The statewide ACT Senior Retake will be Saturday, October 22 for students who met the September 16 registration deadline.
The retake provides every eligible high school senior, meaning any public school student who took the ACT as a junior, the ability to retake the ACT free of charge, regardless of socioeconomic status.
With more Tennessee students than ever before taking the ACT, Tennessee public high school students this year held steady at a 19.4 average score, whereas nationally scores declined as more students participated. For each subject area, scores of Tennessee public school students either increased slightly or remained constant, with no score declining. Nearly 1,300 more Tennessee public school students became eligible for the HOPE scholarship in 2016 by achieving composite scores of 21 or higher. Additionally, Tennessee improved its national standing in 2016 among the 18 states that require students to take the ACT, climbing to seventh in the nation when looking at the average composite of both public and private school students. In 2015, Tennessee ranked eighth among the then-13 states that required the college readiness assessment.
“Our Districts ACT score was up from a composite of 17.7 to an 18.1 this year with Science and Reading being our highest scoring tested areas and math being our lowest,” said Lisa Cripps, Supervisor of Instruction for grades 7-12 in DeKalb County.
“We are continuing to help our students become better prepared for the ACT and College by the addition of an online ACT prep class and utilizing a state ACT readiness pilot. We have great hopes that our senior class will increase their scores by taking part in this ACT retake opportunity. I want to thank the DCHS Senior parents and high school counselor Lori Myrick for their efforts in getting our students registered for their first ever ACT retake opportunity,” added Cripps.
Tennessee’s historical ACT data indicate that students who retake the ACT typically increase their composite score by one to three points. This increase in ACT scores could translate into thousands more students meeting the composite score requirement of a 21 for the HOPE scholarship and avoiding remediation courses once they enter a postsecondary institution. Increasing the percentage of students who graduate high school with improved ACT composite and benchmark scores will allow for more students to start their next phase in life on the pathways necessary for success.
“Allowing students an additional opportunity to show what they know by retaking the ACT can expand the possibilities for our students’ futures,” Education Commissioner Candice McQueen said. “Our strategic plan, Tennessee Succeeds, lays out a firm goal, that the average ACT score in Tennessee will be a 21 by 2020, indicating that our students are graduating high school ready for college and career.”
All eligible students will have the option of retaking the ACT on the national test date of Saturday, Oct. 22. The registration deadline for this national test date was Friday, Sept. 16.
The recommendation to allow for a retake of the ACT or SAT for all students came as a result of the first convening of the Assessment Task Force in 2015. The task force developed a set of principles and recommendations, housed in a task force report, to guide the work of the state, districts, and schools.
This then led to the Tennessee Student Assessment Transparency Act of 2016, sponsored by Senator Ferrell Haile, R-Gallatin, and Representative Kevin Brooks, R-Cleveland, in which the General Assembly approved for each student who took a postsecondary readiness assessment—like the ACT—as a high school junior the opportunity to retake it as a senior free of cost.

The DeKalb County Prevention Coalition encourages all DeKalb County residents to join the effort to reduce the risk of prescription drug abuse by participating in a Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on Saturday, October 22. This event will be held at the Smithville City Hall from 10:00am to 2:00pm.
The DeKalb County Prevention Coalition urges DeKalb County residents to come out to this event and drop off any unwanted, old, extra, unneeded, or expired prescription pills for safe disposal. This is confidential and no names or information will be collected.
DPC will also have a limited amount of lock boxes to give out.
Remember too that a “Community Wellness Walk” will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Take a short downtown walk to Justin Potter Library. A Healthy DeKalb Information Session will also be held at Justin Potter Library at 11:00 a.m. Light refreshments will be provided.
Be sure to take the following steps to remove prescription drugs from your home or office in preparation for this Drug Take Back Event.
•Check for unused prescriptions in medicine cabinets, bathroom, closets, bedside tables and kitchen drawers, under the sink, and in closets, purses, handbags, and containers.
•Remove all labeling and packaging on bottles and containers before disposing to ensure the protection of your privacy and personal information.
Keep in mind: the majority of Tennessee’s Take-Back Boxes are in locations that are accessible seven days a week, 24 hours a day. While there is special focus on take-back events each year in April and October, most boxes are located in law enforcement buildings (Smithville City Hall) and offices, where they are available for safe disposal anytime you need them.

