EAST TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY
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Institutional Health
Knowledge & Exploration
Rankings & New Programs
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Community & Belonging
Stewardship of Place
Fiscal Responsibility & ETSU Foundation 3
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ETSU students contribute, on average, more than 65,000 hours in community service each year.
A letter from
Dr. Brian Noland
ETSU was founded in 1911 with a singular mission: to improve the quality of life for people of this region and beyond. This is a university community that lives by the principles that people come first, education should be hands-on, and all of us should work toward a purpose greater than ourselves. Bucs work hard. Bucs give back. And Bucs go beyond. For us, “going beyond” includes transcending the walls of our classrooms to work hand-in-hand with the people of our communities. The university’s success is — and has always been — deeply intertwined with the success of the region it was founded to serve. This year’s annual report highlights our faculty’s commitment to community-engaged learning, a cornerstone that sets an ETSU education apart. It showcases the many ways our students, faculty, and staff are making a difference throughout the Appalachian Highlands. It also underscores the unwavering support our institution has received from the people of this region for more than 125 years. I am incredibly proud of all ETSU has accomplished over the past year. I also am profoundly grateful, because these achievements are not ours alone. They are a testament to the numerous organizations and countless individuals who share our mission and our love for this place. Godspeed and go Bucs!
Brian Noland President 5
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240+
889
300+
3.6
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Student Organizations
Military-Affiliated Students
ETSU Health Providers
Average GPA of Enrolling Freshmen
Average ACT Score
Institutional Health
Nearly Half
170+
16:1
107,000+
Graduate without student debt
Academic Programs
Student-to-Faculty Ratio
Over 107,000 alumni living in 50 states and 71 countries 7
K N O W L E D G E
& Exploration
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Earning Prestigious Prizes Jessica Potter, a University Honors scholar, spent weeks in Tanzania this summer thanks to a prestigious scholarship. A recipient of a Critical Language Scholarship – a highly competitive award offered annually through the U.S. Department of State – Potter studied Swahili. She is the first ETSU student to receive the award. “Jessica has worked hard and is very deserving of this. The award is a perfect fit to help her realize her personal and professional goals in the non-profit and NGO (nongovernmental organization) sector,” said Dr. Christopher Keller, Senior International Officer at ETSU and Dean of the Honors College. The award signals the university’s growing efforts to assist students in winning nationally competitive scholarships. “ETSU’s Office of Prestigious Awards is committed to helping our students apply for and be awarded some of the most impressive nationally competitive scholarships available,” said Dr. Carson Medley, Interim Director of Prestigious Awards at ETSU.
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Beyond the Classroom to Politics Aidan Graybeal felt drawn to politics from an early age. So he was excited when a friend introduced him to the Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature during his freshman year at ETSU. TISL educates students about state government, allowing them to play legislative, judicial, lobbying, and media roles in a competitive mock legislative session. Graybeal and his ETSU teammates learned their roles well, bringing home “Best Delegation” honors in 2022. Several were elected to serve in key roles in 2023, including Graybeal, who will be Speaker of the House. He teaches the art of writing quality legislation and parliamentary procedure to younger members of the ETSU team, as well as TISL participants at other schools. TISL complements classroom training for Graybeal, a political science major, through hands-on experience and opportunities to interact with state officeholders and legislators. “It teaches you to be politically engaged with your community,” he said.
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Serving Those Who Served The university has a long history of helping veterans, and ETSU has secured the respected Military Friendly® designation for more than a decade. STRIVE, a free entrepreneurship training program for veterans, reservists, and National Guard members, is one of the many ways ETSU honors those who have served or are currently serving. The program teaches participants how to launch a business. Following completion of STRIVE, graduates receive post-program support from the national Institute for Veterans and Military Families. ETSU’s STRIVE program began four years ago and boasts 45 graduates, who have started businesses in food and beverage services, cybersecurity, sign printing, graphic design, holistic therapy, and retail. For 2023, 16 students are enrolled to take advantage of the free resources. “Helping those who have or are currently serving our country is an incredible honor,” said ETSU’s Mark Bays, Director of the Tennessee Small Business Development Center. ETSU also hosted a veterans fair at the James and Nellie Brinkley Center, an opportunity for veteran service organizations to network and craft approaches to engage the region’s veteran community.
