Wayne Davis to Serve as Interim UT Knoxville Chancellor
Wayne Davis, dean of the UT Knoxville Tickle College of Engineering, will serve as UT Knoxville interim chancellor. He has agreed to serve in the role for six to twelve months and takes office on Monday.
The University is fortunate to be able to call on a proven and respected leader of Dean Davis' caliber who has served the flagship campus in numerous capacities for more than four decades. As its dean, he has presided over a thriving Tickle College of Engineering that has grown in enrollment and research productivity while achieving new heights of national recognition. I am grateful to both him and his wife, Sylvia, for postponing retirement to continue serving their alma mater during this critical time.
He has served in UT faculty and administrative roles for 44 years, including as assistant dean of the UT Knoxville Graduate School from 1985 through 1988 and as its associate dean from 1988 through 1991. He became interim dean of the Tickle College of Engineering in 2008 before assuming the role permanently in 2009. He is also a two-time UT Knoxville graduate, with a master's degree in Environmental Engineering and a doctorate in Civil Engineering from the Tickle College of Engineering.
His accomplishments as engineering dean include:
Dean Davis has been instrumental in fostering growth of the joint UT-ORNL Governor's Chairs program, with 12 of 16 Governor's Chairs having appointments to the college and all of whom were hired under his leadership.
In 2003, he was named University Macebearer, UT Knoxville's highest faculty honor. He has been recognized for his service and accomplishments by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy and Department of Transportation; the National Science Foundation, ORNL, and the American Society for Engineering Education.
Dean Davis is a fellow of the Air and Waste Management Association and American Society of Engineering Education and is a board-certified member of the American Academy of Environmental Engineering and Science.
Wayne Davis, dean of the UT Knoxville Tickle College of Engineering, will serve as UT Knoxville interim chancellor. He has agreed to serve in the role for six to twelve months and takes office on Monday.
The University is fortunate to be able to call on a proven and respected leader of Dean Davis' caliber who has served the flagship campus in numerous capacities for more than four decades. As its dean, he has presided over a thriving Tickle College of Engineering that has grown in enrollment and research productivity while achieving new heights of national recognition. I am grateful to both him and his wife, Sylvia, for postponing retirement to continue serving their alma mater during this critical time.
He has served in UT faculty and administrative roles for 44 years, including as assistant dean of the UT Knoxville Graduate School from 1985 through 1988 and as its associate dean from 1988 through 1991. He became interim dean of the Tickle College of Engineering in 2008 before assuming the role permanently in 2009. He is also a two-time UT Knoxville graduate, with a master's degree in Environmental Engineering and a doctorate in Civil Engineering from the Tickle College of Engineering.
His accomplishments as engineering dean include:
- Substantial gift leading to naming as Tickle College of Engineering in 2016
- Enrollment growth of almost 2,000
- Near-doubling of doctoral enrollment and graduate rates
- More than doubled endowed faculty positions, now 37, supported by $19 million in gift funds
- Increase of 42 full-time faculty positions
- Doubling of research expenditures to more than $70 million a year
- Reaching the current fundraising campaign's initial goal of $150 million and extending it to $200 million
- Opening of the Min H. Kao Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Building, the John D. Tickle Engineering Building, and a new $129-million Engineering Complex in design phase
- Adding of four named professors of practice
- Increasing partnerships and research with Oak Ridge National Laboratory and businesses throughout Tennessee
Dean Davis has been instrumental in fostering growth of the joint UT-ORNL Governor's Chairs program, with 12 of 16 Governor's Chairs having appointments to the college and all of whom were hired under his leadership.
In 2003, he was named University Macebearer, UT Knoxville's highest faculty honor. He has been recognized for his service and accomplishments by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy and Department of Transportation; the National Science Foundation, ORNL, and the American Society for Engineering Education.
Dean Davis is a fellow of the Air and Waste Management Association and American Society of Engineering Education and is a board-certified member of the American Academy of Environmental Engineering and Science.
