Margie Nichols, senior director of communications and government relations for the city of Knoxville, has been named executive assistant to UT president John Petersen.
Nichols will have chief of staff responsibilities and will oversee organization and follow-up as part of the president’s senior staff. She replaces Lofton Stuart who held the position for three years, prior to being named executive director of the UT National Alumni Association earlier this fall.
Nichols, who joined Mayor Bill Haslam’s senior staff in January 2004, has had responsibility for internal and external communications for the city. She worked in television news for 26 years, including an eight-year stint as news director at WBIR-TV in Knoxville.
She is past president of the Executive Women’s Association and is a member of the UT National Alumni Association Board of Governors Executive Committee. She has also served as chair of the UT Knoxville Chancellor’s Associates.
Nichols holds a bachelor’s degree in English from UT Martin.