Annual Meeting

April 1st, 2025

For all those who attended, thank you for your continued support!  We hope you enjoyed the networking opportunity as well as all of our exceptional speakers.

If you missed the 2025 Annual Meeting on Tuesday, April 1st, 2025 you can view the speaker notes / slides below.

Click Here to download or view "Federal Shifts on Higher Education" Speaker Notes (PDF)

"The Impact of Federal Shifts on Higher Education" - Dr. Tom Harnisch

Click Here to download or view "Case for Higher Eduction" Speaker Notes (PDF)

"Making a More Effective Case for Higher Education in Today’s Challenging Climate" - Dr. Don Bruce

Photo Gallery

Program Schedule

8:30AM

• • Continental Breakfast

9:00AM

• • Welcome
    Dr. C. William McKee
    TCA President
    Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs – Cumberland University

9:15AM

• • Business Meeting
    Dr. L. Anthony Wise, Jr.
    TCA Past-President
    President – Pellissippi State Community College
    • Approval of the Annual Meeting Minutes 03/26/2024
    • Financial Report
    • Suggested Bylaw Revisions
      

     

  • Nominating Committee Report
    Dr. Kim Hall
    TCA Executive Committee and Chair of the Nominating Committee
    Vice Chancellor, Institutional Advancement & Effectiveness – South College
    

9:30AM

• • The Dr. Hal Ramer Annual Lecture – "We Stand on their Shoulders: A History of Higher Education in Tennessee"
    Dr. Carole Bucy
    Distinguished University Professor – Cumberland University
    

10:00AM

• • The Impact and Power of AI in Higher Education
    Dr. Robbie Melton
    Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs & Vice President for Technology Innovations – SMART Global Technology Innovation Center – Tennessee State University 
    

10:45AM

• • Break

11:00AM

• • SACSCOC Update and Introduction of the Speaker
    Dr. Kim Hall
    Vice Chancellor, Institutional Advancement & Effectiveness – South College
    
  • "The Impact of Federal Shifts on Higher Education"
    Dr. Tom Harnisch
    the Vice President for Governmental Relations at the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association

12:00PM

• • Luncheon & Table Conversations Facilitator
    Dr. Cameron Conn
    President – Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association

12:45PM

• • "Making a More Effective Case for Higher Education in Today’s Challenging Climate"
    Dr. Don Bruce
    The Randy and Jenny Boyd Distinguished Professor in the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee and Director of the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research

1:45PM

• • Break
    

2:00PM

• • Issues in Higher Education
    Moderator:
    Dr. Steven Gentile - Executive Director – Tennessee Higher Education Commission
    
    Panelists:
    Dr. Linda C. Martin - Chancellor – University of Tennessee Southern
    Dr. Brian Noland - President – East Tennessee State University
    Dr. Flora W. Tydings - Chancellor – Tennessee Board of Regents
    Dr. Cameron Conn - President - Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association.

3:30PM

• • • Closing Comments
      Dr. C. William McKee
      TCA President Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs – Cumberland University

About The Venue

Just a 10-minute walk from Music Row, The Hilton Garden Inn Nashville-Vanderbilt is a modern downtown hotel which is 9 minutes on foot from Vanderbilt University and 1 mile from the Country Music Hall of Fame.