The November elections led to the City of Red Bank welcoming two new individuals to serve on their five-member board of commissioners along with one reelected commissioner.
Jamie Fairbanks-Harvey and Hayes Wilkinson were elected to begin serving their first term and Hollie Berry was reelected for her second term on the commission.
Fairbanks-Harvey will be serving for the first time on the board of commissioners. She is a widow, a mom to one son and a grandmother. She attended Alpine Crest, Red Bank Junior High and Red Bank High School.
Fairbanks-Harvey has taught in the Health and Human Performance Department at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for 38 years.
“A commissioner must listen and learn from others because this can offer opportunity to progress,” says Fairbanks-Harvey. “I discovered the importance of learning and listening during my many hours of visiting door-to-door in the campaign. This gives others a chance to speak and for me to assimilate their comments.”
Wilkinson is also serving on the board of commissioners for the first time. He and his wife have been married for seven years and have a 2-year-old son.
Wilkinson is the senior aerial mapping specialist at Wingfield Scale & Measure in Chattanooga. As a certified mapping scientist through the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, he plans and manages geotechnical mapping projects.
While Wilkinson has not previously been involved in a public service role, he volunteers at the White Oak Bicycle Co-op, where he uses his skills as a bike mechanic to benefit children in need in the greater Chattanooga area.
Wilkinson says he decided to run for the position of commissioner to make Red Bank “the best possible place for [his] son and all the other children in Red Bank to grow up and thrive.”
“I wanted to take ownership of the decisions being made in the city and not observe from the sidelines. We have wonderful opportunities to grow as a city and I’m honored to help guide the process.”
Berry is beginning her second term on the board of commissioners. After she was first elected in 2020, her peers on the commission chose her to serve as mayor of Red Bank. After Berry’s reelection in 2022, the board voted to have her continue to serve as mayor.
“I’ve been proud of what our city team has been able to accomplish in just two years, especially considering all the challenges we faced during that time,” says Berry. “My hope in running again was to continue making the same great strides in the next four years.”
Partnership names Key dir. of stability services
Joy Key is serving as the new director of stability services at Partnership for Families, Children and Adults.
Key most recently led local nonprofit Scenic City Clay Arts as executive director for four years. A graduate of The Johns Hopkins University, she holds a master’s in museum studies and a Master of Business Administration from Lee University.
As director of stability services, Key will lead numerous Partnership community programs, including Camp HOPE Chattanooga, which benefits youth victims of violence, River City Youth Collective, which benefits aged-out foster youth, and Generations Stronger, a life-coaching program for those involved with the justice system.
Key will also help roll out a new stability services program known as the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project in 2023.
Five board members join Hatcher Foundation
Five new board members joined the Austin Hatcher Foundation for Pediatric Cancer for 2023: Dr. Justin Robertson, superintendent of Hamilton County Schools; Tom White, former senior vice president of investor relations with the Unum Group, now retired; orthopedic oncologist Dr. Ryan Voskuil; Meg Wingfield, track and field coach at Chattanooga Christian School; and Dax Branam, department chairman for Exceptional Education at Thrasher Elementary School.
Pack leaving UTC for Baylor Univ. post
The Baylor University School of Engineering and Computer Science has named Daniel Pack, Ph.D., dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science at UTC, dean effective June 1.
“Dr. Pack has been a valuable contributor to UTC’s success since joining the university in 2016,” says Dr. Jerold Hale, UTC provost and senior vice chancellor for academic affairs. “He initiated the Bachelor of Applied Science in Mechatronics and the Bachelor of Applied Science in Information Technology in Cybersecurity programs, both of which address workforce needs in Tennessee and throughout the region.
“He has also expanded CECS student-success initiatives through the Center for Student Success and the Living Learning Community and raised the college’s research profile. The growing reputation for the college and UTC made Baylor – an R1 research institution – take notice.”
A renowned researcher in robots, computer vision and unmanned systems, Pack came to UTC after serving as Mary Lou Clarke Professor and Chair in Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Before joining UTSA, he spent 17 years as a faculty member at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado, where he was the founding director of the Academy Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Research.
“I’m both sad to know this will be my last semester at UTC and grateful for the opportunity I’ve had working with leaders throughout the university and at the college,” says Pack. “I will remember and cherish the experience of working with top-class faculty, staff, students, advisory board members, friends and alums of the college, along with leaders of the greater Chattanooga community, to advance the college’s mission for the rest of my life.
“The college is on a path to fulfill its vision to become a preeminent college of engineering and computer science, and I’m fortunate to have had the opportunity to contribute to moving it in that direction.”
Pack holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Purdue University, where his dissertation examined sensor-based control for a quadruped walking robot. He earned a master’s degree from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University.
UTC has already begun a national search for Pack’s successor.