The UT Faculty Association was chartered by the State of Tennessee in 1936 as an organization for faculty and upper administration of the institution, formalizing the association of a group of faculty who convened regularly in the cafeteria of Sophronia Strong Hall for coffee and conversation. The first building allocated for use by the UT … Continued

At the June 1973 meeting, the board of trustees authorized President Boling to appoint faculty as ex officio nonvoting members of nine board committees: student affairs, athletics, urban and public service, development, alumni and public relations, agriculture, medical affairs, and academic affairs. The Academic Affairs Committee was to include the heads of the faculty senate … Continued

In 1933 the winding down and then disbanding of the student dramatic club (Tennessee Players) spawned a new troupe: the Faculty Players. This company of university teachers, staff, and their spouses brought an annual series of full-length plays to Knoxville audiences from 1933 to 1942, at which time a fall season of one-act plays given … Continued

Faculty Pub, initiated in 2010 by Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs Sarah Gardial, is a twice-monthly gathering of faculty from across the university at the Boathouse for appetizers, drinks, entertainment, and conversation.

In the 1930s there was talk of a representative faculty senate that would reduce the number of faculty attending meetings and provide more time for deliberation of issues brought to the faculty. In the late 1940s, as the number of faculty approached one thousand, meetings of the faculty became cumbersome. They had to be held … Continued

The August 2007 issuance of a University Mission Statement and the subsequent issuance of a document setting forth organizational responsibilities touched off expressions of long-standing dissatisfaction with the UT system’s increasing assumption of responsibilities that on other flagship campuses within university systems were the responsibility of the campus. Chief among the issues were the continued … Continued

Founded by Mrs. Brown Ayres in 1912, all women faculty members and wives of professors were automatically members of the organization.

A protest letter signed by 39 faculty and staff was sent to Vice Chancellor John Peters following his 1996 appointment of Professor Charles Glisson as interim dean of the College of Social Work. African American associate dean of the college Jeannette Jennings had expressed interest in being appointed. Peters met with representatives of the group, … Continued

The Calendar Committee officially instituted Fall Break in 1990 as a one-day holiday on October 5. The idea for a fall break was raised in the spring of 1988 by Elizabeth McKenzie, then chair of the Undergraduate Academic Council, who noted that a fall break had not been included in the new semester calendar. The … Continued