Message from Department Head Gina Owens
Greetings alumni and friends,
I want to share some exciting updates from the fall semester as we begin the new year.
Our undergraduate degree programs in psychology and neuroscience and our graduate programs continue to thrive. Given our large numbers of undergraduate majors and graduate students, we were given the exciting opportunity to search for two new tenure-track assistant professors who will join us in August.
Earlier this academic year, the department decided to add a new health services psychology concentration to the psychology major. We’re excited about this option for our undergraduate students who are focused on a range of health service careers in mental health and medicine. Also, as you may be aware, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is increasing its digital learning offerings, and our department has voted to move forward with offering an online BA in psychology. The online degree program will begin in fall 2026.
Several members of our department are serving as leaders in new collaborative, interdisciplinary units for College of Arts and Sciences faculty, students, and partners across the university. Professor Todd Freeberg is associate director of the Collaborative for Animal Behavior (CoLAB) research center, and leadership of the Consortium for the Study of Black Families and Children includes Associate Professor Jennifer Bolden and Assistant Professor Jasmine Coleman. Professor Erin Hardin is representing social sciences in the new Community of Scholars for Advancing Teaching Excellence (CATE).
In other exciting news, we held our first Psychology Alumni Tailgate prior to the UT football game on homecoming weekend in 2024. It was great seeing those of you who could make it to the event! We hope to host the tailgate in the future, so please stay tuned.
We had several important faculty transitions in the department last year (see updates on pages 4-5). Associate Professor Debora Baldwin retired in December 2024 after 35 years as a member of the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience. Baldwin was part of our neuroscience and behavior program area and will be missed. We wish her well in her retirement!
In addition to updates with our faculty, we also want to welcome two new administrative staff to our department. Kristi Cook joined the department in July as a financial associate, having had over a decade of experience in finance at UT. Jackson Knight joined us in August as an administrative specialist assisting with our undergraduate programs. We are thrilled to have them in our department!
Finally, I want to sincerely thank you for your generous support of the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience! Between Fall 2022 and Spring 2024, your donations provided:
- Conference travel funding to 106 graduate students and 14 undergraduates
- Dissertation support for 10 PhD students
- Study abroad scholarships for four undergraduate majors
- Stipend assistance for our graduate students (one-time emergency funds in January 2023)
- Awards for graduate student excellence
It is our pleasure to share these exciting developments with you as we embark on a new year and new semester. We hope you are healthy and well. Please stay in touch. Go Vols!
Gina Owens
Professor and Head