Andy Wachtel, FACHE, has been named Chief Executive Officer of Saint Thomas DeKalb, Highlands and Stones River hospitals. Saint Thomas Health is a member of Ascension, the largest non-profit health system in the U.S. and the world’s largest Catholic health system.
Wachtel begins his new role on October 10, 2016. He most recently served as CEO of Alliance Health located in Ponca City, Oklahoma, where he was responsible for 140-bed Alliance Health Ponca City hospital and 53-bed Alliance Health Blackwell hospital. These two hospitals blended their management teams in May 2014. Earlier he was Chief Operating Officer at Deaconess Hospital, Oklahoma City.
Wachtel received his master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Oklahoma Health Science Center in Oklahoma City and graduated from Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, Oklahoma, with a degree in Business Administration. He and his wife, Pam, have been married for 33 years and have two daughters, Jennifer and Mandy.
“Our regional hospitals and the communities they serve are vitally important to us,” said Karen Springer, President and CEO of Saint Thomas Health. “We are concerned with maintaining and expanding local access to healthcare for the people of Cannon, DeKalb and White Counties and continuing to improve and enhance the quality of that care. We took great care in selecting the new leader for these hospitals.”
“We’re pleased to have someone of Andy’s experience and skill joining the leadership team of Saint Thomas Health and Ascension,” said Gordon Ferguson, President of Saint Thomas Regional Hospitals/President & CEO of Saint Thomas Rutherford. “He is uniquely qualified to lead these three hospitals, and is looking forward to becoming active in the communities they serve.”

A large number of first-time voters are expected to cast their ballot in the November Tennessee General Election.
The DeKalb County Election Commission office reported recently that 850 new registrations have been logged since January 1, with 387 of those since the August election.
“One in eight active voters registered for the first time this year or had their registration reactivated after they had been purged for lack of participation for a number of years,” said DeKalb County’s Administrator of Elections, Dennis Stanley. “That is a large number for a county this size and is an obvious reflection in the interest in this year’s presidential race.”
The registration deadline has passed and a recent count showed DeKalb County with 10,195 active voters. “There’s over 1,000 more voters who are labeled ‘inactive’ who could still show up and vote,” Stanley said.
A breakdown of the ‘active’ registrations show there are over 500 more females registered to vote than males and the largest age group is those between the ages of 36-65 at 5,153 voters.
Meanwhile, early voting begins Wednesday and local officials are expecting a heavy turnout during both early voting and election day.
“We have received numerous calls from people asking when Early Voting begins, so we expect to be busy during that early period and that’s a good thing,” Stanley said. “Early voting is so convenient and voters should take advantage of that opportunity.”
Early voting will be held October 19 through November 3. Hours are: Mondays 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.; Tuesdays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Wednesdays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Thursdays 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.; Fridays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; and Saturdays 9 a.m. to Noon.
“The local election commission always tries to set various times to accommodate the different segments of the population,” Stanley said. “They try to make it as easy as possible for a voter to find time to cast their ballot.”
Election Day is November 8 and polls open in DeKalb County at 8 a.m. and will close at 7 p.m.

