Knoxville Overview
The class left Chattanooga on the morning of Thursday, March 22nd and headed Northeast to Knoxville. After a quick hour and forty five minute drive, the class arrived on the University of Tennessee, Knoxville campus. UT is Tennessee’s flagship university and is D1 in sports and R1 in research. The trip to UT was to meet with Derek Alderman, the president of the American Association of Geographers (AAG), and tour his department in their graduate school. During a brief tour of the University’s geography building, the Burchfiel building, the class took time to compare and contrast the work environment of UWEC to UT Knoxville. Derek shared his wisdom with the class and answered questions that the students had. The tour ended with a presentation about their graduate program and a Q&A about the process of applying to graduate programs.
Next, the class went downtown to Market Square for lunch. Market Square is a prime example of new urbanist design as it emphasizes walk-ability and public spaces. After lunch, the class went to the East Tennessee history museum for a tour. George, the museum tour guide, took the class through the history of the region from the colonial era until the late 20th century covering all that East Tennessee prides itself on.
The following day, Friday, March 23rd, the class drove Southeast to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. After a brief stop at a information station, the class drove into the park to hike. The trail to Abrams Falls is roughly 2.5 miles and the class split up to hike it at their own pace. Abrams Falls is one of the most popular features in the park for its beauty and relative lack of difficulty in accessing it.
Next, the class went downtown to Market Square for lunch. Market Square is a prime example of new urbanist design as it emphasizes walk-ability and public spaces. After lunch, the class went to the East Tennessee history museum for a tour. George, the museum tour guide, took the class through the history of the region from the colonial era until the late 20th century covering all that East Tennessee prides itself on.
The following day, Friday, March 23rd, the class drove Southeast to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. After a brief stop at a information station, the class drove into the park to hike. The trail to Abrams Falls is roughly 2.5 miles and the class split up to hike it at their own pace. Abrams Falls is one of the most popular features in the park for its beauty and relative lack of difficulty in accessing it.