Executive Director and Vice Provost University of Tennessee-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute

Overview

We are seeking a visionary and collaborative leader and scholar to serve as the Executive Director and Vice Provost of the University of Tennessee-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute (UT-ORII). Located at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in the beautiful foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains and near the lively and historic city of Knoxville, the UT-ORII is an exciting and unique organization that focuses on innovation and education.

Building on an 80+ year partnership between ORNL and the University of Tennessee (UT), UT-ORII melds select strengths of both organization to accelerate impacts at scale.

ORNL is the largest Office of Science national laboratory in the U.S. Department of Energy system, with over 7,400 staff, world‑leading user facilities, and an extraordinary breadth of expertise across neutron science, computational science, materials science, nuclear energy, isotopes, biological and environmental sciences, national security, and energy technologies. The University of Tennessee System includes five main campuses, including the flagship, Doctoral R1, land‑grant institution, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) located in Memphis and University of Tennessee Chattanooga (UTC).

UT-ORII was officially launched in 2021 with support from the Department of Energy and the State of Tennessee to accelerate innovation on complex and pressing challenges that require convergent research, and to develop a next generation of scientists and engineers who thrive in dynamic, team‑based settings. By strategically aligning the assets across the five University of Tennessee System universities and ORNL, UT-ORII has positioned itself to be a nationally prominent and coveted home for convergent research and talent development.

Five convergent research initiatives (CRIs) have been stood up to nucleate top‑notch teams and advance innovation, including fusion technologies and materials for extreme environments, circular bioeconomy systems, radiopharmaceutical therapies, advanced manufacturing for building construction, and transportation. In association with the CRIs, UT-ORII is in the process of hiring 100 joint faculty associated with these initiatives and increasing enrollment in its graduate programs to over 500 students over the next several years.

In addition to exciting research initiatives and educational plans, UT-ORII also serves as a convening and umbrella organization for existing joint UT and ORNL programs, including a robust TN Governor's Chair program that supports world‑leading joint faculty appointments. Approximately 200 additional joint appointments exist across the organizations, representing a broad range of disciplines and multidisciplinary domains. UT-ORII oversees three joint graduate degree programs with 224 enrolled students at UTK in 2025—the Genome Science and Technology, Energy Science and Engineering, and Data Science and Engineering programs.

Reporting to the ORNL Laboratory Director, the UT‑ORII Executive Director serves as the senior leader responsible for the oversight of the Institute's vision, management, and operations, as well as the development and implementation of strategies to ensure enduring success and impact. The UT‑ORII executive director and Vice Provost is part of the scientific executive leadership at both ORNL and across UT, where they help to identify and propel collaborative research opportunities and impact, and advance graduate education prominence jointly with UT's colleges and ORNL's directorates.

As Vice Provost, the position is responsible and accountable to the UTK Provost on sole academic matters itional information about UT‑ORII is provided though the Institute's website, strategic plan, and overview article.

• Refine and execute a shared vision and associated strategic plan to accelerate world‑leading innovation on convergent research topics and major initiatives of joint interest to UT and ORNL.
• Serve as primary spokesperson for the Institute's vision, successes and directions to a wide range of audiences.
• Develop, enhance, and maintain…