LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 5, 2025) —  University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto has selected four graduating students to represent the Class of 2025 as speakers at UK’s May Commencement Ceremonies. The ceremonies take place Friday, May 9, and Saturday, May 10.

The students are Julianna Boulden, Ethan Morgan, Nigel Taylor and Tyler Chapman. 

Julianna Boulden

Boulden, from Richmond, Kentucky, is graduating with a bachelor’s degree in music education from the UK College of Fine Arts. She will deliver the student address at the 9 a.m. Friday, May 9, ceremony.

During her time at UK, Boulden has been an active member of the campus music community, performing with the Wildcat Marching Band and Pep Band (as piccolo section leader), Wind Symphony, Symphony Band and Symphony Orchestra. She also served as a College of

By Jenny Wells-Hosley 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 5, 2025) — Last fall, the University of Kentucky Office of the Provost announced the second cohort of the Institutional Multidisciplinary Paradigm to Accelerate Collaboration and Transformation Awards winners. 

The IMPACT Awards initiative, an internal funding program from the Office of the Provost, launched in 2023 to support innovation and transformation within UK’s college. Fifteen colleges, including UK Libraries and the Graduate School, are working collectively to break new ground on ways to advance Kentucky. Among the

By Jenny Wells-Hosley 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 1, 2025) — Last fall, the University of Kentucky Office of the Provost announced the second cohort of the Institutional Multidisciplinary Paradigm to Accelerate Collaboration and Transformation awards winners. 

The IMPACT Awards initiative, an internal funding program from the Office of the Provost, launched in 2023 to support innovation and transformation within UK’s colleges. Fifteen colleges, including UK Libraries and The Graduate School, are working collectively to break new ground on ways to advance Kentucky. 

One of the  2024-25 IMPACT Award projects is  “Synthetically Tunable Organic Mixed Ionic-Electronic Conductors for Printed Bioelectronics.” Organic mixed

By Harper Propst 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 29, 2025) — As National Internship Awareness Month wraps up, the University of Kentucky Graduate School will feature sociology Ph.D. student Jimmy Robinson. 

Robinson chose UK because he was inspired by his program’s emphasis on rural sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences and strong faculty mentorship. What he didn’t expect was how quickly he’d be able to turn classroom theory into community impact through the Kentucky Graduate Internship Scholarship.

This past summer, Robinson partnered with Fayette Alliance, a nonprofit

By Alicia Gregory 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 29, 2025) — On April 25, the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees approved 18 University Research Professors for the 2025-26 academic year. Established by the Board of Trustees in 1976, the professorships program recognizes excellence across the full spectrum of research at UK.

“It is our privilege each year to recognize distinguished experts who have made significant contributions across the breadth of research fields at the University of Kentucky,” said Ilhem Messaoudi, UK’s acting vice president for research. “Our next

By Lindsey Piercy 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 28, 2025) — From prehistoric footprints in Mammoth Cave to distinct signatures on bourbon barrels, Kentucky’s rich cultural heritage has shaped our past.

And now — thanks to the University of Kentucky’s new EduceLab — it’s helping to shape the future.

Made possible by a $14 million infrastructure grant from the National Science Foundation, EduceLab is the university’s opportunity for next-generation heritage science.

The lab was unveiled

By Francis Von Mann and Avery Schanbacher

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 28, 2025) -- The first stories Goretti Ntuba ever told weren’t written for an audience. They were scribbled in the pages of a schoolgirl’s diary, reflections on home, school and the everyday rhythms of life in Cameroon.

This spring, she’s about to graduate from the University of Kentucky with a degree in English and a minor in studio art with stories still waiting to be told.

Ntuba’s journey, like her writing, is stitched together with the textures of two countries. A Cameroonian American writer and artist, she grew up in Cameroon before moving to the United States for college. She began her academic career at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, where she majored in

By Cassady Brockman 

LEXINGTON, Ky – Andrew Chan has taken the topic of civil rights in the United States and focused his attention on the interaction between two minoritized groups: Black Americans and Asian-Americans. 

“We’re trying to reconceptualize a lot of connections between African Americans and Asian Americans,” said Chan, who’s a history major in the University of Kentucky’s College of Arts and Sciences. 

According to Chan, this newly developed intersectional field “relies on the idea that there’s a lot of overlap between African American History and Asian American history.”  

The intersectionality Chan studies led him to present at the 64th annual meeting of the Southeast Conference of the Association for Asian Studies at UK

By Jennifer T. Allen 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 25, 2025) — The spirit of sustainability was alive and well on campus as part of the University of Kentucky community rolled up their sleeves to plant trees and contribute to a greener future. For the second year in a row, students from Lewis Honors College, along with the UK Grounds arboriculture team in Facilities Management, joined forces to plant trees along Alumni Drive.

The event, open to all UK students and coordinated by Kenton Sena, a Lewis Honors College senior lecturer, was funded by the Student Sustainability Council with matching funds from

By Jennifer Sciantarelli 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 22, 2025) — The University of Kentucky will welcome Academy Award-winning alumnus Paul Wagner on Thursday, April 24, for a screening of his film “Georgia O’Keeffe: the Brightness of Light,” a documentary about American art icon Georgia O’Keeffe. The film stars Claire Danes as the voice of O’Keeffe with narration by Hugh Dancy and features interviews with leading experts on the artist.

