Wayne Davis to serve as Interim Chancellor

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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:

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
Both the number and quality of engineering students have increased under Dean Davis' leadership. Incoming freshmen have an average high school GPA of 4.05 and an average ACT math score of 30.5. The percentage of women engineering students has increased from 16 percent to 21.4 percent—on par with the national average—and is poised to increase with the incoming class of freshmen.

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.
 
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#2
#2
As an engineering alumni I know Dean Davis is all Vol and the Tickle College of Engineering has done very well on his watch. He’s also a double degreed grad. From an adminstrative standpoint this is good. No idea on his politics. And that might be a good sign too.
 
#4
#4
As an engineering alumni I know Dean Davis is all Vol and the Tickle College of Engineering has done very well on his watch. He’s also a double degreed grad. From an adminstrative standpoint this is good. No idea on his politics. And that might be a good sign too.

I think he might be a good one for the long haul. Lot's of accolades coming from the engineering department celebrating his retirement.

As an engineering alum, I get this publication in my mailbox. Lots of good things in here.

http://news.engr.utk.edu/pdfs/tennessee-engineer/tennessee-engineer-spring-2018.pdf
 

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#7
#7
Well, some good from this.

1. UT guy--double major from UT, so we do get what we want which is an individual with deep ties to UTK and knows the passion.

2. Experience in leadership positions

3. History of great results

I do not know him personally, and I see he is putting off retirement to serve in this role and it is a 6-12 month appointment. That makes me a bit nervous as that will be about the time HOH would get to "name" their replacement.

But for the interim, at least this is a person with deep ties to the university.
 
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#8
#8
Engineers can seldom see beyond black and white, sometimes having difficulty stepping back to see entire picture. Have a penchant for being extremely conservative...this hire was made extremely quickly. its almost as it it were pre meditated, or, someone high above hand picked a yes man.

Wonder who would make a power move to install a staunch conservative yes man? Does this sound like Haslam?

i hope my stereotype is waay off base. the man IS qualified. i dont mean to incite anger about bias toward wngineers. i just dont trust the Haslam's as far as they can be thrown. Also feel like as long as theyre involved in UT athletics, we're doomed.
 
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#9
#9
Was this not one of the candidates mentioned and rejected by the governor for the BOT? I may be mistaken but this name seems familiar for some reason. I'm tryin to find the article in question but haven't found it yet.
 
#10
#10
Engineers can seldom see beyond black and white, sometimes having difficulty stepping back to see entire picture. Have a penchant for being extremely conservative...this hire was made extremely quickly. its almost as it it were pre meditated, or, someone high above hand picked a yes man.

Wonder who would make a power move to install a staunch conservative yes man? Does this sound like Haslam?

My father-in-law was the Dean of Engineering at a major university...would not get close to identifying him as a staunch conservative or a narrow view kind of guy. I have always been impressed with his ability to understand multiple viewpoints and also see his decisions from a big picture....and he was a HUGE football fan for the university.

He was also an alumnus of that university.
 
#11
#11
My father-in-law was the Dean of Engineering at a major university...would not get close to identifying him as a staunch conservative or a narrow view kind of guy. I have always been impressed with his ability to understand multiple viewpoints and also see his decisions from a big picture....and he was a HUGE football fan for the university.

He was also an alumnus of that university.

Thanks for your reply. I know several engineers as well. It seems like the personality type you described is more of an anomaly than a norm. Sounds like he's been blessed with not only a high IQ, but great EQ and administrative kills.

I don't ask folks to change to said viewpoint, only to be open to another viewpoint. That's all one can ask?
 
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#12
#12
Engineers can seldom see beyond black and white, sometimes having difficulty stepping back to see entire picture. Have a penchant for being extremely conservative...this hire was made extremely quickly. its almost as it it were pre meditated, or, someone high above hand picked a yes man.

Wonder who would make a power move to install a staunch conservative yes man? Does this sound like Haslam?

i hope my stereotype is waay off base. the man IS qualified. i dont mean to incite anger about bias toward wngineers. i just dont trust the Haslam's as far as they can be thrown. Also feel like as long as theyre involved in UT athletics, we're doomed.

As a UT engineering graduate, I have to laugh at your stereotyping of engineers. He has been very successful as a Dean, and evidently has excellent administrative skills. I have no idea if he has any kind of relationship with the Haslams.
 
#13
#13
As a UT engineering graduate, I have to laugh at your stereotyping of engineers. He has been very successful as a Dean, and evidently has excellent administrative skills. I have no idea if he has any kind of relationship with the Haslams.

well. here we go then.
 
#14
#14
Thanks for your reply. I know several engineers as well. It seems like the personality type you described is more of an anomaly than a norm. Sounds like he's been blessed with not only a high IQ, but great EQ and administrative kills.

I don't ask folks to change to said viewpoint, only to be open to another viewpoint. That's all one can ask?

Not being argumentative and not trying to change your mind...just giving another viewpoint for you to be open to as well. That's all one can ask?
 
