Aligning the expertise and infrastructure of the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the UT-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute is a hub for world-class discovery and innovation, interdisciplinary graduate education, and talent development.
Governor's Chairs
The Governor’s Chairs program provides joint appointments at the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory for some of the nation’s top scientists, transforming such fields as clean manufacturing, energy production, environmental systems and computing technologies.
Funded by the state of Tennessee and ORNL, the program attracts top researchers to broaden and enhance the unique research partnership that exists among UT, the state’s preeminent public university system, and ORNL, the nation’s largest multiprogram laboratory.
The Governor’s Chair program is managed by the UT-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute (UT-ORII) in coordination with ORNL and UT. To accelerate collaborative research between UT and ORNL, UT-ORII is expanding its prestigious Governor’s Chairs program. There are currently 12 Governor’s Chairs, 10 located at UT Knoxville and two at UT Health Science Center.
Rigoberto C. Advincula
Advanced and Nanostructured Materials
Appointed 2020
Terry Hazen
Environmental Biotechnology
Appointed 2011
Uday Vaidya
Advanced Composites Manufacturing
Appointed 2015
Robert Williams
Computational Genomics
Appointed 2009
Brian Wirth
Computational Nuclear Engineering
Appointed 2010
Thomas Zawodzinski
Electrical Energy Conversion and Storage
Appointed 2009