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Pathways Into Medicine The Quillen College of Medicine has developed a new accelerated program for students to complete their medical degree in less time and with less cost. The new program, called Tri-TRAILS (Team-based Rural Applied Integrated Learning System), is a three-year directed pathway that also provides participating students an opportunity to match into one of five residency programs. “This new approach to our curriculum allows highly qualified candidates to complete medical school in a three-year period,” said Dr. William Block, ETSU
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Vice President for Clinical Affairs and Dean of the Quillen College of Medicine. “This helps them to limit the cost while it provides our region with an increase in well-trained and talented physicians.” In 2023, a maximum of nine students will be accepted into the program: six students planning to enter family medicine, two students planning to enter internal medicine, and one student planning to enter pediatrics.
State-of-the-art Spaces A $26.1 million renovation to Lamb Hall, which houses many of ETSU’s nationally recognized health sciences programs, was completed in summer 2023, transforming the classroom, lab, and common areas.
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Uncovering the Past The Gray Fossil Site and Museum, a center of research and teaching for more than 20 years, has enjoyed an incredible year. Researchers discovered species entirely new to science, including large predators and tiny critters. Making the most headlines: the unearthing of Borophagus, a member of an extinct group commonly called “bone-crushing dogs.” Learn more about this and many other exciting discoveries at etmnh.org.
Growing the Future State and national leaders gathered at ETSU, part of the “Growing the Future: Symposium on Innovation and Education for the Bioeconomy,” to highlight global bioeconomy opportunities and initiatives in the Appalachian Highlands. The symposium featured some of the world’s most innovative thought leaders in the bioeconomy, including a representative from the U.S. Department of Defense. The event showcased “the potential of the bioeconomy and a workforce development blueprint,” said David Golden, CEO of the ETSU Research Corporation.
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40 Years of Bluegrass A range of festivities marked the 40th anniversary of bluegrass at ETSU. At a 2022 concert showcasing past student bands, ETSU honored two special guests: Jack Tottle, program founder, and Kenny Chesney, an ETSU alumnus who was part of the Bluegrass program. Tottle and Chesney received honorary doctorates. “It’s wonderful knowing Kenny and Jack wanted to be here for each other,” said President Dr. Brian Noland. “Their friendship and the bond that ETSU creates remains strong after all these years.”
Scan to watch Distinguished Visitors The spring 2023 semester was a remarkable one, with a wide range of renowned speakers sharing their insights and experiences with the campus community. Some notable figures included Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry’s, New York Times columnist David Brooks (pictured at right), Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers of Pantsuit Politics, former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft, Deborah Douglas and Amber Payne of the Emancipator, and best-selling author Daniel Wallace.
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New Faces New Places
Dr. Alison Barton was named Director of the ETSU Center for Teaching Excellence.
Dr. Karin Keith was named Associate Provost for Faculty. 16
Ms. Christina Graham was named Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Business and Finance.
Ms. Ashley McBee was named Comptroller.
Dr. Richard “Doc” Sander was named Athletic Director after serving in an interim role.
Meet the newest 1911 Society members Named in commemoration of the year when ETSU was founded, The 1911 Society honors the university’s most notable graduates from undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs.
Through a newly launched Infectious Disease Critical Care Fellowship, fellows will receive specialized training in diagnosing and treating severe infections while also gaining increased exposure to critical care medicine.
Ascension, a contemporary a cappella ensemble in the Department of Music, advanced through an impressive competition, winning second place in the quarterfinals of the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella.
Dr. Taylor Coston, a 2023 Pharm.D./MPH graduate, received the prestigious U.S. Public Health Service Excellence in Public Health Pharmacy Award recognizing significant contributions to public health by promoting wellness and healthy communities.
