Tickle College of Engineering alumnus Gabriel “Gabe” Bolas II will be the new president and CEO of the Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB), taking over in October 2018 from retiring CEO Mintha Roach.
Bolas earned two degrees at UT—his BS in electrical engineering in 1994 and his MS in engineering and industrial management in 2001.
Bolas joined KUB in 1995 as an engineer and has held his current position of senior vice president and chief engineer since 2017. He has served as manager of engineering systems, environmental programs, and overhead construction, and assistant to the chief operating officer. He is a member and past president and state director of the Tennessee Society of Professional Engineers, receiving the Young Engineer of the Year award in 2001 and the Engineer of the Year award in 2013.
Bolas is a member of the Leadership Knoxville class of 2018 and currently serves on the boards of Habitat for Humanity and the Sertoma Center. He is a founding member of the United Way of Greater Knoxville’s 1922 Society. He has worked closely with various environmental and development groups to create relationships between KUB and the environmental community, as well as attracting new industrial employers to the area. He served on the team that was instrumental in securing a $15 million grant for weatherization of Knoxville’s low-income homes.
Bolas and his wife, Tarah, are parents of three sons, Gabriel III, Zander, and Avery.
KUB is a municipal utility serving Knox County and parts of seven adjacent counties and provides electric, gas, water, and wastewater services to more than 457,000 customers.