TBR names Whaley as Roane State president

The Tennessee Board of Regents on Monday unanimously appointed Chris Whaley as the next president of Roane State Community College.

The college has its main campus in Harriman and several branch campuses, including one in Oak Ridge.

Whaley will start the new job on Nov. 1, a TBR press release said. He will replace Gary Goff, who is retiring Oct. 31 after leading Roane State for seven years.

TBR Chancellor John Morgan had recommended that Whaley be appointed to the position, and the board considered it during a teleconference Monday afternoon.

Whaley was selected after an extensive search that began earlier this year, the press release said. He has served as the vice president of student learning and as chief academic officer at Roane State since 2010.

Before that, he was dean of social science, business, and education and served as a faculty member of the college.

Also Monday, the TBR named Tony Creecy as the new director at the Tennessee Technology Center in Pulaski.

The TBR is the nation’s sixth largest higher education system, governing 46 post-secondary educational institutions. The TBR system includes six universities, 13 two-year colleges and 27 technology centers, providing programs to more than 200,000 students across the state, the press release said.