Pellissippi State graduates 700-plus at Commencement

Approximately 721 Pellissippi State students graduated from Pellissippi State this spring. The annual Commencement ceremony was May 2.

Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam was the speaker at the event, which took place at Thompson-Boling Arena on the University of Tennessee campus.

Haslam was elected the city’s mayor in 2003. He previously served as president and director of Pilot Corporation, a Knoxville-based company that operates convenience stores and travel centers nationwide. He also is the former chief executive officer of SAKS Direct, the e-commerce
and catalog division of Saks Fifth Avenue. Haslam is an owner of the Tennessee Smokies East Tennessee AA Baseball Team.

The event speaker has served in leadership roles in numerous charities and nonprofit organizations in the Knoxville area, including board chair and general chair for United Way of Greater Knoxville.