A massive overhaul of student housing is being planned for the future at UT Knoxville. If the plan is approved by the UT Board of Trustees and the State Building Commission, six residence halls will be replaced by more modern community-style buildings. The project could begin as early as the coming months with the demolition of Shelbourne Towers behind Presidential Courtyard. Consultants determined it is more cost effective to build new buildings than renovate South Carrick, North Carrick, Humes, Reese, Morrill and the Apartment Residence halls. Work has already begun on the demolition of Stokely Athletics Center and Gibbs Hall, which will be the site of a new residence hall, dining facility and parking garage. For more information about these projects, visit conezone.utk.edu.
Rhodes Scholar on Campus
Some of the most influential people in the world are Rhodes Scholars. Now Lindsay Lee can add her name to the list. Lee, a UT Knoxville senior studying math and Spanish, is one of 32 American students chosen for the all-expenses-paid scholarship to Oxford University in England. She plans to study statistics and apply it to public health. Lee, a Haslam Scholar, is founder and president of Campus Disability Advocates and is active in SGA and other campus organizations. Lee is the seventh Rhodes Scholar in UT history.
Distinguished Engineer and Academy Member
The National Academy of Engineering added another UT Knoxville professor to its ranks this year. George Pharr, Chancellor’s Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and director of the UT-Oak Ridge National Laboratory Joint Institute for Advanced Materials, was selected a member of the prestigious organization. Pharr studies nanoscale materials for use in high-strength materials for energy production and storage, electronics, medicine and computer hard drives. He is the fifth academy member in the College of Engineering.
Big Orange, Big Ideas
Who has a big idea? Apparently lots of people at UT Knoxville. The campaign launched in 2012 has resulted in numerous videos of alumni, students, faculty and staff talking about their big ideas. The UT chapter of Special Spaces, an organization that helps children with life-changing illnesses, had the big idea to make a young girl’s bedroom into a princess castle. You can watch more videos on the university’s YouTube channel by searching for Big Orange, Big Ideas.