The University of Tennessee Foundation Board of Directors held its annual meeting virtually on June 10, 2022. An overview of the meeting is below and includes key action items voted on by the Board.

University President Remarks

UT System President Randy Boyd provided updates and highlights to the Board, including the historic $52 billion state budget. The state’s budget includes $72 million to fully fund the UT-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute and $50 million to assist with implementing a new Enterprise Resource Planning System. President Boyd emphasized funding for capital projects within the System and $52 million to fund the higher education funding formula and the $69.5 million for an unprecedented increase to the HOPE scholarship. Additionally, the Board was given a glimpse into major initiatives including an upcoming UT Promise tour in August, online education and Team TN auto research.

Foundation President Report

UT Foundation President Kerry Witcher provided an overview of fiscal year 2022 goals and shared that UTFI had exceeded goals in giving, number of donors and engagement. As of June 6, 2022, UTFI has raised $286 million from 73,335 donors and has 246,428 engaged alumni. Witcher also highlighted a variety of accomplishments from the year including the selection of the CRM, the launch of Connect UT, the Pearl Meyer compensation project and a review of the gift annuity program and naming policy.

Fiscal Year 2023 Draft Budget Presented

UT Foundation CFO Adam Heller presented the fiscal year 2023 draft budget, which was approved by the Board. Heller noted that 53% of the budget is funded through direct support from the University, a decrease from 56% in FY 2022. The draft budget plans for an overall revenue growth of $4.1 million , which can be attributed to an increase in the endowment market value, fees and investment earnings and an increase to university direct support to assist in funding the FY 2023 salary pool.

Election of Board Directors

The UTFI Board was presented with four nominees to serve as elected directors for an initial three-year term beginning July 1, 2022. The Board approved the following nominees:

Jeannie Beauchamp lives in Clarksville and is president of Clarksville Pediatric Dentistry, P.C.  She is a 1991 graduate of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and also completed her pediatric dentistry residency at UT. Beauchamp is a previous past president of the UTHSC Dentistry Alumni Association Board of Trustees.  She also participates in the Alumni Legislative Council and Alliance of Women Philanthropists and serves several medical and dental boards, councils and committees across the country.

Karen Bowling is an audit and assurance partner at Deloitte and Touche LLP and lives in Louisville, TN.  She graduated from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 1994 and serves the Haslam College of Business Accounting Roundtable. Bowling is also a member of the Alliance of Women Philanthropists and received the UT Knoxville Alumni Service Award in 2019.

Charles (Doug) Haney is president of Physicians and Surgeons, Inc, his practice in Pulaski.  He is both a UT Health Science Center alum (1979) and a UT Knoxville alum (1975), and has been very involved with UT Southern as they joined the UT System. Haney is a past member of the UTAA Board of Governors and served the annual giving and engagement committees.

Alan Wilson is retired as chairman of McCormick and Company and lives in Naples, FL.  He graduated from UT Knoxville in 1980 and serves the Haslam College of Business Dean’s Advisory Council.  Wilson has previously served as a University of Tennessee Trustee and on the UT Foundation Board of Directors. Wilson was inducted into the ROTC Alumni Hall of Fame in 2018, and has been awarded UT Knoxville Distinguished Alumnus Award, UT Knoxville College of Communication and Information’s Hileman Distinguished Alumni Award, and UT Knoxville Accomplished Alumni Award.

Election of Board Officers

Phil Wenk (Knoxville ’73, Health Science Center ’77) wraps up his term as chair on June 30, 2022.

Ronald Frieson (Knoxville ’81) will begin his term as chair on July 1, 2020.

Alan Wilson (Knoxville ’80) was elected to serve as vice-chair, and will become chair of the UTFI Board of Directors on July 1, 2024.

Outgoing Board Directors

The meeting concluded with Wenk thanking the following outgoing Board Directors for their service:

Alexis Bogo was elected in 2016. She was a member of Directorship committee for her first term of service and has served as chair for the past three years.

Greg Cox was elected in 2016. He has been a member of the Audit and Finance committee since election and has served as chair since 2017.

Donde Plowman was appointed in 2019 as a chancellor representative and has served on the on Audit and Finance committee during her term.

Tim Tucker has served ex-officio as UT Alumni Association past president for two years. He has served on Directorship committee during his term.

Mark La Branche, serving as a chancellor representative, has announced his retirement. He was appointed in 2021 and has served one year on the Directorship committee.

The next meeting of the UT Foundation Board of Directors will take place on November 11, 2022 in Knoxville, TN.