Baker School Programs Enroll 136 Students in Second Year
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE – Newly released census data shows that Howard H. Baker Jr. School of Public Policy and Public Affairs (Baker School) at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville is serving 136 in its undergraduate and graduate programs this fall.
“I am incredibly proud of the start that we have had at the Baker School. Our team has quickly mobilized to assemble a remarkable faculty and recruit outstanding students while developing an engaging and collaborative curriculum that will prepare students to lead,” Dean Marianne Wanamaker said. “We will build on this momentum and continue to invest in our best-in-class student experience.”
The Baker School welcomed an inaugural class of undergraduate public affairs majors including 41 first-year students, 30 students who transferred into the major from other academic units, and two outside transfer students.
The first-year students exceeded expectations in numbers and credentials. The new Baker School students are among the 6,804 first-year students beginning their Volunteer journey, and the class represents nine states and 18 counties in Tennessee. Freshmen Ainsley Russell, of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and Cade Simmons, of Spencer, Tennessee, are among the 15 new Haslam Leadership Scholars. Simmons is also one of four recipients of the highly competitive Peyton Manning Scholarship, a four-year award given to four incoming students each year.
In addition to the undergraduate population, 63 students are enrolled in Baker School graduate programs this fall, including 35 in the inaugural cohort of the online MPA program. Baker School online MPA students represent the public, private and non-profit sectors, including 14 separate agencies of Tennessee state and local government. Eighty-three percent of Baker School online MPA students reside in Tennessee.
The Baker School expects to serve more than 400 UT students in the 2024-25 academic year through Institute of American Civics courses as part of the Vol Core curriculum.