DeKalb Jobless Rate Jumps to 5.2% in July

August 25, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

Newly released data from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) shows July 2019 county unemployment increased in counties across the state.

DeKalb County’s Jobless rate for July was 5.2%, up from the rate of 4.8% for June and an increase from the 2018 July jobless rate of 4.9%.

The local labor force for July was 7,988. A total of 7,569 were employed and 419 were without work.

Rates inched upward in 93 of Tennessee’s 95 counties and remained the same in two counties last month. 44 counties have an unemployment rate of less than five percent, while 51 counties have a rate of five percent or higher.

“Due to a variety of factors, it’s not unusual to see unemployment increase on the county level during the summer months,” said TDLWD Commissioner Jeff McCord. “We’ll continue to monitor these rates as we finish the summer and move into fall.”

Williamson and Davidson counties had Tennessee’s lowest jobless rate during July. At 3.2 percent, both counties experienced a jump of 0.2 of a percentage point in unemployment when compared to June’s numbers.

Sevier, Cheatham, Rutherford, Sumner, Wilson, Maury, Robertson, and Dickson round out the list of counties with the ten lowest unemployment rates in the state.

Hancock County had the state’s highest unemployment rate at 8.2 percent. That is 0.5 of a percentage point higher than it was in June. At 8.1 percent, Clay County had the second-highest jobless rate in July. That represents a jump of 0.8 percentage point when compared to the previous month.

Lake, Rhea, Weakley, Bledsoe, Lauderdale, Carroll, McNairy, and Dyer counties had the next highest unemployment rates in July.

Statewide, unemployment slightly increased last month to 3.5 percent, an uptick of 0.1 of a percentage point when compared to June’s statistic.

The July unemployment rate for the United States remained unchanged in July at 3.7 percent.

County unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted, while both the state and national rates use the seasonal adjustment to eliminate outside influencers on the statistics.

August 24, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

Members of the “Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour” will sponsor their annual “Art for Kids Day” Saturday, August 24 at the DeKalb Farmers Market in support of the School System’s Back Pack Program to help feed hungry children.

Claudia Lee, local artisan, said all the artwork for this annual event is donated and all the money raised from sales goes to the Back Pack Program.

(Video below is from last year’s event)

IMG_0622 from dwayne page on Vimeo.

“One hundred percent of the money from the sales goes to help fund the Back Pack program which provides supplemental food for kids in DeKalb County who are not getting fed regularly at home. We are one of the organizations that does fund raising for this program,” added Lee.

“The art work is donated by area artists as well as artists from the Appalachian Center for Crafts, and Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour. We do it once a year. It is almost always in August. We collect art work all year long and people look forward to it. They get some great deals. The prices are amazing,” said Lee.

According to Elise Driver of the Coordinated School Health Program, About 6% of the DeKalb County School student population goes hungry on a regular basis with meals provided at schools being their main source of food. “Coordinated School Health began sending bags of food home to children eleven years ago. We began with long weekends and holidays and now we feed them every week during the school year. Funding is not always consistent and we are continuously seeking donations of food and or money to maintain our program, to improve the nutritional value of the food products given to students, and to promote healthy eating habits,” said Driver.

To make a donation, contact Driver at the Board of Education Central Office known as the Ernest Ray Education Center at 615-597-4084.

Meanwhile, the 20th annual “Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour” is scheduled for October 25-27.

Every fall, on the last full weekend in October, when the color is breathtaking and there is a certain crispness in the air, the artists of Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour in DeKalb and Cannon Counties open their studios for a free three day open studio event. Celebrating its 20th year, the tour has grown to include 15 stops with 30 participating artists. Artists will be demonstrating their craft mediums and offering handcrafted shopping opportunities at every stop on the tour. This is a perfect family outing or weekend getaway.

To learn more visit

http://offthebeatenpathtour.com/

August 24, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

The DeKalb County Tigers fought their way back from a 21-0 first half deficit to tie late in the game but the Warren County Pioneers rallied with two touchdowns to win 35-21 in this season opening border rivalry Friday night in McMinnville.

Turnovers plagued both teams especially in the first half.

The Pioneers got the ball to start the game and fumbled on the second play from scrimmage at the Warren County 38 yard line. But on the next play DC quarterback Axel Aldino threw an interception. Xander Lee for the Pioneers later scored on a 9 yard run. Steven Curtis added the extra point to give Warren County a 7-0 lead with 10:05 left in the 1st period.

The Pioneers extended their lead with 6:02 left in the 2nd period as La’cedrick Cox scooped up a Tiger fumble and raced 55 yards for a touchdown. The PAT by Curtis gave Warren County a 14-0 lead.

After another interception by Aldino, the Pioneers started a scoring drive at the DC 15 yard line with C.J. Taylor finding the end zone on a 3 yard run with 3:06 left in the 2nd period. The PAT by Curtis was good and Warren County led 21-0 at halftime.

The Tigers got on the board with 6:32 left in the 3rd period completing an 82 yard drive as Quarterback Colter Kilgore, in for an injured Aldino, found Isaac Knowles on an 8 yard touchdown pass. The PAT by Alan Munoz cut the Warren County lead to 21-7

DC drew closer with 8:57 left in the 4th period as Quarterback Aldino, back in the game, scored on a 5 yard run. The PAT by Alan Munoz was good and the Tigers trailed 21-14.

DeKalb County tied the game with 3:08 left as Aldino scored on a 3 yard quarterback keeper. Munoz connected on the PAT to knot the count at 21-21.

Warren County’s C.J. Taylor, in at quarterback, led the Pioneers on a go ahead drive and scored on a 36 yard run with 1:07 left in the game. Curtis’ PAT put the Pioneers back out front 28-21.

The Tigers hopes for a tying score were dashed as Warren County’s Eli Buchanan picked off a Colter Kilgore pass and rambled 70 yards for a touchdown with 17 seconds left. Curtis nailed the extra point and the Pioneers prevailed 35-21.

DeKalb County will be on the road to Upperman at Baxter next Friday night, August 30. WJLE will have LIVE coverage. Kick-off will be at 7:00 p.m.

« First ‹ Previous 1 1681 1771 1779 1780 17811782 1783 1791 1881 2494 Next › Last »