FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                   

For more information, contact:

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Sheila Champlin – (901) 448-4957, schampli@uthsc.edu or

Dena Owens – (901) 448-4072, dowens10@uthsc.edu

 

 

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Graduates 615 Health Care Professionals at

Centennial Commencement Ceremony

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UT President Joe DiPietro to Confer Degrees, Give Charge to Graduates

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Memphis, Tenn. (May 16, 2011) – On Friday, May 27, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) will graduate 615 health care professionals, marking its centennial commencement.  The 100^th-year graduation ceremony will be held at 1:30 p.m. in FedEx Forum, 191 Beale Street.  Steve J. Schwab, MD, chancellor of UT Health Science Center, will preside over the ceremony.  UT President Joe DiPietro, who assumed his leadership position at UT in January, will confer the degrees and give the charge to the graduates.

Dr. DiPietro was elected the 24^th president of the University of Tennessee by the Board of Trustees on October 22, 2010.  He officially took over the position on January 1.  As president, Dr. DiPietro serves as the chief executive officer of a statewide university system that includes the flagship campus in Knoxville, campuses in Chattanooga and Martin, the Health Science Center with its main campus in Memphis, the Space Institute in Tullahoma, and statewide institutes of agriculture and public service.

The president also serves as chairman of the Board of Governors of UT-Battelle, which manages Oak Ridge National Laboratory for the Department of Energy, and as a member of the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees.

Prior to becoming president, Dr. DiPietro served as chancellor of the UT Institute of Agriculture from 2006 to 2010.  The title of that position was changed from vice president to chancellor in July 2010.  As chancellor, Dr. DiPietro oversaw UT Extension, AgResearch, the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources and the College of Veterinary Medicine. During his tenure, the institute began interdisciplinary programs such as the Center for Renewable Carbon, the Tennessee Biofuels Initiative and the master's degree in landscape architecture.  Between 2006 and 2010, external grant support for the Institute of Agriculture increased 30 percent from $26.6 million to $34.8 million annually.

The 615 centennial-year graduates are from all six of the UT Health Science Center’s colleges. 

n      62 from the College of Allied Health Sciences;

n      82 from the College of Dentistry;

n      48 from the College of Graduate Health Sciences;

n      140 from the College of Medicine;

n      85 from the College of Nursing;

n      198 from the College of Pharmacy. 

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service.  In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrates its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care.  Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy.  The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit.  In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit.  Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state.  For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

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