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MILLIGAN, Tenn. (Dec. 15, 2020) — Milligan University announced a new appointment to the university’s Board of Trustees. Mark Cox, senior vice president and chief manufacturing, supply chain and engineering officer at Eastman, was approved on Friday, December 11, at the board’s biannual meeting. He will join the board in January 2021.
“I am pleased to have a recognized industry leader in engineering join our board, and especially one who has such a strong heart for servant-leadership and Milligan’s mission,” said Milligan President Dr. Bill Greer. “Mark and Eastman were instrumental in helping Milligan start our engineering program, and I know he will continue to be an asset to our board in many ways.”
Cox is responsible for the team that leads Eastman’s global manufacturing, supply chain, engineering and construction operations. This encompasses numerous domestic and international locations, including the Kingsport, Tennessee site, one of the largest chemical production facilities in North America.
He has led the charge at Eastman to improve operational performance, including the design, construction and startup of numerous new facilities that produce a variety of innovative products. During his tenure, he has overseen deployment of an estimated total of $5 billion of capital for design and construction projects around the globe.
During his 35-year career at Eastman, Cox has served in a variety of management positions, including various transformational leadership roles within the commercial, engineering, manufacturing and technology areas.
He is a National Academy of Construction inductee, a senior member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, a licensed professional engineer in the State of Tennessee, and a member of the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society.
Cox currently serves on the University of Tennessee Tickle College of Engineering Board of Advisors, and he drove the establishment of the Eastman Unit Operations laboratory within the Tickle College. He holds both U.S. and international patents associated with process technology developed by Eastman. In 2018, Cox was inducted into the University of Tennessee’s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Hall of Fame.
Within the community, Cox has served as a volunteer with Boys and Girls Club of Greater Kingsport, Meals on Wheels, and multiple church-related mission efforts. He also has held leadership roles within the United Way of Greater Kingsport Board of Directors and Leadership Kingsport.
Cox holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Tennessee and an M.B.A. from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.
Cox and his wife, Karen, have two children, Andrew and Sarah, who both graduated from Milligan.
Milligan’s Board of Trustees includes 28 active members whose combined experience, dedication and vision provides leadership and guidance to shape Milligan’s goals, policies and fiscal management. The board is a self-perpetuating board, with members serving five-year terms. Alumni currently comprise 86% of the board membership. The board meets twice a year and has five standing committees.