ASHLAND CITY, Tennessee, Sept. 18 -- The A.O. Smith, a manufacturer of residential and commercial water heaters and boilers, issued the following news, dated Sept. 16: The Water Council and its corporate partners today announced the second Tech Challenge, a global competition designed to identify cutting-edge freshwater technologies and ideas with high potential for commercialization or implementation. Finalists have an opportunity to win prize money, access to corporate R&D resources and a cha  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Sept. 19 -- Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell and Berkowitz, a law firm, issued the following news release: Baker Donelson presents Cybercon 2019, the fifth annual conference focused on the issues affecting the continually evolving cybersecurity landscape. The event, which will be held on September 24 at the Loudermilk Conference Center in Atlanta, Georgia, brings together business and governmental leaders to demystify cybersecurity risk and identify practical mitigation st  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Sept. 17 -- Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell and Berkowitz, a law firm, issued the following news release: * * * - Baker Donelson Has Been Recognized by Bloomberg Government in Its '2018 Top-Performing Lobbying Firms' Report * * * For the report, Bloomberg Government analyzed 1,946 firms that were active in 2018 and identified the top firms based on several key business metrics including client satisfaction and revenue growth. Baker Donelson was ranked among the top te  more

CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee., Sept. 20 -- Chattanooga State Community College issued the following news release: Chattanooga State Community College recently entered into an agreement with the Helen Ross McNabb Center establishing a meaningful partnership between the agency and the college to put safeguards in place for the well-being of Chattanooga State students. Statistics from the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network, show that suicide is the second leading cause of death for college students a  more

BRISTOL, Tennessee, Sept. 18 -- Contura Energy, a coal supplier, issued the following news release: Contura Energy, Inc. (NYSE: CTRA), a leading U.S. coal supplier, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Eagle Specialty Materials, LLC (Eagle Specialty Materials), an affiliate of FM Coal, LLC, related to Eagle Specialty Materials' interest in acquiring and operating the Eagle Butte and Belle Ayr thermal coal mines located in the Powder River Basin (PRB) in Campbell County, Wy  more

LEBANON, Tennessee, Sept. 19 -- Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, a chain of combined restaurant and gift stores, issued the following news: Fifty years ago today, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, America's iconic destination for Southern homestyle cooking, warm hospitality, and unique retail offerings, made its debut in the small town of Lebanon, Tennessee. In 1969, a Tennessee man named Dan Evins saw an unmet need. The Interstate was expanding -connecting people to new places - but people o  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Sept. 19 -- FedEx issued the following news release: Wing Aviation LLC, an Alphabet company, is collaborating with FedEx Express and Walgreens to launch a first-of-its-kind drone delivery service in Christiansburg, Virginia next month. The pilot program will demonstrate the many benefits of drone delivery to communities by exploring methods to enhance last-mile delivery service, improve access to health care products, and create a new avenue of growth for local businesses.   more

JOHNSON CITY, Tennessee, Sept. 20 -- East Tennessee State University issued the following news: A new law sparked interest in a new minor in American Sign Language (ASL) at East Tennessee State University. Just one year later, the ASL minor is thriving and meeting the needs of educators, students and professionals from across the state. ETSU recognized a growing need for ASL education when the Tennessee General Assembly passed legislation in 2017 that recognized ASL as a modern language that m  more

KINGSPORT, Tennessee, Sept. 20 -- Eastman Chemical issued the following news release: Eastman Chemical Company is increasing prices on the following products Oct. 01, or as contracts allow. These increases are due to elevated operating costs, especially in raw materials. Eastman (TM) EB Solvent : Offlist Price increase of $USD 0.030/LB ($USD 0.07/KG) in North America and Latin America. Eastman (TM) DB Solvent : Offlist Price increase of $USD 0.030/LB ($USD 0.07/KG) in North America and Latin   more

