Institute News

Jocko Willink and Leif Babin draw powerful leadership principles from their experiences as U.S. Navy SEALs in "Extreme Ownership."  Each chapter describes a leadership lesson learned during their combat or training experience. The chapter explains the leadership principle and the principle’s application to business. As I was reading, I realized that the principles aligned with the values and desired behaviors of BE ONE UT. After the chapter name, I have added the value and behavior from BE ONE UT that I think align with each chapter.

I’m an outdoors guy and an avid backpacker. I love spending time on the trail. As spring approaches, my wife and I are already planning which backpacking trips we are going to tackle this year. As we are considering parks to visit and routes to take, it’s made me look back and reminisce about some of the lessons I’ve learned over the miles, much of which can be applied to our roles as leaders.

Last month’s LEAD article was inspired by a visit Resa and I made between Christmas and New Year’s Day to the Little White House in Key West, Fla. I’d like to revisit (figuratively) the Little White House one more time to make another observation.

That observation is: good leadership makes a (positive) difference!

Twenty-four executives from campuses and institutes across the University of Tennessee System were chosen to make up the 2024 class of the Executive Leadership Institute. The institute, which is operated by the UT Institute for Public Service’s Naifeh Center for Effective Leadership, develops executive leaders for the needs of the UT System.

Members of the fifth cohort will begin their year-long journey with an orientation on January 23 in Nashville. They are:

The Substance Misuse and Addiction Resource of Tennessee (SMART Initiative), a program of the University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service (IPS), has partnered with Gibson Gives—the charitable foundation for Gibson, the iconic and leading global instrument brand—to place ONEbox opioid emergency response kits in Knoxville music venues.

Video remote interpreting, or VRI, is becoming increasingly popular due to its multiple benefits. VRI allows the interpreter to interact with participants via a secure web-based platform on any device or computer. The Tennessee Language Center (TLC) offers this service to its clients, along with traditional in-person interpreting and over-the-phone interpreting.

Inmates in several West Tennessee correctional facilities now have skills for a productive life outside of prison, thanks in part to the UT Center for Industrial Services (CIS) and its Tennessee Manufacturing Extension Partnership (TMEP) organization.

Discover the delicious art of Japanese cuisine in a three-part series of online classes in July. Best of all, it’s free for UT and state employees!

The Japanese Oishi Cooking Class for Adults (ages 16 and above) will be held online from 5:30-6:30 p.m. central time on July 13, 20 and 27. The total cost is $100 for the series.

Students will learn basic vocabulary and expressions in Japanese as well as five methods of Japanese cooking while making dishes like dashi pickles, miso soup and matcha ice cream.

Tennessee’s violent crime rate ranks as one of the highest in the nation. Fortunately, Governor Bill Lee is taking action, in part by releasing $100 million for violent crime intervention.

The University of Tennessee Center for Industrial Services (UT CIS) recently graduated the 15th class through its Tennessee Certified Economic Developer (TCED) Program. This cohort brings the total number of Tennessee certified economic developers to 86.