forming partnerships with others in the community to solve common problems; and
Focusing attention on the need for continuous improvement by questioning, refining and revising issues related to student achievement.
 
“Our local school board gives the Cannon County citizens a voice in education decision making process. Their contribution is a year-round commitment.”
 
The members serving our county are Randy Gannon, Chairman; Nathan Sanders, Vice Chairman; Bruce Daniel; Tim Powers; and Shelley Walkup.

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN CANNON COUNTY SCHOOLS
 
January 24-30—School Board Appreciation Week
 
January 25th—Progress Reports for students
 
January —28th—30th—Elementary county basketball tournament, CCHS
 
January 26th—CCHS basketball games with Macon Co. at Lafayette, 6:00 p.m.
 
January 26th—100th day of school
 
January 27th—WBRY Spotlight—Woodland School
 
January 29th—CCHS basketball games with Smith Co. at CCHS, 6:00 p.m.
 
February 2nd—CCHS basketball games with York Institute at Jamestown, 6:00 p.m.
 
February 5th—CCHS basketball games with Upperman at CCHS, 6:00 p.m.
 
February 9th—CCHS basketball games with Livingston at Livingston, 6:00 p.m.
 
February 11th—CCHS basketball games with Dekalb Co. at CCHS, 6:00 p.m.
 
February 12th—CCHS basketball games with Page at CCHS, 6:00p.m.
 

Today marks the 43rd anniversary of the tragic Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized elective abortion nationwide. Tens of thousands of pro-life Americans will mark the occasion by attending the annual “March for Life” in Washington where they will rally together to urge protection for our nation’s unborn. I’ve had an opportunity to speak at this event before (see here)  and it is truly a moving experience.

On this somber day, I join many others in reflecting with sadness on the 57 million lives lost to the violence of abortion, but I am also hopeful. I believe that we can restore a culture of life in our country – one that honors the most vulnerable and voiceless among us – and I will continue fighting to make that a reality. In that spirit, I wanted to share the below op-ed that I authored in TIME Magazine alongside my good friend Dr. Charmaine Yoest, the President of Americans United for Life. I hope you will take a moment to read and be encouraged.
Abortion Is Not Female Empowerment
The anti-abortion movement is not about politics or religion – it’s about compassion
by Rep. Diane Black and Dr. Charmaine Yoest for TIME.com
For more than 40 years now, Americans from all walks of life have journeyed to our nation’s capital in the middle of winter to rally around a common cause: the dignity and value of innocent human life. The annual March for Life event in Washington on Friday coincides with the Jan. 22, 1973, U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade that invalidated state abortion laws across the country to make elective abortion the law of the land.
This year, as in years past, marchers will peacefully assemble by the tens of thousands on the National Mall to honor the more than 57 million lives lost to abortion; we will demand change. At its core, this movement is not political or even religious. It is a demand for justice, and it is an act of compassion – one that we fully embrace.
As women and mothers, we recognize the tragic deception of abortion, and we know women deserve better. We reject the lie that anti-abortion Americans are part of a “war on women” because we have seen true sexism up close and personal as we fought for our place in our respective careers. We know that abortion is not a means of female empowerment; it is a heartbreaking choice that ends one life and can damage another – and that is the true war on women.
Consider that, for 20 years, the pro-choice lobby has operated under the unofficial rallying cry of “safe, legal, and rare” abortion, yet just last fall the nation’s largest abortion provider – Planned Parenthood – tweeted a link to a story celebrating London’s “free and plentiful” abortions and birth control. Perhaps that is why Planned Parenthood, in a callous betrayal to women, has lobbied against informed consent laws across the country that would require full disclosure by a physician of the risks and side-effects of abortion.
We also oppose abortion because we are willing to look at the facts that the abortion lobby continues to ignore. For example, we know that premature babies have now been saved as early as 22 weeks into fetal development, that the U.S. remains one of only seven nations to allow elective, late-term abortions, and that abortions worldwide disproportionately discriminate against baby girls.
The anti-abortion movement is well-founded in logic and common sense, but perhaps its greatest supporting force is love. The individuals who show up every year for the March for Life rally – many of them women and families – share a fundamental belief that life is precious and that someone must speak up for the most innocent among us, too many of whom are lost daily to the tragedy of abortion.
It is for these reasons that we fight for legislation like the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, a bill to protect mothers and unborn children from dangerous, late-term abortions, an idea supported by the majority of Americans.
It is why we continue to demand passage of measures like the Defund Planned Parenthood Act, which would divert federal funding away from the nation’s largest abortion provider and reallocate it to the more than 13,500 community health centers nationwide providing comprehensive healthcare to low income and underserved women.
It is why we stand shoulder to shoulder with charities such as Little Sisters of the Poor as they defend the sanctity of life in the courts by challenging Obamacare’s unconstitutional mandate that employers cover life-ending drugs and devices in their health insurance plans.
And it is why we will not give up.
Roe v. Wade leaves a sad legacy in its wake. The lives lost are many, the emotional and physical damage to birthmothers is real, and the obstacles in our fight to restore a culture of life still loom large – the taxpayers continue to subsidize Planned Parenthood with about $1.5 million per day – but every person who shows up at March for Life represents a reason to be hopeful.
We know that as advances in science and technology continue to legitimize our movement, and as more hearts and minds are reached with the truth about abortion, laws will be changed and lives will be saved.
On this somber anniversary, our prayer is that lawmakers would look at this age-old issue with new eyes and with softened hearts, and that the American people would feel a renewed hope that our great country will see a day when every person is welcomed in life and protected in law.

