Demetrius Richmond, Interim Assistant Director
Email: drichmon@utk.edu
Demetrius, hailing from Memphis, TN, graduated from the University of Arkansas - Fayetteville, “Home of the Arkansas Razorbacks”, with a master’s degree in Communication. In 2001, he graduated from the University of Central Arkansas known as the “Center for Learning” with a bachelor’s degree in Speech Communication Studies/Broadcasting.
He is a young Student Affairs professional with a passion to serve students and he believes in the power of higher education and student development. It was during his teaching and graduate assistantships that he developed a commitment to working with and developing students in higher education. He worked two years in the Office of Student Support Services as a Student Development Specialist/Communications Coordinator at the University of Arkansas, which is where he decided that the field of higher education was his element of desire. His passion for helping students grow and develop their “genius” eventually led him to the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, where he is now pursuing his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration. He is now the Interim Assistant Director of the Office of Minority Student Affairs/Black Cultural Center here at UT.
His academic pursuits are in the areas of: African-American Retention and Programming at Predominantly White Institutions, Intercultural Communication in Student Affairs, Black Culture Centers, and Public Policy. His immediate plans are to finish his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration and accept a mid-level position in Student Affairs that will allow him to serve students as an administrator and college instructor.
In his spare time, Demetrius enjoys interacting with close friends/family- debating social issues, traveling with his fiancé, reading books and controversial commentary articles, and watching 90s R&B videos on Youtube, (for which he’s addicted to!) and attending live music concerts. He is a dedicated viewer of: The Apprentice, Fastlane, VH1 Soul, TvOne, Judge Mathis, C-SPAN, Cheaters (secretly), BETJ’s Souls Sessions, The Discovery Channel, and The Dog Whisperer.