News

The Tennessee Board of Regents today appointed Nathan Garrett president of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology Nashville, effective Jan. 5. He is currently TBR assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs and workforce alignment, and was interim president of TCAT McMinnville from July 2020 through September 2021.

Garrett succeeds the late Mark Lenz, TCAT Nashville’s president for 12 years who passed away Sept. 8.

Students, faculty and staff at Tennessee’s public community and technical colleges collected 132,701 food items, including cash donations, for food pantries on their campuses, and food banks and other organizations in their communities, during the College System of Tennessee’s 23nd Annual Food Drive Challenge.

The Tennessee Board of Regents will hold a special called meeting Monday, Dec. 20, to receive and consider approving the chancellor’s recommendation for the next president of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Nashville and to approve criteria for the next president of TCAT Morristown.

The new Anderson County Higher Education Center “is an example of what should be happening” to spur workforce development, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee told an audience who gathered for the facility's opening ceremony Friday, December 10.

Gesturing to students in the back who will be attending classes at the center starting in January, Gov. Lee thanked them for “pursuing the path you’re pursuing.”

“The private sector drives what we’re doing here,” Gov. Lee told attendees crowded into the spacious classroom where diesel powered technology will soon be taught.

The Tennessee Board of Regents honored retiring Dyersburg State Community College President Karen Bowyer during the board’s quarterly meeting Thursday in Nashville.

The board unanimously approved a resolution of appreciation for her service. The resolution (attached) outlines the highlights of her leadership of the college and her career serving students, and expresses the board’s appreciation for her many contributions to the college, her students, the TBR system and the state.

Overall enrollment in the Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology increased 15 percent this fall term over fall 2020, to 18,213, while total enrollment in the state’s community colleges declined about 6 percent during the same period, according to the latest figures presented at the Tennessee Board of Regents quarterly meeting Thursday.

Three finalists for the next president of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology at Nashville have been selected. All three will participate in campus public forums on the Nashville campus Dec. 13, the next step in the selection process.

The finalists are: 

The Tennessee Board of Regents will hold its next quarterly meeting Dec. 9. The agenda includes consideration of search criteria for the next president of Cleveland State Community College, proposed new career and technical programs, and student enrollment and success updates.

The Tennessee Board of Regents Personnel and Compensation Committee will meet Tuesday, Dec. 7, to review and consider institution compensation proposals from five community colleges and a proposed faculty emeritus designation.

If the committee recommends approval, the proposals will go to the full board for its consideration at its quarterly meeting Dec. 9. The Board of Regents governs Tennessee’s public community and technical colleges.

Governor Bill Lee today announced projects receiving funding through the second round of the Governor’s Investment in Vocational Education (GIVE) program, which prioritizes learning opportunities in rural counties and enhances career and technical education statewide. A total of $24,939,853 will help fund 27 programs and projects at 21 community and technical colleges in the College System of Tennessee, governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents.

The Tennessee Board of Regents voted unanimously today to appoint Dr. Scott Cook as the next president of Dyersburg State Community College.

Dr. Cook, who is provost of Madisonville Community College in Madisonville, Ky., will succeed Dr. Karen Bowyer, effective Jan. 4, 2022, when Dr. Bowyer is retiring after 37 years as the third president in the college’s history.

The Tennessee Board of Regents will consider the appointment of Dr. Scott Cook as the next president of Dyersburg State Community College in a special called meeting tomorrow, Nov. 16.

The Tennessee Board of Regents has approved the appointment of Dr. Jothany L. Blackwood as vice chancellor for academic affairs for The College System of Tennessee, the state’s public community and technical colleges.

Blackwood previously served as vice president for academic success at San Antonio College in Texas, winner of The Aspen Institute’s 2021 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, which recognizes high achievement and performance among America’s community colleges.

The Tennessee Board of Regents will hold a special called meeting Tuesday, Nov. 16, to receive, review and consider acting on the chancellor’s recommendation for the next president of Dyersburg State Community College.

The meeting will be held virtually, starting at 8:30 a.m. CT, and will be streamed and archived on the TBR website at https://www.tbr.edu/board/november-16-2021-special-called-board-meeting.

Military veterans at Tennessee’s community and technical colleges are being honored in Veterans Day activities this week. And one veteran at each college will be awarded the Chancellor’s Commendation for Military Veterans.

Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) Chancellor Flora W. Tydings established the commendation last year as a system-level recognition to honor the service, bravery and sacrifices of veterans in campus communities. The commendations are presented during Veterans Day ceremonies and observances traditionally conducted by TBR colleges.

A Tennessee Board of Regents Search Advisory Committee has selected five finalists for the next president of Dyersburg State Community College. They will participate in campus visits – including forums with campus groups and the public – on Oct. 27, 28, 29 and Nov. 1, 2, the next step in the selection process.

The finalists are:

Eleven of the 32 members of the 2021-22 class of the Complete Tennessee Leadership Institute, announced Tuesday by the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE), represent the College System of Tennessee and seven of its community and technical colleges.

The College System of Tennessee has announced that its technical colleges will provide an onsite workforce training center to facilitate a career-to-workforce pipeline for Ford Motor Company’s future assembly plant in Blue Oval City – a $5.6 billion campus spanning 3,600 acres at the Memphis Regional Megasite in Stanton, Tennessee.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee today announced a new Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) to be developed on the Memphis Regional Megasite in conjunction with Ford Motor Company and SK Innovation’s Blue Oval City. 

“Leading companies select Tennessee because of our skilled workforce,” said Gov. Lee. “This unique partnership with Ford and SK Innovation will enable Tennesseans to skill up and meet the specific employment demands of Blue Oval City. Tennessee stands ready to provide a twenty-first century workforce.”

Tennessee’s public community and technical colleges awarded 22,956 degrees, diplomas and certificates to graduates during academic year 2020-21, essentially tying the record set the previous year despite enrollment declines.