Un iversit y of Kent uck y A lu m n i Associat ion
Alumni
â‚…â‚€ Years Apart
Fall 2020
1970, 2020 have similar outcomes for different reasons
Photo: Mark Cornelison, UK Public Relations & Marketing
Contents 12
DIFFERENT SITUATION, SIMILAR OUTCOME
16
A PLAN TO ENSURE CAMPUS IS READY FOR FALL 2020
18 22 24
By Hal Morris UK classes of 1970 and 2020 will forever be connected: both denied a chance to “walk” at their commencements but for different reasons.
By Meg Mills UK Facilities Management created six internal workstreams to make sure every inch of campus was ready for the campus to safely restart.
FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN NURSING GRAD HONORED FOR CAREER, SERVICE By Hilary Brown During her 26-year career in the Navy, Marsha Hughes-Rease became part of the Navy’s diversity program as an advocate for race and gender.
ON THE COVER Composite image (Whitney Stamper) of 1970 (ExploreUK) and 2020 photo (Mark Cornelison)
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GIVING BACK TO PAY IT FORWARD
28
LAZY DAYS
38
ALPACAS COULD BE SECRET WEAPON AGAINST COVID-19
LYNN HARRELSON ON THE KENTUCKY COVID-19 HOTLINE By Hal Morris Cancelling her Egyptian vacation, Lynn Harrelson helped at the Kentucky Poison Control Center COVID-19 Disease Control Hotline answering questions from concerned callers.
BILL GATTON STUDENT CENTER PLANS EXPANSION WITH SIGHTS ON THE FUTURE By Ann Blackford The new student center opened with phenomenal success and due to the popularity of Champions Kitchen, an expansion has been planned.
By Richard LeCompte Bing Zhang, a native of China, has demonstrated his gratitude to UK over the lifetime of his career for the help he received from UK Graduate Studies back in 1989.
Photo: Mark Cornelison Students enjoyed participating in day-to-day outdoor activities on campus.
By Elizabeth Chapin UK College of Medicine researchers are using alpaca antibodies to develop a potential COVID-19 treatment.
Plus... 5 6 8 11 30
From the President Pride in Blue News Research Alumni Association Update
36 Sports 40 Class Notes 52 In Memoriam 54 Creative Juices 56 Quick Take
www. u kal u mni. net
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Special Thanks to
Wildcat Society members!
Thanks to the generosity of over 1,200 Life Members who made contributions totaling about $207,000 to the Wildcat Society, the association is able to keep our alumni family informed and connected, award scholarships to deserving students, spread Wildcat spirit and provide valuable programs and services for alumni and friends.
Find Your Name on the List! Are you a Life Member? The Wildcat Society is a way for Life Members to make an impact each year with a minimum $100 contribution. A list of our most loyal Wildcat Society alumni for the 2019-2020 fiscal year is available at www.ukalumni.net/wildcatsociety.
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS KENTUCKY ALUMNI MAGAZINE Vol. 91 No. 3 Fall 2020 Kentucky Alumni (ISSN 732-6297) is published quarterly by the University of Kentucky Alumni Association, Lexington, Kentucky, for its members. © 2020 University of Kentucky Alumni Association, except where noted. Views and opinions expressed in Kentucky Alumni do not necessarily represent the opinions of its editors, the UK Alumni Association nor the University of Kentucky.
HOW TO REACH US Kentucky Alumni UK Alumni Association King Alumni House Lexington, KY 40506-0119 Telephone: 859-257-8905 800-269-ALUM Fax: 859-323-1063 Email: ukalumni@uky.edu
UPDATE YOUR RECORD UK Alumni Association King Alumni House Lexington, KY 40506-0119 Telephone: 859-257-8800 Fax: 859-323-1063 Email: ukalumni@uky.edu Web: www.ukalumni.net For duplicate mailings, please send both mailing labels to the address above. Member: Council for Advancement and Support of Education
ASSOCIATION STAFF Executive Director: Jill Smith ’05, ’11 Editor/Sr. Associate Director: Meredith Weber Managing Editor: Linda Perry ’84 Marketing/Promotion Specialist: Hal Morris Graphic Designer: Whitney Stamper Brenda Bain ’15: Records Data Entry Nancy Culp: Administrative Services Assistant Caroline Francis ’88, ’93, ’02: Director, Alumni Career Services Jack Gallt ’84: Sr. Associate Director Leslie Hayes: Membership and Marketing Specialist Kathrine Hein ‘19: Programs Assistant Kelly Hinkel ’11 ’18: Marketing & Communications Coordinator Marci Hicks ’87: Director of Philanthropy Albert Kalim ’03 ’16: Webmaster Jesse McInturf ’10: Principal Accountant Mark Pearson: Computer Support Specialist II William Raney ’14: House Support Barbara Royalty-Tatum: Administrative Services Assistant Kathryn Schaffer ’12: Alumni Engagement Coordinator Amanda Schagane ’09 AS, ’10 ED: Associate Director Samantha Seitz: Program Coordinator Hannah Simms ’14, ’17: Alumni Engagement Coordinator Pam Webb: Administrative Services Assistant
Officers Hannah Miner Myers ’93 ED: President Mary L. Shelman ’81 EN: President-elect Antoine Huffman ’05 CI: Treasurer Jill Smith ’05 BE, ’11 AFE: Secretary In-State Representatives Michelle Bishop Allen ’06 ’10 BE Michael W. Anderson ’92 BE Jeffrey L. Ashley ’89 CI Heath F. Bowling ’96 BE Jacob V. Broderick ’05 BE Andrew M. Cecil ’99 AS Kevin L. Collins ’84 EN William “Bill” M. Corum ’64 BE D. Michael Coyle ’62 BE, ’65 LAW Robert “Rob” L. Crady III ’94 BE Bruce E Danhauer ’77 AFE Abra Akers Endsley ’98, ’01 CI James F. Gilles ’10 AFE Austin H. Hays ’03 BE Emily C. Henderson ’01 PHA Vicki S. Hiestand ’93 BE Dr. H. Fred Howard ’79 AS, ’82 DE Dr. Michael H. Huang ’89 AS, ’93 MED Tanya Bauer Jones ’81 BE Shelia M. Key ’91 PHA Janie McKenzie-Wells ’83 AS, ’86 LAW Herbert A. Miller Jr. ’72 AS ’76 LAW Grant T. Mills ’09 AS Sherry R. Moak ’81 BE Dr. W. Mark Myers ’87 DE Jennifer A. Parks ’77 AS Tonya B. Parsons ’91 AS Peggy Barton Queen ’86 BE John D. Ryan ’92 ’95 BE R. Michael Stacy ’95 BE Jonell Tobin ’68 ’95 BE Kendra Lorene Wadsworth ’06 ED Lori E. Wells ’96 BE Amelia Brown Wilson ’03 ’06 AFE, ’11 ED Out of State Representatives Brooke C. Asbell ’86 BE Nicole Ramsey Blackwelder ’87 ’87 PHA Shiela D. Corley ’94 AS ’95 AFE Erin Endersby ’01 EN Dr. Michael L. Hawks ’80 AS, ’85 DE Vincent M. Holloway ’84 EN John T. “Jay Hornback” ’04 EN Dr. Frank Kendrick ’90 ’92 DE Susan L. Liszeski ’84 AFE Abigail O. Payne ’05 CI Ronald “Ronnie” M. Perchik ’82 BE R. Brian Perkins ’97 EN Charles “Chad” D. Polk ’94 DES Robert J. Riddle ’11 AFE Lynn Spadaccini ’80 AFE Mary “Kekee” Szorcsik ’72 BE Scott Wittich ’75 BE Alumni Trustees Dr. Michael A. Christian ’76 AS, ’80 DE Paula L. Pope ’73 ’75 ED Rachel Watts Webb ’05 CI
Dan Gipson ’69 EN Brenda B. Gosney ’70 HS, ’75 ED Cammie DeShields Grant ’77 LCC, ’79 ED John R. Guthrie ’63 CI Ann B. Haney ’71 AS Diane M. Massie ’79 CI Robert E. Miller Susan V. Mustian ’84 BE John C. Nichols II ’53 BE Dr. George A Ochs IV ’74 DE Sandra Bugie Patterson ’68 AS Taunya Phillips ’87 EN, ’04 BE Robert F. Pickard ’57 ’61 EN Paula L. Pope ’73 ’75 ED David B. Ratterman ’68 EN G. David Ravencraft ’59 BE William Schuetze ’72 LAW David L. Shelton ’66 BE J. Fritz Skeen ’72 ’73 BE James. W. Stuckert ’60 EN, ’61 BE Hank B. Thompson Jr. ’71 CI Myra L. Tobin ’62 AFE J. Thomas Tucker ’56 BE Henry R. Wilhoit Jr. ’60 LAW Elaine A. Wilson ’68 SW Richard M. Womack ’53 AFE Leadership Advisory Council College Reps Michelle McDonald ’84 AFE, ’92 ED: Agriculture Winn F. Williams ’71 AS: Arts & Sciences Michael R. Buchanan ’69 ’71 BE: Business & Economics Jeremy L. Jarvi ’02 CI: Communication & Information Dr. J. Clifford Lowdenback ’99 AS, ’03 DE: Dentistry Vacant: Design Cathy Crum Bell ’76 ED: Education Dominique Renee Wright ’08 EN: Engineering Joel W. Lovan ’77 FA: Fine Arts Vacant: Health Sciences Janis E. Clark ’78 GS, ’85 LAW: Law Dr. Debra J. Sowell ’82 MED: Medicine Laura B. Hieronymus ’81 ‘15 NUR, ’83 ED: Nursing Lynn Harrelson ’73 PHA: Pharmacy Keith R. Knapp ’78 AS, ’05 PH: Public Health Vacant: Social Work Appointed Jo Hern Curris ’63 AS, ’75 LAW: Honorary Katie Eiserman ’01 ED: Athletics Thomas W. Harris ’85 AS: University Relations Kelly Sullivan Holland ’93 AS ’98 ED: Honorary Stan R. Key ’72 ED: Honorary Marian Moore Sims ’72 ’76 ED: Honorary Bobby C. Whitaker ’58 CI: Honorary Bilal Shaikh: Student Government Association Vacant: University Senate
Living Past Presidents George L. Atkins Jr. ’63 BE Richard A. Bean ’69 BE Michael A. Burleson ’74 PHA Bruce K. Davis ’71 LAW Scott E. Davis ’71 LAW Marianne Smith Edge ’77 AFE Franklin H. Farris Jr. ’72 BE Dr. Paul E. Fenwick ’52 AFE William G. Francis ’68 AS, ’73 LAW W. P. Friedrich ’71 EN www. u kal u mni. net
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From the President T
Photo: Mark Cornelison, UK Public Relations & Marketing
his year, the University of Kentucky will embark on a new beginning for this institution — one from which we will not retreat ever again. It not only focuses on the coronavirus and our response, but also on the other historic challenge confronting us — the pain and stain of systemic racism that has prompted demonstrations across our country. Make no mistake, a “new normal” is not what we seek. At this very moment, history is asking us: Where do you stand? And, when we look back on this moment, we will ask ourselves: Did we care? It’s against an imperfect backdrop that we have decided to move forward. Members of our community are underway with our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Implementation Plan that includes the work of individuals of all backgrounds, ideas and beliefs at the university. It’s a comprehensive effort and commitment to action, designed to accelerate progress at UK for Black members of our community and for diversity across our campus. It reminds me of a simple truth I’ve carried with me during these tumultuous times — what unites us is stronger than what divides us. I see that in many ways across our campus: • Faculty and staff members have connected with our students — becoming, in many ways, closer, even as we are physically distant. • Students have connected with each other to remind us all that we are a family. • The International Center has connected with our students across the world to support their evolving needs. • Researchers have connected with communities to provide life-changing, evidence-based solutions. • Health care providers have connected with patients to provide life-saving interventions. These same actions of support and connection are needed in our Black and other historically marginalized communities.
