CHARLESTON, West Virginia, Oct. 14 -- Appalachian Power issued the following news release: A significant investment in technology and new equipment is improving service reliability for tens of thousands of Appalachian Power customers by reducing the frequency and duration of power outages. The system works by switching customers to an alternate circuit for power within seconds of a strategically-placed device detecting a problem along the distribution line. Workers have configured and installe  more

BRISTOL, Tennessee, Oct. 14 -- Contura Energy, a coal supplier, issued the following statement on Oct. 13: * * * Contura Energy, Inc. (NYSE: CTRA) today issued the following statement in response to the letter the Company's Board of Directors received from MG Capital Management, Ltd.: Contura welcomes the opportunity to engage with its shareholders and we welcome constructive input relating to enhancing shareholder value. We remain focused on delivering long-term shareholder value and will co  more

JOHNSON CITY, Tennessee, Oct. 13 (TNSGra) -- East Tennessee State University issued the following news: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded East Tennessee State University's Dr. Chuanfu Li a $2.19 million R01 grant to research the role of lactate in sepsis-induced cardiovascular dysfunction. Li is a professor in the Department of Surgery at Quillen College of Medicine and is also a member of the ETSU Center of Excellence in Inflammation, Infectious Disease, and Immunity (CIIDI)  more

JOHNSON CITY, Tennessee, Oct. 14 (TNSGra) -- East Tennessee State University issued the following news: Three members of the East Tennessee State University College of Nursing have received a $20,000 grant that will allow them to implement an evidence-based suicide prevention program at four Health Wagon clinics in rural Appalachia. Dr. Christine Mullins, Dr. Teresa Carnevale, and Dr. Vallire Hooper were the 2020 recipients of the Sigma Theta Tau International/American Nurses Credentialing Cen  more

JOHNSON CITY, Tennessee, Oct. 13 (TNSGra) -- East Tennessee State University issued the following news: A program at East Tennessee State University that prepares students with intellectual disabilities for meaningful employment has received a $2.5 million boost from the U.S. Department of Education. Access ETSU is a two-year, non-degree program for individuals with intellectual disabilities who are seeking to enhance their academic, career development and social skills and experiences in a wa  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 16 -- Lipscomb University issued the following news: Lipscomb University's College of Leadership & Public Service in partnership with Nashville's WRKN-ABC presents "Leading Through COVID," a virtual panel discussion featuring local and state experts who are managing the response to the pandemic, as the 2020 Don R. Elliott Distinguished Lecture on Thursday, Oct. 29. The panel discussion features four experts who have been on the frontlines of Nashville and Tennessee r  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 16 -- Lipscomb University issued the following news: The Battle of the Boulevard is a deeply entrenched rivalry between the Bisons of Lipscomb University and the Belmont University Bruins that manifests itself in a number of meetings between athletics teams throughout the year. This year, the rivalry between the two institutions, located just over two miles apart from each other, has entered a new realm of competition -- eSports. On Saturday, Oct. 17, the two univer  more

MILLIGAN, Tennessee, Oct. 16 (TNSRes) -- Milligan College issued the following news release: Milligan University volunteered and was approved to partner with the State of Tennessee and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in a validation study of the Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 rapid antigen test. Milligan is the first and currently the only university in Tennessee to participate in this study. "I'm grateful for the partnership that our campus nurse Karen Maughon and health services t  more

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 14 -- The University of Tennessee's Institute of Agriculture issued the following news release: Over the next year, the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture will lead a team of scientists from six partnering institutions to help nursery growers transition to labor-saving automation and related technologies. Amy Fulcher and Natalie Bumgarner, associate professors in the UT Department of Plant Sciences, are part of a transdisciplinary team that includes eco  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Oct. 16 (TNSRes) -- Rhodes College issued the following news: Dr. Earl Wright II, who joined Rhodes' Department of Anthropology and Sociology this year as professor of sociology, has published a new book titled Jim Crow Sociology: The Black and Southern Roots of American Sociology (University of Cincinnati Press, 2020). The eye-opening book features the activities and contributions of early African American sociologists at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 15 -- Gov. Bill Lee, R-Tennessee, issued the following statement on Oct. 14: * * * Today Tennessee Governor Bill Lee's office released the following statement: "Today, a member of the Governor's Executive Security Detail has tested positive for COVID-19. "Gov. Lee is feeling well and has tested negative for COVID-19 but out of an abundance of caution, he is quarantining at home with the First Lady until further notice. "Governor's Office protocol requires masks   more

