School spirit at UT Southern has a bold new face: Flame, the university’s newly costumed Firehawk mascot. Unveiled at a home basketball doubleheader, the newly designed Flame emerged off the paper and onto the court—bringing fresh energy to game days and campus events.
Flame embodies the characteristics that define UT Southern: grit, warmth and momentum—and represents a campus community that is proud of its roots, ambitious about its future and fiercely supportive of its students and student-athletes.
Fletcher Named Vice Chancellor
UT Southern has appointed Stephanie Fletcher as vice chancellor for finance and administration.
Fletcher brings nearly two decades of experience in higher education finance and private-sector accounting, most recently serving as director of budget and financial planning at East Tennessee State University. In her role at ETSU, Fletcher co-led the annual budget process and played a key role in major university initiatives, including budget model redesign, academic restructuring and a transition to the cloud-based Oracle ERP system.
At UT Southern, she will oversee financial operations, budget strategy, facilities, human resources and administrative functions.
UT Southern Welcomes Hensley
UT Southern has appointed Kyle Hensley as its vice chancellor for advancement.
Hensley provides strategic direction for fundraising, alumni relations and donor stewardship while building partnerships across the UT Foundation and UT Southern leadership. He will report jointly to UT Southern Chancellor Melinda Arnold and UT Foundation President and CEO Kerry Witcher.
Hensley (Knoxville ’12, ’13) has experience in higher education and public service, including work in corporate and foundation relations at the UT Institute of Agriculture.
A Structure Supports Strategic Growth
In a transformative move to align resources with goals, UT Southern Chancellor Melinda Arnold has unveiled a new organizational structure designed to strengthen campus leadership, enhance student success and position the university for sustained growth.
Provost Prentice Chandler will serve as executive vice chancellor for academic affairs and student experience. This unified leadership approach brings academic and student life functions together to support the university’s student-first culture, ensuring seamless coordination between classroom experiences and co-curricular engagement.
Matthew Little now serves as vice provost for student experience, leading initiatives that enhance student life, wellness and campus involvement. Chris Mattingly serves as vice provost for academic and faculty affairs, providing leadership in academic innovation, faculty development and program quality.
The new organizational framework introduces the integrated enrollment and brand strategy division, led by Vice Chancellor Aimee Rose, which consolidates admissions, marketing, communications and related enrollment-focused initiatives.
