President John Shumaker sent a series of emails to students, faculty, and staff in February 2003 detailing Governor Bredesen’s request for budget cuts in all departments, and announced that UT would be a “No Whine Zone.” A website through which individuals could send suggestions and comments to the president indicated considerable controversy about the pronouncement as a deterrent to speaking out by those who disagreed with decisions affecting their courses of study and careers. Shumaker had made a number of speeches around the state declaring that UT would be a “no whine zone.”