Digital Learning

Joshua Bowers is the Senior Assistant Director of Student Success for Digital Learning at UT.  He has served in this role since November 2023 and leads a team of Student Success Coaches supporting online students with proactive outreach, guidance, resources, and more.  Before coming to UT, Joshua worked for a nonprofit institution for six years leading Student Success and Online Academic Programs.  Joshua holds a bachelor’s in psychology and master’s in educational psychology both earned at UT.

UT Libraries

Michelle Brannen is the Head of Immersive Technologies and Spaces at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Libraries. Her work focuses on supporting scholars working with media, design, and digital scholarship tools and supporting a team of librarians and information specialists who work with scholars across the university community.

Office of Title IX

Laura Bryant serves as the Deputy Title IX Coordinator for Prevention, Training, and Evaluation in the Office of Title IX. Laura oversees the university’s comprehensive approach to preventing sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. Laura has worked at UT for eleven years, and currently serves as a member of the Commission for LGBT People and on the College of Social Work Advisory Board where she is also an adjunct professor.

Office of Innovative Technologies

Rochelle Butler is a Research Consultant in the Office of Innovative Technology (OIT). She provides statistical consulting and qualitative research design and analysis support to faculty, staff, and students utilizing university-supported research software.

Graduate Student Senate

A life-long resident of East Tennessee, Matthew Cooper is a PhD student in his fourth year in the Political Science Department. He studies public law, the Supreme Court, and separation of powers, primarily between the executive and judicial branches. Matthew has experience teaching various courses and has taken on leadership roles in the Political Science Graduate Student Association and Graduate Student Senate.

Office of Undergraduate Admissions

Courtney Gallagher is the Coordinator of First-Year Recruitment and Regional Recruiter for Alabama and Georgia for Undergraduate Admissions. She has recruited prospective first-year students to UT for over five years, and has also been an instructor for the First-Year Studies program for two years. Courtney earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Florida State University and her master’s degree in educational psychology from UT.

Graduate Student Senate

Born and raised in México, Sandra Dolores Gómez Amador (she/ella) is a poet, editor, interpreter-translator, and MFA student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She is an Under the Volcano, British Centre for Literary Translation, Community of Writers, and Letras Latinas fellow. Her work has been published in Aster Lit, Punto de Partida, FlowerSong Press, McNeese Review and elsewhere. She is working on her first poetry collection and is the nonfiction editor for Grist Journal.

Office of the Registrar

Jennifer Hardy is the Deputy Registrar and Residency Coordinator at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Her work history includes administrative experience at public and private schools and at small and large institutions. Jennifer has a bachelor’s degree in classics from the University of Cincinnati and a master’s degree in classics from Vanderbilt University. She has been at UT since 2006.

Teaching and Learning Innovation

Teresa Marie Hooper is a Faculty Consultant for TLI, where she partners with instructors and graduate students on inclusive course design and teaching practices. An alum of the University of Tennessee, she graduated with a PhD in English literature and taught as a college English instructor prior to joining TLI. Her current research interests include disability inclusion, neurodivergent learners, fostering belonging in the classroom, and plagiarism reduction.

Division of Student Success

Melissa Irvin has been appointed as the new Associate Vice Provost (AVP) for the Division of Student Success (DSS). As AVP, Irvin will provide executive leadership to the Academic Success Center, Center for Career Development and Academic Exploration, campus-wide Advising Initiatives, and Vol Success Teams, and serve as a pivotal leader in the Salesforce CRM implementation project..

Graduate Student Senate

Katie James is a third-year PhD Student at UT in the Theory and Practice in Teacher Education Department. Katie’s research explores the complex emotional labor experiences of mothers employed as early childhood educators. Her research is deeply personal and rooted in her own life experiences, as Katie is a nontraditional student mother of four children. This unique perspective drives her passion and dedication to advocate for parenting students and working mothers.

Student Conduct & Community Standards

Shaun McComas has served students at UT in Student Conduct & Community Standards since 2016. Shaun’s primary focus has been working with faculty, staff, and students to address behavioral and academic misconduct on campus while maintaining responsibility for office assessment, evaluation, and administration of Maxient’s student conduct database software. Shaun’s professional experiences paired with his Social Work education allow him to approach Student Conduct with compassion, understanding, and attention to environmental factors to promote student development.

