January 1, 2005 Dr. Rakes was appointed Provost while retaining his previous title as Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. He is responsible for administration and coordination of academic activities including the Office of the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Dean of Graduate Studies and the five undergraduate colleges which include the Colleges of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, Business and Public Affairs, Education and Behavioral Sciences, Engineering and Natural Sciences, and Humanities and Fine Arts. Dr. Rakes presides over meetings of the Academic Affairs Leadership Council and the Academic Deans Leadership Council. He provides leadership in planning and establishing faculty policies as well as oversight for Center for Global Studies & International Education;Information Technology Services; Extended Campus and Continuing Education; Library Services; Research, Grants, and Contracts; Honors Programs; Student Academic Support Services; University Museum; and Academic Records and Registrar.

Provost Rakes serves as the chief academic officer and plays a prominent role in university planning and assessment. The Provost reports directly to the Chancellor as the second ranking administrative officer and works collaboratively with the Chancellor in developing academic and campus priorities and with the Vice Chancellor for Business Affairs in allocating funds. Dr. Rakes serves as the Chancellor's primary liaison with the academic community and represents the Chancellor in his absence.

Prior to his appointment at The University of Tennessee at Martin, Dr. Rakes served as Interim President and Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at The University of Louisiana at Monroe. Before these appointments Dr. Rakes served as Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies and Research as well as four years as Dean of the College of Education and Human Development on the Monroe campus. During a 23 year interval prior to his duties in Louisiana, Dr. Rakes held appointments as a faculty member for sixteen years, four years as a department chair, and two years as director of research in the College of Education at the The University of Memphis . A native of Virginia, Dr. Rakes taught in the public schools in Johnson City, Tennessee, and Spotsylvania County, Virginia, during the 1960s.

Dr. Rakes holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology with a minor in Elementary Education from Milligan College. His Master of Arts degree in Reading was earned from East Tennessee State University. He earned an Ed.D. from The University of Tennessee at Knoxville in Curriculum and Instruction with collaterals in Educational Psychology and Adult Education.

He is the author or co-author of more than 80 refereed articles and chapters, and he has published 24 books since 1976. Since 1994, Dr. Rakes has published in the areas of faculty collegiality in higher education, managing change in higher education, differentiated evaluation, school improvement planning, and the use of visual strategies to enhance reading comprehension. Since 1972, Dr. Rakes has served as principle investigator or administrator for externally funded grants in excess of $7.2 million.

In November, 2004 Provost Rakes lead a delegation of faculty to Canada to formally initiate agreements with the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi and the University of New Brunswick Saint John . These two new agreements will be added to approximately three dozen different agreements involving student and faculty exchange and study abroad programs with institutions throughout the world. UTM professionals representing The Center for Global Studies and the departments of Accounting, Finance, and Economics, English, Geology, Geography, and Physics, History and Philosophy, Nursing, and Modern Foreign Languages accompanied Dr. Rakes.