Dr. Kara Boynewicz, Assistant Professor, Physical Therapy, received the American Physical Therapy Association’s Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy Dissertation Award for her research of motor development and neurobehavior in infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome. Scholars had mostly ignored those with polycystic ovary syndrome, but Dr. Stacey Williams is not in her book, The Psychology of PCOS: Building the Science and Breaking the Silence. 17
Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy’s American Pharmacists Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP) Operation Substance Use Disorders (SUD) committee (formerly Generation Rx) won the APhA Operation Substance Use Disorders Chapter Achievement Award for 2021-22.
Dr. Holly Wei earned a 2022 Book of the Year Award from the American Journal of Nursing (AJN). The leadership textbook titled Visionary Leadership in Healthcare: Excellence in Practice, Policy, and Ethics was the first-place winner in AJN’s “Nursing Management and Leadership” category. ETSU hosted the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) fall regional conference in 2022. The conference was hosted by ETSU’s ASM student chapter and the Department of Health Sciences.
The Engineering program earned the coveted ABET accreditation, making ETSU one of 14 universities in the country to have ABET-accredited programs in computer science, information systems, and information technology. Dr. Audrey Depelteau, Director of the Innovation Lab, became the first Tennessean invited to speak at the SelectUSA Investment Summit hosted by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.
Drs. Richard Ignace and Christi Erba are part of a groundbreaking team studying massive stars, helping produce the first in a series of papers by a worldwide collaboration of scholars. In a nod to ETSU’s expertise on Appalachia, the university received a nearly $50,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to develop an online encyclopedia.
ETSU’s Mock Trial team earned significant recognition in its first year, capturing honors at the American Mock Trial Association competition in Dayton, Ohio.
Dr. Pamela Mims, part of a team that won a nearly $600,000 grant, is playing a major role in a national biotech project alongside the ETSU Research Corporation. 18
Dr. Brian Maxson is challenging longstanding narratives about American and world history in his upcoming book, The United States Finds the Italian Renaissance.
ETSU’s commitment to interprofessional education is strengthening and expanding with the recent creation of the ETSU Center for Interprofessional Collaboration. In March 2023, the American College of Emergency Medicine Physicians announced that William Miller, a fourthyear medical student at the Quillen College of Medicine, was a recipient of the National Outstanding Student Award.
The Reece Museum, helping anchor the university’s vibrant arts community, received a $65,000 grant to support “The Sammie L. Nicely Collection: Black Appalachian and African American Art Project.” Dr. Nicholas E. Hagemeier, Vice Provost for Research and Chief Research Officer, was one of eight research leaders from across the country selected for the Association of Public & Land Grant Universities’ (APLU) Research Leader Fellowship Program. Michael Meit from the ETSU Center for Rural Health Research co-authored a new Appalachian Diseases of Despair report from the Appalachian Regional Commission.
The American Council on Education named Dr. Andrew Dunn, Chair of the Department of Media and Communication, as an ACE Fellow, a highly prestigious honor. Dr. Aaron Polichnowski was awarded a $601,092 grant from the National Institutes of Health to research a possible link between blood vessel function and hypertension. Aiming to reflect the full variety of programs and interests, the education college got a new name: Clemmer College of Education and Human Development. A Google blog highlighted the BlueSky Tennessee Institute, a pivotal partnership with BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee. The blog recognized Google’s collaboration as an industry and learning partner. 19
R A N K I N G S
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New Programs
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Top Adventure College ETSU was named the 2023 Top Adventure College by readers of Blue Ridge Outdoors magazine, besting numerous other colleges and universities. The annual tournament is organized in a bracket-style format, with the end goal of naming a winner as the best outdoor adventure college or university in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic.
Top 10 U.S. News & World Report ranked the Quillen College of Medicine among the top 10 “Medical Schools with the Most Graduates Practicing in Health Professional Shortage Areas” and #38 among “Medical Schools: Primary Care.”
Top 10% ETSU ranked in the top 10% of Forbes’ and Statista’s 2023 listing of “Best Midsize Employers,” placing No. 48 and outpacing every other college in Tennessee.
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The online resource Animation Career Review ranked ETSU the top animation school in Tennessee and No. 7 nationally among schools offering an animation-related B.S. degree.
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ETSU was one of four schools nationally recognized by Encoura for recruitment communication.
