Six University of Kentucky professors have recently been named recipients of the UK Alumni Association 2013 Great Teacher Award.

The recipients are:

The recipients will be honored at the UK Alumni Association Great Teacher Award Recognition Dinner on Feb. 5, 2013. They will then be honored on center court of Rupp Arena during the South Carolina vs. Kentucky men’s basketball game later that

by Mike Lynch

The Kentucky Geological Survey (KGS) at the University of Kentucky has chosen a site to drill a 4,800-foot-deep stratigraphic research well in eastern Kentucky. This project is part of the carbon dioxide (CO2) storage research mandated and funded in 2007 by the Kentucky General Assembly in the Energy Independence and Incentives Act, which also funded part of the cost of a research well in Hancock County in 2009. 

KGS has partnered with Hanson Aggregates for access to property at their AA Limestone quarry, in northern Carter County. Hanson Aggregates is a subsidiary of Lehigh Hanson, Inc., which is part of the HeidelbergCement Group, one of the largest building materials manufacturers worldwide.

After a lengthy technical review, the site was chosen based on both its location and geology.

by Whitney Hale

Over the summer a team of faculty and students from University of Kentucky discovered evidence of not just one lost community, but two in northern Italy. Using their archaeological expertise and modern technology, data was collected indicating the existence of a Roman settlement and below that, a possible prehistoric site.

Many years ago, archaeologist and art historian Paolo Visonà, a native of northern Italy and adjunct associate professor of art history in the UK School of Art and Visual Studies at the UK College of Fine Arts, first learned of a possible ancient settlement from a farmer in Valbruna, near the village of Tezze di Arzignano. While

by Carl Nathe

University of Kentucky doctoral candidate and Letcher County native Amanda Fickey is the recipient of a research fellowship from the Central Appalachian Institute in Research and Development (CAIRD).  CAIRD is a nonprofit, public policy organization, which provides long-term educational and economic developmental strategies in order to establish vibrant and sustainable communities that will improve the quality of life for citizens of central Appalachia.  Fickey will serve as a fellow-in-residence for a year-long appointment in 2013.  CAIRD is located in the heart of the Central Appalachian region in Pikeville.

"We are delighted to have a person of Amanda's talent and proven research background helping us in the coming year," said Jason Belcher, CEO of CAIRD.  "Her combination of scholarly achievement and work experience in Appalachia is ideally

by Sarah Geegan

UK Chemistry professor Allan Butterfield was recently announced as the newest Fellow of the Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine (SFRBM ) at the 19th Annual Meeting of SFRBM in San Diego.

Butterfield is the UK Alumni Association Endowed Professor of Biological Chemistry; director of the UK Center of Membrane Sciences; director of Free Radical Biology in the Cancer Shared Resource Facility of the UK Markey Cancer Center; and a faculty member of the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging. His election as SFRBM Fellow was

by Jenny Wells & Danica Kubly

The University of Kentucky Office for Undergraduate Research recognized and awarded 19 students this week with the Oswald Research and Creativity Program awards.  Diane Snow, director of the Office of Undergraduate Research, and Ben Withers, interim associate provost for Undergraduate Education, were on hand to congratulate the winners and distribute the awards. 

Established in 1964 by then-UK President John Oswald, the Oswald Research and Creativity Program encourages research and creative activities by undergraduate students at UK. The objectives of the program are to stimulate creative work by undergraduate students, and to

By Viki Dekle

Geography and compasses go hand in hand. Sometimes a compass can help you with your physical direction, but in Raven Newberry’s case her degree in geography from the University of Kentucky served as a compass to locate her passion for social justice.

It’s a path that has led Raven, a 2011 honor graduate, to currently pursue a masters degree in Educational Policy at Vanderbilt University. The graduate program is prestigious and competitive and Raven attributes her success to a fantastic undergraduate education at UK.

While at UK, Raven was a Gaines Fellow, a member of the Honors Program, and an Ambassador for the College of Arts and Sciences.

She pursued an interdisciplinary tract

by Whitney Hale & Lea Mann

From old time Kentucky tunes to a band’s unique take on art, the next two concerts in the "Appalachia in the Bluegrass" series are sure to cater to a wide audience. The first concert, featuring the Red State Ramblers, will be presented noon Friday, Nov. 30, in the Niles Gallery, located in the University of Kentucky Lucille C. Little Fine Arts Library and Learning Center. The final concert will feature Anna Roberts-Gevalt and

by Sarah Geegan

Two University of Kentucky professors were recently recognized for outstanding contributions to the creation, exposition, advancement, communication and utilization of mathematics. Serge Ochanine and  Zhongwei Shen were named Fellows of the American Mathematical Society (AMS) for 2013, the program's initial year.

The AMS strives to create an enlarged class of mathematicians recognized by their peers as distinguished for their contributions to the profession and to honor excellence. This inaugural class of 1,119 Fellows represents more than 600 institutions.

"The AMS is the world's largest and most influential society dedicated to mathematical

by Sarah Geegan & Lauren Kamas

Esteemed Chinese medicine expert and World Health Organization contributor Li Zhao Guo will present lectures on traditional Chinese medicine or Eastern health practices to the UK and Lexington community this week, as a part of the UK Confucius Institute’s Chinese Medicine Week.