KINGSPORT, Tennessee, Sept. 18 -- Eastman Chemical issued the following news release: * * * - Specialty Plastics Provider Demonstrates Cosmetics Portfolio's Circular Economy Credentials * * * Global specialty plastics provider Eastman unveils the sustainable transformation of its cosmetics portfolio at LUXE PACK MONACO at the Grimaldi Forum Sept. 30 through Oct. 2. Eastman will showcase next-generation Eastman Treva(TM) engineering bioplastic and introduce Eastman Cristal Revel(TM) copolyest  more

HENDERSON, Tennessee, Sept. 9 -- Freed-Hardeman University issued the following news: Freed-Hardeman University has moved up eight spots in the 2020 U.S. News and World Report ranking of colleges and universities, making this the second consecutive year FHU has made major gains in the standings. In the past two years, the university has moved up 15 spots. FHU is tied for 31st in the Regional Universities - South category of "Best Colleges 2020." Last year, the university tied for 39th place. I  more

DYERSBURG, Tennessee, Sept. 17 -- The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development issued the following news: * * * - ERMCO will Create Approximately 150 Jobs in Dyer County over the Next Five Years - Company Plans to Invest Approximately $12 Million in Expansion * * * Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and ERMCO, Inc. officials announced today that the company will expand its manufacturing operations in Dyersburg.   more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 16 -- The Tennessee Department of Transportation issued the following news: Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner Clay Bright announced today the award of $13,669,998 Transportation Alternatives Grants statewide in Tennessee. "Tennessee is committed to continuing to develop safe infrastructure across our states," Lee said. "These grants will help us reach our goal of being a healthier state and will enhance the lives of   more

NEW YORK, Sept. 16 -- Hearst issued the following news: Hearst's CAMP Systems International has agreed to acquire Inventory Locator Service (ILS) from Boeing, the world's largest aerospace company and leading provider of commercial airplanes, defense, space and security systems, and global services. Founded in 1979, ILS provides the largest electronic marketplace for the aviation industry to buy and sell parts, equipment and services, and offers manufacturers and parts suppliers ways to improve  more

BRENTWOOD, Tennessee, Sept. 16 -- LifePoint Health, a healthcare company, issued the following news: Twin County Regional Healthcare (TCRH), a Duke LifePoint hospital, today announced that Greg Pearson has been named chief executive officer (CEO), effective September 23. Pearson replaces departing CEO Dale Alward, who will assume the CEO role at Sovah Health - Martinsville, another facility in the LifePoint Health network. "Greg is a veteran healthcare executive with a strong track record of e  more

WASHINGTON, Sept. 20 -- The Republican Governors Association issued the following news release: RGA Right Direction PAC, an organization supported by the Republican Governors Association (RGA), today released a new multimedia ad campaign in the Louisiana governor's race. The campaign, which includes television and digital advertising, as well as a new website, www.SECRankings.com, highlights Louisiana's last place finish in the "Southern Economic Competition" under Democratic Governor John Bel   more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Sept. 19 -- Memphis International Airport issued the following news release: The Memphis City Council has approved the appointment of Gregory Fletcher to the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority (MSCAA) Board of Commissioners. Fletcher, who was nominated by Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, will fill the term vacated by Keri Wright, which will expire on December 31, 2020. Fletcher is a retired attorney and most recently was a shareholder at the Memphis firm of Baker, Donel  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Sept. 17 -- Memphis International Airport issued the following news release: Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority (MSCAA) and its partners will host an Edge4Vets career development workshop for local veterans on Tuesday, October 1. The workshop will take place from 10 am until 3:30 pm at the Hilton Memphis at 939 Ridge Lake Boulevard in Memphis. MSCAA's Edge4vets partnership includes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), University Aviation Association and the Tennes  more

MILLIGAN, Tennessee, Sept. 9 -- Milligan College issued the following news release: * * * - Also named a best value, top performer on social mobility * * * In the U.S. News & World Report 2020 "Best Colleges" report released today, Milligan jumped 10 spots to No. 13 among the "Best Regional Universities" in the South. Milligan was one of only three Tennessee schools to rank among the top 15 in any category. Milligan also was ranked in two additional categories among regional universities in  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 20 -- Warburg Pincus, a private equity firm, issued the following news release: * * * - Investment will accelerate product development and innovation for the behavioral health industry * * * Qualifacts, one of the largest Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) electronic health record providers (EHR) for behavioral health and human service organizations, today announced that Warburg Pincus, a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing, has acquired the c  more

