Meet the Faculty Senate Team for the 2026-2027 academic year:
Leadership Team:
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Jud Laughter, President
Professor, Theory and Practice in Teacher Education
College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences
email: [email protected]
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| I am Professor of English Education in the department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education. My scholarship covers divisive issues as they relate to pedagogy. I am trained as a dialogic facilitator and I enjoy policy as a site of negotiation between an individual and an institution. My hobbies include crossword puzzles, cycling, and off-trail swimming holes in the Smokies. My passions include whisk(e)y, music, and languages. I am an Aries, Earth Horse, 1 wing 2, proud member of Gen X, and a son of Appalachia. |
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Amber Roessner, President Elect
Professor, Journalism & Media
College of Communication and Information
email: [email protected]
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| Amber Roessner is an expert in the history of campaign and political reporting; modern U.S. presidential conventions, debates and transitions; and the life of former President Jimmy Carter.
Click to visit her Faculty Profile |
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Charles Noble, Immediate Past President
Professor, Marketing
Haslam College of Business
email: [email protected]
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Charles Noble is the Henry Distinguished Professor of Business in the Haslam College of Business at The University of Tennessee. He currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science (JAMS), a FT-50, leading journal in the Marketing field. He previously served as EIC of the Journal of Product Innovation Management (JPIM), the premier research journal in the areas of new product development and innovation. His research interests focus generally on marketing strategy and innovation, including market entry strategies, strategic orientations and front-end design and development processes, as applied to both products and services. He also serves as Immediate Past President of the UTK Faculty Senate.
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Officers:
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Alex Boris, Communications Officer
Assistant Professor, Health and Wellness and Professional Programs
UT Libraries
email: [email protected]
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Alex is an assistant professor at John C. Hodges Library and a social sciences librarian specializing in education, psychology, and neuroscience. Her research interests include evidence synthesis within the social sciences and student success through information literacy.
Alex holds a bachelor’s in music education from Tennessee Wesleyan University, a Master of Science and Information Sciences from the University of Tennessee and is certified by the Medical Library Association as a member of The Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP).
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Heather Sedges, Parliamentarian
Professor & Human Development Specialist, Family and Consumer Sciences
UT Institute of Agriculture, UT Extension
email: [email protected]
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Dr. Heather Sedges is a Professor and Human Development Specialist in Family and Consumer Sciences with UT Extension. A three-time University of Tennessee graduate, she holds degrees in Human Ecology, Psychology, and Child and Family Studies. Her work focuses on translating research into practical resources related to family wellbeing, parenting, development across the lifespan, mental health, and the impacts of technology on daily life.
Dr. Sedges has led and contributed to statewide Extension programming, interdisciplinary projects, and multiple multimillion-dollar federal- and state-funded initiatives supporting families, professionals, and communities. She is a Certified Family Life Educator and has been recognized with the UT Presidential Award for “Transparent & Trusted” service.
In Faculty Senate, Dr. Sedges serves as Parliamentarian and Past Chair of the Ag Caucus, where she supports shared governance, transparent decision-making, effective faculty representation, and institutional processes that strengthen trust, continuity, and accountability. Her governance interests include policy clarity and application, the stewardship of shared governance principles and practices, and responsive, mission-centered higher education within the land-grant system.
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Michelle Brannen, Recording Secretary
Associate Professor, Head, Immersive Spaces & Technologies
UT Libraries
email: [email protected]
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Michelle Brannen is a Librarian and Head of Immersive Spaces & Technologies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville Libraries. Her work focuses on supporting scholars incorporating media and design into their work. Michelle received her master’s degree in library and information sciences from the University of Tennessee and a BA in Music Education from Florida State University. Her research interests include examining how outreach and engagement programming can support and create community, promote student success, and engage students in new literacies; exploring the impact of library services on creativity and communication; and the assessment of library programs and services.
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Staff:
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Pamela Durban, Administrative Coordinator
Office of the Provost
Division of Faculty Affairs
email: [email protected]
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Pamela is the Administrative Coordinator for the UT Faculty Senate, where she supports Senate leadership, committees, and faculty through the coordination of meetings, communications, and daily operations.
Before joining the Faculty Senate, Pamela enjoyed a career in professional opera stage management and later earned a MS in Information Sciences from UT Knoxville with a focus in children’s and young adult literature.
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