MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — As the world of transportation and logistics impacts and guides economies on a global scale, Middle Tennessee State University has launched a new center to enhance its growing Supply Chain Management degree programs and deepen partnerships with business and industry through research and collaboration.

Led by assistant professor Richard Tarpey, who will serve as director, the new Center for Supply Chain Management and Sustainability within the Jones College of Business launched Aug. 1, with dedicated space inside the Business and Aerospace Building.

“This Center will serve as a nexus of knowledge, collaboration, and experiential learning, positioning the Jones College of Business at the forefront of supply chain education, research and industry engagement,” said Tarpey, who will be supported by several supply chain management faculty that include Senali Amarasuriya, Bukola Bakare, R. Bryan Kethley, Curtis Sawyer, Cliff Welborn and Jinfeng Yue.

Tarpey said the center’s mission will be to foster excellence in supply chain management practices and promote sustainability through education, research, and collaboration, serving MTSU students, faculty and industry partners.

The vision is to become a nationally recognized hub for innovative supply chain and sustainability solutions, shaping tomorrow’s supply chain leaders and serving Middle Tennessee’s industries.

“The Jones College of Business is proud to be the home of the newly created Supply Chain and Sustainability Center,” said Dean Joyce Heames. “The center is important as it will highlight the need for education/training, jobs, and research while bringing visibility to a growing and crucial economic sector.”

Growing student, industry interest - The MTSU Department of Management launched the undergraduate degree in supply chain management in 2021 after multiple years as a concentration where student interest continued to increase, so much so that the department launched a graduate degree two years ago to meet the demand of not only students, but industry as well.

The undergraduate and graduate supply chain programs have grown at an impressive rate since inception. Fall 2023 enrollment for the undergraduate program increased 47% from the 2022-23 academic year to 113 students. The graduate program increased 64% in the same period to 40 students.

Likewise, the supply chain industry in the Middle Tennessee region has continued to grow. O*Net Online estimates over 14,000 job openings for supply chain managers and over 24,000 job openings for logistics analysts in the next eight years. Starting salaries range from $55,000 to $75,000.

Earlier this spring, the program hosted its third Midsouth Supply Chain Summit on campus, drawing a record attendance of students, alumni, faculty and industry partners who heard guest speakers from the industry, sat in on supply chain sessions and panels, and attended networking events.

“We’re up over 75 partners in the industry that are in some way, shape or fashion partners with our programs, whether that be through guest speaking, attending our events, doing brown bags and more,” Tarpey said. “So we have a lot of student engagement opportunities.”