From 2025 to 2027, the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) will allocate $90,000 in academic awards to the Department of Supply Chain Management at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Haslam College of Business. This commitment builds upon an initial award of $25,000 in 2024, bringing IANA’s total four-year contribution to Haslam’s supply chain department to $115,000.
The funding will include tuition scholarships for students majoring in supply chain management; support of student travel for industry-related field activities; support for student research projects in topical areas of intermodal freight; support for students competing in industry-related case study competitions; and intermodal freight and transportation curriculum development.
Plans for the Funding
Don Maier, an associate professor of practice researching maritime transportation, will use a portion of the funding to develop a new elective course on port and intermodal operations he will teach this summer. Students will learn about both facility types, and Maier plans to take the class on a field trip to multiple ports and intermodal facilities, using some IANA scholarship fund to partly cover travel costs. Students will also earn the professional certification of Marine Terminal Operator from the International Association of Maritime Port Executives (IAMPE).
“The course is another example of how our supply chain program continues to integrate real-world applications into the classroom and connect our students to the industry,” Maier explained. “I’m very excited to have IANA and the IAMPE as industry partners to help support our students.”
Other IANA Benefits
As an IANA Scholarship School, Haslam can send three students to the 2025 Intermodal EXPO, — held in Long Beach, California, in September — to compete in the Academic Challenge Student Case Competition, with the IANA covering students’ airfare and hotel costs. Haslam participated in the case study competition for the first time in 2024, capturing first place against a strong field of contenders, including the University of North Florida, State University of New York Maritime College and University of North Texas.
Shelli Austin, president of InTek Freight and Logistics and chair of IANA’s scholarship committee, hailed the ongoing relationship between IANA and Haslam.
“On behalf of IANA and its board of directors, we look forward to continuing our partnership with the Department of Supply Chain in the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and in progressing the education of the next generation of intermodal leaders through our Joanne F. Casey Scholarship Program,” Austin said.
Anne Reinke, IANA’s president and CEO added, “We are so pleased to help foster the continuation of great supply chain work at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. We can’t wait to see how these managers change and improve the business of intermodal.”
John Bell, head of the supply chain management department, John H. “Red” Dove Professor in Supply Chain Management and Nancy & David McKinney Faculty Fellow, praised IANA while calling the award a great boost for the department and its students.
“IANA is an exceptional advocacy organization for intermodal freight trade, and its EXPO offers students the invaluable experience of learning from industry professionals and networking,” he said. “We are profoundly grateful to IANA for this award, which will benefit supply chain management students and allow them to participate in the case studies at the EXPO.”
About Haslam’s Department of Supply Chain Management
The Haslam College of Business has one of the most comprehensive, forward-thinking and highly regarded supply chain management programs in the world. U.S. News & World Report and Gartner consistently rank it among the top five programs. An advisory board of more than 40 industry professionals informs its curriculum, and students develop applied skills to help improve organizational performance through supply chain management.
About the Intermodal Association of North America
IANA is the only organization representing the combined interests of the intermodal freight transportation industry. Its members represent suppliers, motor carriers, rail, marine, and third-party logistics providers.
Since its inception in 2007, IANA has awarded close to $4 million to support students in university programs focused on freight and intermodal transportation. The Scholarship Award Program seeks to progress the education of the intermodal freight transportation industry’s next generation of leaders and managers by providing students with opportunities to attend Intermodal EXPO, take study trips to intermodal facilities across the U.S., participate in academic case competitions, interact with transportation executives and conduct intermodal freight research.
Originally written by Scott McNutt, senior business writer for the Haslam College of Business