#12 University School was ranked as the 12th best high school in Tennessee by U.S. News & World Report.
New Certificates Approved in 2022-23 Graduate certificate in Educator Job Embedded | Graduate certificate in Student Affairs | Graduate certificate in Healthcare Spanish (Hybrid) | Undergraduate certificate in Child Advocacy Studies (Online) | Graduate certificate in Child Advocacy Studies Training (Online) | Graduate certificate in Interprofessional Pediatric Feeding 21
C O M M U N I T Y
& Belonging
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Opportunities Beyond the Classroom Kendra Whitehurst came to ETSU to run track, but she found a community and the hands-on experience that has prepared her for a career.
team, spending her time working out with the team and leading strength and conditioning exercises for the players that could be used on and off the court.
“I’m from metro Atlanta, and I knew I wanted something different because I had been there so long and needed a new environment and new space,” she said. “ETSU could offer that for me.”
“Having the real-time, hands-on experience in the field has allowed me to take those transferable skills and just bring awareness to myself that I could transition to any career path that I really want using what I have learned here.”
Whitehurst completed her bachelor’s degree in physical education in December 2020 and a master’s degree in sport science and coach education with a concentration in strength and conditioning in 2023. While at ETSU, she served as a graduate assistant with the Women’s Basketball
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Hands-on Learning David Crockett High School graduate Evan Alvarado initially planned for a career in nursing. But after taking a course about wildland firefighting, he had a change of heart. “The day the class ended, I immediately changed my major to park and recreation management,” he said. “I haven’t looked back.” This concentration trains students how to plan, organize, and lead agencies and programs. When he isn’t in the classroom or getting hands-on learning opportunities, he serves as a volunteer firefighter. He assisted with the Hatcher Mountain-Indigo Lane wildfire in Sevier County, a devastating fire that seared thousands of acres. He hopes to work with the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, or a state park service. “My parks and recreation degree will be an excellent base for that, and I am so grateful to all the ETSU faculty and staff who have helped me along the way,” he added.
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Serving Those in Recovery Dr. Dorothy “Dottie” Greene’s life is dedicated to serving those battling addiction-related challenges. This dedication culminated in the 2023 establishment of the first recovery community center in Northeast Tennessee. As the Johnson City Recovery Center’s executive director, this Associate Professor of Social Work leads a team of certified peer recovery support specialists who identify as people in recovery. She calls the JCRC a “recovery hub” for individuals in recovery from substance use disorders that bridges the gap between professional treatment services and recovery housing.
“Helping people in recovery is no doubt my purpose for being on the planet at this time,” Greene said. “It provides me a deep sense of purpose and meaning. The best way to describe recovery is like watching a miracle happen in real time. We see people come in here with nothing but the shirt on their back who develop into happy, healthy, productive, caring members of society.”
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Pictured: Dr. Robert Leger is Professor of Sociology at ETSU and Assistant Vice President and co-founder of Families First. He is pictured with Amy Edwards, Director of Workforce Services at ETSU.
Families First Partnership The East Tennessee native needed considerable help in 2018. A single mother with a young daughter hampered by health issues, she was laid off regularly per a part-time contract. The university went to work, and a career coach helped her land an opportunity at an insurance agency. She performed so well that she ultimately became a full-time member of the agency’s team. The ETSU Center for Community Outreach, founded in 1997, has worked closely with the state to offer critical services, such as workforce development. And a new grant, valued at nearly $3 million annually, means the ETSU center and Families First, an assistance program for families in need, will help set up, follow through with, and pay for support related to removing barriers to employment. “It is going to help the center become an even greater force of good,” said co-founder Dr. Robert Leger. Since 2007, Families First has assisted about 48,000 people. 26
First and Triumph Renee Williams’ journey began when she and her two siblings were left on the steps of an orphanage in the late 1970s. Despite the challenges she faced growing up, Williams was determined to pursue higher education. Her quest to find her biological mom led her to the Appalachian Highlands and eventually to ETSU, where she began her journey as a first-generation college student. But sometimes life does not go as planned. Williams left ETSU in 1999 without completing her degree, but in 2021, she returned, intent on finishing what she had started. Williams became a trailblazer for her two sons, who both attend ETSU. She credits her desire to push her children toward higher education to her adopted parents, sharecroppers from Alabama. As a first-generation college student, Williams encourages others not to give up. “For me, ETSU is not just a university; it’s a symbol of hope and opportunity. It’s a place where dreams come true.”