GSS President

Iyanuoluwa Oyetunji, from Nigeria, is a 3rd year PhD student in the Department of Nutrition, and the president of the Graduate Student Senate. His research is focused on the relationships between dietary patterns/diet quality and risks of chronic diseases including obesity and colorectal cancer, and he currently works on projects funded by the National Institutes of Health. He also founded UT’s Nigerian Student Association and is excited to serve as the GSS President this year.

Office of Innovative Technologies

Rose Parker, a graduate of UT with a master’s degree in education, is an assistant director in the Office of Innovative Technologies (OIT). With 20+ years in IT support at the university, she coordinates the communication efforts for OIT and provides support to faculty, staff, and students for various OIT services.

UT Libraries

Anna Sandelli is Associate Professor and Head of Teaching and Learning Programs at the University of Tennessee Libraries, where she oversees a department focused on information literacy, online learning, and student success. Her teaching has included first-year and transfer student undergraduate instruction, as well as graduate student instruction for the School of Information Sciences, and workshops for a variety of student and faculty audiences, in in-person and online environments.

Office of Innovative Technologies

Rosie Sasso is the Teaching & Learning Technologies Support Manager in the Office of Innovative Technologies. Her team supports a wide array of instructional services utilized across all aspects of course design and delivery by faculty, staff, and students. Services include our campus Learning Management System (Canvas), synchronous course delivery (Zoom), technology-enhanced classrooms, personal response systems, and training.

Graduate School

Abby Sherman is the Coordinator of Student Services for the Graduate School. Abby has worked in graduate education at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, since 2015. She advises students on Graduate School policies and procedures and manages thesis and dissertation reviews. She facilitates student workshops and is part of the graduate and professional student professional development team.

The Hildreth Agency

Jaclyn Slack is the Senior Account Manager on the UT student health insurance account. She has been with the Hildreth Agency, the insurance broker for the student health insurance, for over 12 years. The Hildreth Agency provides valuable local service to UT students and administration, handles enrollments, and routinely assists students with escalated claims issues.

Student Disability Services

Lori Smith serves as the Associate Director of Student Disability Services and has been with SDS and the University of Tennessee since 2015. In addition to providing general leadership for SDS, she engages in outreach and educational opportunities for the campus community. Smith has also worked in various capacities at previous institutions including in the areas of student success programming, teaching, and academic advising.

GSS Vice President

Shokoufeh Soleimani is a second year PhD student studying Biomedical Engineering, from Iran. She is excited to serve as the GSS Vice President and enrich the campus community by connecting with others and fostering a spirit of collaboration. She is dedicated to creating a campus environment where every student feels valued, heard, and empowered to achieve their full potential, tackle the challenges ahead, and build a more inclusive, vibrant, and socially conscious community.

Office of Innovative Technologies

Rachael Stanley is a Learning Technology Specialist in the Office of Innovative Technologies. She provides instructional technology support and training for faculty, staff, and students, utilizing the classrooms, clickers, and educational and business software on campus, including the Microsoft Suite of apps.

Office of Ombuds Services

Duren Thompson is the Educational Program Coordinator for the Office of Ombuds Services. Prior to joining the office in Aug. 2022, Duren spent 20+ years as an instructional designer & facilitator of professional development for educational systems-change initiatives in K-12, adult literacy, and higher-education. Duren is currently pursuing a doctorate in Learning, Design, and Technology and a Qualitative Research Certification at the University of Tennessee.

Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships

Tim Woods is an associate director in the UT Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships and has been a member of this UT department for 31 years. He coordinates many of our internal processes for a variety of campus-based funds, including the posting of numerous institutional awards and other forms of financial assistance to the accounts of UT students.

Division of Student Life

Jill Zambito serves as the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health & Wellness in the Division of Student Life. In her role, she leads student health and wellness areas focused on providing student support and services including the Center for Health Education & Wellness (CHEW), Center for Care & Resilience (974-HELP), Student Counseling Center, Student Health Center, and RecSports.