In February, UT-ORNL Governor’s Chair Program – one of Tennessee’s most successful and enduring investments in scientific leadership, discovery, and innovation – celebrated its 20th anniversary.
“The Governor’s Chair program is all about ORNL and the University of Tennessee coming together to do great things—things that neither of us could do alone, and that’s been true for 20 years,” said ORNL Director Stephen Streiffer.
For two decades, this program has attracted and retained world-class researchers who are advancing breakthroughs, strengthening our workforce pipeline and expanding Tennessee’s impact nationally and globally.
Governor’s Chairs hold joint appointments at UT and ORNL, accelerating discovery through collaboration with other researchers, students and industry.
It was especially meaningful to celebrate Jeremy Smith, the first Governor’s Chair, whose continued involvement reflects the long-term vision and lasting impact of this program and all who have participated over the years.
We are proud to recognize our 12 UT-ORNL Governor’s Chairs, 10 at UT Knoxville and two at the UT Health Science Center in Memphis.
University of Tennessee, Knoxville – Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chairs
• Jeremy Smith, Molecular Biophysics (2006)
• Yilu Liu, Power Grids (2009)
• Alexei Sokolov, Polymer Science (2009)
• Thomas Zawodzinski, Electrical Energy Conversion and Storage (2009)
• Brian Wirth, Computational Nuclear Engineering (2010)
• Terry Hazen, Environmental Biotechnology (2011)
• Steven Zinkle, Nuclear Materials (2013)
• Arthur Ragauskas, Biorefining (2014)
• Uday Vaidya, Advanced Composites Manufacturing (2015)
• Rigoberto Advincula, Advanced and Nanostructured Materials (2020)
The University of Tennessee Health Science Center–Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chairs
• Robert Williams, Computational Genomics (2009)
• Robert Davis, Biomedical Informatics (2013)
Launched under then-Governor Philip Bredesen, the Governor’s Chair program has enjoyed strong support from every administration since, reflecting Tennessee’s ongoing commitment to scientific leadership and innovation. Today, the Governor’s Chair program continues to grow — and the UT–Oak Ridge Innovation Institute (UT-ORII) is currently recruiting four additional Governor’s Chairs, including the first UT Chattanooga–ORNL Governor’s Chair.
Here’s to 20 years of excellence — and to the discoveries still ahead!