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Finding Community Far from Home “I’m very invested in rural health, in underserved populations, because I came from that background,” said Ethel Ngene, who grew up in the village of Akwuke, Nigeria. She found what she was looking for at ETSU Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy. Ngene, a 2023 graduate, appreciated the college’s focus on rural medicine and opportunities to participate in Remote Area Medical clinics and other volunteer activities. But she also found community during her time here. During her interview process, Ngene was impressed by the care shown by the staff and faculty at Gatton College of Pharmacy. The caring relationships she built at the college helped her through trying times – from managing finances during her first year to struggling through periods of illness and homesickness. While she thought she might go back to Nigeria to work, Ngene is drawn to stay in the U.S. by the tight-knit community she found in the college and the need for health care workers in underserved communities.
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Greater Access. Better Support. Access ETSU, a program that provides critical support to young adults with intellectual disabilities, earned a $400,000 grant aimed at guiding students into competitive employment and independent living. The program, which began in 2019, served 21 students in 2022-23. Brad Turner, Commissioner for the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, presented the check to ETSU officials. The funding will help Access ETSU develop a “stepwise support system” for students to get needed support during and after college, according to Dr. Melody Blevins, Project Manager for Access ETSU.
Scan to watch Moon Shot for Equity The ETSU community is working together to ensure that more underrepresented and underserved populations realize their dream of a college degree through the Moon Shot for Equity initiative. Moon Shot for Equity focuses on removing systemic barriers for students through 15 best practices that can help increase access to higher education for all students, and, more importantly, ensure their long-term success. 29
Finding a Place When U.S. Army veteran Jason Ramos (second from the left) began looking into medical schools, he was struck by Quillen College of Medicine’s high percentage of militaryaffiliated students. Ramos, a Purple Heart recipient, said Quillen quickly became his top choice for medical school – and he isn’t alone. Ramos is one of five military-affiliated students in Quillen’s Class of 2027, a class that includes former Navy SEAL P.J. Peleaz, who was drawn to Quillen because of its work with rural and underserved communities. Quillen College of Medicine is in the 99th percentile of medical schools with students with plans to participate in military service, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges.
Public Art Takes Flight ETSU formally recognized an art installation in the D.P. Culp Student Center’s first floor, the culmination of a course about art in public space. Part of the global Peace Crane Project that aims to promote world peace through uplifting content, the cranes incorporate messages that both originate from and are intended for the world community as represented in Johnson City and ETSU. Graduate student Delaney Rogers called it “an incredible opportunity.”
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The Popular Culture Association named Dr. Elwood Watson, whose writings about American history and mainstream culture have reached a wide audience, as Vice President for Diversity, Outreach, and Inclusion.
Quality Enhancement Plan Success The on-site Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) reaffirmation visit that occurred in April 2023 was a tremendous success. While the official outcome is still pending final approval by the SACSCOC board in December 2023, the on-site peer review team informed the university that they recommend no findings of non-compliance. They also found the Go Beyond the Classroom Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) to be in compliance, and they will not request additional reporting or modification.
The Honors College has formed an incredible partnership with Tennessee State University, allowing ETSU students to immerse themselves in a largercity experience in the months ahead.
A new collaborative agreement with Northeast State Community College offers a smooth transition for digital media students, providing a path from a foundational education to an advanced bachelor’s degree in a nationally ranked program.
Students from AshevilleBuncombe Technical College can progress from a two-year Human Services Technology degree to the Clemmer College of Education and Human Development’s Human Services program to complete a cohesive educational pathway.
Cesar Gracia, Chief of Police and Director of Public Safety, was nominated as a finalist for Campus Safety Magazine’s Campus Safety Director of the Year.
Committed to service and growth, 2023 marks the 70th anniversary of the university’s ROTC program that has commissioned more than 1,500 second lieutenants since the 1950s.