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Oct. 13 -- Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III issued the following news on Oct. 12: Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III today announced an update to a global settlement framework agreement between 50 state attorneys general, local subdivisions, and the opioid manufacturer Mallinckrodt (MNK), its subsidiaries, and certain other affiliates. Under the new settlement pending before the bankruptcy court, MNK will pay $1.6 billion into a trust as described below. MNK  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 17 -- Gov. Bill Lee, R-Tennessee, issued the following news on Oct. 16: Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn today called for removing negative consequences for schools and educators associated with student assessments for the 2020-2021 school year. Student assessments will be conducted as planned. "Given the unprecedented disruption that the COVID-19 pandemic and extended time away from the classroom has had on Tennessee's students, m  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 17 -- The Tennessee Department of Education issued the following news release: Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn today called for removing negative consequences for schools and educators associated with student assessments for the 2020-2021 school year. Student assessments will be conducted as planned. "Given the unprecedented disruption that the COVID-19 pandemic and extended time away from the classroom has had on Tennessee's stud  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 17 -- The Tennessee Democratic Party issued the following news release: "Yesterday, State Senator Todd Gardenhire was caught deploying racist language when addressing the very real problems of food insecurity and obesity, a public health issue that affects all Tennesseans regardless of who they are, what they look like, or where they live. Senator Gardenhire's statements were divisive and show just how out of touch he is with the needs of the people in Hamilton and   more

CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee, Oct. 14 (TNSGra) -- The University of Tennessee's Chattanooga Campus issued the following news release: Good news usually doesn't come at 1 a.m. Phone ringing or text dings! at that time of night usually conjure thoughts of: "Oh no, something's terribly wrong." Not the case with Chyanne Smith. Back in October, she had applied for a Graduate Research Fellowship Program grant (GFRP) from the National Science Foundation. The grant provides a graduate student $34,000 in r  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Oct. 17 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news: The University of Tennessee Health Science Center's College of Medicine has formed the UTHSC Cancer Program, a new comprehensive, multidisciplinary initiative consisting of a group of university faculty clinicians, who will provide cancer care across multiple university-affiliated hospital systems and clinical practice groups in the region. The new program includes physicians in all canc  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Oct. 14 (TNSGra) -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news: In the transition from fetal to neonatal life, the kidneys undergo delicate and intricate changes in functionality as they assume the primary responsibility for keeping the blood clean and chemically balanced. Understanding these complex physiological changes is critical, as stressors before, during, and after delivery put newborns at risk of kidney injury and maladaptation. The   more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Oct. 14 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news: The University of Tennessee Health Science Center announced a partnership with Lyft to advise the company on effective cleaning measures as a part of Lyft's Health Safety Program. In collaboration with UTHSC and P&G Professional (the away-from-home division of Procter & Gamble), Lyft developed the clean ride guide, a recommended vehicle cleaning process designed specifically for rideshar  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Oct. 16 (TNSRes) -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news: In humans, large arteries lose elasticity and thicken with age and other pathological conditions, leading to arteriosclerosis and high blood pressure. Age-related arterial stiffening affects a large population and is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, yet it remains poorly understood, with no effective intervention. Work being done in the lab of Zhongjie Sun, MD, Ph  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 16 (TNSJou) -- Vanderbilt University issued the following news: Vanderbilt University researchers have reported the counterintuitive discovery that certain chemotherapeutic agents used to treat tumors can have the opposite effect of tissue overgrowth in normal, intact mammary glands, epidermis and hair follicles. The researchers also are the first to report the discovery of an innate immune signaling pathway in fibroblasts--the spindle-shaped cells responsible for wou  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Oct. 16 -- HarperCollins Christian Publishing, a subsidiary of HarperCollins Publishers, issued the following company news on Oct. 15: Thomas Nelson today announced Allison Carter's promotion to publicity director for the W Publishing division, a nonfiction imprint of Thomas Nelson. Carter has over 18 years of publicity and journalism experience, the past four of which she has spent at HarperCollins Christian Publishing (HCCP) managing the publicity for Thomas Nelson and   more