Tuesday’s second annual Mocs Give Day was a record-setting success, with preliminary estimates of more than $235,000 being raised thanks to 750-plus donors. Thank you to our UTC family of donors—alumni, friends, faculty, staff and students—for coming together to support our students and our University.
Earlier this week, the UTC Campus Advisory Board approved our new five-year Strategic Plan. The document will now be sent to the UT System Board of Trustees for final approval on October 22. I am very grateful to the many members of our campus community, alumni and friends of the university who engaged in this process over the past year. Thank you to those who served on a committee, participated in a focus group or town hall, or submitted ideas through our online portal or email. Soon, all of us will have the task of giving life to the plan in the months and years to come.
National Hispanic Heritage Month continues through October 15, and the Office of Multicultural Affairs has several more festivities planned as part of “Esperanza: A Celebration of Hispanic Heritage and Hope.” Please visit the Hispanic Heritage Month web page for event details.
October is Exercise is Medicine On Campus Month at UTC. The physical activity-based initiative features walking routes and fitness challenges that students, faculty and staff can participate in via social media. Congratulations to Karissa Peyer in Health and Human Performance for leading the charge in putting the event calendar together.
Chattanooga Hip-Hop Week is coming to town, and UTC is playing host for the first time. A live concert for UTC students, faculty and staff called “Bringing Chattanooga to UTC” will take place at 8 p.m. October 14 on Chamberlain Field. A big thanks to the Division of Diversity and Engagement, the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the Department of Performing Arts for bringing this event to campus.
Also on the music front, a special guest is coming to Chattanooga for the Mocs’ next home football game on October 16. Singer/actor Ruben Studdard, a Grammy Award-nominee and the second-season champion on American Idol, will sing the National Anthem before the Mocs’ contest against ETSU at Finley Stadium.
Lane Gutridge, a senior business administration major and former SGA president, has been selected to serve a one-year term as a non-voting member of the UT Board of Trustees and a voting member of the Board’s influential Education, Research and Service Committee. What a tremendous opportunity for Lane!
Congratulations to Professor of Psychology Ralph Hood, who has spent 51 years at UTC, on being part of an international team that received a three-year grant from the John Templeton Foundation totaling almost $9.5 million. The team will study how physical and social environments affect health, behavior and development over a person’s lifetime.
Kudos to UTC physical therapy professor emeritus Cathie Smith for receiving the American Physical Therapy Association’s Humanitarian Award. The award celebration was recently held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
A hearty thanks to the Information Technology team for the behind-the-scenes work in preparation for the Office 365 migration to the UT system-wide Microsoft environment this weekend. This move will provide all employees with simplified collaboration to your Microsoft applications and better security. The migration window starts tomorrow (October 8) at 5 p.m. Please visit the Microsoft O365 Migration web page for more information.
With fall break taking place Monday and Tuesday (October 11-12), we have reached the midpoint of the semester. Have a great weekend!