ETSU’s first-ever mascot competition followed contestants through a realityshow-style series as they competed to become the next Bucky.
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S T E W A R D S H I P
of Place
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Funding for the Future of Pharmacy Thanks to the tireless efforts of ETSU students, faculty, and staff, as well as the local legislative delegation, Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy received state funding this year for the first time. The Tennessee General Assembly approved $2.5 million in annual funding – the first state assistance for the college since its founding in 2005. Those funds enabled Gatton College of Pharmacy to lower tuition for its students. For in-state
students, the tuition cost to pursue pharmacy at ETSU is now $27,000 per year, over 30% less than before. For out-of-state, the tuition cost is $33,000 per year, nearly 15% less. The tuition decrease is effective for fall 2023. “State funding is a new and exciting chapter in our college’s history and vital for the legacy we leave behind,” said Dr. Debbie Byrd, Dean of Gatton College of Pharmacy.
Pictured: ETSU President Dr. Brian Noland thanks State Representative Gary Hicks for his support of Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy. A lecture hall at the college was named in Hicks’ honor.
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Winter Wonderland Adding to the fun winter activities in the Appalachian Highlands, ETSU hosted an outdoor synthetic ice-skating rink located in the ETSU University Commons during December and January. Bucky’s Blizzard Block Party welcomed the community to the new rink, and throughout the holidays hundreds of individuals and families from across the region enjoyed a new holiday experience.
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Expanding Care When Dr. J. Bracken Burns joined ETSU Health, he was just one of three trauma surgeons at Johnson City Medical Center. Now they are welcoming their eighth trauma surgeon – all of whom are ETSU Health faculty. Burns, a trauma surgeon and professor with the Quillen College of Medicine, was brought in to revitalize the surgical trauma program at JCMC, and eventually tasked with building a robust system of trauma care for the region. “The collaboration between Ballad Health, Quillen College of Medicine, and ETSU Health has been essential for the success we have had,” Burns said. Because of Burns’ efforts, as well as the effort and support of everyone else involved, the region has seen a significant advancement in trauma care and scholarly activity. “Work between an academic entity and a health system can often help bridge some of those gaps in the availability of specialty care, and we have seen that in the work between ETSU Health and Ballad,” said Burns.
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Bigger than Basketball In July 2022, the ETSU men’s and women’s basketball programs participated in a Make-a-Wish celebration for Levi, a 12-year-old boy from Elizabethton who has battled a malignant brain tumor since 2019. An avid basketball fan, Levi was surprised with a basketball court, featuring a logo with his name. “I was excited when I heard about the teams coming out to visit,” said Levi. “I really love basketball. I am thankful that they took time out of their day to come play basketball with me.”
A Heart for Rural Medicine “The idea of rural medicine has really been my lifestyle since I was a child,” said 2023 Quillen College of Medicine graduate Jennifer Davis. Through Quillen’s Rural Primary Care Track, she applied classroom knowledge in real-life situations in the rural Tennessee communities of Mountain City and her hometown of Rogersville. Davis’s goal as a family practitioner is to eliminate barriers to health care in rural areas and be an active participant in her community.
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Buccaneer Building Blocks The Buccaneer Building Blocks partnership with ETSU and Ballad Health marked a milestone one year after its introduction. Nearly 7,000 onesies were distributed to families of newborn babies across the Appalachian Highlands. The initiative, launched by ETSU First Lady Donna Noland, is dedicated to developing a strong support system for lifelong learning, early childhood education, and college access. Families of all babies delivered at Ballad Health facilities receive information about early college planning and an ETSU onesie highlighting Buccaneer pride.
Seeds of Support The Johnson City Community Health Center (JCCHC) brought back its community garden this year, allowing patients and community members to enjoy the fruits (and vegetables) of their labor. Vanessa Smith, Practice Administrator with the JCCHC, said a community garden is something that is very much in line with their mission. “This is just one more way we can serve our community and try to meet their needs as best as possible,” said Smith.
