Bringing the Best to UT

Longtime supporters fund new scholarship, endowed professorship, top programs

Jimmy and Dee Haslam have given $10 million to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, to benefit two prominent university programs, fund endowed professorships, and create a
prestigious honors program.

The Knoxville couple’s gift will help UT strengthen its top academic offerings by benefiting the Marco Institute for Medieval and Renaissance Studies and the forensic anthropology program. Additionally, the new Haslam Scholars program will allow the university to recruit the nation’s
most talented students for an interdisciplinary learning experience.

“Students and faculty are what make UT strong, inviting, and vibrant. We are happy to create the Haslam Scholars program to bring some of the nation’s best students to the UT campus. It is our hope that the endowed professorships help the university attract leading scholars,” Jimmy Haslam said.

Jimmy Haslam is president and chief executive officer of Pilot Travel Centers. Dee Haslam is
CEO of RIVR Media and also chairs the UT Development Council. The Haslams are chairs
of The Campaign for Tennessee fund-raising effort to benefit the UT Knoxville campus.

“By creating the Haslam Scholars and endowing professorships, the Haslams will help us reach
new heights in academics and research,” said UT Knoxville Interim Chancellor Jan Simek.
“Also, we want to thank the Haslams for supporting two excellent programs that have brought, and will continue to bring, national attention to UT.”

Of the $10 million, $3 million will be used to create the Jimmy and Dee Haslam Marco
Endowment in the College of Arts and Sciences. Earnings from the endowment will provide support for scholarly research and for the graduate student programs of the
Marco Institute.

Another $2 million will go to the Forensic Anthropology Center, with $750,000 earmarked
for a building to be constructed for the Anthropological Research Facility, known as the “Body Farm.” The remainder will create an endowment with the earnings used elsewhere in the program, possibly to create a postdoctoral fellowship.

Another $2.5 million will go to an endowment from which earnings will be used to create and fund the Haslam Scholars program, a premier honors program that will provide unprecedented opportunities and scholarships. Each recipient—who also will qualify for other university scholarships that pay for the cost of attendance—will receive a laptop computer, a paid study-abroad experience, a research stipend for a senior thesis project, and a travel stipend to present the thesis at a national or international conference.

The remaining $2.5 million will be used to create the Haslam Family Professorship and Chair Endowment. Earnings will allow the university to recruit and retain top-notch faculty.