Knox Co. Commission to consider dissolving new Citizens Advisory Health Committee
The 11-member committee was formed to advise the mayor and Knox County Commission on public health issues. It was created in October 2020. Author: WBIR Staff Updated: 6:40 PM EDT May 17, 2021
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. Less than a year after a committee was formed to advise the Knox County Mayor and Knox County Commission about public health issues, commissioners are considering a resolution that would end it.
They were scheduled for a work session on Monday, which included discussing a resolution that would end the Knox County Committee on Health and Economic Well-Being. In the resolution, local lawmakers said that the committee is no longer needed due to a change in circumstances.
Mask policy
For the last several months, masks have been a hot topic at school board meetings. Things heated up once again when Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs announced he would end the county s mask mandate April 27. But it is up to the school board to decide polices for the district.
If the board members decide to end the mask policy on May 26, students and teachers in summer learning camps will not have to wear masks. Close to 6,000 elementary and middle students are slated to attend in-person summer classes.
The current policy requires students, staff and visitors to wear masks in most settings except for activities like eating or drinking. It runs through the end of July but could be amended.
Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs had to wait a few hours longer than anticipated to deliver his third budget address as morning storms washed out the original plans. That was fine. As far as budgets go, he’s learned to be flexible.
Coming off a shrunken pandemic budget from a year ago, Jacobs proposed a $893.5 million budget Tuesday. Given the challenges and uncertainties of the past year, this budget was a reminder of normalcy: no splashy buys, no tax increases but raises for county employees across the board including a more sizable bonus for sheriff’s office employees and overall strong fiscal health.
Knox County celebrates Asian American and Pacific Islaner Heritage Month with new display
Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs posted a photo on Twitter of a new display of an eastern dragon in the City County Building. Author: WBIR Staff Updated: 10:48 PM EDT April 30, 2021
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. During May, people across the U.S. will celebrate Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month.
Knox County started celebrating it a day early Friday with a new display in the City County Building. Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs posted a tweet with a photo of it a colorful eastern dragon displayed near the windows by the City of Knoxville s administrative offices.
But Knox County Schools is governed by its own policy.
One L&N Stem Academy student and five Farragut High School students missed school Friday morning to speak in favor of keeping masks.
Selom Bediako is a virtual student but has to go in the school building for Advanced Placement tests. She has two brothers who are at high-risk for getting severely sick if they contract COVID-19. I m forced to go in for my AP tests this week, Bediako said. And I ve been in for times past for testing. And it s already incredibly stressful with just the thought of bringing something back home. And with no mask policy, that would be exacerbated tenfold. I m supposed to be focusing on doing my best on a test but I can t help but think that I maybe be bringing something back that could be deadly to my brothers and that s something that I as a student should not have to talk about.