Alumna’s Gift Creates New Graduate Fellowship
A substantial gift from alumna Wanda Rushing creates the Rushing Fellows Program for the Department of Sociology.
A generous gift from UT doctoral alumna Wanda Rushing establishes a new fellowship program that supports graduate students in the Department of Sociology as they work toward their master’s degrees and PhDs.
For Rushing, this is both an expression of her dedication to public higher education and her gratitude to the University of Tennessee.
“UT made it possible for me to earn my PhD and pursue the career of my dreams: becoming a university professor,” she said. “Until then I was a college instructor with a master’s degree. The opportunity to pursue research and teaching at the PhD level was transformative for me. I want to give back and pay it forward.”
Her substantial contribution establishes the Rushing Fellows Program in sociology.
“I like to think that many people’s lives will be touched by this gift,” said Rushing. “Students and faculty will benefit, and the lives of all they encounter on their professional journeys will be changed by their work.”
Mentorship Paid Forward
Rushing was inspired to create the fellowship by a family friend and mentor who passed away in 2024 at the age of 101. Charles Vail was a retired professor who had served as academic dean at Hampden Sydney College and Georgia State University, and as president of Winthrop College, now Winthrop University.
“When I earned my PhD, he told me it was time to start giving back and explained his gift to his alma mater supporting student research,” said Rushing. “He was my role model for giving.”
She wants her gift to ensure that graduate students have adequate resources of money and time to do their best work and pursue research that they feel passionate about.
“I also want them to feel that somebody cares about them and their work,” said Rushing. “Sometimes graduate students do not get positive feedback from friends and family—who question their commitment to graduate school when they could be doing other things. I want them to know that their dreams are important and worth the considerable effort for them to succeed.”
Leadership Journey
From left: Sociology Head Stephanie Bohon; sociology Director of Graduate Studies Lois Presser; Rushing; post-doctoral researcher A.J. Knowles (previous recipient of the Rushing Sociological Research Excellence Endowment); social sciences Divisional Dean Patrick Grzanka; and Interim Executive Dean Robert Hinde.
Rushing earned her doctorate at UT in 1998 and has served for years on the Dean’s Advisory Board in the College of Arts and Sciences. She is now a Professor Emerita from the University of Memphis sociology faculty, where she was a Dunavant University Professor. In 2016, she was elected and served as president of Sociologists for Women in Society. She authored Memphis and the Paradox of Place (University of North Carolina Press) and received the University of Memphis College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Research Award in Social Sciences in 2010, the UT Department of Sociology Distinguished Alumna Award in 2016, and the Alumni Scholarly Achievement Award in 2018.
Her original undergraduate degree was in history. She was working in a non-profit organization when her director made her an offer that she “couldn’t refuse.”
“He said, ‘If you take a graduate course in sociology, I will pay for it,’” said Rushing. “I realized that first semester that the discipline offered me so many ways to combine my interests in history, culture, and social inequality.”
Her master’s program institution did not offer a PhD, so she built teaching and life experience for several years before applying for the PhD program at UT.
“It was worth the wait, she said. “And the effort.”
She connected with UT faculty mentors like Professor John Gaventa, now at the University of Sussex, and her dissertation advisor Professor Asafa Jalata, the Betty Lynn Hendrickson Professor and Professor of Sociology and Global and Africana Studies.
“I learned from Jalata in the classroom, and I learned by working with him on the Journal of Oromo Studies, which he edited,” said Rushing. “It was important to learn from him how to combine my interests in history and sociology, and social justice. He has continued to support me in job searches, promotions, etc. I am grateful for his inspiration and support.”
Her gratitude will be expressed for years to come through her impactful gift to UT and its graduate students.
“The University of Tennessee is a valuable asset for the state of Tennessee,” said Rushing. “It deserves support.”
By Randall Brown