By Olaoluwapo Onitiri  

Many in the world emigrate from their homes due to hardships caused by wars. This was no different for Ghady Kanaan, who emigrated from Lebanon to the United States. He is graduating this May with a degree in chemistry, has already published research as an undergraduate with Mark Watson, associate professor of chemistry, and is working on another with Folami Ladipo, associate professor of chemistry.  

“I met Ghady as he was enrolled in our CHE 533 Advanced O-Chem laboratory in Spring ’21,” Watson said. “He was one of an outstanding group of students who all stood out for various reasons, and all seemed to seize the opportunity to carry out novel research. Ghady has that really refreshing combination of seriousness and maturity, while also loving the life he’s in and taking full advantage of the

By Jenny Wells-Hosley

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 3, 2022) — Two University of Kentucky faculty members are recipients of The Graduate School’s two distinguished annual awards for exemplary research and outstanding contributions to graduate student mentoring and education.

Susan Gardner, professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the UK College of Arts and Sciences, was presented the 2022 Albert D. and Elizabeth H. Kirwan Memorial Prize. The prize is bestowed each year to a faculty member in recognition of their outstanding contributions to original research or scholarship, with an emphasis on work produced four years prior to the

By Meghan Arrell

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 29, 2022) — This month, the University of Kentucky Lewis Honors College Rising Leaders program completed its first semester of programming. The first cohort of Rising Leaders was announced in January 2022; the program is partially funded by a generous donor.

This group of 14 served as the pilot for the program and has helped to shape the trajectory of the program and chart the themes most important to them.

By Ryan Girves

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 29, 2022) — Eleven University of Kentucky students have been awarded the Still We Rise scholarship, recognizing undergraduate and graduate students who have persisted through obstacles and overcome adversity. Among them are College of Arts & Sciences majors Dorian Record and Kasey Dickerson.

Founded in 2018 by UK student Kennedy Guess, the Still We Rise program, whose names sake pays homage to Maya Angelou’s anthem, "And Still I Rise," provides students with a forum to share their stories and awards students with a scholarship/stipend. 

“During my time in undergrad, I struggled with mental health issues, as well as being sexually assaulted,” Guess said. “Many remain silent on these struggles. I realized my story

By Danielle Donham

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 29, 2022) — University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto has selected four student representatives to speak at the UK Commencement Ceremonies May 6-7, at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Each speaker will address her or his respective ceremony in person. The speakers are:

Amy Luu Ngo

Ngo, of Bowling Green, Kentucky, will address her classmates as the student speaker for the 9 a.m. Saturday, May 7 ceremony. Ngo is earning a bachelor's degree in biology from the UK College of Arts and Sciences and a minor in health advocacy and a 

By Richard LeComte 

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Dorothy Barr-Moore loves school. Seriously. She loves it so much that after years of working on her grandparents’ farm, raising four daughters and working as a computer programmer and part-time minister for several organizations, she chose the era of the COVID pandemic to head back to a place she loved — the University of Kentucky — to, at age 71, get her bachelor’s degree. 

"I really liked the campus’s climate, the advisers — everything at the University,” she said. "It’s really good for anybody that wants to go back to school. Even if I was just leaving high school, this University would be the choice. But it's also a great choice for people 50 or older.” 

Moore, who’s about to take a job with AAA in California near where her youngest daughter lives, has strong ties to UK. One of her daughters, Judge

By Hillary Smith

LEXINGTON, KY. (April 28, 2022) — It started as an idea during the 2021 spring semester. The goal behind the idea being discussed by the student group, Minority Students in Neuroscience, was to bring together all neuroscience majors, faculty and staff for an event celebrating the study they all enjoy. The group’s faculty mentor at the time, Patrick Walker, the first Ruth Jones Lewis Faculty Scholar in Entrepreneurship & Free Enterprise, an endowed position in the Lewis Honors College, helped them develop a vision for a Neuroscience Gala.

“I remember thinking that is a great idea but having no idea how to put it together,” said Alexa Halliburton, MSN president.

Months later, the group’s mentor died unexpectedly.

“We really wanted to honor him by continuing

By Jenny Wells-Hosley and Meg Mills

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 28, 2022) — The University of Kentucky Office of Nationally Competitive Awards has announced that three students and one recent graduate have been offered Fulbright U.S. Student Program scholarships to travel abroad to teach, study or pursue research for the 2022-23 academic year. Among them are two College of Arts & Sciences students. 

Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected based on academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The program operates in more than 140

By Emma Reilly

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 27, 2022) — University of Kentucky Libraries will host a Spring Celebration to honor Tracy Campbell, the 2022 recipient of the UK Libraries Medallion for Intellectual Achievement. The celebration will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 12, in the William T. Young Library on UK’s campus. A reception will follow with cocktails and heavy hors d'oeuvres. This event is free and open to the public, but reservations are requested; individuals can RSVP at bit.ly/UKLSpringCelebration. 

By Meghan Arrell

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 27, 2022) — On this Wildcat Wednesday, the University of Kentucky is celebrating Supriya Challa, who will graduate next week with a degree in psychology from the UK College of Arts and Sciences and Lewis Honors College.

