{"id":70921,"date":"2025-09-16T16:44:42","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T20:44:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=70921"},"modified":"2025-09-28T12:23:19","modified_gmt":"2025-09-28T16:23:19","slug":"service-recognized-stories-remembered-utc-celebrates-employee-milestones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/09\/service-recognized-stories-remembered-utc-celebrates-employee-milestones\/","title":{"rendered":"Service recognized, stories remembered: UTC celebrates employee milestones"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A

Guests, including Provost Jerold Hale and Vice Chancellor Artanya Wesley, applaud during the 2025 UTC Service Awards Luncheon. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n

As part of this year\u2019s Founder\u2019s Week festivities, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga honored 194 employees during its Service Awards Luncheon on Tuesday, Sept. 16. The event celebrated milestone anniversaries ranging from five to 55 years of service.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis week, we\u2019re celebrating our 139th birthday as a University,\u201d Chancellor Lori Bruce said in her address to the audience. \u201cToday we\u2019re here to celebrate you. We\u2019re here to celebrate your achievement and your dedication to UTC.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bruce, who joined UTC as chancellor over the summer, said what has stood out most to her is the people who make UTC what it is.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach of us is an ambassador for the University. We\u2019re ambassadors inside the campus and outside the campus,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

UT System President Randy Boyd shared his congratulations through a video message.<\/p>\n

\u201cMilestones like these remind us of the incredible people, like all of you, who show up every day helping us accomplish our mission to serve Tennessee and live our shared Be One UT values,\u201d Boyd said.. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Dr.

From left: Dr. Gary McDonald, retired UC Foundation associate professor of mechanical engineering; Chancellor Lori Bruce; and Dr. Jocelyn Sanders, professor of music.<\/p><\/div>\n

Five of this year\u2019s honorees have dedicated more than four decades to UTC, including Dr. Gary McDonald, a UC Foundation associate professor of mechanical engineering who recently retired from the University after 40 years of service, and Dr. Jocelyn Sanders, a professor of music who retired after 45 years.<\/p>\n

The other long-serving honorees were Dr. Parthasarati Dileepan, professor of management (40 years); Terry Walters, professor of mathematics (40 years); and Dr. Ralph Hood, professor of psychology (55 years).<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t seem like it\u2019s been that long,\u201d McDonald said about his 40 years at UTC. \u201cI just retired June 30th, so I started when I was 30 years old and now I\u2019m 70.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said he has admired seeing the progress UTC has made over the last four decades.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe University has changed a lot, the campus footprint,\u201d he said. \u201cThe students are basically the same. Good students are good students.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always enjoyed teaching. I enjoyed my time here at UTC, but this is a younger man’s and woman\u2019s game. It\u2019s time to let go and let other people do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanders said the milestone marked the culmination of an entire career.<\/p>\n

\u201cForty-five years … It was my whole career. Everything I\u2019ve done professionally was either at UTC or in Chattanooga,\u201d Sanders said. \u201cIt\u2019s an awful lot to look at all at once, so I have to look at it in episodes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking back, Sanders said what stands out most is the freedom and fulfillment she found at UTC.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was able to do everything I wanted to do here. I was able to finish my education. I was able to teach what I wanted to teach. I\u2019m a musician, so I was able to play what I wanted to play and collaborate with colleagues who were just incredible artists,\u201d she said. \u201cI was able to do some administrative work. I was able to do everything I wanted to do. It was just a wonderful opportunity every step of the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chancellor

Chancellor Lori Bruce and Sandra Jones, dean’s assistant\/budget manager in the College of Health, Education and Professional Studies.<\/p><\/div>\n

For many honorees, the ceremony provided a moment of reflection on how much has changed\u2014and how much has stayed the same\u2014through the years.<\/p>\n

Dr. Linda Hill, who marked 20 years in the UTC School of Nursing, recalled her early days teaching live broadcast classes from Fletcher Hall to students in Tupelo, Mississippi.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was the early days of that education way before Zoom ever existed,\u201d Hill said. \u201cThe entire simulation program for the School of Nursing has really expanded. It\u2019s been great to be part of that growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

College of Health, Education and Professional Studies Dean Valerie Rutledge, a UTC alum now celebrating 30 years working for the University, has watched the campus \u201calmost quadruple in size\u201d since first joining as an undergraduate.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been fun to watch the University become what it is and to develop and grow in a way that really speaks to the investment in the community,\u201d Rutledge said. \u201cI think it\u2019s fabulous.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her longtime assistant, Sandra Jones\u2014who has been at UTC for 35 years\u2014said she has seen many changes since joining the University.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started out in food services and then went to parking services. Then I went to work in the School of Education for Dr. Rutledge. When she went to the dean\u2019s office, I moved to the dean\u2019s office with her,\u201d Jones said. \u201cIt\u2019s been a wonderful 35 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chancellor

Chancellor Lori Bruce and Assistant Professor of Sociology Darrell Walsh.<\/p><\/div>\n

Also celebrating 35 years was Dr. Darrell Walsh, an assistant professor of sociology who described the milestone celebration as \u201csurreal.\u201d<\/p>\n

He reflected on his five-year Service Awards Luncheon, where employees who served more than 20 years received a UTC-branded bag.<\/p>\n

\u201cI looked at that and I thought, \u2018Man, I want a bag,\u2019\u201d Walsh said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t really sure if I would be here for 20 years, but I really have enjoyed my journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

He pointed to a Confucius quote that was included in the event\u2019s program: \u201cChoose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that characterizes my experience,\u201d Walsh said.<\/p>\n

For others, the milestone came with gratitude for the people around them.<\/p>\n

Terrence Banks, associate director of recruitment and engagement, said his 10 years at UTC have been shaped by support.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I\u2019ve grown so much at UTC and got so much help,\u201d said Banks, a 2013 UTC graduate. \u201cBeing able to pour that energy back into the students that we recruit and the individuals we get to work with, it is just a beautiful feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Laure

Assistant Vice Chancellor Laure Pou, who helps organize the Service Awards Luncheon, was recognized for 15 years of service.<\/p><\/div>\n

Laure Pou, assistant vice chancellor for human resources, has helped host the ceremony for years and was honored herself for 15 years of service. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve been a part of hosting this event and emceeing it for at least 10 of those 15 years,\u201d Pou\u00a0said. \u201cIt’s not often you get a chance to stop and just dedicate time to recognition and those that have committed their careers to the University. It’s always uplifting.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For Mike Andrews, executive video producer, 15 years has meant watching the campus and his own role evolve. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of changes, a lot of progress, but also kind of a common thread going through it all about people who care for people,\u201d Andrews said. \u201cIt has really been amazing from the beginning because by being in this position, you get to see the best of people of what they aspire to do and seeing them really achieve it.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Carla Mason, a senior custodian celebrating 10 years, expressed what it\u2019s like working in a campus community.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been so fulfilling for me helping people and just being me, letting my light shine for Christ,\u201d Mason said. \u201cWhen I came, I came with a purpose to help and to heal. We all are family.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Chancellor

Chancellor Lori Bruce and senior custodian Carla Mason.<\/p><\/div>\n

5-Year Service Awards<\/h4>\n