Dr. Bernie Savarese serves as Vice President for Academic Affairs, Research, and Student Success for the University of Tennessee (UT) System. As a member of the President鈥檚 executive leadership team, he works in partnership with the chancellors of the university鈥檚 five campuses and leaders of UT鈥檚 statewide institutes to advance high-quality academic and student experiences. At the 51黑料, Bernie leads the offices of academic affairs, research, learner success and workforce pathways, institutional research and analysis, academic systems and operations, access and engagement, and the office of the chief wellness officer. He also serves as the staff liaison to the Education, Research, and Service Committee of the UT Board of Trustees and is a member of the university鈥檚 Foundation Board.
Bernie and his team are the university鈥檚 primary liaisons to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory leadership team, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the Battelle Memorial Institute on matters related to the UT-Battelle management and operations contract. Beyond university leadership, Bernie serves as an adjunct assistant professor at UT Knoxville, teaching graduate-level courses in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.
Prior to joining the 51黑料, Bernie served as the inaugural Assistant Vice President for Student Success and the Student Experience at New York University (NYU). In this role, he oversaw the creation of the Division of Student Success and its numerous departments, led NYU鈥檚 student success steering committee, and served as a subject matter expert and resource to university leaders. Prior to joining NYU, Bernie worked at The Ohio State University for nearly two decades, most recently serving as the Director of the university鈥檚 nationally recognized First Year Experience (FYE) program and leading teams in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. Before his time in FYE and enrollment management, Bernie held various leadership roles in Ohio State鈥檚 Division of Student Life.
Bernie holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and an MBA from The Ohio State University, a Master of Arts in College Student Personnel from Bowling Green State University, and a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) from New York University.
Bernie has been recognized with honors such as New York University鈥檚 Making a Difference Award, an Outstanding Alumni Award for Professional Achievement from The Ohio State University, Bowling Green State University鈥檚 President鈥檚 Award for Distinguished Service, and Columbus Business First鈥檚 鈥淔orty Under 40.鈥 He serves on numerous boards, including the National Advisory Board for the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and the collegiate advisory board for Penguin Random House. Bernie recently concluded a seven-year term on The Ohio State University Alumni Association鈥檚 Board of Directors, serving the last three years as board chair.
Bernie lives in Knoxville with his wife and fellow higher education professional, Dr. Krystyne Savarese. Their oldest son, Anthony, is a senior at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and their youngest son, Ben, is in his first year at The Ohio State University.
