The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s basketball program has promoted Sydney Johnson from graduate assistant to full-time assistant coach.
Johnson joined the staff last summer and helped the Mocs post a 20-11 record and capture the Southern Conference regular-season championship during the 2025-26 season.
Head coach Deandra Schirmer says Johnson’s work ethic, relationship-building skills and basketball knowledge made an immediate impact on the program.
As a graduate assistant, Johnson handled administrative duties including coordinating team meals, travel and game-day logistics while also assisting with practices, workouts, recruiting visits and equipment organization.
Johnson says she’s grateful for the opportunity to remain with the program and continue building on its tradition.
Before entering coaching, Johnson played five seasons at the Division I level. She spent four years at Boston University, where she became the first player in program history to earn multiple first-team All-Patriot League honors. She later transferred to Georgia Tech for her final season of eligibility in 2023-24.
The Powder Springs, Georgia, native earned her bachelor’s degree from Boston University in 2023 and is continuing work toward a master’s degree at UTC.
University receives global education grant
UTC has been selected as one of 10 institutions nationwide to receive a Gilman Pioneering Institution Grant through the U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program.
The $10,000 grant will support a UTC initiative called “STEM Global Career Pathways,” which aims to help students connect study abroad experiences with career opportunities in STEM fields.
The program, led by UTC’s Center for Global Education, will offer career-focused workshops, interview preparation and opportunities for students to engage with international employers and alumni.
Dr. Takeo Suzuki, UTC’s senior international officer and executive director for the Center for Global Education, says the initiative is designed to help students better understand how global experiences can strengthen career readiness.
The program is expected to serve 20 to 30 students annually and will involve collaboration with UTC STEM programs, including the College of Engineering and Computer Science.
New health sciences building tops out
UTC marked a major construction milestone April 30 with a topping off ceremony for the future Dorothy and Jim Kennedy Health Sciences Building.
The 90,000-square-foot facility, under construction at the corner of Palmetto and East Third streets, will serve as the new home of UTC’s College of Nursing and include advanced classrooms and simulation labs. University officials say the building will allow nursing enrollment to grow to 150% of its current level.
Bruce said the project reflects the university’s long-term strategic plan and growing role in meeting regional health care workforce needs.
Construction began in late 2024, and attendees at the ceremony signed the building’s highest structural beam before it was lifted into place.
The $77 million project is being funded through state support and private donations, including an $8 million gift from the Kennedy Foundation. The building is expected to be completed in 2027.
Alum Higgs earns NSF research fellowship
UTC alum Cheyenne Higgs has received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program award, one of the nation’s top honors for graduate students pursuing research-based degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Higgs, who earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from UTC in December 2025, was among 2,500 fellowship recipients selected nationwide for the 2026-27 academic year from nearly 14,000 applicants.
The fellowship provides three years of financial support over a five-year period for graduate study and research. Higgs will begin pursuing a doctorate in chemistry this fall at Vanderbilt University.
A native of Kingston Springs, Tennessee, Higgs participated in undergraduate research opportunities at UTC, including an NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates program at the University of Alabama.
Much of her undergraduate research was conducted under the mentorship of Jared Pienkos, who praised Higgs’ technical skills and independence in the laboratory.
“Cheyenne was phenomenal with everything, understanding the theory and actually being able to apply the theory to make molecules,” Pienkos says.
Ward, Dierenfeldt, Clay earn service honor
Three members of the UTC community have received the 2026 Harold Love Outstanding Community Service Award, one of Tennessee’s top honors for public service in higher education.
Recipients include Dr. Chandra Ward, Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt and student Joshua Clay. The award, presented annually by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, recognizes five students and five faculty or staff members statewide for volunteerism, civic engagement and community leadership.
Ward, a sociology professor, was recognized for her work on transportation equity and community partnerships in Chattanooga. Dierenfeldt, head of UTC’s Department of Criminal Justice, was honored for his violence reduction and public safety initiatives. Clay, a graduating senior from Chattanooga, was recognized for his leadership and mentorship efforts on campus.
UTC Chancellor Lori Mann Bruce says the honorees reflect the university’s commitment to civic engagement and community partnerships across Tennessee.