One of UT’s most recent projects, the Southard Family Building, is located on the
Hillsborough River and includes classrooms, administrative spaces, meeting rooms,
mail services and faculty offices.
MAY/JUNE 2020 | TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 49
but professors’ research is designed to inform
their work in the classroom. As Devine puts it,
“A professor can be a powerful researcher, and
that is great, but they won’t last here if they
can’t teach.”
The result? UT graduates tend to do extremely
well after they finish school. “I’ve hired a number
of UT MBAs, and they seem to have a pragmatic
approach to business that’s very helpful for their
success,” said John West, who is chairman of
Hire Velocity, a major search firm. “They have
the academic experience, but they also know
how to figure things out.”
Vaughn’s attention to detail, the understanding
of how each tactic fits into an overall strategy,
and the constant knowledge gathering are all
part of how he ticks. It should be no surprise
that he ran a marketing research company: His
approach is built on the understanding that
research is the key to all good decisions. Instead
of relying on others to do all the research about
an issue or challenge, Vaughn will also dig in
himself, said his wife, Renée Vaughn. “It isn’t
magic that everything falls into place,” she said.
“When a problem comes in, he has an uncanny
knack of focusing on the big picture and taking
action that reflects that understanding.”
Renée Vaughn is deeply involved at UT,
whether it’s serving on boards, mentoring
students, planning functions or hosting visitors.
She has deep knowledge of the workings of the
university gained from decades of volunteer
involvement there, having first joined the
UT Board of Fellows in 1994. “She loved UT
before she loved me,” her husband likes to
say. And she serves as an extremely effective
sounding board for the university president,
offering perspectives with knowledge gained
from a diverse career that has included work in
urban planning, government, and community
relations. Watching the Vaughns talk to people
at a university function tells you a lot about