It’s why — using a similar model as we did in establishing our fall restart process — we asked our community to nominate themselves or other individuals to participate in our DEI efforts. As a result, we received nearly 800 nominations for almost 600 individuals from across the entire enterprise. Thus far, our actions have included recognizing Juneteenth as an official university holiday beginning next year, in addition to creating a research alliance — as UK did in response to the coronavirus — to study and develop strategies around the reduction of social and racial injustice and health disparities. These are just a few examples of many initiatives, ideas and projects that will come to fruition as we thoughtfully renew our commitment to dismantling racism at this university. I see this same commitment and connection between our alumni and students, as well. When the university was transitioned online in the spring for the health and safety of its community, many of our alumni stepped forward to establish the Basic Needs and Persistence Fund, which provided assistance to students who were financially impacted by COVID-19. And, when the university made the difficult decision to postpone May Commencement, our Class of 1970 provided hope and connection to our Class of 2020, which, for many students, was a time to celebrate an achievement unlike any other in their lifetimes. We are stronger together. Sincerely,
Eli Capilouto President
The University of Kentucky has created the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Implementation Plan that includes the work of individuals of all backgrounds, ideas and beliefs at the university.
www. u kal u mni. net
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Pride in Blue G
Hannah Miner Myers
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reetings, Wildcats! I am proud to bring you the fall issue of Kentucky Alumni magazine, the first as your 2020-2021 UK Alumni Association president. This is not a time for us to step back, but a time for us to step up and share with others about the greatness of the University of Kentucky. I look forward to working with our outstanding staff and dedicated alumni as we move forward through these uncertain times. This is a time of change within the association and a period of adjustment at the University of Kentucky as we continue to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic. Things will look different on campus this year, but the work of our staff at the UK Alumni Association continues, utilizing both work-from-home options and an on-campus presence at the King Alumni House. I am pleased that the association has found new ways to serve you as we deal with an ever-changing worldwide situation. We’ve created more virtual offerings from Alumni Career Services, now offer two UK alumni book clubs with online discussion forums, and initiated a series of informative online programs entitled “Great Teachers on Great Challenges,” to name several. This new fiscal year marks another new beginning for the UK Alumni Association. On July 1, we began a new Board Governance Model. As part of the 2015-2020 strategic plan, the association’s leadership examined the current structure and considered a more robust governance structure for a 21st century alumni association. This resulted in the UK Alumni Association adding the Leadership Advisory Council as a new avenue to engage alumni. We look forward to working with both our previously engaged volunteers and our new volunteers in this innovative model to move the association in a positive direction in the coming years. Speaking of changes, a year ago in July 2019, we began our new membership model. Under this structure, we continue to honor and serve our current One and Three-year Members. But now, a UK Alumni Association Member is defined as anyone who has completed at least 12
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
credit hours at UK. An individual who gives $75 or more ($25 or more for students and recent graduates) to any UK fund is considered an Active Member and receives an enhanced level of Perks & Exclusives, such as the print version of the magazine. Of course, we still have our loyal Life Members who enjoy the highest tier of benefits. The goal of the new membership model is to enable the UK Alumni Association to be more inclusive and keep more alumni and friends than ever connected to the University of Kentucky. It’s working! In the first year, we have seen a 45 percent increase in the number of Life and Active Members we serve and are pleased to offer a basic tier of benefits to all UK alumni. Hopefully, with continued programming innovations to serve our members, that number will increase in our 2020-2021 fiscal year. Since the coronavirus pandemic began, the world as we know it changed dramatically. Those changes continue today and will modify how we serve you. We thank you for your loyalty and support of the University of Kentucky. Homecoming and reunions will look vastly different than they have in previous years. Details about Homecoming and Reunions are on Page 15 in this issue. As always, these events are subject to change, and we appreciate your patience and understanding. But despite the challenges the world faces, never forget that the University of Kentucky and the UK Alumni Association are here for you. Our loyal members are the reason we exist, and we continue to do our best and roll with the punches to keep you informed and connected to your alma mater. Go Cats!
Hannah Miner Myers ’94 ED UK Alumni Association President
74 YEARS OF SERVING KENTUCKY.
We’re here for you. For the latest information on your options for banking services and resources, visit us at centralbank.com or give us a call at 859-253-6222.
Member FDIC
News Photo: Mark Cornelison, UK Public Relations & Marketing
OKESON NAMED DEAN OF COLLEGE OF DENTISTRY
Professor Jeffrey Okeson, a full-time faculty member at UK for 45 years, has been named dean of the College of Dentistry. The world-renowned educator, researcher and clinician has served as interim dean since September 2019.
As a world-renowned specialist in orofacial pain, Okeson has more than 240 publications in the area of occlusion, temporomandibular joint disorders (TMD) and orofacial pain in various national and international journals, and he has written two textbooks on TMD and orofacial pain, which have been translated into 12 different languages. Okeson was named the International Dentist of the Year by the Academy of Dentistry International in recognition of his worldwide efforts in these fields. He has lectured in every U.S. state and 59 foreign countries. During his tenure at UK, he has received numerous awards. He has been honored with the UK Alumni Association Great Teacher Award, the Provost’s Distinguished Service Professorship and received the first-ever Distinguished Alumni Award from the College of Dentistry. He has been inducted into the UK Alumni Association Hall of Distinguished Alumni and also recognized as the most outstanding professor in the state of Kentucky with the Acorn Award. Okeson is a graduate of the UK College of Dentistry. He completed a general practice residency at the United States Public Health Service in Phoenix, Arizona. ■
The UK HealthCare Kentucky Children’s Hospital (KCH) is ranked nationally in two specialties in the 2020-2021 Best Children’s Hospitals rankings published online by U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in hospital rankings and consumer advice. KCH and Cincinnati Children’s Joint Pediatric Heart Program is ranked 14th in the country in pediatric cardiology and heart surgery. This ranking also includes patients treated through the adult congenital heart program, a partnership with the UK HealthCare Gill Heart and Vascular Institute for adult patients who were born with congenital heart defects. The Joint Pediatric Heart Program is a one program, twosites model that began in 2017 to provide a full spectrum of heart care to families across Kentucky, close to home. KCH, in association with Shriners Hospitals for Children Medical Center — Lexington (SHCMC), is ranked 40th in the country for pediatric orthopaedic care. While they are separate entities, they work closely together to provide seamless pediatric orthopedic care. A staff of board-certified pediatric orthopaedic surgeons and anesthesiologists have cared for children at both institutions for over 35 years.
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K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
Photo: UK HealthCare
KENTUCKY CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL NATIONALLY RANKED
“These rankings reflect the dedication of our physicians, nurses and staff to the children of the Commonwealth,” says Dr. Scottie B. Day, physician in chief at KCH. “Our strong partnerships with Cincinnati Children’s and Shriners allow us to provide the best specialty care possible, close to home.”■
Photo: Pete Comparoni, UK PR & Marketing
THE 90 AWARDED LEED CERTIFICATION The 90, the free-standing dining commons at UK, has been awarded LEED certification for its environmental performance and sustainable design. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, constructed, maintained and operated for improved environmental and human health performance. “The 20+ LEED-certified buildings on our campus highlight our work to integrate energy efficiency, environmental stewardship and the health of our community in our work with campus facilities. These are priorities that we focus on in the construction, renovation, operation and maintenance of all campus buildings and grounds,” says Mary Vosevich, UK’s vice president and chief facilities officer. The 90 opened in 2015 after a record 16 months from the start of design through construction. The $40 million facility covers 82,000 square feet and is located at the intersection of Hilltop and Woodland Avenues. The facility features a large, residential dining room with a wide variety of all-you-care-to-eat food stations including
5 UK STUDENTS, ALUMS AWARDED FULBRIGHTS Photo: Submitted
PAULA POPE APPOINTED TO UK BOARD OF TRUSTEES
vegetarian, vegan and allergy-free options. A variety of popular retail venues with outdoor seating face Hilltop Avenue. Upstairs, state-of-the-art, technology-rich classrooms and meeting spaces add to the academic amenities available in this area of campus. The 90 earned LEED certification for implementing a wide variety of strategies and solutions aimed at achieving high performance. As a result, it consumes 26 percent less energy than other buildings of its type. The building’s HVAC system even monitors carbon monoxide levels and automatically introduces additional fresh air when needed to keep athletes healthier and more alert. The building has been carefully designed for optimum siting, shade and views for enhanced performance. ■
Gov. Andy Beshear appointed Paula Pope to the UK Board of Trustees representing UK alumni. She replaced Cammie Grant whose term expired June 30. Pope’s term runs through June 30, 2026. She joins two alumni-elected trustees: Dr. Michael A. Christian and Rachel Watts Webb. An alumna of the UK College of Education, Pope earned her bachelor’s in education and master’s in higher education. She was a teacher in the Fayette County Public Schools and served as an assistant to Lexington’s mayor and assistant director of the Greater Lexington Chamber of Commerce before joining her alma mater as a fundraiser in 1983. She worked first for UK Libraries, where she played an integral role in the William T. Young Library fundraising campaign, as well as co-chairing the university’s United Way campaign. Pope then moved to the Office of Philanthropy in 2000 where she oversaw the UK Fellows Society, the campaign to restore the historic Main Building, UK Women & Philanthropy, and she co-chaired the university’s 2015 Sesquicentennial Celebration, among other responsibilities. She retired from UK in 2018. She is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association and in 1999 received a Distinguished Service Award from the association. ■
The UK Office of Nationally Competitive Awards announced that five recent UK graduates and alumni have been offered Fulbright U.S. Student Program scholarships. The UK recipients are among approximately 2,100 U.S. students who plan to travel abroad for the 2020-2021 academic year. 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 160 countries. The UK students and alumna awarded Fulbright grants are Evan Lenzen of Woodstock, Illinois, a 2020 psychology graduate who will teach in Ukraine; Anthony Trufanov of Hawthorn Woods, Illinois, a 2020 political science and modern and classical languages, literatures and cultures/Russian studies graduate who will serve as a debate coach/trainer in Taiwan; and Shelley Zhou ’16 ’19 AS of Louisville will expand her graduate research on the history of illustrated children’s stories in China. In addition, two alumni received Fulbright honors. Jakob Burnham ’16 AS, a native of Elizabethtown, is a history doctoral student at Georgetown University and was awarded the 2020 Fulbright-Nehru Open Study/Research Award from India. David Wakaba ’18 AS, a native of Louisville, applied for his Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship with the assistance of the UK Office of Nationally Competitive Awards. He will teach in South Korea. In addition to the four UK Fulbright recipients, Lauren Jacobson, a native of Paris, Kentucky, was named an alternate for a Fulbright/America for Bulgaria Foundation English Teaching Assistant Award. UK had 10 semifinalists for 2020-2021 Fulbrights. ■ www. u kal u mni. net
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The UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment has a tradition of a strong, nationally recognized chapter of Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences (UK MANRRS). That tradition continues with UK MANRRS member Jahqethea Johnson stepping up to the national stage as the next undergraduate student vice president for Region III. “I feel great about being elected to represent Region III,” she says. “This officer year has started with many adversities given the pandemic, but it’s given our executive team the opportunity to strategize and challenge ourselves to make sure we live up to promoting and supporting the advancement of our members in the agriculture industry.” MANRRS focuses on developing future leaders in the agricultural sector through training and providing employers with a highly skilled, diverse workforce that includes individuals from traditionally underrepresented and underserved groups. Johnson will work with the undergraduate student president and the president-elect to set agendas focused upon key strategic matters and to lead in developing new collegiate chapters and initiatives to keep undergraduate members engaged. Additionally, she will help develop
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Photo: Submitted
UK STUDENT ELECTED TO NATIONAL MANRRS OFFICER TEAM
relationships with MANRRS national sponsors and help organize social functions to maintain visibility on local chapter campuses. Johnson, who is studying agricultural economics, looks forward to working with the officer team to bridge the gap between MANRRS chapters and creating opportunities to partner with various companies in the agricultural industry throughout the year. ■
ALPHA LAMBDA DELTA INDUCTS 122 NEW MEMBERS