For the past 28 years, Li has been engaged in the study and translation of traditional Chinese medicine. Since 2009, he has worked as a specialist in the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Traditional Medicine Department and for the International Standardization of Traditional Chinese Medicine Terminologies.  Li has also devoted much of his time to the study of traditional Chinese culture, including Yijing Laozi, Zhuangzi and Analects.

Li’s presentation on

This article appears courtesy of the UK Alumni Association.

The education of Renée Saunier Brewer ’03 AG into the sophisticated world of the juice of the grape has taken her all over the globe at a very young age, but each step of the way was paved with more forethought and practicality and less wanderlust than it would first appear. Now settled in Lexington, she is the owner of Wine + Market, a quaint establishment in the downtown area that not only sells wines and other spirits from all over the world, but also creates tasty selections that can be ordered off a café menu that showcases local and international delicacies.

Even choosing where to go for college was a decision made at a very sensible level. “I was born and raised in Lexington and graduated from Paul Laurence Dunbar, class of

by Sarah Geegan & Tess Perica

Three University of Kentucky sociologists have co-authored a study that helps to fill a gap in our understanding of suicide risk among African-American women.

Appearing in the December issue of Social Psychology Quarterly (SPQ), the study, “Too Much of a Good Thing? Psychosocial Resources, Gendered Racism, and Suicidal Ideation among Low Socioeconomic Status African American Women,” examines the relationship between racial and gender discrimination and suicidal ideation, or thinking about and desiring to commit suicide. The co-authors on the study include Assistant Professor Brea L. Perry, Associate Professor Carrie B. Oser, and Ph.D. candidate

by Whitney Hale & Tess Perica

Information in this day and age is rarely scarce, but often not collected and saved properly for future generations. However, one national project under the leadership of oral historian Doug Boyd, director of the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History at University of Kentucky Libraries, hopes to remedy that through the dissemination of best practices via the Oral History in the Digital Age (OHDA).

Funded by the Institute of Museum and Library

by Gail Bennett

WUKY presented a check for $14,000 today to the University of Kentucky Army ROTC for their portion of the proceeds from the  inaugural Kentucky National Guard Bluegrass Mud Run.  More than 700 people participated in this fun and exciting event, which took place on the UK campus Saturday, Sept. 22, 2012. 

WUKY, UK's NPR station, and the ROTC presented the event as a way for participants to have fun and promote a physically fit lifestyle. Capt. Robert Anderson with ROTC and  WUKY Development Director Gail Bennett agreed: "This was a great partnership and we look forward to working together in the future."

UK Army ROTC will use proceeds from the Mud Run to help support the cadets, and WUKY will use their share of the revenue to upgrade the technical needs at the

by Guy Spriggs

On November 17, 2012, UK’s Allan Butterfield was announced as the newest Fellow of the Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine (SFRBM). Butterfield’s election was announced at the 19th Annual Meeting of SFRBM in San Diego.

Butterfield is the UK Alumni Association Endowed Professor of Biological Chemistry, Director of the Center of Membrane Sciences, Director of the Free Radical Biology in Cancer Shared Resource Facility of the Markey Cancer Center and Faculty of the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging. His election as SFRBM Fellow

Many UK students consider internship experience to be critical in their preparation for the professional world. A Lexington-based company, Lexmark Inc., consistently facilitates students from various majors into its internship positions. One student, however, took this longstanding relationship with Lexmark one step farther, or approximately 7,400 miles farther, geographically speaking.

Hannah Simms is a junior at UK, majoring in international studies and political science with a minor in Chinese studies, as well as a member of the UK Honors Program. This

by Gail Hairston

Imagine you are far, far from home, and those around you are terribly excited about a family holiday that focuses on foods you may never have tasted. That’s the way many international students at the University of Kentucky feel about Thanksgiving, a holiday as American as the apple pie finale.

UK Alumni Association doesn’t like anyone to be left out of this special holiday. For seven years, it has celebrated Thanksgiving in a global fashion with students and their guests from every corner of the world.

All multicultural and international students are invited to join the UK Alumni Association at the Student Center Grand Ballroom for the free 7th annual

by Sarah Geegan

"My experience abroad was one of the most amazing, academically enriching and personally rewarding experiences I had in college," recent UK alumna, in political science and international studies, Lauren Cook said. 

As a part of International Education Week, the Office of International Affairs is hosting a panel on post-graduation opportunities abroad for graduates like Cook, who hope to further pursue education abroad experiences, as well as for students who have not previously engaged in education abroad but are interested in post-graduate opportunities. The event will take place from 5-6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 14, in the

Mansoor Sultan is a UK student from Iraq, pursuing a master's degree in electrical engineering. Like many of the other 1,788 international students at UK from more than 117 countries, a daunting challenge for Sultan when he arrived in Lexington was his English proficiency — a challenge which the Center for English as a Second Language (CESL) strives to help students overcome.

Lina Crocker, faculty member in the CESL, contends that face-to-face interaction with American students is one of the best tools for both English-speaking practice and orientation into American culture. She facilitates partnerships with various departments across campus, which give international students like Sultan the opportunity to meet American

by Sarah Geegan

Eleven students from the arid Middle East and North Africa convened in drought-stricken San Angelo, Texas, over the summer — to learn about water.

Through a grant from the State Department's Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, UK Associate Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Alan Fryar and colleagues focused on capacity building in the Middle East and North Africa, with a particular emphasis on hydrology. In collaboration with researchers from the University of Georgia and Western Michigan University, Fryar participated in a program called BOOST: Building Opportunity Out of Science and Technology.

"The State