Latest news with #PhilRoe
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Fmr Congressman Roe discusses passage of Blue Water Navy Act for Agent Orange effects
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) — Phil Roe spent six terms as the congressman for the First District of Tennessee. He served on the Veterans Affairs Committee and passed several bills to benefit veterans and servicemembers. 'I went to Leader [John] Boehner, and I said, 'Look, I need to be on the Veterans Affairs Committee,'' the former congressman recalled. 'And he said, 'Why?' I said, I'm a physician. I'm a veteran. I did some of my training in a [Veterans Affairs] hospital, and I've seen VA patients. I said, I need to be on that committee.' Roe was one of the last people drafted in the Vietnam War. He was in medical school, and his orders to go to Da Nang were deferred, so he ended up in Korea instead. He was the captain of the medical battalion in the 2nd Infantry Division. 'There were three of us young doctors that were in charge of taking the healthcare of an infantry division with 10,000 men in it.' He got out of the Army in 1975 and continued with medical school. Roe became one of the region's most well-known OB-GYNs. He spent some time in local government before heading to the nation's capital. 'When we put our folks at risk like that, then I think as a country, we're obligated to take care of any potential problems that they have in the future,' he said. Those who were boots on the ground and part of the brown water navy in Vietnam were already presumed to have exposure to Agent Orange. 'It turned out that the Blue Water people, the people were on ships that serviced the aircraft and so forth, drank the water they desalinated, were not included. And that was the Blue Water Navy bill.' The bill also included those in the Korean Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, near where Roe was. 'We should have figured out something. When you spray it on a leaf and it wilts- that's probably not going to be good for you if you're attached to it. But we didn't have all that,' he said. 'It just took time to realize this. And then we had to appropriate the money. It's very expensive.' The road to the bill's passage was not easy. The former doctor spent hours going through studies while working on it. 'There were two studies that were done, one a Russian study, and one was an Australian study. I'm probably the only guy to ever read both of them,' he said. 'I couldn't come to a conclusion about whether it was presumptive or actually helped cause something or not. And I said, okay, if I've looked at this, the only evidence we have, and I can't determine scientifically whether it does or doesn't, I'm going on the side of the serviceman and woman. That's what I'm going to do.' It took 10 years to get the bill passed. And when it finally went through in 2019, there were fewer than 90,000 blue water navy service members left. 'You have to be pretty bullheaded to stay with something that long and what people don't realize is that every congress you have to start all over again,' Roe said. 'So every two years I had to restart this process and try to convince people it took that long to get it done. But we got it done.' Join News Channel 11 on Friday at 5 p.m. as we continue our series on The Vietnam War: 50 Years Later. And this Saturday, you can watch Vietnam War: A Lost Generation at noon. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Third tuition hike could be coming for Austin Peay State University undergrads
Austin Peay State University could see another tuition and fees increase for undergraduates. The Board of Trustees will discuss a 5% hike during its April 11 meeting, the university announced Wednesday. If approved, the increase would be the highest the university has seen in the last three years, and a little below the maximum range of 6.5% set by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC). "APSU is exercising prudent fiscal stewardship with a limited tuition and fee increase," an APSU public notice said. "The revenue derived from the increase will be used for enhancing student experiences and to address rising salary and contractual costs of the university." Public comments about the proposed increase can be submitted ahead of APSU's Board of Trustees meeting via the Tuition Transparency and Accountability website or by mail to the Secretary of the Board at P.O. Box 4576, Clarksville, TN 37044. They will be accepted through April 9. This the third year in a row APSU has considered a tuition hike. The university passed increases of 4% and 3% during the last two years. In June, before the board voted to raise tuition by 4%, many members said they were reluctant to go through with it, but felt it had to be done. "We want to make college affordable for everyone, and I think this university has tried to do that the best they can," APSU Trustee Phil Roe said at the time. "4%, I'd like to see zero, and it's about what inflation is and the cost for this university. Whether it's food or electricity or our personnel goes up just like anybody else, it's a business." In 2023, when the Board voted to raise undergrad tuition and fees by 3%, APSU Board Chair Don Jenkins said the increase wasn't something board members took lightly. "Inflation has raised by 10%, and we're raising tuition by 3% to offset the cost of salaries, but we are aware of the economy," he said. The 2023 increase was the first time the university had raised tuition since June 2021. Then, it increased by 1.6% and fees increased by 2% for the 2021-22 academic year. Jenkins said that while he hates to see another increase, the board realizes they have to stay competitive with goods and services like every other industry. "I think one of the things we need to consider is that when inflation was running about nine to 10%, we raised 3%," he said. "We went in the hole when we had the greatest amount of inflation." A