Alumnus named UTK Chancellor’s Professor

Derek Alderman, Franklin College alumnus and Board of Advisors member, earned his MA (`93) and PhD (`98) in Geography and was recently named Chancellor’s Professor at the University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville. This distinction honors the highest standards of academic excellence at UT and is awarded based on outstanding scholarly achievement and contributions to their fields.

Alderman, a professor of human geography in the Department of Geography and Sustainability, studies cultural and historical geography with a specific focus on race, southern memory, heritage tourism, social justice, and the politics of geographic mobility and travel. Throughout his career Alderman has studied the Southern experience, ranging from Civil Rights memorials to NASCAR, barbecue culture and even kudzu’s cultural geography. Since joining UT’s faculty in 2012 he has held various positions in the American Association of Geographers, completing a one-year term as president in 2018. In 2022 Alderman was appointed to the Federal Advisory Committee on Reconciliation in Place Names.

Throughout his career Alderman has been an advocate of public engagement whether that is researching or teaching in response to community social justice needs, partnering with K-12 educators, assisting municipal leaders and federal agencies or mentoring early-career scholars and department leaders on strategies in science advocacy, program promotion and public storytelling. Congratulations, Derek you represent Franklin College well! 

Image: Derek Alderman