News - Friday, April 7, 2017

Warda Kahlot doesn’t remember encountering prejudice in her native Bronx, or even after her Palestinian dad and Dominican mom moved the family to Chattanooga when she was a kindergartener.

It was only when she started wearing a hijab, the traditional head covering for Muslim women, after attending a summer school class on religion at age 12, that everything changed.

Quietly and under the radar, Takeo Suzuki has been working for the past 18 months to blend three different departments into a new Center for Global Education at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga.

“This is like a big bridge between American population and international student population,” says Suzuki, the Center’s executive director, who is fluent in Japanese and has lived in Wales, Macedonia, Croatia, Bosnia and Malaysia.

Republicans say ho, Democrats say go. In the wake of Trumpcare’s congressional crash, states such as Kansas and North Carolina are joining the majority of the nation in expanding Medicaid rolls.

With Speaker Paul Ryan saying the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, is the law of the land for the “foreseeable” future, they’re following the other 31 states that are already receiving federal funds to expand, according to reports.

As is always the case, after only a couple of days the local daily Times Free Press whipped out a ready-made speculation list for candidates to replace the abruptly departing Matt McCall as UT-Chattanooga’s head basketball coach.

And ring up a hit for the paper’s Gene Henley. One of the 10 candidates speculated upon wound up being athletic director David Blackburn’s brilliant choice. Wisconsin associate head coach Lamont Paris came on board just three days after McCall met the New England media as the replacement for the replacement coach at the University of Massachusetts.

My friend, Adam, shouted my name from across the parking lot of Heart Attack Shack as I was unlocking my car to leave. I turned and saw him standing next to his vehicle, clutching his chest.

An hour earlier, we had strode into the new burger, wings, nachos and fries joint on Ringgold Road with our chests puffed out, emboldened by a naive bravado. The very name of the place implied a dare, and we were there to prove ourselves worthy of the challenge.

Brent Burks and Jay Kennamer, partners at McMahan Law Firm, have achieved recertification as civil trial specialists.

To become board certified as a civil trial specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy, an attorney must be identified as someone who “possesses an enhanced level of skill and expertise in trial advocacy, and has demonstrated integrity and dedication to the interests of their clients.”

Spicer Rudstrom has added John D. Barry to its Chattanooga office. The experienced civil litigator has been serving clients for nearly 40 years.

Barry brings his practice of tort, contracts, products liability, insurance and casualty defense to the firm as he assumes an of counsel role.

Chattanooga attorney Hallie McFadden is one of two dozen women taking part in Emerge Tennessee’s inaugural class. Emerge Tennessee is a 70-hour program designed to prepare Democratic Party women from across the state to run for office.

Emerge Tennessee leaders chose McFadden and her classmates from among dozens of women who applied for the program, which has proven in other states to have a successful election rate.

The Chattanooga-based law firm of McKoon, Williams & Atchley is now McKoon, Williams, Atchley & Stanley. The name change signifies the addition of W. Lloyd Stanley, Jr. to the firm.

In addition, the firm has moved. Its new address is:

The National Flood Insurance Program will expire on September 30. The National Association of Realtors is working with federal regulators and members of Congress to strengthen the program and clear the way for a private market to take hold.

But Realtors warn the program’s September 30 reauthorization deadline is a threat to consumers.

Derek Barnett knows he will hear his name called in the April 27-29 NFL Draft. He’s just not sure when.

“Earliest as possible,” says the Nashville native and former Tennessee defensive end. “But it’s out of my control.”

I went into Ghost in the Shell a little apprehensive. Although the trailers were promising, I knew nothing about the 1980’s Japanese manga on which the film is based and had seen none of the animated movies. If it was a picture for insiders – people who were familiar with and adored the original property – I was afraid I’d be lost.

Interim Superintendent of Hamilton County Schools Dr. Kirk Kelly provided a snapshot of local public schools April 5 at the Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors’ membership breakfast.

Kelly spoke about the successes of the county school system as well as the many challenges it faces.

Of the variety of factors that affect home values, one of the largest influencers is schools.

Test scores, graduation rates, facility age, the breadth of advanced placement classes, attendance rates, parental involvement, athletics – the list of factors which push a school’s rating up or down is extensive and constantly growing. Our society has become increasingly transparent, and these criteria are easier to see than ever before.

As the Chattanooga home building industry celebrates New Homes Month in April, recent research shows that single-family builders use an average of 10 different green products or practices with each new home they build.

That’s good news for the wave of consumers taking advantage of the spring home buying season to find a home that’s perfect for their lifestyle. And that makes it even more important to understand the many advantages of owning a newly constructed home.

Don’t worry too much if you haven’t heard, but April is National Stress Awareness Month.

Of course, stress can present emotional and physical challenges to all of us, but if you belong to the “sandwich generation” – that is, you may be caring for aging parents while still supporting your own children – you may be facing some financial stress as well. What can you do to relieve it?

U.S. Navy Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Alexis Vinson of Chattanooga recites poetry at the women’s history month ceremony in the hangar bay of the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island.

Makin Island is operating in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region to enhance amphibious capability with regional partners and to serve as a ready-response force for any type of contingency.

Crabtree Farms will host its annual spring plant sale Friday, April 7-Sunday, April 9. Hours will be 9 a.m.-3 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sunday. Products will include hundreds of fruit, vegetable and herb plant starts for spring and summer gardens. In addition to the sale, guests will be invited to enjoy food, live music, free workshops and local crafts. Crabtree Farms is located at 1000 E. 30th St.