Great things
are happening at the University of Tennessee, and the latest
is right here. We'll update this page regularly, adding fresh
news as it happens. Look for other "great things"
in the topical categories.
New and Noteworthy
The University of Tennessee’s flagship campus at Knoxville welcomed its most academically qualified freshman class ever for fall 2006. One-third of the class of 4,200 has a core GPA of 4.0. Additionally, the new class has an average ACT score of 25.8 and a GPA of 3.6. Both indicators are up from last year.
The University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service dramatically increased its value to the state in 2006, generating $530 million in economic impact. During 2005, IPS generated $463 million in economic impact. The figures are calculated using revenue increases, contracts received, or cost avoidance in IPS work with businesses and governments throughout the state. IPS also increased from 7,700 to 12,400 the number of jobs it helped create or retain in Tennessee.
The University of Tennessee ranks among the nation's 40 top public universities, according to U.S. News & World Report's 2007 college and university rankings. UT has been listed among the top 40 public universities two years in a row.
The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education reports that the black student population at UT Knoxville grew 1.9 percent between 2001 and 2004 -- the largest jump at any of the nation's flagship state universities. About 15 percent of the fall 2006 freshman class are minorities; about 10 percent are black.
UT announced in April 2006 a record individual gift of $32.5 million from Jim and Natalie Haslam of Knoxville. The School of Music, College of Business Administration, Baker Center for Public Policy, and athletic department are beneficiaries of the gift. [read more]
A new electrical and computer engineering building is on the drawing board thanks to a gift of $12.5 million from Dr. Min Kao (Knoxville '77), chairman and CEO of Garmin Ltd. Kao also gave $5 million for programs. The state of Tennessee committed $25 million toward the new building. [read more]
UT received more than $285 million in research awards in 2005.
The UT Institute of Agriculture delivers $1.3 billion in benefits to society on an annual budget of $90 million in state and federal funds, achieving a 14-1 return on each funding dollar over six years.
The UT College of Nursing in Knoxville is offering the nation’s first graduate degree concentration in homeland security nursing. Doctoral and master’s degree students began studies this fall in the new program, which teaches how to deal with mass casualty disasters. The U.S. Health Resources Service Administration provided more than $650,000 for the program. [read more]
The UT campus in Knoxville will be home to a new Joint Institute for Advanced Materials. The federal government has appropriated $20 million for the facility, which will strengthen collaborative efforts between UT and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. [read more]
UT Martin was named a “Best Southeastern College” by The Princeton Review for 2007. UT Martin also was recognized in the 2007 U.S. News & World Report rankings, where it tied for 21st place among public universities in the South that grant bachelor's and master's degrees. UT Martin is West Tennessee’s only public, four-year institution outside of Memphis.
Four UT alumni are ambassadors to other nations. In October 2005, President Bush nominated Ronald Schlicher (’81) as ambassador to Cyprus. Others are Victor Ashe (’74), Poland; Michael Polt (’77), Serbia and Montenegro; and Margaret Scobey (’71, ’73), Syria. Scobey was recalled earlier this year in response to Syrian political unrest.
Former Senator Howard Baker (’49) was ambassador to Japan until retiring in early 2005.
Vice President Dick Cheney was among the dignitaries who helped break ground for UT’s Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy. Baker (’49) is former Senate majority leader, White House chief of staff, and ambassador to Japan. [read more]
UT Knoxville is the largest customer of the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Green Power Switch program. UT increased its renewable electricity purchases nine-fold after a student-led initiative.
For the second consecutive year, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga has ranked 40th among colleges in the South that offer primarily master's degrees as their highest degree, according to the 2007 edition of U.S. News & World Report's annual America’s Best Colleges guide.
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