University of Tennessee President John D. Petersen will deliver the spring commencement address to 800 graduates of The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Sunday, May 4 at 2 p.m. in McKenzie Arena.
As president, Dr. Petersen is the chief executive officer of the University of Tennessee System, which includes UTC, the flagship campus in Knoxville, and campuses in Martin, the Health Science Center in Memphis, the Space Institute in Tullahoma, and statewide institutes of agriculture and public service. Petersen is UT’s 23rd president; he accepted the position in July 2004.
Petersen has implemented a University-wide strategic plan. With his leadership, record university-wide research award totals were recorded in 2005 and 2006 and the UT System has seen an increase in state operating appropriations.
In 1975, Petersen received the Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He earned the B.S. in chemistry in 1970 from California State University, Los Angeles.
Petersen serves as Chairman of the UT-Battelle Board of Governors, and as a member of the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees. He serves on the Council for Chemical Research Board of Directors and is a member of the Executive Committee. He is also a member of the American Chemical Society Committee on Executive Compensation.
