About President Troutt

William E. Troutt

President of Rhodes since 1999, Bill Troutt has led a strategic planning process that culminated in the Rhodes Vision, which focuses on student access and learning both in the classroom and through significant student research, work, service, internship and study abroad.  Through his leadership, Rhodes has made the following strides:

  • Applications for admissions have more than doubled.
  • Diversity has also increased, with individuals of color representing 13% of both faculty and student body.
  • The college has risen to the top tier of national liberal arts colleges.
  • The faculty has adopted an outcomes-based curriculum that gives students greater flexibility in designing their educational experience.
  • Seven new endowed faculty chairs and professorships have been established.
  • The college has received $11 million in gifts from the Robert and Ruby Priddy Charitable Trust to establish Rhodes CARES (Center for Academic Research and Education through Service) and CODA (Center for Outreach in the Development of the Arts).
  • Students have been increasingly connected to Memphis with partnerships established to support student learning at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, FedEx, the National Civil Rights Museum, Rhodes Learning Corridor, Rhodes Hollywood Springdale Partnership and Teach for America–Memphis. 
  • The nationally recognized Rhodes Student Associates Program has been established to give students meaningful work experiences on campus while defraying a portion of their college costs.
  • The college has received the largest gift in its history—$35 million—to build the Paul Barret, Jr. Library, a magnificent building that has re-centered the campus and created a new hub where students connect to each other, to the faculty and to the world.
  • The college has increased its emphasis on study abroad and has garnered greater resources to fund students’ international education experiences.
  • The East Village apartment-style residential community has been constructed to ensure that the college remains true to the ideals of its residential liberal arts campus.
  • A new track and field improvement project provides recreational opportunities and support for Rhodes Division III athletic programs.

A national education leader, Troutt has chaired the American Council on Education and the National Commission on the Cost of Higher Education.  He recently completed service on the Abraham Lincoln Commission on Study Abroad. A native of Bolivar, Tennessee, he was named one of the nation’s most effective college presidents in a national study funded by the Exxon Foundation.


Print