Chancellor recommends Susanne Cox as next president of TCAT Morristown

Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Flora W. Tydings will recommend Susanne Cox to the board for appointment as the next president of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology Morristown. The board will consider the appointment at its next quarterly meeting March 31.

Cox has been vice president of TCAT Morristown since 2014 and was one of the finalists selected for the presidency by an 18-member search advisory committee announced on March 2. The finalists participated in on-campus interviews with the campus community and public on March 14.

“Vice President Cox has demonstrated that she is dedicated to the success of the students of TCAT Morristown, the college and the entire region it serves. She’s very enthusiastic about what’s ahead for the college, its students and the area,” Tydings said. “We had a great list of candidates overall, especially the finalists brought forth by the search committee, and I’m pleased to recommend Ms. Cox for the Board’s consideration.” 

Cox earned a master of education degree in instructional leadership, with a concentration in career and technical education, at Tennessee State University, and a bachelor of science degree in organizational management at Tusculum University.

She joined the staff at TCAT Morristown in 1990 as bookstore clerk and assistant to the president, and 10 years later was appointed business office manager in 2000. From 2010 to 2012, she served as a student services support associate, followed by service as financial aid coordinator from 2012 to 2014, when she was appointed the college’s vice president.

If the board approves the recommendation, Cox would succeed President Jerry Young, who is retiring at the end of April after five years as TCAT Morristown’s CEO and 33 years of service in the TBR system. He previously served as president of TCAT Crossville.

Cox currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Morristown Area Chamber of Commerce. She was selected for and completed the inaugural class of the Tennessee Higher Education Commission’s Innovation and Leadership Fellows, a professional development program for the next generation of higher education leaders in the state.

Earlier, she completed the Tennessee College of Applied Technology Leadership Academy and Leadership Morristown. She served on the committee that established and launched the TCAT Morristown Foundation, and worked on behalf of TCAT Morristown with Walters State Community College in the implementation of the Recruiting Hispanics to Achieve program, based on TBR’s Student Engagement, Retention and Success (SERS) program.  She also served as a member and officer of the TBR Academic Sub-council.

Her full resume is available on the TBR website at https://www.tbr.edu/hr/executivesearches/president-tcat-morristown.

The Board of Regents approved criteria for the next president on Dec. 20, 2021. Chaired by Regent Miles Burdine, the search advisory committee included as members Regents Joey Hatch and Danni Varlan and representatives of the college’s faculty, staff, students and alumni, and local civic and industry leaders.

More information about the college is available at the college's website at https://tcatmorristown.edu/ and on its TBR college profile page at https://www.tbr.edu/sites/default/files/college-profiles/tcatprofiles/TCAT_Profile_Morristown.pdf