NSF AWARDS $1M FOR UNDERREPRESENTED GRADUATE STUDENTS IN STEM
The UK chapter of Alpha Lambda Delta National Honor Society inducted 122 new members during the spring semester, although the actual ceremony was canceled due to the pandemic. Celebrating academic excellence among firstyear students, Alpha Lambda Delta was revived on UK’s campus in 2019 after being dormant for several years. There are more than 280 chapters of Alpha Lambda Delta nationally, and the society has initiated more than 1 million students. The 2019-2020 executive board includes Hannah Cleary, president; Taylor Bayes, vice president; Ellie Kinnicutt, secretary; Sarah Bombrys, treasurer; Aliza Brown, social media coordinator/ webmaster; and Sidney Bibbs, historian. “I wholeheartedly believe that becoming president of Alpha Lambda Delta has been the best decision I have made at the University of Kentucky,” Cleary says. “The position has challenged me to become a genuine leader, and I am humbled to have had the opportunity to step into such a role for such an esteemed organization.” ■
The Kentucky-West Virginia Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (KY-WV LSAMP), spearheaded by UK, has been awarded over $1 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support UK graduate students pursuing degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The grant will fund a Bridge to the Doctorate (BD) initiative for KY-WV LSAMP, a consortium of 10 colleges and universities working together to broaden participation and increase the quality and quantity of underrepresented students in STEM. The new program will support 12 BD fellows from underrepresented populations who are pursuing graduate degrees in STEM disciplines at UK. “Bridge to the Doctorate fellowships are prestigious awards granted to select institutions,” says Fara Williams, director of KY-WV LSAMP. “This is a great opportunity for KY-WV LSAMP and the University of Kentucky to significantly impact the recruitment and retention of students from underrepresented populations in STEM graduate programs.” Each fellow will receive a $32,000 per year stipend, as well as support for cost of education for two years through the grant. Fellows will receive coaching, academic and community support, professional development, and access to opportunities for research, writing and presentation. Since receiving renewed funding in 2018, KY-WV LSAMP has grown from 280 to 378 student participants, with over 50 percent of its graduating students continuing their education in graduate programs. ■
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
Research STUDYING PANDEMIC’S EFFECT ON LOCAL FOOD SYSTEMS
UK RECEIVES GRANT FROM NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Services Division is partnering with UK, Colorado State University and Penn State University on a $1 million cooperative research agreement to conduct a national study on the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on local food systems. Co-principal investigators Lilian Brislen and Tim Woods of the UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment are partnering with the USDA to lead the team of researchers. Also included in the study are 16 trade association partner organizations from around the country that represent various sectors of the food industry. The study seeks to answer how sectors of local and regional food systems are responding to COVID-19, what successful adaptations have been implemented, what obstacles the various arms of local food systems have encountered and the economic and value-chain impacts. Until now, a national platform to bring resources together for local and regional food systems stakeholders has been lacking. The yearlong study will create such a platform by fostering cross-sector collaboration, conducting marketplace assessments and capturing production and marketing strategies and innovations. The resulting information will be posted online in the form of webinars, guides, fact sheets, case studies and resources to help producers have a voice in shaping future USDA response programs. ■
The UK College of Medicine scientist Matthew Gentry is one of 20 recipients of a prestigious R35 grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders (NINDS) for his research on energy metabolism in the brain. The $8.8 million grant will fund Gentry’s lab in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry over the next eight years. “This funding will allow us to advance our understanding and translate our work on Lafora disease (LD) to other neurological diseases,” Gentry says. LD is a fatal, neurodegenerative epilepsy. LD patients develop normally until around age 10 when they have an epileptic episode. The episodes increase both quantitatively and qualitatively over the next decade. Horrendous seizures are coupled with very rapid neurodegeneration and culminates with the patients dying at around age 25 in a near vegetative state. LD patients have mutations in one of two genes. These genes both encode for proteins that are integral to sugar storage. These mutations result in sugar aggregates forming in nearly all cells within their bodies and are particularly damaging in the brain. A key aspect in securing this grant is the novel methods that the group developed in collaboration with Ramon Sun’s lab. Sun is a recently hired assistant professor in the College of Medicine Department of Neuroscience. ■
NEW START TRIAL TO ASSESS COVID-19 PREVALENCE The UK College of Medicine and UK HealthCare have launched a new clinical trial designed to assess the prevalence of COVID-19 in central and eastern Kentucky. Known as Serologic Testing to Accelerate Recovery and Transition (START), the study focuses on antibody testing to begin understanding how many people in the region may have already contracted and recovered from COVID-19. The trial is a partnership between the UK College of Medicine, UK HealthCare Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC), the UK Markey Cancer Center, and University Health Service, and is co-led by IPAC Medical Director Dr. Derek Forster and Precision Medicine Clinic Director Jill Kolesar. The test for an active COVID-19 infection is the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) diagnostic test, which involves a nasal or oral swab. The UK study will focus on an antibody blood test, which can identify who has had COVID-19 in the past. Phase one of the study will focus on performing the antibody test on the highest-risk population at UK HealthCare, health care workers who are part of higher-risk areas of the hospital including the medical intensive care unit, emergency department, Division of Infectious Diseases, and UK HealthCare’s COVID-19 drive-thru testing site. ■ W W W.RESEARCH.UK Y.EDU www. u kal u mni. net
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50 Years Apart:
Similar Situation, Similar Outcome By Hal Morris
Photos: ExploreUK
The Class of 2020 shares an interesting connection with the Class of 1970. This year’s Golden Wildcat Reunion Committee shares words of encouragement and welcomes our newest UK graduates to our alumni family.
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K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
Class of 1970 reaches out to Class of 2020
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he UK classes of 1970 and 2020 will forever be connected, both denied a chance to walk across the stage and celebrate their accomplishments at their respective May Commencements. While reasons for the two cancellations varied, it still resulted in the same feeling of sadness. Political and social unrest raged across the United States in 1970, and it finally spilled over into Lexington when the AFROTC building on campus was set on fire. Shortly after, the university cancelled Spring Commencement exercises. The Class of 1970, which will celebrate its Golden Wildcat Reunion during Homecoming this fall, discussed those turbulent times. “The political and social environment at UK in 1970 was anti-Vietnam War, and as a result, an overall attitude of distrust and turmoil was very prevalent,” says Bonnie Mays, a member of the Golden Wildcat Reunion Planning Committee. “On campus was the SDS (Students for a Democratic Society), which was disruptive for most of the ‘mainstream’ students, I believe,” says fellow committee member Mark Lane. Jim Richardson, also on the committee, called the environment in 1970 a “paradox.” “There were many students deeply concerned about the Vietnam War, but the impact on campus was minimal until the Kent State killings and the UK ROTC building was set on fire,” he says. “In addition, the first draft lottery was held on December 1, 1969. Following a basketball game at Memorial Coliseum, I returned to the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity house to be notified that my draft number was 26. At that point, the political environment took on a heightened sense of post-graduation concern. We were kids and suddenly we were confronted with becoming soldiers in a war that didn’t make sense.” The Class of 2020 was caught up in the global coronavirus pandemic, which caused classes to go online before spring
I was in the class of 1970. My parents were on their way, and we whooped it up at the Campbell House. I remember walking the campus with soldiers present. Very somber time. We all watched the draft numbers being called and watched family and friends go off to Vietnam. However, my love for UK has never wavered. We often go back in the fall ... horse races, football games, once in a while a basketball game ...
break. Students never returned to classes in person and Spring Commencement had to be put on hold. Lane says his class was all set to hold graduation when it was cancelled at the last second. “We were informed the week of graduation. We were disappointed, but one of my roommate’s parents were already on the way to Lexington from New York and were extremely disappointed and frustrated,” he says. Richardson says the Class of 2020, while obviously disappointed at not being able to walk at Commencement, should not let that take away from four years of friendships and memories they have made. “Don’t fret over the pomp and circumstance but focus on the relationships you have developed while at UK because that is what will actually stay with you,” he says. “Maintain those connections for they will be much more important over your lifetime than a ceremony. Take your UK experiences with you and make them relevant and intentional.” Lane says he has many great memories of his time on campus. He still keeps in close contact with his UK friends and met his wife on a “blind date.” They will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary this year. The Class of 1970 Golden Wildcat Reunion Committee wrote a letter to the Class of 2020, encouraging UK’s newest graduates and reminding them to think of all the good times they had in their years in Lexington. You can read the letter on the next page. They also want to remind our newest alumni to hold UK near and dear to their heart, stay involved and return to campus often. “Life is about choices. You made a great choice coming to UK,” says Mays, who began teaching in Lexington after graduation and wound up walking during UK’s August 1970 services. “Stay positive and be kind and life will be kind to you.” ■
“ Although the fire was still a fresh memory on campus when I started my junior year in the fall of 1972, thankfully UK had moved on. Events like the UK fire and the deaths at Kent State brought home the divisiveness of the Vietnam war. I have many great memories of campus and my friends.
Rob Cook
Helen Morrison Hylton
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Dear Class of 2020: Congratulations! You are officially a graduate of the University of Kentucky! This year may not have ended the way you envisioned, however, when you look back at your college experiences, we know you will have fond memories of this wonderful university. We are especially sympathetic about what your class is going through because 50 years ago, we, in the Class of 1970, did not have Commencement either. The Vietnam War created high tension and protests appeared all over the nation in response to the Kent State shooting. Events around the world eventually led to protests erupting in Lexington, and the Air Force ROTC building was set on fire several days before our Commencement. We know decisions were made for our safety on campus, much like the decisions made for you this year by UK officials to transition to online classes and postpone the graduation ceremony. We made the best of our situation, celebrated with friends and family, took pictures in our cap and gowns, and made a toast to our future. The Class of 2020 and the Class of 1970 both share the memory of not walking across the stage on our scheduled big day. However, we share much more than that. We, too, stayed up late cramming for tests, eating as much food as we could at K-Lair (far more often than we should have), spent too much money at Two Keys and lost one too many bets at Keeneland. The Class of 1970 camped out for those coveted student section seats at basketball games and watched the great Adolph Rupp coach Dan Issel, Mike Pratt, Mike Casey and many more in Memorial Coliseum. We celebrated the integration of African Americans breaking the color barrier into SEC football with the great Greg Page, Nate Northington, Wilbur Hackett and Houston Hogg leading the charge. The memory of not “walking” for Commencement cannot diminish the many other great memories that the Class of 1970 cherishes. We wish this for you, too. Do not look back and wonder, “What if?” What if we had been able to celebrate another basketball championship? What if we had skipped class on Friday and gone to Keeneland? What if we had our May Commencement and celebrated with those closest to us? We are here to tell you that the many other wonderful memories you have of your UK experiences — new friendships, favorite classes and professors, sorority and fraternity events, UK sports — will remain with you throughout your life. Members of the Class of 1970 received an excellent education from UK and that has allowed us to strive for great accomplishments. The Class of 1970 challenges you with this: Continue to hold the University of Kentucky near and dear to your heart. Continue to support your college, fraternity or sorority, or DanceBlue. Join your local UK Alumni Club. Support whatever cause means the most to you! Return to Lexington and celebrate reunions, Keeneland, and basketball and football games. Most of all, carry the Big Blue Nation with you wherever you go. The time you’ve spent at your alma mater may be short, but the memories you made will last a lifetime! Go Cats! Golden Wildcat Committee Brenda B. Gosney R. Mark Lane Bonnie S. Mays James A. Richardson William A. Smith
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“ My BSEE course work was completed at UK in December 1969 and was looking forward to graduation in May 1970 when it was canceled. I suggest that students scheduled for graduation in 1970 be invited to join the class of 2020 for graduation if that ever happens in the future.
Ralph W. Russell II
I watched it burn. The SDS was rallying the students. I wandered around campus taking it all in. The crowd ended up outside the student union building being patrolled by the guard and police. Weird times for sure.
