Campus Colleagues,
Please join me in congratulating and offering best wishes to chief of staff Terry Denniston, who is retiring from UTC at the end of this year.
Terry has been instrumental to the success of UTC. Prior to my arrival in 2013, Terry served as chief of staff to Chancellor Roger Brown. She helped me get off to a good start when I arrived at UTC as chancellor. Terry helped me understand the context of UTC, what had happened in the past, and plot a course for the future. She has continued to be an invaluable resource for information and advice; I will miss working with her.
As chief of staff and a member of the Executive Leadership Team, Terry has provided wise counsel and input for nearly every major issue facing UTC since 2006. She has served as the chancellor’s liaison to student government, attending their meetings and keeping me apprised of concerns and issues.
Terry joined UTC in 1986 as director of alumni affairs, creating a culture that welcomed Mocs to reconnect with their University.
Shortly after Dr. Roger Brown became the UTC chancellor, he brought Terry over to Founders Hall in 2006 to serve as his chief of staff. I am sure he found Terry’s institutional knowledge to be as important to him as it has been to me.
She has been a longtime member of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE); served on the boards of the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau, Senior Neighbors of Chattanooga, the UTC Mocs Club and the Chattanooga Quarterback Club; and been a volunteer for the Chattanooga Riverbend Festival and a charter docent for the Tennessee Aquarium. She is advisor to the Chancellor’s Ambassadors and served as coach of the UTC dance team for 13 years. Her desire to connect the University with the community is evident in all she does in promoting partnerships.
Terry was named a 2018 Woman of Distinction of Greater Chattanooga. Honorees chosen as Women of Distinction are recognized because they devote their time to improve the quality of life for others and are influencers to the community, encouraging Chattanooga women to make positive differences in the region.
UTC will miss Terry’s strong leadership skills, her extensive knowledge and her passion for student success. She has often been the first point of engagement people have with UTC, a much-needed friendly face sporting blue-and-gold and a UTC Power C lapel pin.
Given the current challenges with COVID-19, a reception for Terry will be delayed to a date when we can safely gather. In the interim, please feel free to send your email congratulations to Terry for her many years of dedication to our University.
We sincerely thank Terry for her service to the entire UTC campus community. We wish her the best as she embarks on an exciting next chapter.
Effective January 1, 2021, David Steele, the UTC director of civic engagement, will assume the responsibilities of chief of staff. An announcement will be forthcoming.