It’s your chance to speak with Cheek.
Students will be given the opportunity to pose questions directly to Chancellor Jimmy Cheek this Tuesday night in the Haslam Business Building. Organized as a town hall meeting, attendees will participate in a Q-and-A style forum with Cheek, discussing issues related to the university.
Michael Hensley, SGA co-director of government affairs and one of the organizers of the event, sees it as an important opportunity students should take advantage of.
“It’s really just a great way to ask questions one-on-one with Chancellor Cheek,” Hensley, sophomore in political science, said of the annual event.
While the chancellor plans to answer any questions from attendees relating to university life, Hensley hopes Cheek will specifically touch on the university’s Top 25 initiative and UT’s progress in that regard.
“The Top 25 initiative is always something that I myself am interested in,” Hensley said.
Despite UT’s recent drop in rankings from 47 to 50 on U.S. News & World Report’s annual list for best public universities, Hensley has faith in the administration and the chancellor’s efforts to make positive progress.
“We went down on the rankings, but that technically doesn’t mean we weren’t doing everything that we needed to, it’s just that other universities are improving faster than we are,” Hensley said.
Margie Nichols, vice chancellor for communications, anticipates that student questions will range from parking issues on campus to the logistics of the university.
Citing a “phenomenal” 9 percent elevation in graduation rates as well as a 12 percent increase in four-year retention rates, Nichols hopes students will keep the university’s progress in mind when framing their questions.
“This is a journey,” Nichols said of Tennessee’s Top 25 initiative. “Everything we’re doing is moving us forward.”
Nichols further encourages students to participate in the town hall event and remember the importance the chancellor places on their concerns.
“It’s an opportunity to talk with the chancellor and listen to him and have him listen to your concerns,” Nichols said. “(Chancellor Cheek) is going there to hear the students’ opinions and he always considers that when he’s making decisions.”
Bethany Vanhooser, senior in economics and SGA’s director of government affairs, sees the event as valuable to both the student body as well as the administration.
“It’s an extremely valuable opportunity for both Chancellor Cheek and the students,” Vanhooser said of the town hall. “Any time that students have the opportunity to engage the Chancellor and just kind of see his face and hear his concerns directly from him … I think that’s definitely beneficial to anyone’s image.”
Overall, Hensley hopes students will attend and realize the importance of being involved on campus.
“I think it’s important to be knowledgeable and aware of what’s going on at the university and really try to participate in the process,” Hensley said. “You’re getting to communicate one-on-one with a very important decision-maker here at UT.”
Attendees are encouraged to tweet the event with #CheekSpeak.
