Seven UT female students were featured in the “Girls of the SEC” feature in Playboy in October 1989. A Playboy photographer was on campus for a week in April 1989, and many female students posed. Those who posed were paid—$100 for being clothed, $250 for a partially nude shot, and $500 for a completely nude … Continued

The Tennessee Pledge Scholarships were approved by the board of trustees in summer 2005. The first institutionally funded, need-based scholarship of its kind in the state, the Pledge guarantees that academically qualified, low-income students can attend UT for four years without incurring debt. To qualify, students must demonstrate need at or below the 150 percent … Continued

In July 1958 a poison control center staffed 24 hours a day opened at UT Memorial Research Center and Hospital. Started by Dr. Robert F. Lash, the center had on file the antidotes for every known poison, and had nine species of snakes preserved in glass jars so that snakebite victims could identify the type … Continued

The UT Police joined other law enforcement agencies in changing from red lights to blue for police cars in 1968. The move followed action of the 1967 state legislature granting permission to law enforcement agencies (but not other emergency vehicles) to use blue lights.

UT police were widely criticized for their handling of the murder of Thomas Baer on campus in 1988. In February 1991, amidst a controversy over whether UT police should release records of arrests and investigations involving students, State Senator Bud Gilbert filed a bill in the general assembly giving the Knoxville Police Department jurisdiction over … Continued

In 1939 UT Extension, in cooperation with the FBI and local law enforcement agencies, began a police training school. In 1943 a special effort was made to include guards of war plants from throughout the state.

Dennis Bernard Pollard, assistant dean of the College of Law was arrested at his home on March 24, 1998, for purchasing a child-pornography videotape on the Internet from government officials. In Pollard’s 2001 trial, Assistant District Attorney Nancy Harr also indicated that US Customs agents found “child erotica” and adult pornography in his home. He … Continued

Dr. Pollard received the BA in mathematics from UT in 1932. He became a member of the Physics Department faculty (1936–47) following receipt of a PhD in physics from Rice University in 1935. In 1944 he became a research scientist at Columbia University for a two-year period, working on the Manhattan Project. He conducted research … Continued

A portrait of Polly McClung, painted by Knoxvillian Edward Hurst (then of New York), was donated to the Polly McClung section of Strong Hall in 1945 by Mrs. Hugh Lawson McClung. Polly McClung was one of the UT’s first five coeds who attended Blount College in 1804. Hurst spent a year preparing the portrait. Since … Continued

Michael C. Polt, nominated by President George W. Bush as ambassador to Serbia and Montenegro, was sworn in on May 13, 2004, following Senate confirmation. He was sworn in as ambassador to the Republic of Estonia on November 30, 2009. Born in Austria, Polt received the master’s in public administration from UT in 1977. During … Continued