Summer 2026
The inaugural issue of Health Sciences magazine highlights how collaboration across education, research, clinical care and public service strengthens our shared vision for healthier Tennesseans and thriving communities. Inside, you will find stories that demonstrate the power of connecting people, disciplines and ideas to improve health across Tennessee.
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One University. One Mission. One Magazine.
At UT Health Sciences, our story has never been more compelling — or more important to tell well. Every day, across our six colleges, we are educating the next generation of health care professionals, advancing discovery, and improving the lives of Tennesseans. Central to this work is our shared mission: to create Healthier Tennesseans and Thriving Communities across… Read More
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A Historic Investment
New College of Medicine Interdisciplinary Building a Game Changer for Tennessee 2026 College of Medicine Class President Evan Finder took the long view when he heard that the Tennessee General Assembly had appropriated $311 million for the construction of the new $350 million College of Medicine Interdisciplinary Building. “The new College of Medicine building represents a… Read More
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PA Students Put Tennessee First
A new generation of Physician Assistants trained at UT Health Sciences are heading toward the communities that need them most. The bus pulled out of Memphis before sunrise. A few students dozed in the early dark, heads tilted toward windows as the highway unspooled west to east. In the quiet, a voice carried from the front. “What are you doing?” Another student… Read More
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Life, Amplified
In the Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology, care, learning, and community come together one patient at a time. On a recent morning inside the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Audiology and Speech Pathology (ASP) clinic in downtown Knoxville, Rachel Brock sat for a routine appointment she has experienced dozens of times before. A clinician adjusted the settings on her… Read More
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Leveling Up
Trauma Care Led by UT Health Sciences Physicians Achieves Highest National Recognition Andrew Kerwin, MD, often compares a trauma center to a fire department, an essential resource people hope they never need. “Nobody ever gets up in the morning and says, ‘I’m going to slip on the ice while I’m shoveling snow and hit my… Read More
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The Envelope Moment
Medicine’s Class of 2026 Brave Tension and Thrill of Match Day Fourth-year medical student Avery Dargie had always viewed medicine as something more than a job. That grounding shapes her vision for the future. “It’s something that allows for this beautiful combination of science with teamwork, and this human connection that is so tangible,” she said.… Read More
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‘Blessing’ Tennesseans with Better Oral Health
Back in 2012, Union City businessman William “Bill” Latimer had an idea that has helped thousands of Tennesseans smile. “Everyone has medical care in the U.S., because they can always go to an emergency room,” he said. “But you don’t have an emergency place for dental care. I knew a lot of people don’t have… Read More
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Connecting Resources to Communities
Center of Excellence at UT Health Sciences Fosters Rural Health Care Solutions Michelle DeBord-Rains grew up in Bledsoe County, where she lives and works as a health services supervisor for Bledsoe County’s Coordinated School Health program. Mountainous and sparsely populated, Bledsoe County is one of the 10 most distressed counties in Tennessee. Home to Fall… Read More
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Driven by Curiosity
Prestigious Fellowship Helps PhD Student Thrive “I’ve always been fascinated by the brain and how it shapes who we are.” That curiosity has guided Kelsey Glasper to national recognition as she works toward her PhD in neuroscience at the University of Tennessee Health Sciences. Glasper is the first UT Health Sciences student to be selected… Read More
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Where Academic Healthcare Meets AI
There is a version of the artificial intelligence story that everyone has heard by now: the billion-dollar campuses, the coastal cities competing for the next great tech company. Memphis, Tennessee, does not fit that story. And that, it turns out, may be precisely the point. The University of Tennessee Health Sciences’ achievement of R1 research… Read More
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A Legacy of Care
Alumnus Dr. Mitch Godat’s Mission of Mercy What began as a simple idea to provide free dental care for people in need has grown into one of the most impactful community health efforts in the Mid-South region. For Mitch Godat, DDS, a graduate of the University of Tennessee Health Sciences College of Dentistry, the 10th… Read More
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Behind Tennessee’s Emergency Teams
UT Health Sciences Pharmacists Save Lives When Every Second Counts Seconds can mean the difference between life and death in the emergency room. As the trauma bay erupts into motion, emergency medical services (EMS) rushes through the doors, nurses scramble to assist, and physicians rapidly assess a patient who may be unconscious, unstable, or unidentified.… Read More
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The Kind You Don’t Forget
When Dee and Jamie Evans talk about their daughter, Stacey Lane Evans, MD, they don’t begin with personal accolades or professional titles. They start with the constants of who Stacey was as a person and as a physician. Quietly principled. Deeply empathetic. Unwaveringly kind. The words are delivered, cloaked in the love and pride they… Read More
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Committing to Oncology
Nursing Student’s Career Pivot Part of Sweeping Effort to Bring Cancer Care to Every Corner of Tennessee Liane K. Williams had an interest in oncology when she decided to go to nursing school after 20 years of working as a paralegal. She chose the University of Tennessee Health Sciences College of Nursing because of its… Read More
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Pieces of History
Collections Preserve the History of Medicine in the Region Chapter 5 of “The American Plague,” the acclaimed 2006 book about the yellow fever epidemic that decimated Memphis in the 1870s, details the life, work, and death of Dr. William James Armstrong as he attempted to care for the stricken. The young doctor, described as “gentle,… Read More
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Pursuing What Breaks Your Heart
How UT Health Sciences Helped Me Find Purpose in the Lab Growing up, my mom always told me, “To have a career that you feel lasting fulfillment from, you need to pursue what breaks your heart.” That idea ultimately guided me to cancer research. As a child, I was fascinated by science and always knew… Read More