DEAL RECEIVES 2018 UT PRESIDENT’S AWARD
Dr. Charley Deal (right) is pictured with UT President Joe DiPietro (center) and
fellow 2018 President’s Award winners (l-r) Dr. Trevor Sweatman and Dr. Samuel Dagogo-Jack,
both with the UT Health Science Center, and Dr. Elizabeth Strand, with UT Knoxville, following
DiPietro’s “State of UT” address Feb. 28.
DEAL RECEIVES 2018 UT PRESIDENT’S AWARD
MARTIN, Tenn. – Dr. Charley Deal, associate vice chancellor for alumni relations and annual
giving at the University of Tennessee at Martin, received one of four 2018 University of
Tennessee President’s Awards from Dr. Joe DiPietro, UT System President, following DiPietro’s
“State of UT” address Feb. 28.
This series of awards was created in 2016 to honor the role of UT employees in fulfilling the
university’s mission and celebrate those whose academic and professional achievements serve as
a model for their system colleagues statewide.
Nominations for the 2018 awards were accepted in four categories: Educate, which honors
accomplishments that enhance educational offerings and diverse learning environments;
Discover, which honors discoveries and applications of knowledge; Connect, which honors
engagement and service efforts and programs; and Support, which honors efforts in support of
educational excellence, discoveries and applications of knowledge, outreach, engagement and
service.
Deal was honored in the “Support” category and is the fourth UT Martin representative in three
years to receive a UT President’s Award. He currently serves as executive director of the
WestStar Leadership Program, which is the state’s oldest and largest regional leadership program
and boasts 798 graduates to date. Deal is also a primary fundraiser for UT Martin and its
associated programs and has helped solicit funds for a number of scholarships, endowments,
activities, facilities and programs for the UT Martin main campus and all five of its educational
outreach centers.
“One example was his work to help make the regional educational center in Fayette County a
possibility,” wrote Dr. Robert Smith, UT Martin chancellor emeritus, when recommending Deal
for the award. “(The UT Martin Somerville Center) is substantially funded from private
contributions solicited by Dr. Deal. His approach was to articulate to donors the possibilities for
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better education and jobs for youth as well as adults in this economically-depressed region. He
connected the donors with real outcomes for their neighbors, not just a brick-and- mortar
facility.”
Deal shows a commitment to making higher education more accessible to all groups. He and his
family annually fund a group of students from their home in Hickman County to visit UT Martin
for a day-long campus experience.
“Charley wants these students in higher education because of what it will mean to them, their
families and their shared community,” wrote Dr. Jamie Mantooth, executive director of UT
Martin enrollment services and student engagement. “He values this so much that he is willing to
introduce them to the opportunity using his own money.”
Deal also works with the UT Martin Black Alumni Council and with groups of alumni and
donors in other areas to make sure students from minority groups have equal opportunities to
visit campus and succeed at UT Martin as undergraduate students.
“Dr. Deal (either) succeeds at accomplishing his goals and tasks or is still continuing to pursue
the challenge and refusing to give up,” wrote Andy Wilson, UT Martin vice chancellor for
university advancement. “His accomplishments are many but are tied to improving lives through
advancing education. His most significant achievements will be felt by Tennesseans for
generations.”
Deal holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration from UT Martin and
a doctoral degree in learning and leadership from UT Chattanooga. He has worked for UT
Martin in some capacity for the past 25 years.
UT Martin nominees have been chosen for at least one UT President’s Award each year since the
award’s inception. Dr. Julie Hill, professor of music, and David McBeth, professor of art,
received two of the three inaugural awards in 2016 in the “educate” and “connect” categories,
respectively. Dr. Jason Roberts, associate professor of animal science, received the 2017 award
in the “educate” category.
UT Martin’s other nominees for the 2018 awards were Dr. Richard Robinson, associate professor
of communications, in the “educate” category, and Dr. John Oelrich, director of UT Martin
bands, in the “connect” category.
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Dr. Trevor Sweatman, professor of pharmacology and medical education at the UT Health
Science Center, received the 2018 award in the “educate” category for his redesign of the
professional and graduate curricula for medical students at the institution.
Dr. Samuel Dagogo-Jack, professor of medicine and chief of the division of endocrinology,
diabetes and metabolism at the UT Health Science Center, claimed the award in the “discover”
category. He is internationally known for diabetes education, treatment and research, and has
discovered and developed treatments for hypoglycemia-associated autonomic failure and leptin
regulation in humans.
Dr. Elizabeth Strand, director of veterinary social work and clinical associate professor of
biomedical and diagnostic sciences at UT Knoxville, was honored in the “connect” category.
Strand developed the concept of “veterinary social work” and is the founding director of the UT
College of Veterinary Medicine’s veterinary social work program, which is the first of its kind in
the world. She recently launched a program called SAVE – Suicide Awareness in Veterinary
Education to educate veterinary professionals and students about mental health issues and raise
awareness of available resources.
For more information, contact the UT Martin Office of University Advancement at 731-881-
7620.
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