Tennessee Department of Treasury · David H. Lillard, Jr., State Treasurer

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Boards and Commissions

Chairs of Excellence Trust

Chairs of Excellence Trust is chaired by
Tennessee State Treasurer David H. Lillard, Jr.

University Professor and Student

The Chairs of Excellence Trust is a permanent trust fund authorized in 1984 to further the cause of higher education in Tennessee. The funding of the program is provided through contributions made by a private donor and a matching amount by the state, thus creating a chair.

Income from the chair is used to offset the cost of retaining a nationally or regionally recognized

scholar
at a state college or university who teaches in a specified academic area. The program is open to all state four-year colleges and universities, and the UT Space Institute.

A chair is authorized to spend 4% of the 3-year average market value of the chair. However, the corpus cannot be spent. Accordingly, only dividends, interests, and accumulated gains may be spent. Since 1984, a total of one hundred (100) chairs have been created.

The Treasury Investments Division is responsible for managing the assets of the Chairs of Excellence Trust.

Board Meetings and Materials

Upcoming Meetings

Recent Meetings

20Jul2026

College Savings Trust Fund Program Board of Trustees

7/20/2026 2:00 PM

Meeting Date and Time
Monday, July 20, 2026
The Board meeting will start immediately following the Joint Audit Committee meeting scheduled for 1:30 p.m. CT

Location
William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower
Nashville Room, 3rd Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue
Nashville, TN 37243

Documents to download

College Savings Trust Fund Board of Trustees_Agenda_07022026(.pdf, 269.1 KB) - 292 download(s)
College Savings Trust Fund BOT Public Meeting Notice_06303036(.pdf, 166.96 KB) - 270 download(s)
CSTFB Meeting Packet(.pdf, 7.17 MB) - 413 download(s)

20Jul2026

Joint Audit Committee for the Chairs of Excellence Trust and the College Savings Trust Fund

7/20/2026 1:30 PM

Meeting Date and Time
Monday, July 20, 2026 at 1:30 p.m. CT

Location
William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower
Nashville Room, 3rd Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue
Nashville, TN 37243

Documents to download

JointAuditCommittee_COE_CSTF_PublicMtgNotice_7.20.26(.pdf, 283.99 KB) - 266 download(s)
JointAuditCommittee_COE_CSTF_Agenda_7.20.26(.pdf, 451.74 KB) - 278 download(s)

7Oct2025

Trustees for the Chairs of Excellence Trust Fund and the College Savings Trust Fund—Audit Committee

10/7/2025 10:45 AM

Meeting Date and Time
Tuesday, October 7, 2025 at 10:45 a.m. CT

Location
William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower
Tennessee Room 2, 3rd Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue
Nashville, Tennessee 37243

Documents to download

COE_CSTFP_Audit Committee_Agenda_10072025(.pdf, 117.24 KB) - 869 download(s)
COE_CSTFP_Audit Committee_MeetingNotice_10072025(.pdf, 115.23 KB) - 886 download(s)

29Jul2025

College Savings Trust Fund Program Board of Trustees

7/29/2025 11:00 AM

Meeting Date and Time
Tuesday, July 29, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. CT

Location
William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower
Nashville Room, 3rd Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue
Nashville, TN 37243

Documents to download

CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesMeetingAgenda07292025(.pdf, 151.02 KB) - 842 download(s)
CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesMeetingPublicMtgNotice07292025(.pdf, 229.6 KB) - 790 download(s)
UPDATED-CollegeSavingsBoardOfTrusteesMeetingPacket7.29.25(.pdf, 6.59 MB) - 1207 download(s)

13Nov2024

College Savings Trust Fund Program Board of Trustees

11/13/2024 11:00 AM

Meeting Date and Time
Wednesday, November 13, 2024 at 11:00 AM CT

Location
William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower
Room E
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue
Nashville, TN 37243

Documents to download

CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesMeetingPublicMtgNotice11132024(.pdf, 140.35 KB) - 1026 download(s)
CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesMeetingAgenda11132024(.pdf, 139.52 KB) - 1073 download(s)
CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesMeetingPacket11132024(.pdf, 2.01 MB) - 1080 download(s)

8Oct2024

Joint Audit Committee for the Chairs of Excellence Trust and the College Savings Trust Fund

10/8/2024 1:45 PM

Meeting Date and Time
Tuesday, October 8, 2024 at 1:45 p.m. CT

Location
William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower
Nashville Room, 3rd Floor
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue
Nashville, Tennessee 37243

Documents to download

COE_CSTFP_Audit Committee_MeetingNotice_10082024(.pdf, 87.02 KB) - 1101 download(s)
COE_CSTFP_Audit Committee_Agenda_10082024(.pdf, 130.34 KB) - 1071 download(s)

23Jul2024

College Savings Trust Fund Program Board of Trustees

7/23/2024 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Meeting Date and Time
Tuesday, July 23, 2024 at 2:00 PM CT

Location
Tennessee State Capitol
Executive Conference Room, Ground Floor
600 Dr. M.L.K. Jr. Blvd.
Nashville, TN 37243

Documents to download

CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesMeetingPacket07232024_REVISED(.pdf, 8.6 MB) - 1158 download(s)
CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesPublicMeetingNotice07232024(.pdf, 126.64 KB) - 1283 download(s)
CollegeSavingsBoard-of-TrusteesAgenda07232024_REVISED(.pdf, 122.74 KB) - 1157 download(s)

24Jul2023

College Savings Trust Fund Program Board of Trustees

7/24/2023 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Meeting Date and Time
Monday, July 24, 2023 at 2:00 PM CT

Location
Tennessee State Capitol, Executive Conference Room, Ground Floor
600 Dr. M.L.K. Jr. Blvd.
Nashville, TN 37243

Individuals with disabilities who wish to participate in these proceedings and require an accommodation should contact the Board of Trustees of the College Savings Trust Fund Program no less than two (2) days prior to the scheduled meeting date to allow time for the Treasury Department to arrange for an accommodation. You may contact the Board of Trustees of the College Savings Trust Fund Program Staff by phone at (615) 532-5888 or by email to the Board Secretary, LaKesha Page, at tn.stars@tn.gov.

Learn more about the College Savings Trust Fund Program.

Documents to download

CSTF_BoardTrustees_PublicMeetingNotice_07242023(.pdf, 141.77 KB) - 1183 download(s)
College Savings Trust Fund Board Meeting Packet_7-24-2023(.pdf, 10.68 MB) - 1266 download(s)