Randy Boyd will add five more years to his tenure as president of the University of Tennessee System, with plans to grow enrollment to record numbers while addressing the challenges associated with student housing supply.
While the priorities may seem counterintuitive – a growing population while housing is difficult enough – Boyd does not shy away from the challenge of ensuring that the 2020s are the “greatest decade in the history of the university.”
“It is the honor of my life to serve in this role,” Boyd said. “I’m a big believer in the word serendipity. Great things that happen to you that are unexpected, things that are better than you planned. I never really expected to play this role. The day I said I would to serve as interim (president), I woke up that morning and never thought I would be president of a university, let alone my alma mater, let alone the university that is the land grant of the state where I love.
“So to have this opportunity to serve both my university and my state is the greatest blessing I’ve ever had,” he said.
With a unanimous vote by the UT System Board of Trustees at its annual meeting on June 24, Boyd’s role was extended through June 2030, five years on top of his existing agreement. He has held this position since 2018 and will once again not accept a salary (only a $10,000 stipend to cover health insurance costs).
The vote came just three months after Boyd expressed interest in seeking another five-year term. Now that his expansion is a reality, Boyd wants to increase enrollment systemwide to 71,000 by 2030, which would mean enrolling an additional 12,274 students across the system’s five schools.
The UT’s strategic plan, which establishes a long-term vision for the system, expires in 2025. Boyd will be tasked with revamping the plan and reassessing needs to achieve student population goals.
Randy Boyd’s top 2024 goals for the University of Tennessee
In his performance review, Boyd mentioned the following four topics as priorities for the further growth of the UT in 2024:
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Add and update student housing: More facilities and improvements to existing facilities are needed to accommodate the 58,726 students enrolled in UT schools, especially considering the enrollment goal of 71,000 by 2030. The University of Tennessee at Knoxville has entered into a public-private partnership to build three dormitories by 2026, with plans to create space for 1,000 students annually. UT Chattanooga will build a new dormitory by fall 2027, as UT Martin and UT Southern are still developing strategies.
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Improving parking: The board will vote on parking changes for UT Knoxville, including tiered parking zones based on location. If approved, the university will also impose parking restrictions on first-year students and expand the class schedule to spread the demand for parking spaces. Other UT campuses could copy these strategies.
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Resolving capital project constraints: UT is working with the government to build new academic buildings. There are 1,012 buildings spread across the UT campuses, with an average lifespan of 67 years. Approximately $3.4 billion is needed for capital expenditures over the next ten years, along with $900 million in maintenance costs alone.
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Maintain affordability: Given inflation, the UT has maintained the tuition fee increase at an average of 0.8% per year for five years. UT Promise, a last-dollar, income-based scholarship, helped 47% of students graduate last year without debt. Boyd said UT will continue to make campuses accessible and affordable.
University of Tennessee grades at a glance under Randy Boyd
UT has experienced record growth since Boyd took office in 2018, with enrollment growing from 50,810 in his first year to 58,726 in fall 2023.
During that same time, the one-year retention rate grew by 3.9% to 85.1% for fall 2023. The four-year graduation rate grew by 5.9% to 49.6%, and the six-year graduation rate grew by 3.7% to 64.8%.
Keenan Thomas is a higher education reporter. Email Keenan.thomas@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter @specialk2real.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Randy Boyd gets five more years as president of the University of Tennessee
