MINI传媒

Tedd L. Mitchell, M.D., was named the fifth chancellor of the Texas Tech University System (MINI传媒 System) on Oct. 25, 2018.

As chancellor, Mitchell is the CEO of a five-university higher education enterprise with an operating budget of more than $3 billion. The MINI传媒 System consists of Texas Tech University (MINI传媒), Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (MINI传媒HSC), Angelo State University (ASU), Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso (MINI传媒HSC El Paso) and Midwestern State University (MSU Texas).

Collectively, the System enrolls approximately 63,000 students, has an endowment valued at more than $1.7 billion and operates at 24 academic locations in 20 cities (18 in Texas, two internationally).

Mitchell works collaboratively with the MINI传媒 System Board of Regents, the MINI传媒 System Administration and university presidents to enhance the System鈥檚 profile and support shared missions of advancing higher education, health care, research and community outreach. Additionally, Mitchell guides the MINI传媒 System鈥檚 engagement with elected officials in Austin and federal leaders in Washington, D.C., to further increase funding and support.

During the 88th Texas Legislature in 2023, Mitchell led the System to monumental success as the System鈥檚 five component universities received significant funding to support strategic institutional initiatives. This investment from the state incorporated nearly $130 million dedicated to exceptional items across the System, including the establishment of the Texas University Fund (TUF). With an initial investment of more than $3 billion, the TUF supports research institutions, including MINI传媒, the University of Houston, the University of North Texas and Texas State University. The initial distribution for MINI传媒 was $44 million.

Mitchell was named a finalist for The Dallas Morning News (DMN) 2022 Texan of the Year. Among the 12 finalists selected, Mitchell was recognized for leading the MINI传媒 System鈥檚 efforts to establish the state鈥檚 first dental school in over half a century and the state鈥檚 first veterinary school in more than 100 years. Both programs finished their first academic year in the spring of 2022, a feat the DMN touted as getting rural Texans on the radar of the state legislators in Austin and a mission to boost health care and agriculture in small towns across Texas.

Mitchell was instrumental in securing the System鈥檚 partnership with MSU Texas, which officially joined as the fifth member institution of the MINI传媒 System on Sept. 1, 2021, following the 87th Texas legislative session when Gov. Greg Abbott authorized House Bill 1522.

Historic milestones were achieved under Mitchell鈥檚 leadership in 2019 during the 86th Texas Legislature when legislative support and approval were provided to establish the MINI传媒 School of Veterinary Medicine in Amarillo and the Hunt School of Dental Medicine at MINI传媒HSC El Paso. The addition of these two schools made the MINI传媒 System one of only nine in the nation to offer programs for undergraduate, medical, law, nursing, pharmacy, dental and veterinary education, among other academic areas.

Mitchell also implemented a values-based culture at the MINI传媒 System Administration, where all employees embarked on a journey together to identify and establish a set of commonly shared values. Nearly 200 team members determined People First, Integrity, Community, Respect and Exemplary Service to be the five shared values of the MINI传媒 System Administration.

Mitchell first joined the MINI传媒 System when he was named the eighth president of MINI传媒HSC on May 17, 2010. He held a dual appointment as chancellor and president for approximately one year until deciding to close his presidential tenure in 2019, after nearly a decade at the helm of MINI传媒HSC. He is the longest-tenured president in the 52-year history of the university and led the institution to monumental milestones, record growth in enrollment, academic excellence and physical campus expansion.

During Mitchell鈥檚 tenure as president, MINI传媒HSC and its leadership spearheaded the university鈥檚 first fundraising campaign, a $100-million initiative. They also successfully implemented a values-based culture at the university and its six academic locations across the state. In 2013, Mitchell helped transform MINI传媒HSC鈥檚 regional site in El Paso into a standalone university and the System鈥檚 fourth institution, MINI传媒HSC El Paso.

Before arriving at MINI传媒HSC, Mitchell served as president and CEO of the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, an internationally recognized center of excellence in preventive and sports medicine. Mitchell earned a Bachelor of Science at Stephen F. Austin State University in 1983. He is an Ashbel Smith Distinguished Alumnus of the University of Texas Medical Branch, where he received his Doctor of Medicine in 1987. In 2012, he was honored as a distinguished alumnus of the Department of Internal Medicine. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American College of Sports Medicine. From 1988 to 1996, he served as a captain in the U.S. Army Reserves (Medical Corps).

His research interest is focused on the effects of activity and lifestyle on health. Mitchell has authored or co-authored dozens of scientific papers, abstracts and book chapters. He is also a frequent lecturer, nationally and internationally, on the physiology of exercise and the effects of exercise on aging, fitness and overall quality of life. In 2002, Mitchell was appointed by President George W. Bush to the President鈥檚 Council for Physical Fitness and Sports and served until 2009.

As health editor and a weekly columnist for USA Weekend from 1998 to 2010, Mitchell published more than 600 articles. He received the 2006 Clarion Award and the 2008 Walter C. Alvarez Award for Excellence in Medical Communication from the American Medical Writers Association. His writing led to collaborative efforts with other health experts, culminating in the publication of the books Fit to Lead, Move Yourself and Fit to Lead II.

Mitchell is married to Janet Tornelli-Mitchell, M.D. They met while in medical school and practiced together for nearly two decades. As the MINI传媒 System鈥檚 first lady, Tornelli-Mitchell has led a health and wellness initiative offered to MINI传媒 System employees through the Employees Retirement System of Texas benefits program.

The Mitchells have three children: Katherine Schwartz, an assistant district attorney in Dallas; Charlie, a petroleum engineer and MINI传媒 alumnus, who is pursuing a master鈥檚 degree at Harvard University; and Chris, a MINI传媒 and Villanova alumnus, who is pursuing a career in the military. They have three grandchildren, Isabelle Grace, Cooper Benjamin and Luisa Blake.