KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Twenty-eight new members have joined the University of Tennessee Chancellor’s Associates with the beginning of the new academic year at UT-Knoxville.
The Chancellor’s Associates, established in 1972, is a group of 85 business, professional and community leaders from the greater Knoxville area who are interested in UT-Knoxville and its development.
The Chancellor’s Associates meet monthly with Dr. Bill Snyder and other key campus administrators to learn about the diverse program offerings at UT. The informed members serve as a link between the university and its external constituents, helping articulate the mission, vision, goals and plans of UT-Knoxville, Snyder said.
“We are very eager to get to know the new members of this important group. Their feedback on UTK is important to us. In addition, their active interest in and support of UTK will help enhance the climate of goodwill the university currently has with the public,” Snyder said.
Dr. Fred Hurst, M.D., a new associates’ member, said, as a UT alumnus and a citizen of Knoxville he is “especially interested in learning more about the internal facts and statistics pertaining to UT.
“Equally important, however, is my interest in being actively supportive of UT in terms of recruitment, promotion, contributions, and seeing that our State’s flagship higher education institution receives the recognition, financial support, and infrastructural upkeep which will assure continued high quality education of our children for reasonable cost.”
This year’s members are: Bridget Bailey, attorney, Lewis, King, Krieg, Waldrop & Catron; Doug Bannister, senior pastor, Fellowship Evangelical Free Church; Blenza Davis, principal, Sarah Moore Greene Magnet School; Brian DeBusk, chief executive officer, DeRoyal Industries; Bob Eldridge, senior vice president, TIS Insurance Services; Bill Emendorfer, chief executive officer, Restaurant Concepts (Italian Market & Grill, Baker Peters Jazz Club).
Dennis Falls, technical manager and director of the Asia/Pacific Region for ALCOA; John Faris, owner-operator, McDonalds and Faris Properties; Dr. Fred A. Hurst, board certified family physician, Summit Medical; Tom Ingram, president, Knoxville Area Chamber Partnership; John Rice Irwin, founder and director, Museum of Appalachia; Dr. Vincent M. Jones Sr., The Village Dental Center; George Korda, partner, The Ingram Group; Jon Lawler, president, Venture 29/7.
Jennifer Martella, president, Martella Associates; Hugh McWilliams, managing partner, McWilliams and Company, Certified Public Accountants; Bonny Naugher, vice president-secretary, Property Appraisal Services; Randy Nichols, Knox County District Attorney General; Lila Pfleger, executive director, Lucille S. Thompson Family Foundation and business manager/CPA -TABCO; Charles Powell, senior electrical engineer, Lockwood Greene Engineers.
Brad Rayson, director, Union of Needletrades Industrial and Textile (UNITE); Lee Sherbakoff, trust officer, Trust Company of Knoxville; Lynn Talley, manager, TVA; Dr. Bob Van Hook, president, Lockheed Martin Energy Systems; Dr. Joshua Williams, psychologist, Williams Psychological Corp.; Saadia L. Williams, executive director, Project Change; Anne Woodle, executive director, Children’s Hospital Rehabilitation Center; Sharon Woods, senior vice president of marketing, BankFirst.
The Chancellor’s Associates’ terms are based on the academic year, with the membership changing in September.