Michael Gellhaus
FAMILY MEMBERS MISS UK COMMENCEMENT 50 YEARS APART Photo: Submitted
By Hal Morris
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hen Makayla Willhoite left for Sweden during her final semester at UK earlier this year, she had no idea how quickly her world was about to turn upside down. She also never knew her grandfather, Jim McClanahan, went through something similar 50 years ago. Both alums missed out on their graduation ceremonies, but for very different reasons. McClanahan was part of the UK Class of 1970, which saw its commencement cancelled by campus protests resulting in the burning down of the AFROTC Building. Willhoite, a member of the Class of 2020, had only been in Stockholm, Sweden, for two weeks doing her student teaching when the pandemic hit. She never saw the Lexington campus again after the COVID-19 pandemic “shut” UK in March. “She was more upset to miss it than I was,” says McClanahan, who earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from UK. “When I graduated, I was married and working a lot, and it wasn’t a big deal. I had already accepted a position in Texas and was going to work on my master’s degree, so I had a whole lot going on. I let her know even without a ceremony, she was still going to graduate and hopefully work on her master’s.” Willhoite, who earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary education in May, who hopes to get a job teaching this fall, says she had other friends who were studying abroad and had to get back home quickly. They all had to self-quarantine for two weeks upon returning to the United States, so there wasn’t even a real chance to commiserate together. She finished the year helping with online instruction at Glendover Elementary in Lexington. While she was going through this experience, Willhoite found out her grandfather went through a similar experience. McClananhan was married his junior year of college, was working, and did not get caught up in the social and political unrest on campus. But he says you couldn’t avoid seeing it.
Jim McClanahan and his granddaughter, Makayla Willhoite, each missed their UK commencements 50 years apart under different circumstances. “Just going into the engineering building every day — there was a lot of turmoil. You could tell a lot was going on. After they burned the AFROTC building down, it really didn’t surprise me they cancelled graduation,” he says. McClanahan went on to earn a master’s degree in engineering from Texas A&M University and an MBA from Xavier University in Cincinnati. “We actually had services I was able to participate in. In Texas, it was just my wife. But in Cincinnati, wife and mom and dad and friends were there,” he says. McClanahan worked for IBM (later Lexmark) for 26 years before retiring. He was also a magistrate on the Scott County Fiscal Court, worked on the family farm and did some teaching. He later worked in energy management for Scott County Public Schools in Georgetown and eventually began assisting other school districts. He now runs an energy management consulting firm. He had comforting words for his disappointed granddaughter, telling her about his experience not “walking” and helping her realize this was not the worst thing that could happen. “It really helped,” Willhoite says. “I had no idea that he went through the same thing until he started talking to me about it. It’s interesting and kind of crazy because both events fell on years we graduated. It was kind of shocking because I didn’t know that had happened. It’s nice to have that shared experience to compare and hear about.” ■
2020 HOMECOMING & GOLDEN WILDCAT SOCIETY REUNION
OCTOBER 8-11, 2020
AT THE TIME OF MAGAZINE PUBLICATION, THE UK ALUMNI ASSOCIATION AND ITS CAMPUS PARTNERS HAD NOT YET MADE A FINAL DECISION ON THIS YEAR’S HOMECOMING EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES.
FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION VISIT: WWW.UKHOMECOMING.COM www. u kal u mni. net
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A PLAN TO ENSURE CAMPUS IS READY FOR
FALL 2020 By Meg Mills
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long with 18 other workstreams, a facilities workstream with representatives from across the University of Kentucky was created this spring to discuss ideas to prepare the campus to reopen. With those ideas, the UK Facilities Management division created six internal workstreams — space, campus navigation, custodial services, informational signage, building systems and construction — to make sure every inch of campus is ready for the campus restart. “The campus Facilities Workstream along with hundreds of staff from Facilities Management have stepped up to prepare the campus to restart,” says Mary Vosevich, vice president for Facilities Management. “This has been a huge effort, but as can be expected, facilities personnel are up to the challenge and are actively engaged in these preparations. There is no better team I would want to work with on this effort. As President Capilouto has often stated, ‘That is who we are, and that is what we do.’ I’m very proud of our team.” The following is the implementation plan. Space: The Space Workstream has assembled a team of approximately 12 UK Facilities Management staff who are working together to develop solutions for physical distancing challenges in university spaces. The spaces include classrooms, class labs, alternate classrooms, public spaces and college/ department spaces.
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• New layouts for all of the university’s 365 general classrooms have been developed using a 6-foot distancing planning guideline to establish safe distancing. • A list of alternate classrooms has been identified including space in the Gatton Student Center. • Campus public spaces were reviewed and plans for proper physical distancing developed. • Plexiglass shields were placed near podiums in general classrooms. Campus navigation: Individuals from Campus Physical Plant Department Planning, Design and Construction (CPPD PDC), Medical Center Physical Plant Department (MCPPD), Geospatial Information Services (GIS) and others planned and developed implementation schedules to facilitate the reopening of campus by identifying best practices to navigate campus. This includes pedestrian pathways, crosswalks, bicycle/scooter racks and parking, help tents, outdoor gathering areas, campus entry points and primary building entrances. • All areas have a physical distance reminder. • Bus stops have signage indicating safe physical distances. • Patio areas space out moveable seating and place seats per table with signage indicating safe physical distancing. • Green spaces have signage indicating what activities are safe for the open green space based on CDC guidelines.
Custodial Services: In an effort to combat the COVID-19 virus, UK Facilities Management has restructured cleaning protocols to place greater emphasis on public areas and limit cleaning in personal spaces. Cleaning kits for offices and labs will be provided. • The Custodial Services staff will continue serving offices in a limited capacity. The following duties will be performed on an altered schedule: ▪ Vacuuming and floor mopping once a week. ▪ Collecting trash and recyclables that are placed outside of offices, labs and classrooms. ▪ Providing hand sanitizer dispensers at the entrance of every building. • Cleaning and disinfecting of private office and individually assigned workspaces is the responsibility of the employee assigned to the space. General cleaning supplies (cleaning kits) are being provided to the various departments to aid in this process. • In buildings serviced by Facilities Management, staff will clean and disinfect public spaces and common areas, and commonly touched surfaces, including classrooms, primary entrances, hallways and restrooms. These areas are a priority for additional cleaning throughout the day. • Restroom facilities receive a minimum twice daily cleaning and disinfecting.
• Hand sanitizer stations are be placed at primary entrances to all buildings, elevators and classrooms and have hand sanitizer and wipes. Informational signage: Reopening campus to a new reinvented normal involves communication across campus. This includes interior/exterior directional signage, arrows, yard signs, various decals, entry/exit locations and more. Building systems and utilities: Modern buildings use air handling units (AHUs) to bring in fresh air from the outside, condition the air and recirculate the air. To ensure appropriate air quality: • New building schedules are in place to operate systems that ensure appropriate air exchanges and ventilation rates while occupied. • Buildings are purged with three air exchanges each morning before occupancy. • When water systems in a building may not be used for a period of time, water may be stagnant and present some challenges. To ensure appropriate water quality at all times, UK has a water flushing program in restrooms, water refill stations and general building systems. Water bottle refill stations will be available, however, water fountains will be disabled. Construction: UK is committed to actively caring for the safety, health and well-being of everyone entering our campuses, buildings, grounds and off campus property. CDC guidelines must, at a minimum, be followed by every contractor, subcontractor, vendor and site visitor. Work activities within occupied buildings present unique hazards with regard to potential exposures and to that end, Capital Project Management has established protocols for all contractors. ■ For more information, visit www.uky.edu/coronavirus/about/ campus-restart.
A sanitizer station sits at the entrance to a room in the White Hall Classroom Building.
Photo: Mark Cornelison, UK Public Relations & Marketing
• Adirondack chairs and wall seating areas are spaced accordingly. • Designated outdoor locations that have been identified as assignable space are connected to SAP/EMS/Astra for scheduled use. • Building entrances have exterior signage to identify a primary entrance, as well as a hand sanitizer dispensing station and informational signage in the main lobby area. Building circulation plans were developed to limit exposure. • Parking lots and garages have campus guideline signage and hand sanitizer dispensing stations. • Residence hall main lobbies have campus guideline signage, PPE dispensing stations and standard informational signage.
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FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN NURSING GRAD HONORED FOR CAREER, SERVICE By Hilary Brown
Photo: Richie Wireman
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arsha Hughes-Rease didn’t know it at the time, but she was making history. In 1969, Hughes-Rease enrolled in the University of Kentucky College of Nursing, where she was the first AfricanAmerican student. But she didn’t know she was the first. In fact, she didn’t even notice she was the only Black student because she had often been the only Black student in classes when growing up. “My father was in the Army, and I was very much used to being in an environment where I was the only African American, or one of a few,” said Hughes-Rease. “As a matter of fact, it would have been more strange if I had seen more Black students in our class.” Such was the environment of UK at the time. The university was integrated just 20 years earlier with the admission of Lyman T. Johnson. Hughes-Rease recalls seeing very few African-American students on campus; “Nothing like what I see today,” she said. It wasn’t until several years later, when she was applying to graduate school at University of Pennsylvania, did she find out she had been the first. She needed a letter of recommendation, so she asked Juanita Fleming, who, during Hughes-Rease’s time as a student, was the only African-American faculty member in the College of Nursing. “When she wrote the letter, the very first line stated, “Marsha, our first African-American graduate from the College of Nursing,” and then she went on to talk about how wellsuited I would be for the graduate program,” Hughes-Rease recalled. “I really only remembered those first few lines of that letter, because, when I read it, I was just taken back. And I have to admit, I cried. And the reason that I cried was because some things began to really come together. It was kind of like connecting the dots.” Hughes-Rease understood that she had experienced institutional racism and unconscious bias while a student at UK. It was embedded in the university as a whole, not just within the College of Nursing. While she doesn’t recall the nursing curriculum being any harder for her than for her fellow students, she was able to look at certain experiences and situations in a new light. “Once I sat down and I was able to kind of unpack what I had newly learned, and make meaning of my experience a little bit differently, I thought, OK, now this makes sense, as I’m now
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During her 26-year career in the Navy, Marsha HughesRease became part of the Navy’s diversity program as an advocate for race and gender.