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#15
#15
And at least his press release says the right things:

"It is always unsettling when there is a sudden change in a senior leadership position within the university, and this situation is no exception,” Davis said in the release. “The University of Tennessee holds a special place in my heart. As an alum, a faculty member and an administrator, I have been committed to this great University and its journey toward excellence for more than 45 years. I am deeply honored to be asked to serve in this interim role as the university identifies the next steps toward its search for a new chancellor.”

And he knows Rocky Top:

Exploring the fundamentals of 'Rocky Top'
 
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#16
#16
Engineers can seldom see beyond black and white, sometimes having difficulty stepping back to see entire picture. Have a penchant for being extremely conservative...this hire was made extremely quickly. its almost as it it were pre meditated, or, someone high above hand picked a yes man.

Wonder who would make a power move to install a staunch conservative yes man? Does this sound like Haslam?

i hope my stereotype is waay off base. the man IS qualified. i dont mean to incite anger about bias toward wngineers. i just dont trust the Haslam's as far as they can be thrown. Also feel like as long as theyre involved in UT athletics, we're doomed.

The stereotype of an engineer, heads down over a calculator, or with a hard hat and a set of blueprints is accurate to a degree. But, if you have ever been to a city planning meeting or a public forum where an engineer has to defend his design to the public, political savvy is as much a part of the job as any other politician.

One thing about engineering - the whole concept of an engineer is to solve problems. First 3 years of undergraduate school is calculus, chemistry, physics (with a very small tad of English put in there). These courses set the groundwork for being able to describe the physical world mathematically. With that knowledge, not only do engineers solve problems, but they attempt to solve them with the most efficient solution, looking at things like material selection, sizing and labor costs. This is a good skill set that can be applied to many different jobs, including Chancellor.
 
#17
#17
Engineers can seldom see beyond black and white, sometimes having difficulty stepping back to see entire picture. Have a penchant for being extremely conservative....

...

i hope my stereotype is waay off base.

Don't worry, it is. Waay off.

Saying engineers can't "people" is like saying sociologists can't "math." It's simply not true.

Some of the best leaders I met in my Army career were engineers, in education or vocation or both.

So yeah. Waay off base.
 
#18
#18
I have no clue how a Haslam would even know how to find the engineering building. He is also close to Min Kao who funded much of the football staff hiring under Pruitt. It does not seem like a "family" insider.
 
#20
#20
Its not like Dipietro fired Beverly over one bad weekend. It was something clearly planned out and of course he would have already known who he was putting in as interim.

Real question is not this guy who seems well qualified and is all Vol - real question is who is appointed as permanent - almost guaranteed to be decided by Dipietro's successor. Timing at least looks right for Bill to step in after Gov is done. Joe leaves in the fall and a search committee, after interviewing multiple sacrificial candidates, remarkably finds that the right person was right here all along. :rolleyes: Then the new University President hand picks the new Chancellor. Someone please tell me that I am wrong and the stars dont look to be lining up that way like neon lights. :ermm:
 
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#21
#21
Engineers can seldom see beyond black and white, sometimes having difficulty stepping back to see entire picture. Have a penchant for being extremely conservative...this hire was made extremely quickly. its almost as it it were pre meditated, or, someone high above hand picked a yes man.

Wonder who would make a power move to install a staunch conservative yes man? Does this sound like Haslam?

i hope my stereotype is waay off base. the man IS qualified. i dont mean to incite anger about bias toward wngineers. i just dont trust the Haslam's as far as they can be thrown. Also feel like as long as theyre involved in UT athletics, we're doomed.

It is. Senior engineering and engineering leadership is pure judgement. Very little pure black and white.
 
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#22
#22
Don't worry, it is. Waay off.

Saying engineers can't "people" is like saying sociologists can't "math." It's simply not true.

Some of the best leaders I met in my Army career were engineers, in education or vocation or both.

So yeah. Waay off base.

^^^^^Engineer.

:)
 
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#23
#23
Engineers can seldom see beyond black and white, sometimes having difficulty stepping back to see entire picture. Have a penchant for being extremely conservative...this hire was made extremely quickly. its almost as it it were pre meditated, or, someone high above hand picked a yes man.

Wonder who would make a power move to install a staunch conservative yes man? Does this sound like Haslam?

i hope my stereotype is waay off base. the man IS qualified. i dont mean to incite anger about bias toward wngineers. i just dont trust the Haslam's as far as they can be thrown. Also feel like as long as theyre involved in UT athletics, we're doomed.


While he may be educated as an engineer, he is hardly one. He's an academician and an administrator.
 
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#24
#24
While he may be educated as an engineer, he is hardly one. He's an academician and an administrator.

I think he would tell you that he is absolutely still an engineer, 100%.

It is possible to be multi-talented. He can be very good at several things, not just one.
 
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#25
#25

Uneducated response.

I'm not familiar with how much time is the normal amount in a situation like this. My initial thought was naming an interim Chancellor in less than 24 hours of dismissing her, is an indication that the dismissal of Bev and choice of interim was strategically planned and Haslam is involved.

Maybe its normal though. Idk.
 

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