The University of Tennessee has selected a former dean of its Martin campus to serve as its interim chancellor.
Dr. Robert Smith, former president of Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania and former dean of the UT Martin College of Arts and Sciences, will head the campus until a replacement for current chancellor Tom Rakes is found.
Rakes announced that he will be stepping down from the position at the end of next month to return to teaching as a professor in the College of Education, Health, and Behavioral Sciences.
UT System President Joe DiPietro will formally announce Smith's appointment and introduce him to the Martin campus Friday.
“We are fortunate to have a leader and higher education expert of Dr. Smith’s caliber and one with such significant ties to UT Martin returning to guide the university through this transition,” said DiPietro. “His transformative leadership at Slippery Rock University has been recognized by some of the nation’s most prestigious higher education associations, and I look forward to working with Dr. Smith and the UT Martin faculty, students and administration during this interim period.”
While Smith was a dean at UT Martin from 1987 to 1999, he also co-established and served as executive director of the WestStar Leadership Program from 1989 to 1999. He was director of the Tennessee Governor’s School for the Humanities from 1996 to 1999, and prior to that was an associate dean at Wichita State University in Kansas.
Since 2012, Smith has been of counsel and a member of the Education Leadership Council for Witt/Kieffer Executive Search firm, which specializes in higher education and healthcare. In 2014, he also began consulting as an associate with the AASCU-Penson Center for Professional Development, a resource of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. Smith’s consulting for the AASCU-Penson Center has specialized in enrollment management; board and executive development; performance funding strategies; entrepreneurial ventures; and strategic planning.
Smith begins the position June 1.
Details of a search for a permanent replacement have not been announced.
