Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago
Dee and Jimmy Haslam (’86, ’76) meet with Chancellor Donde Plowman in the Haslam Business Building to share essential qualities of the best leaders, discuss the value of giving one’s time, and explain the thought process that goes into making important decisions.
The pair—who are coming up on 50 years of marriage—each say their father inspired their leadership style the most. Dee says she’s often approached by people her father helped, and that his example taught her the meaning of deep relationships and the importance of giving back. A very active member of the Knoxville community, Jimmy’s father shared a similar mindset and advised him, “Try to leave things better than you found them.”
The Haslams care deeply about their alma mater, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and have a long history of supporting UT. Most recently, they’ve invested $130 million toward strengthening the university’s reputation as a national leader in higher education.
“When you grow up in a community, you have these deep connections and you want to see it thrive,” Dee explains. “The university is one of the best places that helped this region.”
“If we can give back to help make the university better, that will make Knoxville, East Tennessee, and the state of Tennessee a better place to live and work,” Jimmy adds.
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Go Vols!
#utknoxville is on your favorite social media channels:
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/utknoxville
X: twitter.com/UTKnoxville
FACEBOOK: facebook.com/UTKnoxville
See what’s happening at https://www.utk.edu.
Dee and Jimmy Haslam (’86, ’76) meet with Chancellor Donde Plowman in the Haslam Business Building to share essential qualities of the best leaders, discuss the value of giving one’s time, and explain the thought process that goes into making important decisions.
The pair—who are coming up on 50 years of marriage—each say their father inspired their leadership style the most. Dee says she’s often approached by people her father helped, and that his example taught her the meaning of deep relationships and the importance of giving back. A very active member of the Knoxville community, Jimmy’s father shared a similar mindset and advised him, “Try to leave things better than you found them.”
The Haslams care deeply about their alma mater, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and have a long history of supporting UT. Most recently, they’ve invested $130 million toward strengthening the university’s reputation as a national leader in higher education.
“When you grow up in a community, you have these deep connections and you want to see it thrive,” Dee explains. “The university is one of the best places that helped this region.”
“If we can give back to help make the university better, that will make Knoxville, East Tennessee, and the state of Tennessee a better place to live and work,” Jimmy adds.
================
Go Vols!
#utknoxville is on your favorite social media channels:
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/utknoxville
X: twitter.com/UTKnoxville
FACEBOOK: facebook.com/UTKnoxville
See what’s happening at https://www.utk.edu.
