UT Institute of Agriculture Presents Top Faculty and Staff Awards for 2025
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The accomplishments of the faculty and staff of the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture were celebrated at an annual awards luncheon held on the UT Knoxville campus in the new Agriculture and Natural Resources Building on July 30. Many of the awards are gifts made possible by faculty, alumni and friends of the institute.
UTIA Senior Vice Chancellor and Senior Vice President Keith Carver hosted the luncheon and praised the honorees for their work. “The enthusiasm and expertise demonstrated by our UTIA faculty and staff is unparalleled,” he said. “I am always in awe of their dedication to providing real life solutions to the people of Tennessee. These well-deserved awards represent impacts and accomplishments that benefit Tennesseans and society now and for years to come.”
Tim Woods, UT Extension McMinn County director, is a recipient of the Tennessee Association of Agricultural Agents and Specialists – Hicks Award of Excellence. Established by the Tennessee Association of Agricultural Agents and Specialists (TAAA&S) and other endowed funds, this award is presented annually to up to three agricultural Extension faculty who are also members of TAAA&S.
Amanda Mathenia, UT Extension Perry County director, and Rachel Painter, UT Extension farm management specialist, also received the award.
Woods has worked for UTIA for 39 years, including 28 as county director in McMinn County. He also worked in the Blount unit of the East Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center and for UT Extension Monroe County.
Among his many accomplishments, he received the Charles and Julie Wharton Award for Outstanding Extension Achievements in 2023 and the Dr. Jim Neel Outstanding Extension Work Adult Education award the same year. Woods specializes in beef production and marketing and has conducted the McMinn County Beef College for the past 26 years with more than 90 producers from eight counties attending each year.
“Working over 39 years with UT, I still enjoy doing Extension work. Providing the citizens of McMinn County with research-based information to provide Real. Life. Solutions. to improve their operations and lives,” Woods said.
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.