UTC Names Dr. Trae Cotton Vice Chancellor for Student Development

Trae T. Cotton, Ph.D. was named today as the new Vice Chancellor for Student Development at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Dr. Cotton will join the UTC executive leadership team Feb. 1, 2018, from Winston-Salem State University in Winston-Salem, N.C., where he has served as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs since 2011. While at Winston-Salem, he also was as an adjunct faculty member. Prior to his roles there, he spent three and one-half years at Radford University (Va.), where he was Associate Vice President and Dean of Students.

“We are looking forward to having Dr. Cotton join our leadership team,” said UTC Chancellor Steven R. Angle. “His background and experience are exactly what UTC needs to provide the best possible learning and living environment for our students. He has been active in service to his community, and we look forward to the contributions he will make to the greater Chattanooga area as well as our campus.

“I want to express my gratitude to Dr. Dee Dee Anderson, who has served UTC admirably as interim Vice Chancellor for Student Development for more than a year,” Dr. Angle added. “Dr. Anderson has led many important efforts, including the leadership role in the development of our newest and largest housing unit, West Campus Housing, that is scheduled to open in August.”

Dr. Cotton’s career includes leadership positions in student life at California State University Channel Islands, where he was the founding director of its Office of Student Development in 2002, and also at Walden University, Florida Gulf Coast University and Edison Community College. He has distinguished service as a faculty presenter at the NASPA African-American Male Summit annual conference seven times since 2009.

Dr. Cotton holds a Doctor of Philosophy from Walden University in Minneapolis. He earned his bachelor of arts at the University of North Texas and his master’s degree from Eastern New Mexico University.

He and his wife, Silvia Ramos, will be relocating to Chattanooga in the near future. They are the parents of two daughters, Ebony, 15, and Aaliyah, 13.