Starting October 15 and continuing through December 7, 2016, Tennessee’s 1.3 million Medicare beneficiaries will have the opportunity to review their current Medicare plan, including drug coverage, and determine which plan is best for them. Needs and plans change from year to year, and the Medicare system can often be difficult to understand and navigate. But Open Enrollment is something no beneficiary should avoid or ignore.
Medicare beneficiaries in Tennessee do not have to navigate this complicated system alone. A state program provides more than 300 counselors to help guide Tennesseans through the Medicare Open Enrollment process. The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (or TN SHIP for short) is free to all of Tennessee’s Medicare beneficiaries. TN SHIP counselors can review a beneficiary’s current Medicare plan and determine the best fit for that individual. The TN SHIP program neither sells, nor endorses, specific plans; it provides free and objective counseling on Medicare plans and solutions. Last year the TN SHIP program saved Tennesseans an average of $2,245 on their annual prescription drug cost.
The Commission on Aging and Disability encourages all Tennessee Medicare beneficiaries to review their Medicare plan annually for the following reasons:
 Formulary changes – Your plan may be making changes to how and if your medications are covered.
 Premium changes – There may be changes in the amount you pay for your plan premium.
 New plans – Each year, new plans are introduced that may offer benefits that better fit your situation.
 Savings – Switching to another plan may save you money.
 Coverage Gap Information – Comparing plans will help you identify when or if you will end up in the Part D coverage gap period.
If a beneficiary has questions or needs help reviewing their plan, that person should call TN SHIP at 1-877-801-0044.

DeKalb County has been awarded a $500,000 Community Development Block grant from the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.
The purpose of the grant is to help fund extension of water lines to a portion of the county in need. The county applied for the grant on behalf of
the DeKalb Utility District which will actually be providing the service. The DUD will also be allocating a $120,000 grant match to help fund the
project.
The formal grant presentation was made Wednesday, October 12 at the State Capitol to DUD Board member Jimmy Womack and DUD Manager Jon Foutch by Governor Bill Haslam, State Representatives Terri Lynn Weaver and Mark Pody, and Ted Townsend, Chief Operating Officer for the Department of Economic and Community Development. Amanda Mainord of Grassroots Planning & Consulting, the grant administrator for the project, and Buddy Koonce of Goodwin, Mills, Cawood, the DUD’s utility engineer were also on hand for the presentation.
The project is to serve 40 or more households including at least 140 residents on Tramel Branch, Oakley Road, Carter Lane, Old Givens Hollow, and the Alexandria to Dismal Road. “This grant will be used for people in these areas who have to haul water or who have bad wells. It will provide much needed water services and a better way of life for them,” Foutch told WJLE.
Although funding is now available, Foutch cautions residents in the area to be patient in that the actual work won’t begin until probably the middle
part of 2017.
Foutch said he would like to thank all those who helped make this grant possible including the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community
Development; Governor Bill Haslam; State Representaives Terri Lynn Weaver and Mark Pody; the DeKalb Utility District Board of Commissioners; Buddy Koonce, the DUD’s utility engineer; County Mayor Tim Stribling; the DeKalb County Commission, and Amanda Mainord of Grassroots Planning and Consulting, the grant writer.
PICTURED ABOVE: Ted Townsend, Chief Operating Officer for the Department of Economic and Community Development; Buddy Koonce of Goodwin, Mills, Cawood, the DUD’s utility engineer; State Representative Terri Lynn Weaver; Amanda Mainord of Grassroots Planning & Consulting; DUD Board member Jimmy Womack; DUD manager Jon Foutch; State Representative Mark Pody; and Governor Bill Haslam.

