UT School of Information Sciences

Congratulations to SIS alumna Jennie Mezick (MSIS) on her appointment as Associate Dean for Research, Collections, and Assessment at UT Libraries.

In her new role, Jennie will oversee library collections, research support, assessment initiatives, and special collections while helping shape the strategic direction of the university's library system.

We are proud to see our alumni making an impact across the information professions and congratulate Jennie on this well-deserved achievement.

Read more: https://volumes.lib.utk.edu/features/qa-with-the-new-associate-deans-for-ut-libraries/

Q&A with... the New Associate Deans for UT Libraries - Jennie Mezick serves as Associate Dean for Research, Collections, and Assessment. She oversees the Libraries’ departments of Acquisitions and Continuing Resources; Assessment Programs and Collection Strategy; Collection Management and Sharing; Cataloging; Special Collections; and Research Impact a...

Congratulations to School of Information Sciences Assistant Professor Jiangen He on receiving an Amazon Research Award through the AWS Agentic AI program.

Assistant Professor He’s awarded proposal, “Beyond Walls of Text: Building UI-Native LLM Agents as the Next Gateway to the Internet,” focuses on creating more intuitive AI-driven digital experiences that go beyond traditional text interfaces.

We are excited to see his research recognized by Amazon Science and look forward to the future impact of this work.

Read more: https://www.amazon.science/research-awards/latest-news/fall-2025-amazon-research-awards-recipients-announced

Fall 2025 Amazon Research Awards recipients announced Awardees represent more than 49 universities in 11 countries. Recipients have access to Amazon public datasets, along with AWS AI/ML services and tools.

Online education continues to create meaningful opportunities for working professionals, parents, caregivers, and adult learners across Tennessee and beyond.

Proud to celebrate these graduates from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and the determination their stories represent.

Congratulation Jonie Brooks and all of our SIS Vols Online graduates!

The School of Information Sciences recently celebrated the outstanding achievements of our students, faculty, and alumni during the 2026 SIS Award Celebration.

Congratulations to this year’s award recipients:

🏆 Distinguished Alumni Award — Andrew Grissom
🏆 Innovator’s Award — Claire Jordan

🏆 Bonnie Carroll & Roy Cooper Faculty Enrichment Award
• Professor Wade Bishop
• Associate Professor Brian Dobreski
• Assistant Professor Jiangen He

🏆 2026 CCI Outstanding Information Sciences Graduate Award — Alexis Lamb
🏆 Gary Purcell Award — Krystal White

🏆 Graduate Academic Achievement Award
• Eleanor Noyes
• Logan Montuori

🏆 Outstanding Service Award
• Virginia “Ginny” Edwards
• Margaret “Maggie” Ward
• Burke Codemo

🏆 Best Project Award — Shannon Yiannaki
🏆 Best Paper Award — Eleanor Noyes
🏆 Outstanding Master’s Thesis Award — Krystal White

🏆 Undergraduate Academic Achievement Award
• Elijah Clifford
• Samantha Ho

Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate the accomplishments, scholarship, leadership, and service that continue to shape the SIS community. Congratulations again to all of our award recipients on this well-deserved recognition.

UT College of Communication & Information
University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Senior Spotlight: Samantha Ho 🎓

Congratulations to Samantha Ho on graduating from the School of Information Sciences!

Samantha’s time at UT was filled with opportunities for growth, connection, and discovery that helped shape her future goals and career path.

Read more about her story and what’s next after graduation: https://tiny.utk.edu/SamanthaHo