Chattanooga State Community College is proud to announce the appointment of Dr. Martina Suttle Harris as the new Dean of Nursing and Allied Health. Martina became the fourth dean of ChattState Nursing and Allied Health Division on March 1, 2023. Dr. Harris has over 21 years of higher education experience in both the classroom and the clinical setting. Dr. Harris is poised to lead the division to new heights.

Prior to being named dean at Chattanooga State, Dr. Harris served as the Assistant Dean of Nursing & Allied Health and Nursing Program Director, a position she held since coming to the college in 2013. In her tenure as Nursing Program Director, she expanded the Registered Nursing Program to include the Kimball site and led the registered nursing program through a successful six-year Accreditation Commission of Education in Nursing (ACEN) re-accreditation.  Most recently, she has worked to implement the Surgical Tech Program as a new program of study in the N&AH Division. 

Before joining Chattanooga State, Dr. Harris taught at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC). At UTC, she served as the level facilitator for first-year students and was a tenured UC Foundation Associate Professor in the School of Nursing. Additionally, she has taught at Middle Tennessee State University in the School of Nursing.

Dean Harris has served as Project Director for several Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grants focused on recruiting and retaining under-represented minorities in healthcare.  She served on the Board of Directors for the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL) and was involved in the development of the Standards of Best Practice: Simulation. In 2020, Governor Bill Lee appointed Dr. Harris to serve as a member of the TN Board of Nursing (TBON).

Dr. Elizabeth Norton, Vice President of Academic Affairs at ChattState, said of Dr. Harris’s appointment, “Dr. Harris brings a wealth of experience and education to her role as Dean of Nursing and Allied Health. Chattanooga State is fortunate to have her on our leadership team on a permanent basis.”

Upon her appointment, Dr. Harris said, “It is my honor to serve as dean of the Nursing & Allied Health Division, and it is a privilege to work alongside such great faculty and students.”

As Dean, Dr. Harris will lead and oversee 13 allied health programs and the registered nursing program at Chattanooga State Community College. She has outlined three primary goals for her tenure:

1. Community Involvement: Dr. Harris envisions the college as a driving force in the local community, saying, “I am thrilled to lead this division at a time when the college is focused on preparing graduates to meet workforce needs of the region”
2. Accreditation: Chattanooga State's Nursing and Allied Health programs boast full accreditation, impressive pass rates, and phenomenal job placement. Dr. Harris is committed to maintaining and strengthening these achievements.
3. Closing Equity Gaps: Dr. Harris intends to be intentional about closing equity gaps in the healthcare field, building on her previous work with under-represented minorities.

Dean Harris is a TBR: The College System of Tennessee Maxine Smith Fellow and a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and Chattanooga Downtown Rotary Club. She is active in various professional organizations and serves on the Board of Directors for Volunteers in Medicine (VIM), Journey Health Foundation, Hamilton County Department of Education (HCDE), and Erlanger Health Systems (EHS) Foundation.

Chattanooga State Community College invites the community to welcome Dr. Martina Suttle Harris and support her in her new Dean of Nursing and Allied Health role.