Postponements affected several events due to weather last week and will be made up. 
The Woodland Lady Warriors second round game in the James C. Haile State Invitational Tournament at Middle Tennessee Christian School in Murfreesboro will take place Wednesday with tip-off at 4:30 against York Elementary School from Jamestown.
 

This week the Tennessee State Board of Education launched a review website, https://apps.tn.gov/tcas/, to collect public feedback on Tennessee’s grade K-12 social studies standards. This is the first of two public review periods for the social studies standards.
The social studies standards set grade-specific instructional standards that exemplify what students are expected to know and be able to do by the end of a given grade or course. The current social studies standards were approved in 2013 and first implemented in the 2014-15 school year.
This highly transparent and comprehensive review process is an opportunity for every Tennessean to log in online, review each specific social studies standard by grade level, and provide comments and make suggestions for changes.
“It is exciting that we are beginning the social studies standards review process two years early,” said Dr. Sara Heyburn, Executive Director of the Tennessee State Board of Education. “This robust and transparent review has proven very successful with math and English language arts.”The public review website will remain active until April 30, 2016.
Once data has been collected from the website, it will be aggregated and given word-for-word to expert educator advisory teams to review and revise the standards starting in the summer of 2016.
The revised standards will be posted for a second public review period in the fall and winter of 2016.
Following a similar review process as the math and English language arts standards, the revised standards will be reviewed in the fall of 2016 by a Standards Recommendation Committee, appointed by the Governor, Lt. Governor, and Speaker of the House.
In October 2014, Gov. Haslam introduced a comparable review process online, in partnership with the State Board, for the state’s English language arts and math standards. This process was codified by the General Assembly in HB 1035. For more information, please visit http://tn.gov/sbe/topic/standards-review.

 During the 2015-2016 academic year, the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship (TELS) program officially awarded its one millionth scholarship. The Tennessee Student Assistance Corporation (TSAC), which administers the TELS program, marked the milestone of having paid out over one million scholarships to Tennessee college students to fund their higher education goals.
The Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship was established by the Tennessee General Assembly in 2003 and in the 2004-2005 academic year, the first year of TELS operation, 40,087 scholarships were awarded. In the 2014-2015 academic year, 103,589 scholarships were awarded, as the TELS program has more than doubled the amount of scholarships given out each year since the creation of the program. Since 2004, nearly $3 billion in scholarships and grants have been awarded through over one million scholarships.
“The significance of this milestone should not be overlooked; one million scholarships means one million education opportunities for Tennessee students that have been funded through the TELS program,” said Russ Deaton, interim executive director of TSAC. “The lottery scholarship has changed access to higher education for a new generation of students and brought Tennessee many steps closer to our educational attainment goals.”
The purpose of TELS is to offer merit-based and need-based scholarships to Tennessee students attending public or private institutions in the state. TELS scholarships are funded by the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation through revenues from the state’s lottery. TELS is comprised of eleven scholarships and grants, including the HOPE scholarship, Wilder-Naifeh Technical Skills grant, the dual enrollment grant program, and the Helping Heroes grant program. Since the implementation of TELS, nearly 150,000 dual enrollment grants have been paid out and over 3,000 Helping Heroes Grants have assisted veterans to pay for their education.
“Awarding over one million lottery scholarships demonstrates the popularity and importance of the TELS program,” said Tim Phelps, TSAC’s associate executive director for grant and scholarship programs. “The initial successes of the HOPE scholarship and the Wilder-Naifeh grant led to continued expansion of the program, meaning that many more Tennesseans had the opportunity to access the scholarships and then achieve their educational goals.”
Research from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission indicates that students who enter Tennessee public higher education with a TELS award are approximately 10 percent more likely to graduate than their cohort as a whole. Additionally, TELS students enroll in a higher number of credit hours per term than students without a lottery award, reducing the time to degree and increasing the likelihood of degree attainment.
For more information about the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship, visit www.tn.gov/collegepays.
 

