A sweet spot for learning
UT Creamery offers students practical skills for future careers
By Glen Liford
The tagline of the UT Creamery is “A scoop of tradition,” and from the cone shown here held by Kate Cattani — with scoops of Mint ChampionChip, top, and the Creamery’s signature Go Big Orange, bottom — it’s obvious why ice cream lovers keep coming back.
The UT Creamery storefront on the University of Tennessee campus in Knoxville evokes an old-fashioned ice cream parlor vibe, with colorful tubs of house-made flavors and traditional décor you’d expect in a gourmet shop.
Customers come for generous scoops, but the venture’s real focus is learning by doing. Student employees build practical experience in food production, retail and market strategy, accounting, sales, customer service, entrepreneurship, and problem-solving — skills that translate to a wide range of careers.
Both the production and retail facilities are staffed by students whose majors include food science, retail and merchandising management, business, supply chain, marketing, and accounting. The production lab employs 10 to 12 students each semester (about two full-time equivalents), while the retail store employs another 15 to 20.
The experiential-learning concept was in development for about 10 years before the creamery opened in 2023. Program leaders Nathan Miller, production manager, and Myra Loveday, assistant professor of practice and director of Rocky Top Institute of Retail and Retail Strategies, bring complementary industry experience to their roles.
Nathan earned a bachelor’s degree in biological science from the University of Tennessee at Martin and a master’s in food science from UT Knoxville. After nine years in quality assurance at a meat-processing plant, he joined UT Extension, working with private companies on food safety before being asked to restart the UT Creamery.
“We didn’t want to compete with folks in the industry,” Nathan says. “We wanted to give students the real-world experience that makes them more marketable.”
Raised on a Middle Tennessee beef farm, Nathan said his manufacturing background was a perfect fit for the challenge.
“I was asked to build the facility, develop the SOPs, and then shape the student experiential-learning program,” Nathan says. “I’m pretty much the only non-student who works in the creamery. We take what they learn in the classroom and apply it to something real — in this case, ice cream.”
The UT Creamery uses only natural flavors and colorings like this beet pulp being added to make either Smokey’s Strawberry Kisses or Pep Rally Peppermint. Photo by Raffe Lazarian/ University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture.
Housed in the Food Science Department, the production side of the creamery hires far beyond food science majors and provides experience that is applicable to careers in the food industry and beyond. Student employees come from majors across campus, including business, supply chain, marketing, accounting, and ALEC (Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communications).
Students rotate through real responsibilities like what would be found in a corporate setting. Housed in the Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism Department, the retail side of the creamery provides practical experiences for retail majors in the Rocky Top Institute of Retail to position and promote products, develop new offerings through product development, purchase items, plan inventory, and create data for social media, while food science students work on formulation and manufacturing — moving ingredients from mixing to finished product.
The program is designed as a safe, educational workplace with room to develop practical experience. Students typically start in entry-level roles and can move into lead or supervisory positions as they gain skills and demonstrate leadership.
“These are real-world examples they can share with employers,” Nathan says. “Instead of a theoretical answer, they can explain what they did and what happened — and that’s more impactful.”
He adds that employers aren’t looking for perfection as much as judgment and adaptability: if something goes wrong, can you pivot, correct it, and get the process back on track?
Real-world situations require split-second decisions under pressure, he says, and the creamery gives students a chance to practice that kind of critical thinking.
The UT Creamery is a collaboration between the UT Institute of Agriculture (Herbert College of Agriculture) and the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences, giving students hands-on learning in retail and ice cream production. The venture was launched with seed money from UT alumnae and supporters Sue Conley and Peggy Smith of California, creators of The Cowgirl Creamery brand.
A short distance from the production facility, the retail shop, led by Myra Loveday, operates on the same learn-by-doing model. Myra earned a bachelor's degree in retail and consumer science as well as a master's from the Haslam College of Business at UTK. After 20 years of retail experience, including working as a buyer for Proffitt's Department Store under Saks Incorporated and as a product developer for Radio Systems Corporation/PetSafe, she joined the faculty at UTK and now teaches entrepreneurship and product development courses that integrate UT Creamery operations.
“I teach beyond the textbook, drawing on industry experience,” says Myra, whose grandfather, Roy Overton, was one of the first dairy farmers to bring dairy automation to Tennessee at his 100-year-old dairy farm in Speedwell. “Students learn product development, retail strategy, and entrepreneurship-minded processes.”
At the storefront, about 80% of sales come from ice cream; the other 20% comes from premium Rocky Top lifestyle items — T-shirts, hats, drinkware, sweatshirts, tote bags, and décor developed by students under Myra’s direction. Retail students work with manufacturers on costing and specifications, balancing design trade-offs, quality, and competitive pricing for target markets.
Nathan Miller is manager of the UT Creamery production facility located in the McLeod Food Science Building on the University of Tennessee Ag Campus. Raised on a beef farm in Middle Tennessee, he brought his experience to UTK to help start up the re-envisioned UT Creamery with a focus on experiential learning.
The original UT Creamery was established to promote dairying in Tennessee and through the years has sold butter, ice cream, and milk.
Competition for positions is keen, Myra says, and many students call it the best job they’ve had — citing competitive pay, flexible scheduling around classes, and practical skill-building.
“It’s been fun getting to know students from all the different majors,” says Ellie Housely of Maryville. “I’ve enjoyed all the people I’ve met. It’s a pretty chill job.”
At peak season, the creamery produces about 150 gallons of ice cream daily. Good Ole Cookies & Cream is the top seller, and the product is sold in the retail shop, through campus dining and catering, and for special events.
Under Myra's direction, The Rocky Top Insititute of Retail led an online market research survey for students to research ice cream and product consumer preferences and developed modern twists on classic flavors. They identified Mint Chocolate Chip as one of the most popular ice cream flavors for the UT Campus community, despite not being considered a “basic” flavor. Myra’s team was surprised at the ranking for the flavor. But they consulted with Strauss Dairy in California to validate choices, and the dairy leader confirmed the results.
With support from Nathan, along with Sarah Burns, lab manager for the University of Tennessee Center for Sensory Science, the team developed the creamery’s signature offering, an orange-colored ice cream, called Go Big Orange (not a sherbet, she stresses) that is a creamsicle-inspired flavor paying homage to the University of Tennessee’s Volunteer heritage.
Many flavors carry a “Vol Nation” twist — both in recipes and names — nodding to Big Orange tradition. Standouts include VOLnilla Bean, Torchbearer Chocolate, Smokey’s Strawberry Kisses, Mint ChampionChip, Midnight at Hodges (coffee), 1794 Birthday Cake, and The ROCK Rocky Road. The newest addition, Sheriff Peanut Butter Cup, is named for the favorite flavor of “Vol for Life” Peyton Manning.
Opened in August 2023, today’s UT Creamery follows the tradition of the original campus creamery established in 1915, which was started to increase interest in dairying. Over the years, it produced butter, ice cream, and milk for campus consumption before closing in 1989 as markets and the dairy business changed.
The UT Creamery ice cream shop and boutique is located at 2712 Neyland Drive across from Sorority Row and is open Monday – Saturday from noon to 7 p.m.
Story by Glen Liford,
Contact gliford@ourcoop.com