Body of missing geology professor found in TN lake, cops say. ‘Lost a bright light’
.jpg "The body of 59-year-old Arthur Lee was found in a lake in eastern Tennessee more than three weeks after he was reported missing on Feb. 22, 2022. Lee was a geology professor at Roane State Community College.")
Nearly a month after a 59-year-old college professor disappeared in eastern Tennessee, police pulled a body from the lake near where he was last seen.
Officials confirmed it was the missing man three days later.
The Oak Ridge Police Department identified the remains as Arthur C. Lee on Tuesday, March 22 — four weeks after he was first reported missing, according to local media outlets. Lee was a geology professor at Roane State Community College in Harriman, Tennessee.
“Our hearts are broken over this news,” the college said in a statement to McClatchy News. “Arthur was a truly wonderful person and a beloved friend, colleague, mentor and teacher. We’ve found some comfort during the last few weeks in sharing stories and good memories of Arthur.”
School officials said counseling services were available to the campus.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to Arthur’s family and close friends,” the college said. “We will miss him more than words can say.”
Lee was last seen Feb. 20 and was believed to have been in the area of Melton Lake Drive and Melton Lake Peninsula in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, just outside of Knoxville, according to police. Oak Ridge police, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and the Blount County Sheriff’s Office started searching for him around 11 a.m. on Feb. 22.
The fire department also helped search Melton Hill Lake using a boat.
The lake is part of a reservoir created by Melton Hill Dam with 193 miles of shoreline and 5,470 acres of water surface, according to Visit Knoxville. It’s also home to a nationally-recognized rowing course.
Police continued to follow up on leads regarding Lee’s disappearance as the weeks wore on, to no avail.
Then, around 9 a.m. on Saturday, March 19, officers responded to reports that a body had been found in Melton Hill Lake near Calhoun’s, a lakefront restaurant, the Oak Ridger reported. Police later confirmed it was Lee.
Law enforcement said foul play is not suspected in his death, according to WATE.
Lee, who had a doctorate in geology from the University of Southern California, had worked at Roane State since 2000 and was a tenured professor, according to his LinkedIn page. He also worked as a freelance textbook and website editor.
One-hundred percent of students who rated Lee on RateMyProfessor.com said they would take his class again, calling him “passionate” and “intelligent.”
Several also commented on his sense of humor.
“His jokes are sometimes so bad that you have to laugh,” one student wrote. “He’s a really nice and incredibly smart guy.”
Another former student, Tiffany White, told WBIR he was “more like a friend than a professor because he has such a big heart.”
“He had a very big heart and is just a wonderful guy,” White said, according to the TV station.
In a post on Facebook, a colleague in the philosophy and English department at Roane State said Lee was “an incredible educator, with a real passion for what he did, an amazing researcher, and an all around wonderful person to know.”
“He was one of my first friends when I started out at the college,” Ted Styrk said. “While I am glad that there is at least closure now, which is the best possible outcome given the reality that we now know to be the case, the world lost a bright light, and is a lesser place for it. Rest easy, Arthur.”
This story was originally published March 23, 2022 at 6:28 PM with the headline "Body of missing geology professor found in TN lake, cops say. ‘Lost a bright light’."
