Biosystems engineer to lead largest department in UT Herbert College of Agriculture
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Professor Shawn Hawkins has been named head of the Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science for the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture.
Hawkins has served on the faculty and as a UT Extension specialist since 2007. His new role begins on February 1.
As a biosystems engineer, Hawkins has focused his career on managing animal waste and organic residuals in agricultural landscapes in ways that protect environmental quality and contribute to crop production efficiency. He has conducted both applied and basic research modeling the impact of row crop and beef cattle production on sediment and nutrient losses from agricultural landscapes.
Hawkins has received several awards for his achievements and contributions, including the UTIA 2023 Webster Pendergrass Outstanding Service Award, which recognizes a teaching, research or Extension faculty member for their contributions to the fulfillment of the Institute’s goals and objectives; the Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Award for Education and Outreach; the UTIA J. E. Moss Excellence in Extension Award in 2020; and the University of Tennessee Success in Interdisciplinary Research Team Award in 2018.
The Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science includes degree programs in biosystems engineering, environmental science and construction science and management for undergraduates, three master’s programs and two doctoral programs. In 2025, the department had the largest enrollment of undergraduates in the Herbert College of Agriculture with 554 students, driven in large part by some 400 students in the growing construction science and management program.
Hawkins earned a doctorate in civil engineering and a master’s degree in environmental engineering from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a bachelor’s with an environmental engineering concentration from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
He is replacing Julie Carrier, who is retiring. During her tenure as department head, she supported faculty and staff efforts in growing undergraduate programs, developing new technologies and completing cutting-edge research and outreach efforts that have helped improve agricultural production worldwide. Carrier received the James R. and Karen A. Gilley Academic Leadership Award during the 2023 annual international meeting of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE).
The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture is comprised of the Herbert College of Agriculture, UT College of Veterinary Medicine, UT AgResearch and UT Extension. Through its land-grant mission of teaching, research and outreach, the Institute touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. to Tennesseans and beyond. utia.tennessee.edu.