Tickle College of Engineering
Annual Report 2023
Table of Contents
Dean's Update
Letter from Dean Mench to the college on the progress of the past year and his hopes for the year to come.
College Profile
Review our current leadership team, department heads, accreditation, and board of advisors.
Rankings Update
Update on the college's enrollment, research expenditures, academic programs, and student success from the past year.
Financials
Financial update from the past year including expenditures, gifts, grants, and contracts by department, and state funds.
Development Update
Letter from the Interim Executive Director of Development with an update on the past year's annual gifts.
A Message from the Dean
The Tickle College of Engineering is on the rise and the proof of our momentum is everywhere.
Coming off a year where the college saw recording breaking numbers in undergraduate and graduate student enrollment, female and historically underrepresented student enrollment, patents filed and issued, we have reached yet another goal, toping $100M in research expenditures.
Add to that the anticipated hiring of over 30 new faculty in strategic strength areas including artificial intelligence, digital manufacturing, hypersonics, energy storage, and medical physics, and we are also setting the foundation for an exciting future.
During this historic year, we also paused to look back and celebrate 50 years of the Dwight Hutchins Office of Engineering Diversity Programs, honoring the work of Dean Fred Peebles and Fred Brown who executed on their vision to recruit, to retain, to connect, and to make a transformative difference in people’s lives.
This 50th anniversary was also a time to celebrate the transformational commitment made by program namesake Dwight Hutchins that will enhance access and opportunity for students for generations to come.
This report shares just a handful of examples to show how TCE is on the move, and strategically positioning itself to provide even greater impact on the state and globe through our world-class research, education and outreach programs.
Thank you for your interest in the Tickle College of Engineering. There has never been a better time to be on Rocky Top!
Matthew M. Mench
Dean and Wayne T. Davis
Dean's Chair
Tickle College of Engineering
College Profile
Leadership Team
Matthew M. Mench
Dean and Wayne T Davis
Dean's Chair
Michael Danquah
Associate Dean for
Academic and Student Affairs
William Dunne
Associate Dean for Research
and Facilities
Paul Frymier
Associate Dean of Faculty
Affairs and Engagement
Jeremy Kirk
Assistant Dean for Diversity,
Equity, and Inclusion
Ami McBride
Assistant Dean of Finance and
Administration
Keith Stanfill
Edwards Assistant Dean for
Integrated Engineering Design
John Schmisseur
Executive Director, UTSI;
Associate Dean
Accreditation
All engineering programs at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org. The computer science program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is accredited by the Computer Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org.
Department Heads
Julie Carrier
Biosystems Engineering and
Soil Science
Chris Cox
Civil and Environmental
Engineering
J. Wesley Hines
Nuclear Engineering
Veerle Keppens
Materials Science and
Engineering
Art Ragauskas
Chemical and Biomedical
Engineering
Mingzhou Jin
Industrial and Systems
Engineering
Kivanc Ekici
Mechanical, Aerospace, and
Biomedical Engineering
Leon Tolbert
Electrical Engineering and
Computer Science
Board of Advisors
Check out the full list of our Board of Advisors.
Rankings, Facts, and Stats Update
The college is progressing in many ways. Including enrollment, research expenditures, programs offered, and academic support. Take a look at how we're doing.
Data accurate as of 12/06/2023.
Academics
Ranked 34th (undergraduate) and 31st (graduate) among public colleges of engineering (U.S. News & World Report 2024).
Eight departments with nationally ranked programs and seven internationally known research centers.
Total Full-Time Enrollment
Fall 2023
- Undergraduate: 3,962
- Graduate, MS: 566
- Graduate, PhD: 735
- Total: 5,263
Degrees Granted
AY22-23
- Bachelor of Science: 739
- Master of Science: 260
- Doctor of Philosophy: 103
- Total: 1,102
Students Stats
120 percent undergraduate student growth since 2005
25 percent of undergraduates are female—female enrollment has increased 212 percent since 2008.
34 percent growth in PhD enrollment since 2012, and the 24th largest PhD program among public schools of engineering.
24 percent female graduate student enrollment.
9 percent underrepresented minority graduate students.
Research
$104.1M in annual research expenditures.
Faculty Profile
Our faculty includes the following:
195 T/TT Faculty
- 101 professors
- 55 associate professors
- 45 assistant professors
73 non-TT faculty
3 National Academy of Engineering members
48 endowed chairs/professorships and faculty fellows
9 UT-Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chairs
26 Early Career Awardees since 2016 (NSF, DoE, DARPA, ARO)
1 Distinguished Scientist
2 University Distinguished Professor
Alumni
31,600+ alumni across all 50 states and
95 countries.
(As of September 2023)
Financial Update
(For Fiscal Year 2023)
Total Expenditures
Total: $186.9 Million
| Externally Funded Gifts, Grants & Contracts | $104,054,759 | |
| Recurring & Nonrecurring State Funds | $82,881,657 |
Gifts, Grants, & Contracts by Department/Center
Total: $104.1 Million
| Administration | $3,610,998 | |
| Biosystems Engineering | $2,330,676 | |
| Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering | $6,723,392 | |
| Civil & Environmental Engineering | $9,002,718 | |
| Cook Grand Challenge Honors Program | $96,156 | |
| Electrical Engineering & Computer Science | $16,697,933 | |
| Engineering Fundamentals Division | $336,930 | |
| Industrial & Systems Engineering | $3,617,778 | |
| Materials Science & Engineering | $7,713,114 | |
| Mechanical, Aerospace, & Biomedical Engineering | $18,407,300 | |
| Nuclear Engineering | $17,219,272 | |
| UT Space Institute | $6,894,442 | |
| Research Centers | $13,734,726 |
Resources: Recurring & Nonrecurring State Funds
Total: $82.8 Million
| Salaries & Benefits | $61,496,651 | |
| Miscellaneous Operating Expenses | $18,206,972 | |
| Equipment & Software | $3,178,034 |
Development Update
Dear friends of the Tickle College of Engineering,
Thank you for your generous support to advance the education of the next generation of Tennessee engineers. In the fiscal year 2023, your substantial contributions, totaling over $24 million, significantly impacted scholarships, programs, facilities, and various other strategic initiatives.
If you have any inquiries about your contribution or questions regarding future gifts, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or another dedicated member of our development team. We are eager to assist you. To all our alumni and friends, we express our deep appreciation for your contributions to educate future leaders for our state, region, and nation.
It is more than a slogan; it's a commitment that It Takes a Volunteer! And we are honored to serve alongside you.
Go Vols,
Blake Hudson
Interim Executive Director of
Development
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