The high school graduation rate in DeKalb County increased by almost two percentage points to 97.58% for the 2015-16 year and it exceeded the state graduation rate by nine percentage points
The Tennessee Department of Education this week released the state and district graduation rates, some of which hit new highs under more rigorous criteria.
Education Commissioner Candice McQueen said the state graduation rate of 88.5 percent is the highest on record since the state changed to a more rigorous calculation of graduation rates in 2011.
The latest statewide graduation rate was up nearly a full percentage point since last year and overall has increased three percentage points since the state implemented the more rigorous calculations.
This year, nearly 60 percent of districts saw their graduation rates increase or stay the same when compared to last year’s rates.
“Our high school staff works extremely hard to keep our students on a successful path toward high school graduation. At the Central Office level, April Odom, works very hard also to keep us updated on student success. We want to thank our community, parents, teachers, and students for the hard work put forth to make this awesome graduation rate. It truly shows, working together, we can make such a positive difference,” said Lisa Cripps, Supervisor of Instruction for grades 7-12 in the DeKalb County School System.
The DeKalb County graduation rate for 2014-15 was at 95.8%
“Our schools and districts should be proud of the work they have done to support students on their journeys to and beyond high school graduation,” McQueen said. “High school graduation is a critical step in allowing students to embark on their chosen paths in life. However, as more Tennessee students are earning their diplomas, we must ensure that they are all leaving with the knowledge and skills to be successful in college and the workforce.”
Over the past few years, Tennessee has been raising expectations for both students and educators, and the state has seen significant gains as a result. These outcomes, including increases in graduation rates, are a testament to the work being done in schools across the state. The most notable gains and overall achievements are:
•12 districts improved their graduation rates by five percentage points or more. The districts with the most significant gains were Alvin C. York (18.1 percent), Tullahoma City (11.6 percent), Trenton Special School District (11.1 percent), and Grundy County (10 percent).
•95 districts—over 70 percent of the districts in the state—have graduation rates at or above 90 percent, up from 81 districts last year. Fentress County, Alcoa City, South Carroll Special School District, Milan Special School District, Meigs County, and Crockett County all had graduation rates at or above 99 percent.
•76 districts—roughly 60 percent of districts in the state—had graduation rates at or above 90 percent for both 2014-15 and 2015-16.
More information, such as graduation rates for individual subgroups, will be available on the State Report Card, which will be released later this fall.

DeKalb/Cannon County USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) County Executive Director Donny Green wants to inform hay and pasture producers of a new important crop acreage reporting deadline. For crop year 2017, acreage reports for perennial forage (hay and pasture) must be filed by November 15, 2016. Acreage reports filed after the established deadline could require the producer to pay a late-filed fee.
In past years, crop acreage reports for hay and pasture had to be filed by July 15. However, the new Acreage/Crop Reporting Streamlining Initiatiave (ACRSI) has established a common USDA framework for acreage reporting dates to be used for all agencies.
In order to participate in most of the Farm Service Agency’s programs, complete and timely crop acreage reports must be filed for program approval and payment eligibility. “We realize that this change to the acreage reporting date for hay and pasture comes with very short notice. We only have about a month to get all of our hay and pasture producers certified and we are going to do our best to make sure everyone is aware of this change and the importance of getting hay and pasture crops certified before November 15, 2016”, says Green.
For questions regarding crop acreage reporting dates, please contact the DeKalb/Cannon County FSA office at 615-597-8225, extension 2.

After serving as manager of Edgar Evins State Park for the last year and a half, Jacob Young has left to become manager of Fall Creek Falls State Park.
Young took over there last week. He and his family will be living at the ranger residence in the park.
In a phone interview with WJLE Thursday, Young said he had not planned to leave Edgar Evins State Park, but the position at Fall Creek Falls was offered to him when it became available and he felt it was an opportunity he could not pass up. “I wasn’t looking to leave. I absolutely love Edgar Evins State Park and I love the area. The staff became like family very quickly. I had just gotten back into Smithville and had gotten involved in a lot of things. We were also about to build a house so we weren’t planning on leaving but this opportunity came up quickly about a month ago. My wife and I talked about it and prayed about it. We felt like it was a good thing for my career, the kids, and the family. It was just a hard thing to turn down so we made the decision to leave,” said Young.
As a Park 3 Manager, Young will have more responsibilities at Fall Creek Falls and he will be supervisor to more than 100 employees as opposed to 20 employees at Edgar Evins State Park. Young also plans to make a variety of park improvements, just as he did here. “Coming to Fall Creek Falls, it’s a similar situation to what I found at Edgar Evins. There is a huge backlog of maintenance and millions of dollars worth of things that need to be done, whether it be cabins, restaurant, Inn, Ranger residences, signage in the park, etc. We have a lot of beautiful buildings here and the grounds look great but some of it is just in need of repair. One of the big projects on my radar is trying to get the signage updated. We have three or four capital projects including replacing our park office, our check-in station, and we may be rebuilding the Inn and restaurant in years to come. Lots of buildings need to be painted and we’re working on that right now. We’ve already got contractors coming. This is a busy park and state parks over the last couple of years have exploded in tourist activity. This park was more than $500,000 over on projected revenue last year,” he said.
Young is also proud of the improvements made at Edgar Evins State Park while he was there and expects more to follow. “When I arrived there were some things that needed to be done. I really wasn’t there for a long time. We reclaimed some of the areas where we had not been mowing for a while. We repainted a lot of buildings and the tower. We fixed the boat docks and got furnishings for the cabins and the work is still continuing. A lot of money will be coming to continue that into the campground and the shelter area,” said Young.
Park Ranger Mark Taylor currently serves as interim manager at Edgar Evins State Park. “They could open it (position) to lateral transfer meaning another park manager may transfer in or they may interview. If they interview there are candidates at the park who would be really good picks so one of those guys in house may step up in the Park Manager 2 position,” said Young.
A new manager is expected to be named by mid November or the first of December.

