October 2025

Student-Faculty Collaboration Refreshes McClung Exhibit

Anthropology student and professor collaborate to update long-standing McClung exhibit on human origins. The university celebrated the Scopes Trial Centennial throughout 2025 with numerous public activities that addressed a variety of topics related to the historic Tennessee trial and the science of evolution. As official events rolled along, one honors anthropology student and her faculty…
Big Orange Give

Vols support Vols during the Big Orange Give. UT’s 2025 Big Orange Give on Wednesday, November 5, is the university’s annual 24-hour online challenge for alumni, friends, parents, students, faculty, staff, and fans to show their support for Rocky Top. This year’s university goal is to raise $2.5 million, and our College of Arts and…
Scholar Spotlight: Ziying (Nancy) Lei

“I study tiny particles in the air—like pollen and wildfire smoke—that are invisible to the eye but have a big influence on clouds, climate, and public health.” Ziying (Nancy) LeiAssistant ProfessorDepartment of Chemistry My research focuses on advancing our understanding of the physical and chemical properties of atmospheric aerosol particles and how their transformations influence…
Fern Scientist Uncovers How Limits Fuel Evolution

Combining curiosity about ferns with the high-tech imaging available at UT, Professor Jacob S. Suissa is adding new insight into evolution. Research by Assistant Professor Jacob S. Suissa at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is revealing complexity in how ferns have evolved. Instead of the vascular structure inside fern stems changing as a direct adaptation…
UT Scholar Part of Rare Etruscan Tomb Discovery

UT doctoral student Anna Catherine Gibbs’ archaeology research took her to Italy and the opening of an undisturbed tomb from the seventh century BCE. Anna Catherine Gibbs returned to Italy in the summer of 2025 for her seventh season of fieldwork on the San Giuliano Archaeological Research Project (SGARP), working with the team that lowered…
Scholar Spotlight: Vivian Swayne

“I study policing, culture, housing insecurity, race, gender, and sexuality.” Vivian SwayneTeaching Assistant ProfessorDepartment of Sociology I am particularly interested in how various forms of communication, from the visual arts to social media, reinforce and challenge the dominant social order. Damaging misinformation and myths about marginalized groups circulate as factual, and my work interrogates the…
Harb Family Helps Launch Middle East Study Abroad

With the Harb family’s help, a new study abroad program to Jordan will immerse students in Palestinian history and culture, add perspective on global issues, and prepare students for international careers. Nearly 75 years after the first person of Palestinian descent graduated from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, a new program will allow students to…
Arts & Sciences Undergraduate Research Symposium (ASUReS) 2026

Welcome to the third Arts & Science Undergraduate Research Symposium (ASUReS). This event, now in its third year, is an annual celebration of research and creative endeavors by currently enrolled undergraduate students in the College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Abstract Submission Deadline: Friday, March 6, 2026 Read about ASUReS…
Rats! Science Redefines Social Media Sensation

The rodent that caused a sidewalk impression known as the “Chicago Rat Hole” likely was a squirrel, according to a UT animal researcher and his colleagues. An imprint of a rodent in concrete is more than a meme to an animal researcher from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and his collaborators. By investigating photos of…
Activities Grants Light Up Vol Spirit

Vols across arts and humanities interests find community and collaboration through wide-ranging organizations supported by student activities grants. Student-led organizations throughout the college and university offer Vols a wide range of opportunities to engage with each other on projects that enliven and enrich fellowship, friendship, and fun in campus life—all while connecting classroom insights and…