Retired Army Lt. Col. Scott Hardin, the ESGR Chattanooga committee chair, left, presents Dr. Chris Smith with the Patriot Award on Tuesday, Aug. 12. Dr. Smith was nominated for the award by Terry Ellis, right, a member of the School of Nursing faculty and a first lieutenant in the Army National Guard.
photo by Angela Foster/UTC
Dr. Chris Smith, director of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga School of Nursing, has been recognized with the Patriot Award from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve program.
The Patriot Award honors individual supervisors who demonstrate exceptional support for National Guard and Reserve employees through measures such as flexible schedules, time off before and after deployments and a commitment to supporting military obligations beyond what the law requires.
Dr.
Smith, who also serves as chief health affairs officer for the Division of Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, was nominated for the award by Terry Ellis—a first lieutenant in the Army National Guard and an assistant professor of practice in the UTC Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program.
A formal presentation took place Tuesday at the Challenger STEM Learning Center during the UTC College of Health, Education and Professional Studies’ annual back-to-school event for faculty and staff. Retired Army Lt. Col. Scott Hardin, the Chattanooga ESGR committee chair, was on hand to present a framed certificate honoring Dr. Smith’s dedication to fostering a supportive workplace for service members.
“We help those who help us,” Lt. Col. Hardin said. “She helps him and he helps her. That’s what it’s all about. We equate ESGR to a three-legged stool. You’ve got the service member, the family and the employer. If all those things work right, you get a great deployment, and you get a great worker because of the leadership skills the military builds.”
Dr. Smith expressed gratitude for the recognition, saying the award reflected the strength of the entire School of Nursing team.
“It’s such an honor to be recognized by the Office of the Secretary of Defense,” Dr. Smith said. “But what means even more to me is how the School of Nursing embraces our faculty and students who have a commitment to serving this nation.
“From our nursing majors in ROTC to the faculty members who have a record of military service and now are serving to educate our students, I am truly humbled to have been nominated by Lt. Terry Ellis as a patriotic employer.”
Dr. Valerie Rutledge, dean of the College of Health, Education and Professional Studies, praised Dr. Smith for creating a culture of care, collaboration and trust in the School of Nursing.
“She is always invested in what’s going to be the best opportunity and the best setting for the people that work for her,” Dr. Rutledge said. “She takes the individual and says, ‘How can we work with you not just to make our program better, but also to give you the opportunity to do the things that matter or that are a part of what you’ve obligated yourself to?’”
Dr. Rutledge said Dr. Smith’s actions set a tone for the department and helped foster what she called “a very positive organizational health perspective.”
“Let’s help our colleagues be as successful as possible,” Dr. Rutledge said. “Let’s make sure that when something comes up that they have obligated themselves to, we help by supporting whatever needs to be done. That’s absolutely the type of place where people want to work and the department they want to work in.”
Dr. Smith has served as director of the School of Nursing since 2014. She is also a UC Foundation Professor and the University’s chief health affairs officer. She earned a master’s degree from UTC in 1997 as part of the school’s first family nurse practitioner cohort.