Giving Opportunities
Giving to the Physics Department
Thank you for your interest in supporting the Department of Physics and Astronomy. You can “help where it’s needed most” by giving to the Physics Enrichment Fund, which funds a range of priorities. You can also contribute to any of the funds listed below.
Give Now to the Physics Enrichment Fund
Undergraduate Scholarships
William Bugg Physics Faculty Scholarship
This faculty established this scholarship to honor the service of long-time Department Head Bill Bugg to support undergraduates.
G. Samuel and Betty P. Hurst Scholarship
Sam Hurst was a Ford Foundation Professor at UT as well as a physics graduate. He had a prestigious career at Oak Ridge National Laboratory Scientist and is credited with inventing touch-screen technology. Sam and his wife Betty established this scholarship to assist students in achieving their educational goals.
Joan Greene Patterson Scholarship
Physics Alumnus David O. Patterson had a successful career at DARPA, where technologies developed in his advanced lithography program are now being used to produce leading edge computer chips. He and his wife Joan established the Joan Greene Patterson Endowed Scholarship to support physics majors.
Dorothy and Rufus Ritchie Scholarship
Like his friend and colleague Sam Hurst, Physic Alumnus Rufus Ritchie had a long and storied career at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, including ground-breaking work on the surface plasmon. He and his wife Dorothy created this scholarship to support undergraduate physics majors.
James McConnell Scholarship
Via the McConnell Endowment.
Robert and Sue Talley Scholarship
Robert and Sue Talley were UT alumni, with Robert earning master’s and doctoral degrees under the supervision of Professor Alvin Nielsen. They established the Talley Endowment to encourage undergraduate physics education.
Isabel Tipton Scholarship
Isabel Tipton was a longtime professor in the department as well as the coach of UT’s storied College Bowl team. She was renowned for both her teaching and research abilities. Her daughter, Jennifer Tipton, established this scholarship in her name at the University of Tennessee to help support students in the physics department, primarily women
Glenn R. and Elise I. Young Scholarship
Physics Alumnus Glenn Young (former head of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Physics Division) and his wife Elise established this endowment to support students studying physics, especially to help cover the costs of textbooks.
Physics General Scholarship
This scholarship is awarded to students who have demonstrated successful academic performance and who are currently enrolled or have been admitted to UT and are majoring in physics.
Undergraduate Awards
Douglas V. Roseberry Distinguished Upper Classman Major Award
This fund supports the Douglas V. Roseberry Award, which recognizes an upper-level student who exemplifies the attributes of Douglas Roseberry, an undergraduate physics major at UT in the late 1950s known for his academic and research acumen as well as his enthusiasm for departmental and campus activities.
Robert Talley Undergraduate Awards
These honors established by the Robert Talley Endowment recognize students for outstanding undergraduate research and outstanding undergraduate leadership.
Graduate Awards, Scholarships, and Fellowships
Alvin Herborg Nielsen Graduate Scholarship
Named for longtime department head and dean Alvin H. Nielsen, this scholarship provides financial support for graduate students majoring in physics.
Paul Stelson Fellowship Fund
These fellowships are the legacy of Dr. Paul Stelson, who had a long and distinguished career in the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Physics Division and was also an adjunct professor of physics at UT. In addition to fellowship awards for recruiting new students, the fund also supports two fellowships at Honors Day each year: one for outstanding beginning research and the second for professional promise.
Fowler-Marion Physics Fund
Established by Joseph Fowler and Jerry Marion, this fund supports an award acknowledging a graduate student who has excelled in scholarship, research, and departmental citizenship.
Other Departmental Funds
Robert Birkhoff Endowment
Robert Birkhoff was a UT Physics Professor and an Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientist. He set up the Birkhoff Endowment to provide scholarships and fellowships to physics students in the department. Stipends allocated from this fund may be used for housing, books, travel, research, and other expenses related to students’ educational experience including tuition.
Bill and Marian Bugg Physics Fund
Established by Professor Emeritus and Former Department Head Bill Bugg and his wife Marian, this endowment will provide broad support for department priorities at the department head’s discretion, including teaching awards for faculty, technology purchases, visting lecturers, scholarships, fellowships, and other purposes related to the department’s mission.
Wayne Kincaid Award
This award honors a student who shares Wayne Kincaid’s love for astronomy and astrophysics education and who has made exceptional contributions to educational technology, astronomy education, or scientific writing. While preference is given to a graduate student, undergraduates may also be considered.
Jon C. Levin Scholarship
This undergraduate scholarship was established to honor the late Physics Professor Jon Levin, who was director of the undergraduate physics program.
Robert W. Lide Citations
The Lide Citations originated in 1998 to recognize students who have made exceptional contributions to the undergraduate instructional laboratories in the spirit of the late Bob Lide, physics professor and laboratory director.
James McConnell Physics Excellence Endowment
James McConnell was a UT graduate who established this endowment for student scholarships and fellowships, faculty awards to acknowledge outstanding teaching and/or research, technology purchases, and any other uses that support or enhance the department’s academic mission.
James E. Parks Award
Physics Alumnus Richard Manley and his wife Melissa established this award in early 2015 to honor retired Physics Undergraduate Laboratory Director James E. Parks and recognize students sharing his commitment to hands-on, innovative physics teaching in a laboratory setting.
Physics Enrichment Fund
This is a flexible account that supports the department’s mission where needed by providing funds for equipment, conference travel, outreach efforts, etc., on behalf of physics faculty and students.
Physics Equipment Fund
This fund supports equipment purchases for physics teaching and outreach.
Lee and Tina Riedinger Endowment for the Department of Physics and Astronomy
This fund was established by Physics Professor and former Department Head Lee Riedinger and his wife Tina, who was a celebrated instructor in the department for many years.
Jim Trolinger Endowed Entrepreneurial Scholarship
Established by Distinguished Alumni Awardee (2009) Jim Trolinger, this scholarship shall be given to students to enable them to participate in research as part of their education in physics.