recalling different events and reshaping the narrative that I had built around it.” One such instance occurred when Hughes-Rease was a junior and writing patient care plans. One of her patients was an elderly African-American woman who had no teeth and wasn’t eating the hospital food. When Hughes-Rease asked her what she would like to eat instead, the woman requested cornbread and pot liquor — the broth boiled off from collard or mustard greens and a staple food for many African-American families at that time. Hughes-Rease determined her patient would get more nutrients from the pot liquor than from hospital food, so she made a note in her care report recommending that the patient should eat the food her family brought from home. Her faculty supervisor did not agree. “I get my care plan back and there is so much red on this care plan that it looks like it’s bleeding, like it’s hemorrhaging,” recalls Hughes-Rease. “And I am just amazed that someone could put this much criticism on a care plan. But I think that what really stuck out at me the most was the criticism around that particular intervention that I was recommending.” Hughes-Rease voiced her concerns to Fleming, who was teaching at the graduate school level. Unbeknownst to her, Fleming called a faculty meeting to discuss the incident and the bias against Hughes-Rease by the white faculty member. She found out about this meeting years later, and about how Fleming and other members of the faculty were rooting for her to succeed. Looking back on the incident, Hughes-Rease has some advice for that 21-year-old nursing student. “I would say to my younger self, Marsha, this is not the first time that you’ve experienced racism or unconscious bias, and it certainly is not going to be the last time. So you’re going to have to really develop some strategies around resilience, but you’re also going to have to think about how you can work to address some of those social justice issues that, perhaps, you don’t have the power or influence to address now. But you’re being prepared. You’re being prepared for addressing those challenges.” Those challenges weren’t far off. When HughesRease joined the Navy in 1973, there was significant discrimination, institutionalized racism and even race riots on aircraft carriers. She felt as though she jumped “from the skillet to the frying pan” after going from an academic institution to a military one that were both fraught with bias and racism. Unsure whether she could handle such a tense and unfair situation, she called her father. “My father said, you’re going to be one of the people to change it. And I defied him by saying, ‘I don’t intend to be around that long. I’m going to stay my three-year obligation, and then I’ll be out,’” she said. But he was right. Her three-year obligation turned into a 26-year career where she became part of the Navy’s diversity program as an advocate for race and gender. As a senior officer, she was able to eventually influence positive change throughout Navy Medicine as part of the Navy Inspector General who reported to the Secretary of Navy. While in the Navy, Hughes-Rease served in the Navy Nurse Corps and was deployed on the U.S. Naval Ship (USNS) Comfort during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. She was twice awarded the Meritorious Service Medal, the Legion of Merit Medal and Combat Action
Ribbon, among other accolades. It was while she was in the Navy that she found herself in a position of leadership. She was department head for the medicine ward on the USNS Comfort, and she held a number of other leadership positions during her career. “When you join the Navy Nurse Corps, you’re going to be a nurse but the expectation is that you’re also going to be a leader,” said Hughes-Rease. “There’s an expectation that you are able to integrate the two.” As a nursing student, she was beholden to the policies and regulations of her supervisors and the hospital. But she found herself questioning the nature of the policies and where they came from. “The one question that I was always asking, when I was at the unit level, was why are people who are not down here on the floor making decisions about those of us who are down here on the floor?” she asked. “Where is this protocol coming from? Where is this policy coming from? But once I moved into a management role, and I began to be exposed to the decision making, I realized that I wanted to be part of the decision-making process. I needed to see the big picture. And so that’s what led me into leadership.” Hughes-Rease founded Quo Vadis Coaching and Consulting, which works with organizational leaders to create innovative and positive professional work environments. As a consultant, she has worked with over 40 hospitals to attain an excellence designation. As an executive coach, she works with senior leaders and executives on self awareness and self management as well as issues around diversity, inclusion, and belonging. She holds a graduate degree in nursing administration, a graduate degree in organization development, and a graduate certificate in evidence-based coaching. In 2019, she was awarded UK’s Lyman T. Johnson Torch of Excellence Award for her work in diversity leadership. In January 2020, Hughes-Rease was invited to return to campus as part of the celebration of the “Fab Five,” a quintet of African-American nursing alumni who were the first to blaze a trail in their programs. Katherine Detherage and Alalia Mack were the first African Americans to receive their masters in nursing in 1974, Vicki Hines Martin, was the first graduate in the doctoral program in 1994, and Tukea Talbert was the first African-American graduate from the doctor of nursing practice program in 2005. “As dean of the UK College of Nursing working hard to address diversity and build a strong community of belonging, having Marsha speak to our faculty and students was an incredible experience — they were captivated by her inspiring story,” said Dean Janie Heath. “Like Mary Eliza Mahony, the first African-American nurse in 1879, Marsha broke barriers and laid the foundation to make nursing and nursing leadership a more diverse and inclusive field. We are grateful for her contributions and proud of what she has accomplished.” Looking forward to the future of both the College of Nursing and the nursing profession, Hughes-Rease says there is not a final destination in terms of diversity and inclusivity. And that’s not a bad thing. “That means that you’re going to always be on the journey,” said Hughes-Rease. “And so that whole notion of the destination should be the vision. And that vision is going to change. And just as you think that you are that much closer, it changes, because the environment that we are in is constantly changing.” ■
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Traveling Wildcats 2021 Tours*
January · Antarctica Discovery
February · Wolves & Wildlife of Yellowstone March · Japan in Bloom April · Italy & the Adriatic · Panama to Palms May · European Coastal Civilizations · Italy’s Lake District · Gems of the Danube · Africa’s Wildlife: On Safari · Graduation Trip: Classic Europe · Yosemite, Death Valley & the Great Parks of California June · Scottish Isles and Norwegian Fjords · Alaska Glaciers & Blooms · Great Journey Through Europe July · Galapagos Islands – Northern Itinerary · Rhine Highlights · Viking Legends · Circumnavigation of Iceland August · Nordic Magnificence · Majestic Great Lakes · Imperial Splendors of Russia · Northern Gateways September · Cape Cod & the Islands · Flavors of Chianti · Coastal Life – Adriatic and Aegean Odyssey · Enchanting Ireland October · Byzantine Sojourn · Classic Cities of Spain November · Antiquities of the Red Sea and Aegean Sea · Iberian Immersion · Egypt & the Eternal Nile · Holiday Markets Cruise ~ The Festive Rhine River · San Antonio Holiday
*All trips and dates are subject to change.
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Traveling, exploring and adventuring will soon return and the Traveling Wildcats are here for you! For more information and to view details on all trips visit www.ukalumni.net/travel or contact the UK Alumni Association at 859-257-7174.
8/4/2020 2:22:30 PM
Y O U R O F F I C I A L H O M E F O R C O V E R A G E O F Y O U R K E N T U C K Y W I L D C AT S
PRESENTED BY
@ U K _ S P O RT S N E T W O R K
PRESENTED BY
U K S P O RT S N E T W O R K
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@ U K S P O RT S N E T W O R K
Photo: Submitted
UK alumna Lynn Harrelson on the Kentucky COVID-₁₉ Hotline
By Hal Morris
U
niversity of Kentucky faculty, staff, students and alumni have answered the call for help in many ways during the COVID-₁₉ pandemic. That includes alumna Lynn Harrelson who was supposed to be in Egypt when the coronavirus pandemic broke. Instead, she and her husband canceled their trip a week or so before they were to leave in anticipation that things would turn out as they did. She stayed in Kentucky and volunteered to answer the phones at the Kentucky Poison Control Center dedicated to the COVID-₁₉ Disease Control Hotline and answered varied questions about the callers’ concerns in dealing with COVID-₁₉. Harrelson, who earned a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from UK in 1973, is the owner of Senior Pharmacy Solutions, a consulting firm for seniors and others taking multiple medications in Louisville, and greater Kentucky and Indiana. Some of her patients also live outside the states.
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“We help patients use their medicines in better, more optimal ways, so they have fewer side effects, better results but most important, delay the possible need to go to the hospital,” she says. With Kentucky’s college students away on Spring Break — and then later home after on-campus classes were moved to remote learning — Harrelson volunteered to step in and answer questions from callers who could no longer get to their doctors, needed help or just clarification of what they needed to do to protect their health or that of their community. She said many just needed guidance, direction and reassurance. “Having worked in health care for so long, and having helped with other national emergencies, I saw the train wreck that was coming, which is why I wanted to answer the phone calls,” Harrelson says. “I was anxious to help.” The COVID-₁₉ Hotline interfaced within the Kentucky Poison Control Call Center. “Both units were very busy with calls. And like with the Poison Control Call Center, we would get calls from the entire state. People calling in asked all kinds of questions about what to do, how to do it and who to contact,” says Harrelson, a UK Fellow and member of the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors as the College of Pharmacy representative. “The staff supervising and working at the call center also supervised the COVID-₁₉ volunteers and updated the information daily — or more frequently if needed — that the volunteers used as reference to share with those who called the hotline. This information always changed overnight. “We didn’t want people going to the hospital or just showing up at their health care provider’s office. If they sought care and wanted to see their doctor, then they were encouraged to call them with information that their health care provider would
need to review. As volunteers, we coached them about what they needed to consider about their health and share with their health care providers. Many just needed to learn what to do in the early roll out of our state dealing with COVID-₁₉. Many times it was questions about where to go for specific information. It’s nice if I can do something to help calm people, because stress can make them more anxious. Being a calming factor is a great way to serve as a volunteer.” Harrelson usually worked a 3-10 p.m. shift. At 5 p.m. the calls slowed, she says, while Gov. Andy Beshear gave his daily news briefing. “As soon as he got finished, it goes gangbusters. I just kept answering more of the same questions about what to do and how to monitor their health and what to share with health care providers.” she says. “I understand the incoming calls are better now. But we were so busy at first. And I’ve had so much positive feedback. It makes me feel like this was one of the greatest things I’ve done in my life, bringing comfort at a time of uncertainty.” Harrelson says the COVID-₁₉ situation has also allowed pharmacists to expand their role in health care. “I’m really proud of my profession and my state. I’ve been proud of my pharmacy school forever. It was in the top five when I graduated (now ranked No. 6),” she says. “We have pharmacists who are taught to work in very creative ways, and we just haven’t always been utilized as much as we can be to improve the health of the public we serve. This is an opportunity to be able to do different things in different ways and show people that we’re not the traditional pharmacists depicted in TV or in commercials. It has allowed us to spread our wings and be more involved in the health care of the people we serve.” ■
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An additional 34,500 square feet is being added onto the Bill Gatton Student Center for more seating at Champions Kitchen and more space for student services.
EXPANSION IN ALL WAYS
Bill Gatton Student Center Grows with Sights on the Future By Ann Blackford
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hen the new Bill Gatton Student Center on the University of Kentucky campus opened in 2018, the vision was to provide a larger space with modern technology to meet the needs of an ever growing and thriving campus community. Thanks to the philanthropic support of Bill Gatton, UK alumnus, benefactor and former trustee, the vision for a larger, completely renovated center became a reality. The Bill Gatton Student Center opened with phenomenal success, and the entire campus community embraced the new facility and its many offerings. The sleek, state-of-the-art center has been heavily utilized — more so and quicker than anticipated. By 2019, the need for further expansion became apparent, and once again, Bill Gatton answered the call. Currently, the $200,000 million, 378,000-square-foot facility is a mecca for students and others to relax, study, dine, socialize and engage with student organizations. Open from 6 a.m. until midnight seven days a week
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during regular academic terms, the Bill Gatton Student Center offers many of the same programs and services of the original student center but with extensive upgrades. The center is home to an expanded Cats Den; a new larger ballroom; technologically advanced meeting rooms; and a high-tech, state-ofthe-art Worsham Cinema, just to name a few. But it was the popularity of the Champions Kitchen dining hall that really spurred the latest need for expansion. Dining options at the Bill Gatton Student Center increased greatly with multiple dining concepts, more food options and health conscious offerings. As undergraduate enrollment numbers grow, so does the need for more dining venues and increased capacity in Champions Kitchen, already extensively used by students, staff and faculty. Scott Henry, executive director of UK Dining Partnership, says during the school year Champions Kitchen serves an average of 4,500 guests per day. Fall
2019 saw 392,043 guests from August until December, a 13 percent increase over the previous fall. “Many students have struggled to find a seat in Champions Kitchen, so students are excited for more space to eat lunch,” says UK Student Body President Courtney Weaver. “Additionally, having more space for students to gather, do homework or relax between classes is always a win.” In October 2019, the UK Board of Trustees approved a proposal for up to $25 million to expand dining and student support space in the Bill Gatton Student Center. The expansion will provide an additional 350 dining seats in Champions Kitchen. An additional 34,500 square feet, roughly the size of a football field, will include a second and third floor, which will be used for student service and support efforts to be determined as plans progress. In February 2020, UK President Eli Capilouto accepted a gift of $13.5 million pledged by the Bill Gatton Foundation to support the expansion of the Bill Gatton
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academic success, belonging, diversity, overall well-being and, of course, the pride that comes with being a Wildcat,” says Grace Johnson, director of the UK Visitor Center. “Instead of sitting in our waiting room prior to a student’s visit starting, we often encourage students and guests to wander our home base — the Gatton Student Center. The student center can reinforce all that we try to convey during a prospective student’s two-hour visit in just one five-minute loop around the building. Students huddled together drinking Starbucks on the social staircase, entering and exiting spaces like the MLK Center, the Student Philanthropy Office, the Dinkle-Mas Suite for LGBTQ* Resources, eating together at Champions Kitchen, buying new gear at the UK Bookstore for our next home game or enjoying each other’s company in the courtyard — all help us tell the story of being a Wildcat. The Gatton Student Center allows prospective students to picture themselves as a part of our community in a way in which words may not even be necessary.” If anyone doubts the popularity of the center, Interim Executive Director Jim Wims has the numbers to prove it. He says the previous student center averaged just over 1 million people a year using the building. Since moving into the new facility, that number has roughly doubled. “When I think of the Gatton Student Center as the ‘living room’ of campus, I am reminded that this is not just a facility, but rather, it is a destination — a place where the entire university community can come together to enjoy a meal, take in a movie, engage in physical fitness activities, conduct business, meet new friends or just relax near the fireplace,” Wims says. “What it says to me is, ‘welcome home.” The projected completion date of the latest expansion is July 31, 2021. ■ Bill Gatton (center) joined UK President Eli Capilouto (right) and Vice President for Philanthropy and Alumni Engagement Mike Richey at the grand opening of the Bill Gatton Student Center on Aug. 31, 2018.