Challa, who is from Okemos, Michigan didn’t follow a typical path to the commencement stage. She had experienced a traumatic childhood and was looking forward to leaving Michigan to make a fresh start at UK. But during her first semester in college, Challa discovered that the source of her childhood trauma had not released its grip on her life. The challenges she was

By Jesi Jones-Bowman

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 22, 2022) — University of Kentucky students, faculty and staff are gearing up for the 16th annual Showcase of Undergraduate Scholars. The event will take place from 1 to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 26, in the Gatton Student Center Grand Ballroom, featuring more than 325 students and 250 presentations representing 64 disciplines and 16 colleges. For the abstract book, go here. 

This year, for the first time in two years, UK's Showcase of Undergraduate Scholars will take place in person. New to this year’s event are two presentation sessions with the oral presentations being livestreamed on Zoom.

Each spring, the Showcase of

Ashley Seifert, associate professor of biology in the University of Kentucky's College of Arts & Sciences, has been researching how African spiny mice have "impressive wound-healing abilities." His work is discussed in the online article "How a mouse could help humans heal better" by Chris Baraniuk. You can read the full article here. 

By Jenny Wells-Hosley

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 26, 2022) — The University of Kentucky Appalachian Center is honoring seven students with its annual research awards.

Four graduate students received the James S. Brown Graduate Student Award for Research on Appalachia, and two graduate students and one undergraduate student received the center's Eller and Billings Student Research Award.

"Every year students from across the university conduct outstanding research projects in the Appalachian region," said Kathryn Engle, director of the Appalachian Center. "The Appalachian Center and Appalachian Studies Program is thrilled to support these students and their summer work." 

The James S. Brown Graduate Student Award for

By Richard LeComte 

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Each year, the University of Kentucky College of Arts & Sciences honors four faculty members with Outstanding Teaching Awards, one each in the divisions of the Humanities, Behavioral & Social Sciences and Natural & Mathematical Sciences and one for lecturers.   

These awards recognize excellence and contribution in all aspects of undergraduate and graduate teaching. All tenured, tenure-track and lecturer faculty with full-time or primary appointments in the College are eligible for these awards, except for those who have won this award during the previous five years. Each A&S Outstanding Teaching Award carries a one-time stipend of $1,500. 

In addition, the College recognizes faculty for excellence in teaching large courses, innovation, mentoring and other categories.  

By Kody Kiser and Jay Blanton

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 25, 2022) — Primary elections in Kentucky and across the country are only weeks away and this fall promises hotly contested midterm contests, with control of the Congress in play for Democrats and Republicans. At the same time, states across the country — including Kentucky — are engaged in redistricting of federal and state legislative districts as required every 10 years following the national census.

Stephen Voss, professor of political science in the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences, has a distinct and deep perspective on all of these issues. Recently, he provided expert testimony as part of litigation over Kentucky’s legislative redistricting. He also has provided his insights on the

By Jennifer Haynes

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 22, 2022) — Eleven university faculty and teaching assistants were recognized by the University of Kentucky with the 2022 Outstanding Teaching Awards on Thursday, April 21, in the J. David Rosenberg College of Law Grand Courtroom. 

This annual award program recognizes faculty and graduate teaching assistants who demonstrate special dedication and outstanding performance in the classroom or laboratory. Recipients were selected via nomination and reviewed by a selection committee based in the UK Provost’s Office for Faculty Advancement and the Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching.

Each winner received an award certificate, a

By Jenny Wells-Hosley

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 21, 2022) — Two University of Kentucky students and one local citizen have received UK’s highest honor for humanitarian efforts — the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award.

Established by the New York Southern Society in 1925 and named for its first president, Algernon Sydney Sullivan, the award recognizes those "who exhibit Sullivan's ideals of heart, mind and conduct as evince a spirit of love for and helpfulness to other men and women." After the society closed, the award has lived on through the Sullivan Foundation and is given at several universities in the South.

At UK, the Sullivan Award is bestowed each year on two graduating seniors and one citizen who has a connection to the

By Kate Maddox

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 20, 2022) — University of Kentucky junior Rayleigh Deaton, a communication and political science major from Charleston, South Carolina, has been awarded an English-Speaking Union (ESU) Scholarship presented by the English-Speaking Union Kentucky Branch. The scholarship will cover Deaton’s expenses for summer study at the University of Oxford, where she will study English literature.

ESU scholarships are awarded for studies in English literature, history and social sciences at the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge or Edinburgh

By Lindsey Piercy

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 20, 2022) — Patricia Ehrkamp, professor and chair of the Department of Geography at the University of Kentucky, is serving as the 2021-22 College of Arts and Sciences’ Distinguished Professor and will deliver the annual Distinguished Professor Lecture on Thursday, April 21.

Throughout her time at UK, Ehrkamp has established herself as a renowned educator, mentor and researcher.

“Receiving this distinguished professorship is a huge honor, and deeply humbling. I am grateful to my talented and dedicated colleagues in the College of Arts &

By Elizabeth Chapin

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 20, 2022) — More than two years into the University of Kentucky’s $87 million HEALing Communities Study (HCS) to address the opioid epidemic in Kentucky, it is possible to see the life-changing impacts it has already made in the eight counties of the study’s first wave.

Launched in 2019, the ambitious four-year study includes a multidisciplinary team of more than 25 researchers spanning seven colleges across UK, and leverages existing resources and initiatives in partnership with communities to implement various strategies to reduce opioid deaths across Kentucky. 

Evidence-based practices implemented by the HCS team in partnership with behavioral-health and criminal justice agencies