 The Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance’s (TDCI) Division of Consumer Affairs announces the top 10 complaint categories for 2015 by Tennessee consumers.
In 2015, the Division of Consumer Affairs received more than 4,000 complaints and recovered both services and funds for Tennessee consumers through our mediation process. The Division’s mediation process relies on the voluntary cooperation of both the consumer and the business.  In 2014, over 5,099 total complaints were fielded.
“While the number of complaints dipped slightly in 2015, it’s clear there are still every day challenges for Tennessee consumers and businesses,” TDCI Deputy Commissioner Bill Giannini said. “Consumers should educate themselves as best they can before they buy, and business owners should honor the terms of their arrangement with consumers. During 2016, the Consumer Affairs Division will remain a resource for both consumers and businesses.”
For 2015, here are the top 10 complaint categories, descriptions of each category and number of complaints per category:
Utilities (This category includes gas service, water service, electricity, landline phone service, all mobile phone service, internet service, and cable. Problems with billing and maintenance were the most common complaints.) Complaints:  383
Home improvement (This category includes hiring a contractor for services to repair or improve the quality of your home. The most common complaints related to quality of work, incomplete work after receiving payment, and structural damage caused by the contractor.) Complaints: 327
Debtor/Creditor (This category includes matters related to debt collection companies, payday loans, credit repair companies, and check-cashing services. Consumers complained most that collection agencies often make harassing phone calls or continuously call individuals who do not owe a debt to the company.) Complaints: 293
Professional services (This category relates to services offered by all licensed professionals working in the State of Tennessee, including hair stylists, massage therapists, nail technicians, and others. Common complaints include the quality of service, charges for service the consumer did not receive, and problems redeeming gift certificates for services offered.) Complaints: 269
Health services and products (Consumers’ most common complaints include being misquoted for services and receiving medical bills prior to the bills being sent to the consumer’s insurance company.)  Complaints: 264
Landlord/Tenant (This category relates to consumers leasing rental property in the State of Tennessee. The most common complaints related to security deposits and the conditions of the rental property. Many consumers complained about mold.) Complaints: 262
Timeshares (This category relates to consumers purchasing property under a timesharing agreement. The most common complaints reported high-pressure sales tactics, misrepresentation of the contract, and resale scams.) Complaints: 257
Insurance (This category relates to pet insurance, consumer health insurance, and unlicensed insurance companies. Most consumers complained about policy coverage and claims. All consumer health insurance complaints are referred to the Insurance Division.) Complaints: 213
Auto Repair (This category refers to companies offering services to repair vehicles. Most consumers report auto repair companies that return vehicles to the consumer in a worse condition than how it was initially given to the company for repairs. These companies often charge more money to repair the vehicle the second time around.) Complaints: 184
Scams (This category includes telephone scams and imposter scams, all of which were referred to the Federal Trade Commission. Consumers reported various types of scams, including tax scams, sweepstakes scams, tech support scams, government grant scams, credit card scams, money order scams, and more.)  Complaints: 181
The Division of Consumer Affairs is dedicated to advocating, educating and protecting Tennessee Consumers. Call 1-(800) 342-8385 FREE for more details.
 

Middle Tennessee State University’s Saturday, Jan. 23, classes are canceled because of inclement weather and poor road conditions, MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee said.
Only personnel essential to operations, public safety and service to on-campus residents will report to work. Employees designated to provide essential services should contact their supervisors if they feel conditions are too hazardous for them to travel, McPhee added.
 
University officials announced the “Coaches vs. Cancer” men’s college basketball game between the Blue Raiders and Rice University will be played in Murphy Center. Tip-off is at 5 p.m.
 
The game will help raise awareness of the American Cancer Society fight against cancer and demonstrate support for the Society and its mission to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. For more, visit www.mtsunews.com/coaches-vs-cancer-2016/.

A winter storm which started Friday morning has gripped most of Middle Tennessee including Cannon County.  By mid afternoon, local authorities began urging residents to stay at home and not be out on the roads if at all possible.  Several non injury accidents were beginning to be reported.  According to 911 Director Roy Sullivan the majority of those accidents were on the McMinnville Hwy on into Warren County.   Residents in the Short Mountain area also warned about dangerous road conditions.   The National Weather Service had issued a Winter Storm Warning from 4:15 in the afternoon Thursday to 6:00 Saturday morning.