Photos: Pete Comparoni, UK Public Relations & Marketing
Student Center. Partial funding will also be provided by UK dining partner Aramark. “I am deeply grateful and touched by Bill Gatton’s generosity that has and will continue to have a direct, tangible impact on our students for generations to come,” Capilouto said. “Through this commitment and decades of giving to his alma mater, he is building upon an incredible legacy that is shaping our journey as the University of, for and with Kentucky.” “UK Dining is strongly aligned with the mission of creating community, while breaking bread together in our residential dining space,” says Vigg Pulkit, resident district manager for UK Dining. “It’s a testament to our program and the love and support we receive from the UK community that we are out of capacity in year two of opening Champions Kitchen. As we continue our quest to be the best in the country, the expansion will provide a comfortable place for our community to gather, eat, rest, play and work.” Ashley Reed, director of the UK Office of University Events, says when decommissioned in May 2015, the previous Student Center was managing nearly 13,000 meetings and events a year. With rising enrollment and an increase in registered student organizations, it was obvious UK required more space and modern technology to accommodate activities such as recruitment, conferences, career fairs, philanthropy and programming that are necessary for the campus community to succeed. “Today, the Gatton Student Center is a state-of-the-art facility pursued by colleges, departments, registered student organizations and the Lexington community,” Reed says. “Since reopening its doors in April 2018, the center has hosted several exciting events — the National Pan-Hellenic Council Step Show, Career Fairs, Underground Formal, Capital Campaign Kick-Off, Multicultural Student Thanksgiving Dinner, Feast on Equality, Esports State Championship Tournament and Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton’s inauguration, to name a few. The Gatton Student Center has re-energized our campus, encouraging creativity among peers and providing spaces for belonging and community building outside of the classroom. With a second ballroom, the Harris Ballroom, coming online in fall 2020, we are excited to see what creative events colleges, departments and students bring to the new venue.” Additionally, Reed says that in 2019, the Bill Gatton Student Center received the Association of College Unions International Facility Design Award, an award that celebrates excellence in the design of student-centered facilities supporting campus community building and student learning. “The exterior view, interior designs, grand social staircase and gathering spaces are undeniably striking. However, the most impressive part of the project was the planning and design process with students, faculty and staff. It is truly a studentcentered facility that was built by and for students,” Reed says. The expansion of the student center will be a strong asset to the UK Visitor Center, as it will continue to attract prospective students to the campus community. “During a 30-minute admission session and 90-minute campus tour through the UK Visitor Center, prospective students are introduced to our campus commitment to
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Statistics Department named for UK alumnus Bing Zhang By Richard LeCompte
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r. Bing Zhang recognizes how profoundly his life was changed by a helping hand at the University of Kentucky, where he earned a doctorate in statistics. Now he’s helping UK students both personally and through a generous gift to his alma mater. “When you help people, you make yourself happier,” he says. The UK Board of Trustees accepted a $6.35 million pledge by Zhang to the university’s Department of Statistics. UK President Eli Capilouto also recommended that the board approve naming the department the Dr. Bing Zhang Department of Statistics at the University of Kentucky. The board approved the recommendation in February 2020. “We are thrilled and honored by the generosity of Bing and Rachel Zhang and their desire to give back to the University of Kentucky,” says Mark Kornbluh, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “By any measure, statistics at UK is on the rise. Graduate enrollment, stipends, and grant and research productivity are increasing. With this momentum and a rich, 52-year history, the Department of Statistics is poised to enter the next tier of excellence with Dr. Zhang’s support.” The gift, a culmination of a number of donations he has given to UK and the department over the years, will focus on graduate education — specifically the creation of an endowed chair named for Zhang, travel and research support for graduate students and a visiting professorship, among other initiatives.
followed many other Chinese students in seeking graduate education in the United States. He applied to graduate programs at 10 different universities. None of them — except UK — offered financial aid or the kind of assistantship he needed.
Professor Ensures His Spot To confirm his placement, Zhang called UK collect. “Email did not exist at that time, so phone calls were the most effective way to communicate,” he says. Connie Wood, UK Graduate School’s longtime professor and the department’s director of Graduate Studies, offered help.
Dreaming of such support wouldn’t have been possible decades ago for the young man from rural China. “I was born in the countryside in Jiangsu Province in China,” Zhang says. “My father worked at a shipping company, and my mother worked on our farm. I have an older brother and sister who are currently living in my hometown. They could not go to college because there was no normal college education at that time for 10 years. I was lucky China restarted college education in 1977. “After attending a public boarding high school for two years, I took the National College Entrance Exam and was admitted to the special class for gifted students under 15 years of age at the University of Science and Technology of China. The university is one of the top universities in China.” After graduating from college in China, Zhang
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Photos: Gary Bogdon
Growing Up in the Countryside
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“Dr. Wood told me she had not received my GRE scores, so I told her about them over the phone, and I had asked for the testing center to resend the scores,” says Zhang. “I called 10 days later. Dr. Wood told me that I was accepted with a teaching assistantship, and that the document had been sent to me by express mail. I was excited to hear the news. I applied for a passport and a visa after I received the documents, and I came to Lexington on Sept. 13.” He arrived late, but Wood came through for him again. “I went to Dr. Wood’s office the next day. She was very surprised to see me since school had started two weeks before,” he says. “My TA position had therefore been offered to another student, but I was very fortunate. Dr. Wood got a new TA position for me the next day, so I wasn’t sent back home.”
Making Lifelong Connections While at UK, Zhang met Jinzhong Xu (’95 ’97 ’00 AS). They were graduate students at UK studying statistics, mathematics and computer science. For many years, they enjoyed walking from Shawneetown and Cooperstown to the classrooms on the main campus, sometimes routing through the woods, where the William T. Young Library now resides, to the Margaret I. King Library. Since their college days, their families have remained close, and they have even vacationed together. “We were both from China, and we grew up with the same kind of experiences and interests,” says Xu, now manager of system applications at the American Board of Family Medicine in Lexington. “He is very talented, but very modest. He treats his friends very well.” Xu says Zhang’s upbringing in the Chinese countryside helped to mold his character. “He was nurtured by the simple culture of the country to be diligent and kind,” Xu says. “What Dr. Bing Zhang has done reminds me of a Chinese saying: ‘A drop of water in need shall be returned with a spring indeed.’”
Launching a Career He defended his dissertation on biostatistics and the flow of drugs in the body in December 1993. Zhang then worked for statistical consulting and pharmaceutical companies before striking off on his own, forming multiple companies that help with the strategic planning for drug development, the design of clinical studies and statistical support in analyzing how drugs can save lives and treat diseases. He founded MacroStat Inc. in 2002 and cofounded MacroStat (China) Clinical Research Ltd. in 2005. He is now president of MacroStat. He says he and his company contributed significantly to the health of humans through the analysis of how drugs work — and if they work. “Statistical consulting can provide input to the strategic planning of new drug development, the design of clinical
Dr. Bing Zhang and his wife, Rachel, inside their home in Orlando, Florida. studies and the identification of appropriate data analysis models,” he says. “It’s very challenging to develop a new drug. Most of the new drugs I’ve worked on have failed due to lack of efficacy and concerns over safety.”
Shifting Gears Now with his success, Zhang tries to give something of himself back to the community. “In my free time, I volunteer at the local Chinese school, the undergraduate school alumni association and the neighborhood home owners association,” he says. He also likes to help students on their way up in the field. “I help a lot of students at UK to find a summer internship in clinical trials research,” he says. “I help them revise their CVs and tell them how to prepare for the interview. They need to study before the interview and learn how to answer interview questions.”
Giving Back to Move Forward Over the years, Zhang has supported the department philanthropically, funding faculty positions and graduate students. His gift will have profound effects on the department and its students. “This gift from the Zhang family will provide immediate and long-lasting benefits to our department,” says William Rayens, chairman of the Department of Statistics. “The recruitment of quality graduate students has become a very competitive enterprise. To continue to recruit students of the quality of Dr. Zhang, we need an edge. The Zhang family gift, focused on graduate education, helps provide us that edge.” And UK profoundly appreciates his gift. “A Chinese proverb teaches us that we are able to rest in the shade of trees planted by others a long time ago,” Capilouto said. “Bing Zhang has not only taken that lesson to heart, he has spent a lifetime living it out, for his family and for others who made a difference for him at UK. This gift, and his incredible and gracious sense of generosity, will benefit students and those they teach, treat, help and heal for generations to come.” ■
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LAZY DAYS
Photo: Pete Comparoni, UK Public Relations & Marketing
In August, UK students enjoyed participating in day-to-day activities on campus such as outdoor yoga and a respite in the hammock garden, all the while maintaining social distancing.
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UK ALUMNI ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD RECIPIENTS
MIKE ANDERSON
ELI CAPILOUTO
RUTH DAY
JANE COBB PICKERING
FRITZ SKEEN
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The UK Alumni Association Distinguished Service Awards are presented annually to honor and recognize those who have provided extraordinary service to the university and the association. The 2020 recipients were recognized during the recent online UK Alumni Association Board of Directors Summer Workshop. Mike Anderson resides in Greenville, Indiana, and graduated from UK in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. He is the vice president of operations for Churchill Downs Inc. in Louisville. Anderson is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association and a member of the Wildcat Society. He served two terms as the president of the Greater Louisville UK Alumni Club and previously served as the club’s treasurer and vice president. Dr. Eli Capilouto is in his ninth year as the 12th president of UK. Under his leadership, the $4.4 billion flagship and land-grant research university has gained significant momentum in fulfilling its multi-faceted mission of teaching, research, service and health care. Over the last seven years, the university has completed, initiated or authorized many construction projects including 14 new residence halls, several dining facilities, the construction of the Bill Gatton Student Center, the expansion of the Gatton College of Business and Economics and the renovation of the J. David Rosenberg College of Law, to name a few. He has led a process to enrich UK’s academic experience by increasing institutional investments in student financial aid, developing the Lewis Honors College, expanding Living Learning Communities, and rebuilding academic and community spaces. The university has experienced record retention and graduation rates during his tenure, in addition to unprecedented diversity and overall enrollment, surpassing the 30,000-student threshold for the first time. A native of Montgomery, Alabama, Dr. Capilouto previously served as provost of the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB) and dean of the UAB School of Public Health. He holds several undergraduate and graduate degrees from schools within the University of Alabama system, a doctor of medicine in dentistry from UAB and a doctorate in health policy and management from Harvard University. Ruth Day resides in Jacksonville Beach, Florida, and earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
Alumni Service Awards
UK in 1985. She is chief information officer for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, heading up the Commonwealth Office of Technology, and is a member of the governor’s executive cabinet. She was previously vice president for administrative services at Landstar System Inc. She is a member of the Capital Campaign Committee, was chairwoman of the Great Teacher/ Scholarship Committee, and has served on the Nominating for Board and Club Development committees. She is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association, a UK Fellow, a Wildcat Society member and a member of UK Women & Philanthropy. She was inducted into the Gatton College of Business and Economics Hall of Fame in 2012 and the Gatton Dean’s Advisory Board, Business and Economics Accounting Advisory Board and Women’s Business Leaders-Gatton. Jane Cobb Pickering resides in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and earned a bachelor’s degree in education from UK in 1974. Pickering founded the Chattanooga UK Alumni Club in 1996 and served three terms as the club’s president. She prepares the club newsletter, hosts the club’s annual Kentucky Derby party. She is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association, a member of the Wildcat Society and UK Women & Philanthropy. Pickering has been a member of the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors since 2014, where she has served on the Great Teacher Awards/Scholarship, Diversity and Communications committees, and was the assistant chairwoman for the Club Development committee. She is also a member of the President’s Club. Fritz Skeen resides in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1972 and an MBA in 1973 from UK. He served as president of the UK Alumni Association from 2018-2019 and was treasurer and president-elect of the UK Alumni Association. He and two fellow UK graduates restarted the Jacksonville UK Alumni Club, where he continues to serve on the board. During his 30-year career with IBM Corp., Skeen held a variety of sales, marketing and executive positions, including regional manager in Los Angeles, as well as positions in Westchester County, New York, and greater Chicago. He is a Life Member of the alumni association, a Wildcat Society member, a UK Fellow and plays tuba in the UK Alumni Band. He is a member of Phi Sigma Kappa and immediate past president of Sawgrass Country Club. ■
ERIN CARR LOGAN NAMED YOUNG ALUMNI AWARD RECIPIENT This year’s Joseph T. Burch Young Alumni Award recipient is Erin Carr Logan of Seattle. She earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from UK in 2006 and is a category and program management leader for Amazon Inc. Carr restarted the Pacific Northwest UK Alumni Club and has served as its president since 2015. Under her leadership, the club started a scholarship fund and has expanded alumni activities to western Washington, Oregon and Idaho. As a student, Logan was a Gatton Ambassador and a Top 100 Campus Leader. She also was on the Kappa Kappa Gamma Scholarship Committee and served as a founding member of Student Association of Fundraising Professionals. The Joseph T. Burch Young Alumni Award recipient honors an alumna or alumnus who is a member of the UK Alumni Association, is 35 years of age or younger and has worked on behalf of young people. ■
ERIN CARR LOGAN
UK ALUMNI ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES
New 2020-2021 Officers The UK Alumni Association announced its 2020-2021 board of directors’ officers during its annual Summer Workshop. This year’s officers are Hannah Miner Myers, president; Mary Shelman, president-elect; Antoine Huffman, treasurer; and Jill Smith, secretary. The new slate serves until June 30, 2021.
