UT Board of Trustees Confirms Hirings of Daniels, Witcher

KNOXVILLE – Brian Daniels, an experienced auditor in higher education, has been named the next chief audit and compliance officer of the University of Tennessee after approval by the Board of Trustees Friday.

The UT Board of Trustees met in a special teleconference at UT Knoxville to consider the recommended hirings of Daniels as well as Kerry Witcher as vice president for development and alumni affairs/president and CEO of the UT Foundation.

Daniels, currently the director of internal audit at Virginia Tech University, will begin work on June 1. Similar to UT, Virginia Tech has five campuses across Virginia.

“We are excited about the experience Mr. Daniels brings from a multi-campus statewide university with programs in agriculture, medicine and research similar to the University of Tennessee,” said David Miller, UT chief financial officer.

Daniels will report administratively to Miller, but will report to the Board of Trustees Audit and Compliance Committee with respect to all audit and compliance activities and findings.

“Mr. Daniels is an experienced leader with over 15 years of success as an audit professional, and I am enthusiastic about the value he can add to the University of Tennessee,” said Amy Miles, chair of the Audit and Compliance Committee.

Daniels, who was selected after a nationwide search, began his career as the auditor of public accounts conducting external audits of state entities, including colleges and universities for the Commonwealth of Virginia. He then worked at the University of Virginia as assistant director of information technology audits from 2005 to 2011. Daniels received his bachelor’s degree in business information technology from Virginia Tech and an MBA from James Madison University. He is a certified internal auditor, a certified information systems auditor and a certified forensic analyst.

Kerry Witcher, who was one of four candidates vying to lead alumni affairs and the UT Foundation, was approved by the Board of Trustees. Witcher was serving as the interim vice president for development and alumni affairs/president and CEO of the UT Foundation.

The post is a dual role position that is responsible for all alumni development and advancement service operations at UT. It serves as the university system’s chief alumni and development officer responsible for planning, implementing and overseeing all system-wide campaigns. Additionally, this position serves in the lead role of coordinating and developing systems and programs to secure both broad-based alumni support as well as private philanthropic support for the University of Tennessee System and its stakeholders.

“I appreciate the tremendously hard work the search committee put forth in making this recommendation,” UT Interim President Randy Boyd said. “Kerry’s continued leadership in building relationships with donors and alumni is critical to our long-term success and sustained financial well-being.”

Tags: Audit and Compliance, Brian Daniels, Featured, Kerry Witcher, UT Board of Trustees