In May, the University of Tennessee System Administration Human Resources Office of Employee and Organizational Development (EOD) held their annual Conference for Women’s Leadership (CWL) at the UT Health Science Center in Memphis. The conference addresses the professional development needs of women who work at UT and is relevant to women at varying stages of their leadership journey, from those who are emerging as leaders to women in advanced leadership roles. The theme was “Journey Together” and included five themed tracks with sessions that focused on well-being, work relationships, invisible work, decision-making, and executive leadership.

During the conference, UTSI’s Director of Human Resources Patricia Burks-Jelks and UT Southern’s Provost and Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs Judy Cheatham were honored with a jointly named scholarship for their commitment to encouraging professional development across the UT System. Burks-Jelks was also one of the presenters at the conference.

The UT Burks-Jelks-Cheatham Scholarship was awarded to its first recipient during the conference and is to be used for professional development expenses.

Burks-Jelks has worked at UTSI for 36 years and held numerous positions including Title IX coordinator and institutional compliance officer. In 2022, she received a UT President’s Award, the highest honor a UT employee can receive from the university.