In 1868 the board of trustees authorized President Humes to appoint and employ one or more persons to attend the 1868–69 legislative session in Nashville and seek to obtain the land-grant status for East Tennessee University. Edward J. Sanford, an alumnus, was hired as UT’s agent, and his lobbying was credited with helping to ensure the designation of the institution as Tennessee’s land-grant institution. In 1877 the trustees appointed Hugh L. McClung as their agent, with instructions to proceed to Nashville and endeavor to prevent any legislation that would be adverse to the interests of the university.