A woman charged in connection with the recent theft of guns, coins, jewelry and other items stolen from a houseboat at Pates Ford Marina was in DeKalb County Criminal Court Friday, October 7.
Judge Gary McKenzie presided.
37 year old Sherry May Evans entered a plea by criminal information to theft over $500 and received a two year suspended sentence on judicial diversion probation. She must make restitution of $985 to the victim. The case against a co-defendant, 46 year old Ricky Lane Evans apparently remains pending in court.
Sheriff Patrick Ray said that on Saturday, September 17 both Ricky and Sherry Evans allegedly took items from a houseboat at Pates Ford Marina including several silver coins, a Kel-Tec 9 millimeter rifle, a Smith & Wesson 380 handgun, a Winchester 410 shotgun, clothing, jewelry, a spotlight, candles and other items. The owner of the houseboat discovered the theft and reported it. The case was investigated by a detective and deputies of the Sheriff’s Department and as a result some of the stolen weapons and other items have been recovered. Sheriff Ray said that some of the silver coins and jewelry were recovered in a purse belonging to Sherry Evans.
54 year old Jackie Mark Mullican entered a plea by criminal information to possession of a weapon by a felon. He received a two year sentence on probation. The term is to run consecutive to a sentence against him in General Sessions Court. Sheriff Ray said that on Monday, September 12 while conducting a probation search on Mullican, a Sheriff’s Department Detective found in his right pants pocket a silver Jennings 380 caliber handgun with an altered serial number. A computer check revealed that the gun had been stolen and entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) by the Smithville Police Department. A criminal history was also conducted which showed that Mullican is a DeKalb County convicted felon charged in a 2008 schedule II drug offense.
46 year old Johnny D. Murphy entered a plea by criminal information to aggravated assault and two counts of theft over $500. He received a four year TDOC sentence in the assault case and one year in each of the other two offenses to run concurrently for a total of four years however the term has been suspended to probation. He is to make restitution to the victims in the case totaling $5,192. In the assault case, the charge against Murphy stated that on April 27, 2016, he caused bodily injury to a woman by strangulation. In one of the theft cases, Murphy is alleged to have stolen water services valued at $767 of the Smithville Water Department on May 23, 2016. In the other theft case, Murphy is alleged to have stolen a 1990 WW two-horse trailer valued at $1,200 on May 29, 2016.
33 year old Joseph Edge entered a plea by criminal information to aggravated burglary and aggravated assault and received a three year sentence in each case suspended to supervised probation. The terms are to run consecutive for a total of six years. He is under a restraining order to keep away from the victim and he must complete domestic violence counseling. Edge was given jail credit of 62 days. Edge is alleged to have entered the residence of his victim on August 4 without her consent with the intent to commit aggravated assault and then caused injury to her by strangulation.
29 year old Kristy Grandstaff entered a plea by criminal information to vandalism under $500 and received a sentence of 11 months and 29 days all suspended to good behavior probation. She must make restitution of $400. Grandstaff is alleged to have caused damaged to the window and window frame of the Smithville Housing Authority on August 13 valued at under $500.
Jeremy Claiborne entered a plea to driving under the influence and received a sentence of 11 months and 29 days suspended to supervised probation except for 48 hours to serve and he was fined $360. He must undergo an alcohol and drug assessment.