possible raise in tuition isn't the only thing coming for APSU students for the 2025-26 academic year. Austin Peay announced in December that it would launch a Tuition-Free program for Tennessee residents beginning in Fall 2025. The program will cover the last dollar amount of tuition and related education fees that aren't covered by federal or state grants, scholarships, discounts or Veterans Education Benefits. It is for incoming freshman and transfer students who: Tennessee residents or graduates of Fort Campbell High School Household incomes doesn't exceed $75,000 per year Qualify for the HOPE Scholarship Enroll as full-time students beginning in Fall 2025 or later Have not previously earned a Bachelor's degree In addition to the university's other qualifications, students must meet three other qualifications for the program: Students must be admitted to APSU Complete the FAFSA Sign up for Governors Orientation by May 1, 2025 Kenya Anderson is a reporter for The Leaf-Chronicle. She can be contacted at kanderson@ or on X at kenyaanderson32. Sign up for the Leaf-Chronicle to support local journalism at This article originally appeared on Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle: Austin Peay State University board to consider 5% tuition, fee hike
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Superior High School Pledgemakers want to reinstate random drug testing
Mar. 21—SUPERIOR — Following a successful campaign to restrict the number of smoke shops in Superior, students in the Superior High School Pledgemakers group are seeking to resume random drug testing at the school. Student leaders for the group, whose 600 members have pledged to stay drug- and alcohol-free over their high school career, spoke to the Superior School Board on March 17. In addition to hosting activities and events at the high school each year, Pledgemakers visited seventh graders at Superior Middle School to talk about the dangers of tobacco and vaping devices; led a Youth Voice project that asked Superior High School students to anonymously share how vaping and nicotine have impacted their lives; gave a presentation at a Youth Wellness Summit; and visited 20 tobacco retailers in the city as part of a retail shop assessment. The retail shop assessment, which took place in December in conjunction with the American Lung Association, revealed some concerns. "We had a lot of experiences, let's say, including getting offered wine by one of the retailers, even though we had introduced ourselves as high schoolers, as well as seeing a lot of different signage not being updated to the (federal) 21 age," said Pledgemakers Vice President Lauren Heintz, a junior. The group impacted the community July 2 when the Superior City Council adopted new regulations that will prevent additional smoke shops from opening in Superior. "It is pretty historic legislation," said Pledgemakers adviser Phil Roe. "There are two places in our state that have had some kind of an an ordinance like that. It was Milwaukee and Superior." While councilors were divided prior to the vote, he said, the regulation was unanimously approved after students shared their personal experiences. "This is what democracy looks like," said Pat McKone with the American Lung Association. "It is engaging in change, positive change, prevention, early prevention, so you're proud. You should be proud. It's beautiful, it really is." Pledgemakers President Alton Morrissey, a senior, said their concerns moving forward are reinstating random drug testing at Superior High School and seeking additional funding. The group's budget was cut from $10,000 in 2023-24 to $4,000 in 2024-25. "Drug testing was cut five years ago, which obviously leaves a big gap where our kids can be exposed to drugs and alcohol and become addicted," said Pledgemakers Vice President Aiden Pagnucci, a sophomore. "So we are here to propose drug testing being reintroduced in a way for students to be screened and receive help there. We would like this in order to build a safer school culture." The Superior School District launched random drug testing in 2006 to combat what administrators at the time called a drug culture. The tests were administered to students involved in co-curricular activities — athletic and academic teams — as well as students who park in the school lot and members of the Pledgemakers group, which was organized in 2007. Activities and Athletics Director Ella Olson confirmed that the tests stopped in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and have not been reinstated, although the district still has an active drug testing policy. She couldn't give a cost estimate for resuming the testing, but she said it's great to see students leading initiatives. "I think it's important for all students to feel valued and safe in their school. If drug testing could help kids overcome an addiction, I love it. If drug testing is simply a tool used to 'catch' students, then I feel that goes against our value and mission of making all students feel valued here at SHS," Olson said. Morrissey said the group's advocacy is targeted at helping fellow students. Teaming up last year with Charmaine Swan, coordinator of the Northwest Wisconsin Lung Health Association boosted their efforts, Morrissey said. "She has an immense amount of knowledge, and just with public policy, public health and just community engagement, all that knowledge was instrumental to us," Morrissey said. The students understood and really jumped in to make changes at the local level, Swan said. "I think I just feel really encouraged and hopeful working with this particular group of youth, because they really understand the advocacy part," she said. School Board President Steve Olson said he was impressed with the group's powerful student voice and "them wanting to be involved in making the experience for all kids in the school to be a positive one, not afraid to step out and say, we need to do this."