HANNAH MINER MYERS
MARY L. SHELMAN
Hannah Miner Myers of Madisonville graduated in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in middle school education from the UK College of Education. She is a member of Delta Delta Delta sorority. Myers has a second bachelor’s degree in interior design and a double master’s degree in education and education administration. She served eight years on the City of Madisonville City Council and is serving her second term on the Hopkins County Fiscal Court as a magistrate for District Seven. Mary L. Shelman of Belmont, Massachusetts, received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1981 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1987. She was also vice-chairwoman of Communications, Membership, and Nominating for Board committees. Shelman is an internationally-recognized thought leader on the global ag-tech and agri-food system. She has consulted, taught and presented at conferences in 20 countries. She is past president of the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association and past president of English At Large, an adult literacy organization.
ANTOINE S. HUFFMAN
JILL HOLLOWAY SMITH
Antoine S. Huffman of Prosper, Texas, received his bachelor’s degree in telecommunications in 2005. While at Kentucky, he was a three-year starter for the Wildcats football team, becoming a UK NCAA record holder. In 2005, Huffman became the first African American to be crowned UK Homecoming king. In 2002 to 2005, the Atlanta, Georgia, native was nationally recognized for his community service, academics and athletic achievement. Served two terms as president of the Greater Nashville UK Alumni Club. He is in the medical field as a regional director of sales for the southwest. Jill Holloway Smith of Lexington earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing and management from the UK in 2005 and a master’s degree in career, technical and leadership education from the UK in 2011. She joined the UK Alumni Association in 2006 as a program coordinator and held four other positions at the association before becoming executive director in 2020. She also serves as associate vice president for alumni engagement and secretary of the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors. ■
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Leading
BY EXAMPLE
Please welcome the following “first-timers” who were recently elected to the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors. They are dedicated to helping the association carry out its mission for a term in office through June 30, 2023. James F. Gilles III, Owensboro, received a bachelor’s degree in agriculture economics from the UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment in 2010 and was a member of FarmHouse fraternity and the DanceBlue Chair Committee. He is the owner of Hill View Farms Meats in Owensboro, Kentucky, and is a fifth-generation farmer. He and his family have been operating a 2000+ acre diversified farm in Western Daviess county for decades. Their farm production includes row crops such as corn and soybeans, hay production, air cured burley and dark tobacco, registered Angus beef cattle, pastured chickens and meat sales. He serves on the Agriculture Committee for the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce, Advisory Committee for the Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corp., secretary of the Daviess County Extension Council, president of the Owensboro Regional Farmers’ Market Board, president of the men’s club at St. Mary Magdalene church, member of the Kentucky Beef Council board and secretary of the Daviess County Young Farm Bureau board. He has been involved in numerous leadership programs including the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce Leadership class and a member of the 2018-2020 Kentucky Agriculture Leadership Program class. He is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association and has served on the Young Alumni council since his graduation, a district member on the College of Agriculture, Food and Environment Alumni Board and a member of the Daviess County UK Alumni Club. Dr. Michael L. Hawks, Fulton, earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and a dental degree from the UK College of Dentistry in 1985. He was also a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity. He has been a full-time practicing general dentist for over 35 years, having established Hawks Family Dentistry in 1988, and has advanced education in surgery, endodontics, orthodontics and sedation. He is a member of the American Dental Association, the Academy of General Dentistry, the American Orthodontic Society, Tennessee Dental Association, and the Kentucky Dental Association. Hawks is also past president of the Purchase Dental Society. He has been involved with many local organizations, including the South Fulton Industrial Board, Fulton Bank Advisory Board, Twin Cities Chamber of Commerce, and the First United Methodist Church. He also organizes and coaches youth league
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DR. MICHAEL L. HAWKS
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sports. Hawks is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association and a three-time past president of the Fulton County UK Alumni Club. Under his leadership the club has been successful in providing scholarships to local high school students attending UK. He and his wife, Melanie, have two sons: Corbin ’13 AFE, ’17 DE and Harrison. Vincent M. Holloway, Havre de Grace, Maryland, received a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the UK College of Engineering in 1984. He is also a graduate of Boston University (MS), American University (JD) and Hofstra University (LLM). At UK, he was a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Pershing Rifles Drill Team and the UK Army ROTC program. Holloway is vice president, defense IT services at Tetra Tech. Previously, he was a technology executive at Booz Allen Hamilton and served 21 years as a U.S. Army officer. He is a member of the UK Electrical and Computer Engineering Advisory Board, the Professional Services Council Defense and Intelligence Council, and the Kentucky, District of Columbia, and American Bar Associations. Holloway is also a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association, Kappa Alpha Psi, Armed Forces Communications Electronics Association (AFCEA), and Disabled American Veterans. He is a past board vice chairman of the Ft. Knox chapter of AFCEA and a current member of the Knights of Columbus and American Legion. He is a recipient of the UK Lyman T. Johnson Torch of Excellence Award, member of the Engineering Quadrangle Society and a UK Fellow. He also received numerous awards during his military service. He is married to Charlotte Holloway ’86 NUR, and they have two grown children: Michael and Vanessa ’15 EN. Peggy Barton Queen, Lexington, received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the UK Gatton College of Business and Economics in 1986. While attending UK, she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority and served as chapter president and vice president of pledge education. She was awarded Outstanding Greek Woman of the Year in 1986 and was crowned Queen of the Kentucky Derby in 1985. She has been in the retail industry for 30 years as owner of Peggy’s Gifts & Accessories and opened Little Classics on Clay, The Beaufort Bonnet Co. signature store, last year. Queen’s volunteer experience includes Junior League of Lexington, where she served as treasurer of the JLL Horse Show, and she was a board member of Baby Health Services. She is a UK Alumni Association Life Member and is president of the Fayette County UK Alumni Club. She has two grown daughters: Mary Elizabeth and Meredith. ■
VINCENT M. HOLLOWAY
PEGGY BARTON QUEEN
INTRODUCING OUR NEWEST
UK Alumni Ambassadors The start of a new academic year brings with it a new group of UK Alumni Ambassadors. These UK students, in conjunction with a partnership between the UK Alumni Association and the Office of the President, act as official hosts for the University of Kentucky, serve the campus community, network with alumni and advance the philanthropic dialogue at UK. They are likely to be helping during one of our events, either on campus or virtually. Each student had to meet criteria, such as a GPA of 3.0 or higher, full-time enrollment and the ability to devote time each week to group duties while maintaining high academic achievement. Featured here are a some of our UK Alumni Ambassadors who were available to hop onto an impromptu Zoom social gathering that was held virtually this summer to allow the students to get to know each other. We are pleased to welcome the 2020-2021 UK Alumni Ambassadors!
Row 1 - Kathleen Joseph of Lexington; Matthew Susemichel of Indianapolis, Indiana; Eliot Bradshaw of Midway; Chaney Willett of Fancy Farm Row 2 - Andrew Butkovich of Columbus, Ohio; Tiona Ryan of Cleveland, Ohio; Kamryn Stewart of Lexington; Nicholas Joseph of Lexington Row 3 - Lillian Meekin of Lexington; Carson Pemberton of Hopkinsville; Rachel Wagers of Lexington; Grace McDonald of Somerset Row 4 - Elizabeth Piipponen of Naples, Florida; Kyra Evans-Hughes of Huntington,West Virginia UK Alumni Ambassadors who were not available for this unscheduled meeting but also looking forward to the beginning of
the fall semester activities are: Marissa Armstrong of Naperville, Illinois; Abbey Bruser of Murfreesboro, Tennessee; Kathryn Comer of Louisville; Katelyn Dougherty of Cumming, Georgia; Ava Fugate of Lexington; Matthew Hulette of Georgetown; Laura Kelly of Union; Katie Meek of Indianapolis, Indiana; Charles Robbins III of Hardinsburg; Allison Silvestrini of O’Fallon, Illinois; Tharunika Venkatesan of Lexington; Morgan Wilson of Maryville, Tennessee; and Katherine Yochum of Louisville. ■To learn more about our UK Alumni Ambassadors, visit www.ukalumni.net/alumniambassadors
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A Big Blue Thanks Thank you to all of our new Life Members*! Life Members are among our most loyal alumni and friends. We salute your commitment to strengthening UK’s alumni community and honor your dedication to the university’s past and future.
