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Sports, research and the student experience: UT chancellor outlines university focuses during Campus Advisory Board meeting

On Friday, the Campus Advisory Board met to discuss the university's goals and its work over previous years.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Leaders hope to focus on athletics, research and the student experience at the University of Tennessee over the coming years.

They met in Knoxville Friday for a meeting of the Campus Advisory Board, where they gave presentations reflecting on several topics. Chancellor Donde Plowman gave an update during the meeting, where she said she believes the university could attain further success by building on student programs and opportunities, advancing research and building on athletic success.

She said that UT leaders were working to be the top athletics department in the country.

"I honestly believe that being the number one athletics department, which is Danny's goal, in the country distinguishes us, as well as a university. We're in conversations about what's next," she said.

She said all of the university's sports programs advanced to the postseason in the 2023-2024 season, and the baseball team won its first national title. She also said student-athletes posted a 3.0 GPA for both semesters and a record 3.4 GPA in the fall.

She also said UT saw a 91.9% retention rate in Fall 2024 and a 74% six-year graduation rate, both record student success measures. She said around 60,000 students applied to attend the university this year.

Plowman said the university spent more than $380 million on research efforts and three National Science Foundation Engine projects advanced to the final round. The program is part of a national effort to transform specific areas into hubs of innovation that advance technology and find solutions to social issues.

"I told Danny one day, I was trying to explain it to him, 'This is like winning three Orange Bowls,'" she said. "A single facility member, a single principal investigator — a narrow project is not going to get funded. It's big, interdisciplinary projects and ones that want to impact communities (that get funded)."

UT also signed a new 5-year master research agreement with Lockheed Martin, she said. The NSF also awarded the university $18 million for pandemic research, and the university is expected to lead a $25 million nuclear technology consortium.

The university will also expand agriculture investments as part of the agriculture institute's five-year strategic plan. To further aid in student success, the university expanded its Flagship Scholarship Program to include 14 new schools, adding to the pool of graduating high school seniors who may be chosen to attend the university on an expansive scholarship covering tuition and mandatory fees.

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