NEW YORK, Sept. 19 -- Skanska, a construction and development company, issued the following news release: Skanska has signed a contract with Six South Partners, an affiliate of Charleston, to build a residential apartment building in Nashville, Tennessee. The contract is worth $74 million, which will be included in the US order bookings for the third quarter 2019. Skanska will build a new 12-story, 41,600-square-meter residential apartment development with street-level retail space. The proj  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 17 -- The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency issued the following news: Brandon Taylor has been named the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Wildlife Officer of the Year for the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (SEAFWA). The recipient of the award was announced by Darren Rider, TWRA Boating and Law Enforcement Division colonel. Taylor is a wildlife officer in TWRA Region II's District 22 and was selected among other TWRA law enforcement offi  more

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 16 -- Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III issued the following news: Purdue Pharma announced today it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for it and all affiliated U.S. companies in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. This bankruptcy has been anticipated for some time. This bankruptcy filing is consistent with the settlement framework agreed upon by a bipartisan group of 29 attorneys general, over 2,000 cities and countie  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 16 -- The Tennessee Department of Education issued the following news release: Today Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn announced that the graduation rate for the 2018-19 school calendar year was 89.7 percent. Not only is that more than half a percentage point higher than the previous year, but it's the highest graduation rate on record for Tennessee. That translates into an increase of 183 graduates statewide. Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn says, "While thi  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 16 -- The Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration issued the following news release: Tennessee revenues were more than the budgeted estimates for the first month of the state's fiscal year. Finance and Administration Commissioner Stuart McWhorter today reported that overall August revenues were $1.1 billion, which is $82.8 million more than August 2018, and $28.8 million more than the budgeted estimates. The growth rate for all taxes in August was 7.87%.   more

ATLANTA, Tennessee, Sept. 18 -- The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development issued the following news release: * * * - County Employment and Wages in Tennessee - First Quarter 2019 * * * Employment rose in each of Tennessee's six largest counties from March 2018 to March 2019, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (USBLS) reported Wednesday. The USBLS qualifies large counties as those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2018. USBLS Regional Commissioner  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 19 -- The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development issued the following news release: Statewide unemployment for Tennessee held steady in August. The latest statistics released by the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) show the new seasonally adjusted rate of 3.5 percent mirrors the state's revised rate from July 2019. Tennessee also recorded an unemployment rate of 3.5 percent during the same time in 2018. "For more than  more

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 20 -- Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III issued the following news: The State of Tennessee, through the Attorney General's Office, is appealing a final order from the Davidson County Criminal Court that circumvented established legal procedures. The order exchanged the death sentence of Tennessee inmate Abu-Ali Abdur'Rahman for life in prison, thus essentially granting clemency through a court and a district attorney that both lack the authority to do so. J  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 20 -- The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development issued the following news: * * * - Airtech will create approximately 30 new jobs over the next 5 years - Company will invest $13 million in expansion * * * Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Airtech Advanced Materials Group announced today that the company will expand in Robertson County. The vacuum bagging and composite tooling  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 20 -- The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation issued the following news: Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) Commissioner David Salyers today announced $85,000 in a low-interest loan for drinking water infrastructure improvements. The loan is for Smith Utility District in Smith County. Smith Utility District will receive a construction loan totaling $85,000. The loan is part of the State Revolv  more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 16 -- The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation issued the following news: The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) has released its second solicitation for projects under the Volkswagen Diesel Settlement Environmental Mitigation Trust (VW Settlement EMT). The purpose of the EMT is to execute environmental mitigation projects that reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides. Under this solicitation, $16 million in EMT funding is availa  more

COOKEVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 21 [TNSgrantsresearch] -- Tennessee Technological University issued the following news release: A unique research project that focuses on electric vehicles in rural communities in the Upper Cumberland is being conducted by Tennessee Tech and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. The DOE has approved $779,823 for the project "Developing an EV Demonstration Testbed in the Upper Cumberland Region of Tennessee, an Economy Distressed Rural Region." The study, which   more

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 19 -- The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development issued the following news: * * * - Counties include Morgan, Robertson, Rutherford and White - Property Evaluation Program originates from the department's Select Tennessee Certification Program * * * The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) announced today the counties selected to participate in the latest round of the Select Tennessee Property Evaluation Program (P  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Sept. 16 -- The University of Memphis issued the following news release: Since beginning the Office of Economic Development and Government Relations in 2018, the University of Memphis has brought in $18.3 million in private investments from local, national and international companies. Ted Townsend, chief economic development and government relations officer for the University, gave a presentation to the Board of Visitors recently on how his division is helping to shape econ  more

DENTON, Texas, Sept. 16 -- The University of North Texas issued the following news release: University of North Texas College of Music junior Besnik Abrashi has earned first prize in the International Clarinet Association Young Artist Competition. Each year, the International Clarinet Association hosts a select group of clarinetists from around the world to perform live in the finals at its ClarinetFest. Besnik and his fellow UNT classmate Nathan Kock earned two of five finalists spots in the   more

CLARKSVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 18 -- The University of Tennessee System issued the following news release: Eighteen faculty and staff members, representing each University of Tennessee campus and institute and overseeing critical functions across the UT System, have been selected to be part of the second Executive Leadership Institute class. The second cohort will kick off on Oct. 8 at the UT Health Science Center in Memphis. This 12-month program, created by UT President Emeritus Joe DiPietro  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Sept. 16 -- The University of Tennessee Health Science Center issued the following news: By Amber Carter Valeria Vasquez, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Physiology in the College of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, is the recipient of the Margaret Oakley Dayhoff Award from the Biophysical Society, an organization that encourages the development and dissemination of knowledge in biophysics. Dr. Vasquez was recognized for her pione  more

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 9 -- The University of Tennessee issued the following news: UT ranks 44th among all public universities and 104th nationally, according to the 2020 U.S. News and World Report undergraduate rankings released today. The university improved in key areas measured by U.S. News--including six-year graduation rate and peer assessment. "It is always nice to be recognized as a top university, but what excites us more than the ranking is the improvement we are seeing in our   more

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee, Sept. 17 -- The University of Tennessee System issued the following news release: Legacy Parks Foundation and the University of Tennessee Research Park at Cherokee Farm announced a unique partnership to develop a concept plan that will make the research park an even more attractive site for innovative businesses to locate as well as enhance the park for the entire public to enjoy. The concept plan will respond to the increasing demand for integrated live-work-play environ  more

CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee, Sept. 19 -- The University of Tennessee's Chattanooga Campus issued the following news release: When North Korea fired off its nuclear missile test on Sept. 3, Jon Mies could pinpoint the exact moment the launches took place. How? An earthquake-detecting seismometer on the UTC campus picked up vibration, which showed up as a spike on the machine's readings. "It was small, tiny. I had to look pretty hard for it. But sure enough, we've got a little 'tick,' " Mies says. "  more

MARTIN, Tennessee, Sept. 9 -- The University of Tennessee's Martin Campus issued the following news release: The University of Tennessee at Martin claimed several top spots in the 2020 U.S. News & World Report college rankings released earlier today. UT Martin is the top-ranked public Tennessee institution on the lists of top regional universities in the south, best universities for veterans in the south, best-value universities in the south and regional universities for social mobility in the   more

MARTIN, Tennessee, Sept. 20 -- The University of Tennessee's Martin Campus issued the following news release: The Northwest Tennessee Food Processing and Agri-Business Conference will be held from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m., Oct. 10, in the University of Tennessee at Martin Boling University Center. The conference is free, but advanced registration is required by Oct. 3. Dr. Charlie Hatcher, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, and Pete Nelson, CEO and president of AgLaunch, will both  more