“The Brightness of Light” will be screened at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 24, in the Singletary Center for the Arts Recital Hall. Admission is free and open to the public. A talkback with the director and producer will follow.

Wagner earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and linguistics and a Master of

By Francis Von Mann
LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 21, 2025) — As a first-generation college student, Ryson Neeley didn’t know what to expect from a place as big as the University of Kentucky. What he found in the College of Arts and Sciences is a community that believed in him, one that helped him become a future doctor.

That discovery came in an unassuming conference room.

Neeley was set on going to a different college before an Arts and Sciences information session. But after listening to faculty members and a student ambassador share their passion and experience, he changed his mind.

“I remember talking to them and seeing how much they cared about their students and how involved they were,” Neeley said. “That’s why I chose to come here.”

Neeley

By C. Lynn Hiler and Ryan Girves

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 18, 2025) — The University of Kentucky's Nu Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honor Society, commemorated its 100th anniversary on campus at a ceremony March 30. 

Maurice A. Clay Awards

Maurice A. Clay was an educator and professor at UK for more than 60 years. Established more than 30 years ago, the Maurice A. Clay Award honors one outstanding graduating senior from each academic college. Recipients exemplify academic excellence, leadership and dedicated service to their college community.

2025 Maurice A. Clay Award Recipients:

By Tom Musgrave 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 18, 2025) — University of Kentucky students Sophia Zhou and Blake Byer were awarded Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships. Zhou and Byer were among 441 college students across the United States to earn Goldwater Scholarships for the 2025-26 academic year.

The Goldwater Scholarship awards up to $7,500 a year to sophomores or juniors planning to pursue research careers in mathematics, engineering or a natural science, according to information from the UK Office of Nationally Competitive Awards.

Zhou and Byer were selected for Goldwater Scholarships from

By C. Lynn Hiler 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 17, 2025) — The Chellgren Center for Undergraduate Excellence at the University of Kentucky has selected the 2025 Class of Chellgren student fellows and the 2025-26 Chellgren faculty fellows. Dedicated to advancing the University of Kentucky’s commitment to student, teaching and program excellence, the center works toward that mission through several programs.

The Chellgren Student Fellows Program is open to all majors and takes place during the student’s second year at UK. During this time, students receive help understanding the process of research within their discipline, a research mentor to oversee a spring research project and assistance in preparing for the next phase of their career.

By Francis Von Mann

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 15, 2025) – For Kaleb Diaz, college was never a given. But with hard work, financial support, and ambition, he’s charting a path toward a bright future.

Diaz, political science major on a pre-law track, grew up just outside of the state’s capital in Lawrenceburg. He’s the son of an immigrant father who came to the United States chasing the promise of the American dream. 

Diaz learned early from his father that hard work and education were keys to unlocking opportunities.

“My dad made sure I kept all A’s,” Diaz said. “He made it clear that scholarships were my ticket to college.”

Thanks to scholarships and a supportive

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky’s College of Arts and Sciences recognized three alumni and one emeriti faculty Friday, April 11, with membership in its Hall of Fame. The honor recognizes UK Arts and Sciences alumni and faculty who exemplify the foundational importance of an arts and sciences education and who have contributed significantly to their professions, their communities and UK.  

"Our Hall of Fame inductees exemplify the strength and versatility of an arts and sciences education," said Ana Franco-Watkins, Ph.D., dean of the College. "Their enduring commitment to service, scholarship and leadership has enriched their professions and communities in profound ways. We are proud to celebrate their achievements and the

One of the panels at the symposium was “Disaster Perspectives in Appalachia” and featured three CLIMBS participants. The session explored questions about disaster perspectives in Appalachia, sharing and communicating research data and connecting with the community. The panel also included a session to discuss research reciprocity and receive feedback from the Appalachian scholar community.

Kevin Puckett, KY NSF EPSCoR’s communication strategist, moderated the panel and

By Lindsey Piercy

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 9, 2025) — Last fall, the University of Kentucky Office of the Provost announced the second cohort of the Institutional Multidisciplinary Paradigm to Accelerate Collaboration and Transformation Awards winners. 

The IMPACT Awards initiative, an internal funding program from the Office of the Provost, launched in 2023 to support innovation and transformation within UK’s colleges. The awards recognize the groundbreaking work conducted by faculty and staff across campus, and they create opportunities for transdisciplinary collaboration to occur between UK community members to help the

By Ann Blackford 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 9, 2025) —  Brent Cooper, a 1991 graduate of the University of Kentucky, entrepreneur and current president and CEO of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, is dedicated to making his community and the Commonwealth a better place to live, work, play, learn and give back. He also exemplifies the range of careers open to UK College of Arts and Sciences. 

Cooper is the founder and CEO of C-Forward, anIT support business now in its 26th year, with locations in Covington and Lexington. Early in his IT career, he became interested in his local chamber of commerce and began serving as an ambassador by attending events and serving on

The College of Arts and Sciences is proud to recognize the exceptional faculty who have demonstrated excellence in teaching, mentorship, service, and innovation during the 2024–2025 academic year. These annual awards celebrate the individuals whose work enriches our classrooms, research, and broader community.

Emily Shortslef – Department of English
Emily Shortslef is a faculty member in the Department of English, recognized for her outstanding teaching in the humanities. Her work focuses on English literature, and she is celebrated for her dedication to student learning and engagement.

Erin Peters – Department of Chemistry
Erin Peters serves in the Department of Chemistry, where she has been honored for her excellence in teaching within the natural and