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Partnering with Johnson City businesses, the Entrepreneurship Program hosted the inaugural High School Entrepreneur’s Boot Camp, a four-day summer camp that gave students the chance to work with industry experts. ETSU launched the inaugural Appalachian Highlands Economic Forum, drawing dozens from the region into an important conversation about economic conditions, the housing market, and more.
Marching Bucs to Macy’s On April 6, a special surprise event was held to announce that the ETSU Marching Bucs were selected to perform in the 2024 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Thanks to the support of local non-profit Waiting to Hear, the College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences hosted an auditory verbal camp for children to help them further develop their listening, language, and literacy skills.
The Marching Bucs were selected from more than 100 applicants as one of 10 bands to march in the 98th edition of the annual holiday spectacular. They are the first collegiate band from Tennessee chosen for the parade in more than 50 years.
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ETSU Health launched the ETSU Health Professional Leadership Academy, which aims to equip participants with the skills and knowledge to accept and thrive in leadership roles. ETSU continues to build a campus culture of civic engagement. For the fourth consecutive term, ETSU received the “Voter Friendly Campus” designation and was recognized as a 2022 ALL IN Most Engaged Campus for College Student Voting. The Office of Professional Development and College of Nursing co-hosted the International Rural Nursing Conference, which addressed issues affecting people in rural and underserved areas and the health care professionals who serve them.
ETSU celebrated the legacy of two individuals with the dedication of the James and Nellie Brinkley Center, formerly known as the Millennium Center.
The Department of Music started a Community Music School, a program that provides high-level music training to students of all ages and skill levels in the Appalachian Highlands.
A half dozen shows will headline the 2024 spring Broadway season at the ETSU Martin Center for the Arts following last year’s inaugural season that featured sold-out audiences for all performances. Ballad Health and Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy hosted the inaugural conference for the Center for Pharmacy Education, Advocacy and Outreach that focused primarily on addressing substance use disorder (SUD) and the opioid epidemic.
The ETSU College of Nursing hosted the inaugural Pattie Lathan Browder Lecture on March 21, featuring a lecture from Dr. Patricia V. Burkhart. 41
FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
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Foundation
Total Fund Balance as of June 30, 2023
$127,150,502
Total Distributed in Foundation-Funded Scholarships
$3,589,440
The Distinguished President’s Trust welcomed 74 new members into its Carillon Society, which recognizes donors whose contributions have reached $10,000 or higher. This is the largest incoming class of members in the history of the ETSU Foundation. In October 2022, the ETSU Foundation announced that the $120 million goal of “The Campaign for ETSU” had been surpassed, reaching $163 million. ETSU raised $358,000 during Day of Giving 2023 for various programs and initiatives on campus. The ETSU Foundation received 9,803 gifts in 2022-23 from 4,946 donors, including 974 first-time donors.
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President
Brian Noland
Editors/Writers
O.J. Early, Yasmeen Elayan, Jennifer Hill, Rachel Howard, Melissa Nipper, Jonathan Roberts, Lorraine Vestal, Jessica Vodden
Photography
Ron Campbell, Matthew Carroll, Larry Smith, Charlie Warden
Design
Cody Ryans
Published by
Office of the President Office of University Marketing and Communications
Office of the President officeofthepresident@etsu.edu (423) 439-4211 etsu.edu/president
East Tennessee State University does not discriminate against students, employees, or applicants for admission or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, age, status as a protected veteran, genetic information, or any other legally protected class with respect to all employment, programs and activities sponsored by ETSU. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding nondiscrimination policies: Compliance Coordinator, PO Box 70271, Johnson City, TN 37614, 423-439-8544. ETSU’s policy on non-discrimination can be found at: etsu.edu/universitycounsel/compliance. ETSU is an AA/EEO employer. ETSU-PRZ-36400-24 East Tennessee State University (ETSU) is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award baccalaureate, master’s, education specialist, and doctoral degrees. ETSU may also offer credentials such as certificates and diplomas at approved degree levels. Questions about the accreditation of ETSU may be directed in writing to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA 30033-4097, by calling (404) 679-4500, or by using information available on SACSCOC’s website (www.sacscoc.org).
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#BucsGoBeyond
etsu.edu/gobeyond