Thomas (Tom) Malcolm Andress, Jr. earned his bachelor’s (’70) and master’s (’80) degrees from the University of Tennessee’s metallurgical engineering department, now known as the Department of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE). He remained a devoted Vol for life, following UT’s triumphs in football and materials science until his death in 2023.
“Tom loved UT and pretty much embodied the Volunteer spirit,” said emergency physician Daniel (Dan) Andress, Tom Andress’ younger brother. “He was a very giving person. He sought out ways to make an impact with not just his money but his time.”
To honor his brother’s memory, Dan Andress donated $1 million to MSE this year. It is one of the largest donations the department has ever received.
“The generous gift to honor Mr. Thomas Andress will help enhance the educational experience of all of our MSE students,” said MSE Interim Department Head Philip Rack. “Dr. Andress’ donation will provide resources to modernize our undergraduate laboratories and support undergraduate and graduate scholarships. We have named one of our undergraduate labs the Thomas M. Andress, Jr. Metallurgy Prep Lab as a small token of recognition.”
Metallurgy, Power Generation, Gardening
Tom and Dan Andress’ parents independently moved to the rapidly expanding town of Oak Ridge in the early 1940s. Their father, a chemical engineer, had come to support the Manhattan Project; their mother, a registered nurse, came to support the engineers.
While Dan Andress followed his mother into medicine, his brother took the engineering path.
“We grew up in Oak Ridge at its boom,” Dan Andress recalled. “It was full of engineers and PhDs embedded in nuclear and atomic theories and applications. I think Tom developed an interest in engineering that way.”
Shortly after earning his bachelor’s degree, Tom Andress was drafted into the Vietnam War. He served in the Air Force in Oklahoma as a metal processing specialist and welder for four years, then returned to UT for his master’s degree in metallurgy.
Tom Andress moved to Ohio to work for the American Electric Power Company (AEP), where he quickly became a respected leader and mentor.
“Everyone at AEP respected his opinion, all the way up to the executive level,” Dan Andress said.
Tom Andress earned multiple awards for his research at AEP. His investigations into corrosion fatigue contributed to new safety standards at the company, while his work with power generation earned him recognition as an industry leader.
He also built on his military welding experience, taking an advanced welding course on the high-pressure, high-temperature welding performed at AEP and developing a training program for other AEP employees.
After retirement, Tom Andress moved to Guntersville, Alabama, where he could spend more time with his brother. He also became an American Horticultural Society Master Gardener and seized every opportunity to share his new expertise with his community in Marshall County.
He was a devoted board member of the Care Assurance System for the Aging and Homebound (CASA) Community Garden, which distributes volunteer-raised produce to elderly and homebound citizens of Marshall County, and regularly visited Brindlee Mountain Elementary School to serve as a gardening mentor and reading buddy. He ultimately accumulated more than 1,800 lifetime volunteer hours as a Master Gardener.
A Vision for Materials Science Engineering
Throughout his life, Tom Andress remained committed to UT and its materials science program.
“He kept yearly evaluations of how the football team was doing, and he also followed his former professors’ careers very closely,” said Dan Andress. “He knew that metallurgy is a small area of engineering, but he felt that it—and materials engineering more broadly—needs to be further developed and continued.”
When Tom Andress died, his family asked for remembrances to be donated to the Master Gardeners of Marshall County and to UT’s Tickle College of Engineering.
Dan Andress wanted to build on that idea, honoring his brother in a way that directly supported his vision.
“Tom was a thoughtful, considerate person, and when he gave a gift, he’d give something the person would be happy with, something they could use,” Dan Andress explained. “To get UT up to the top tier in the country for materials engineering is a goal he would very happily encourage.”
When Dan Andress initiated his donation, the MSE department invited him to come tour UT’s engineering campus, including the Min. H & Yu Fan Kao Innovation and Collaboration Studio in the basement of the Zeanah Engineering Complex. The physician, who casts aluminum as a hobby, was extremely impressed.
“You have this wonderful facility where the students can just show up with an idea and execute it, from laser printing to 3D printing, welding, woodshop, metal shop, and more,” Dan Andress said. “I know Tom would have wanted to support that. I know he would love it.”
Contact
Izzie Gall (865-974-7203, egall4@utk.edu)