Fred G. Adkins Nancy L. Adkins Jean Amburgey Gayla Anderson Elizabeth Bailes Jan A. Barnard Randall G. Barnard Hilary M. Baumann Robert Berthold III Judith S. Blakeman Joan B. Blaylock Allison Boever Anthony L. Bower Betsy Brooks Bulleit Thomas E. Bulleit Jr. W. Brian Burchett Kathlyn Bryan Caldwell Sara Campbell William F. Campbell Alexandra Castle Jessika C. Chinn Allison Christian Allison Combs Paul Cosson Sherry L. Cosson Melissa Creel Gabriel Dadi Katie M. Dadi Laura C. Davenport Taylor Marie Davis Karen Delozier Elizabeth C. Dickey
Sean Duffy Vicki F. Dukehart Brent Eldridge Elisabeth T. Evans Andrea Fackler Jason Fackler Arthur W. Francis Caroline Francis Andrea Fristoe Jeff Fristoe Bonnie B. Gardner Cebert Gilbert Karen H. Gilbert Katherine Goetz William Goetz Lynn Gray Phillip N. Gray Seth Elliott Grider Teresa S. Guthrie Joan F. Hamlyn Jon G. Hamlyn Erica G. Harvey Constance D. Haynie John N. Hibbard Vicki S. Hiestand Antonia L. Hinshaw Keith J. Hogan Liesl A. Huckaby Mary Bratton Jeffery Justin Johns Pamela A. Johns Anthony D. Johnson
Michael J. Johnson Ramona L. Johnson Jennifer King Morgan A. King Tracy Kitten Lora McGuire Knight Timothy D. Knittel Kristina Knoll Michael Knoll Phillip Frederick Koehler Danny L. Koon David V. Kramer Alex Kraske D. Steven Lamb Gayle A. Lamb Nicole D. Law Makenna H. Lawson Cynthia Leasor Mary C. Lehman Anne V. Lichtenberg Stuart Lichtenberg John C. Lindley Jr. Kenneth H. List Jasie K. Logsdon Robert R. Long Cathy J. Lust John Lust Kelly D. Lynd Michael M. Lynd Michael J. Magula Belinda M. Marlow Bruce A. Masselink
James J. McCarthy Michele S. Medina Amy Meyer Matthew R. Meyer Brad W. Michels Sylvester D. Miller II Jonathan C. Moore Mary Murray Deborah Newsome Vince Newsome Kathy Jo Noyes Thomas C. Noyes Colleen O’Connor Kyra Michelle Osborne Penny F. Owens Laneora S. Padgett Martin A. Padgett Jeffrey W. Parr Peggy L. Parr Dennis L. Parrish Maria Parrish Betty W. Peterson Danny F. Peterson Tim Potter Anthony T. Powell Derrick K. Ramsey Jessica Lynn Reed Nancy A. Reuter Sean Riddle Brianna Rodberg Susanne C. Roessler Torrey J. Rogers
Julianne Rose Kristi Lynn Rousseau Robert L. Rousseau Eric R. Scherzinger Fred S. Schrils Gordan N. Simic James Stewart Stephanie S. Stewart Deborah Sullivan-Davis Thomas W. Tegtmeier Blake Thompson Sarah Thompson Kurt Van Hauter Jane M. Virag Henry Watson III Susan M. Watson Susan Walander Whitney Troy K. Williams Bradley T. Wilson Kristen A. Wilson Kristen N. Wilson Chad W. Winburn Marc D. Wirtzberger Jan L. Witajewski Jeffrey A. Witajewski Don Witt Robert K. Wood Joshua Wright *New paid-in-full Life Members April 1 – June 30, 2020
You can help make Big Blue Nation stronger than ever! Become a Life Member today! www.ukalumni.net/membership or call 800-269-ALUM (2586) 34
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
ATTENTION
ALL UK ALUMNI The University of Kentucky Alumni Association will launch a UK Alumni Directory project in September 2020. We have partnered with Publishing Concepts Inc. (PCI), a nationally recognized directory firm, to help us reach out to the UK alumni family.
Your participation is vital to the success of this project! You will receive a postcard and email from PCI letting you know how to update and verify your official alumni record (changes to name, address, phone number, etc.). Your prompt response is greatly appreciated and will ensure you keep your UK connection!
Alumni
Directory Project
Learn more at: www.ukalumni.net/alumnidirectoryproject
Want to see your name on these pages? Submit your Class Note today!
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1970, 2020 have similar outcomes for different reasons
ukalumni@uky.edu or www.ukalumni.net/class
Sports Ryan Martin O’Connor, who built the UAB and Ole Miss cheerleading programs into national contenders in recent years, is the new head coach of Kentucky’s cheerleading program. “Ryan is exactly the kind of person we wanted to hire as we sought the next leader of Kentucky cheerleading,” UK Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart said. “She has a proven track record of success, brings incredible energy to her work, and shares our commitment to both integrity and competitive excellence. Not only that, she also has an intimate understanding of the proud tradition of this program and what it means to cheerleaders, this university and the Big Blue Nation. We are excited to help her write the program’s next chapter.” O’Connor comes to UK from Western Kentucky University, where she was the head cheerleading coach and spirit program coordinator. At UK, she will be in charge of the 24-time national champion Wildcats’ coed cheerleading program. “It’s a dream come true to be back home in Lexington to lead the best cheerleading program in the country,” O’Connor said. “I have watched this program my entire life and I can’t wait to experience these traditions again from a new role. I look forward to continuing our success and building on our game-day atmosphere. That’s what our cheerleaders and the best fans in the world deserve.” A native of Lexington, O’Connor was a five-time Kentucky Association of Pep Organization Sponsors state champion and a five-time UCA National High School Cheerleading Champion while cheering for Paul Laurence Dunbar High School. O’Connor was a cheerleader at UK from 2008-2009, then at Alabama from 2009-2012. While with the Crimson Tide, she won the 2011 UCA College National Championship. O’Connor graduated from Alabama in 2012. She was a part of Team USA Coed in 2011 and 2012, winning the ICU gold medals both years. She was also on the Team USA All-Girl squad in 2013, when she and the team won another ICU gold medal.
Photo: Grace Bradley, UK Athletics
RYAN O’CONNOR NAMED NEW UK CHEERLEADING COACH
Ryan Martin O’Connor
While at UAB, O’Connor’s squads produced four top-10 finishes at UCA College Nationals, as well as in group stunt. At Ole Miss, O’Connor’s all-girl squad claimed a Gameday National Championship, in addition to two third-place finishes, a fourth-place result and a seventh-place showing in the D1A Division. In Coed, her Ole Miss squads finished third and fourth in Gameday and seventh in the DIA Division. She also had group stunts teams finish fourth and seventh and partner stunt teams that recorded 10th and 11th-place finishes. O’Connor and her husband, Kyle, have one son, Michael. ■
92 WILDCATS RECEIVE ACADEMIC HONORS A total of 92 Kentucky Wildcat student-athletes earned a place on the 2020 Southeastern Conference Spring Sports Academic Honor Roll. UK had 23 baseball players on the list, the most from any school in the league in that sport. UK had seven athletes from men’s golf, six from women’s golf, 13 softball players, three men’s tennis players, four from women’s tennis, 13 men’s track and field athletes and 21 from women’s track and field. The SEC spring honor roll is based on grades from the 2019 summer, 2019 fall and 2020 spring terms. Any student-athlete who participates in an SEC championship sport or a student-athlete who participates in a sport listed on his/her institution’s NCAA Sports Sponsorship Form is eligible for nomination to the Academic Honor Roll. Among other criteria, students must have a GPA of 3.0 or above for either the preceding academic year (two semesters or three quarters) or have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above at the nominating institution. ■ 36
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KENTUCKY PROUD PARK AWARDED LEED CERTIFICATION Kentucky Proud Park, the home of UK baseball, has been awarded a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for its environmental performance and sustainable design. The LEED rating system, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, constructed, maintained and operated for improved environmental and human health performance. Kentucky Proud Park is the third UK Athletics facility to be certified, joining Kroger Field and the Joe Craft Football Training Facility. Kentucky Proud Park achieved LEED certification for implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions aimed at achieving high performance in sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. Construction was completed on prior to the 2019 season after groundbreaking in 2017. Complete with permanent seating for 2,500, as well as stone terraces, grass berms and a 360-degree concourse that bring its regular-season capacity to approximately 5,000, the park’s team areas give players and coaches everything they need to succeed while creating an ideal place for fans to support them. ■
Her swimming career is over, but her recognition keeps on coming. Asia Seidt, the most decorated student-athlete to ever come out of the University of Kentucky swimming and diving program, has been selected as the league’s nominee for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year honor. Seidt, a Louisville native, graduated in May, earning a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology with summa cum laude honors. She will attend the UK Physical Therapy Graduate Program this fall. Of all swimmers and divers — male or female — who have ever come through the Kentucky swimming and diving program, Seidt holds the most records. She has earned more All-America honors, NCAA Championship podium finishes, SEC Championship medals and All-SEC First Team selections than any UK swimmer or diver, man or woman, that has come before her. “It is difficult to put into words how meaningful this award is to me and my swimming career,” Seidt said. “Since I wasn’t able to finish my championship season, this helps bring a sense of accomplishment, really on behalf of the University of Kentucky and my team. Even though many sports were cut short, it means a lot that the NCAA is continuing with this award and is recognizing the incredible student-athletes in the class of 2020. I am honored to be in the field with the best of the best, and I look forward to the next step in the process.” In her (nearly four) years at Kentucky, she has earned 21 All-America honors, 15 SEC Championship medals, eight NCAA Championship podium finishes, four conference titles, one USA Swimming Summer Nationals gold medal and one World University Games silver medal. Seidt holds five individual school records, was twice named to the USA Swimming National Team, twice qualified for Team USA Olympic Trials, was three times named to the All-SEC First Team, is the 2019 ELITE 90 recipient, 2019 Arthur Ashe Female Sports Scholar of the Year recipient, 2020 SEC H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Photo: UK Athletics
ASIA SEIDT NAMED SEC’S NCAA WOMAN OF THE YEAR NOMINEE
Asia Seidt won four conference titles, one USA Swimming Summer Nationals gold medal and one World University Games silver medal.
recipient and the 2020 CoSIDA At-Large Academic Female Winner of the Year. From a program-record pool of 605 school nominees announced in July, 161 college athletes have been named conference-level nominees for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year honor. The nominees represent student-athletes from 21 different sports spanning all three NCAA divisions. Of those nominated, 59 nominees competed in Division I, 39 in Division II and 63 in Division III. Conferences can recognize two nominees if at least one is a woman of color or international student-athlete. All nominees who compete in a sport not sponsored by their school’s primary conference, as well as associate conference nominees and independent nominees, were placed in a separate pool to be considered by a selection committee. Four nominees from the pool were selected to move forward in the process with the conference nominees. The Woman of the Year Selection Committee, made up of representatives from the NCAA membership, choose the top 30 honorees — 10 from each division — from the conference-level nominees. The Top 30 honorees are announced in September. From there, the selection committee narrows the pool to three finalists from each division. The NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics will select the 2020 Woman of the Year from the nine finalists. The NCAA Woman of the Year program is rooted in Title IX and has recognized graduating female college athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership since its inception in 1991. ■ www. u kal u mni. net
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ALPACAS
COULD BE THE SECRET WEAPON AGAINST COVID-19
UK researchers are using alpaca antibodies to develop a potential COVID-19 treatment. By Elizabeth Chapin
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Photos: Ben Corwin, UK Research Communications
A
lpacas Big Boy, Blue Eyes and Emperor may hold the key to combating COVID-₁₉. Their antibodies could offer a defense against SARSCoV-₂, the virus that causes the disease. University of Kentucky College of Medicine researchers are using the special antibodies made by alpacas, called nanobodies, to help understand the novel coronavirus and potentially develop a treatment that could protect people from being infected. Nanobodies are smaller and more stable types of antibodies taken from the immune systems of camelids — which include camels, llamas and alpacas. Nanobodies could be more effective at fighting the disease because their tiny size gives them the ability to fit into spaces on viral proteins that regular antibodies have a hard time penetrating. “The idea is that nanobodies are small enough to access small pockets on SARS-CoV-₂’s spike proteins, which is the part of the virus that attaches to host cells. A nanobody that could block the binding of the spike protein to its cellular receptor could be an effective treatment for COVID-₁₉,” said Sidney Whiteheart, who is co-leading the study with Lou Hersh, both professors in the Department of Molecular & Cellular Biochemistry. With the help of Big Boy, Blue Eyes and Emperor, Hersh and Whiteheart’s research team is generating nanobodies that can bind to the spike protein and therefore, neutralize the virus. The alpaca trio have been immunized with isolated proteins from SARS-CoV-₂ and then researchers collect samples of their blood containing nanobodies produced by their immune systems. In the lab, the nanobodies are extracted, tested, and reproduced at a larger scale for use in research and for therapeutic development. Virus-binding nanobodies from the alpacas can confer passive immunity in humans and thus help fight a SARSCoV-₂ infection. While passive immunity from a disease is shorter-lived compared to the protection one’s own immune response would provide, it helps protect right away — something that could be valuable as we wait for a vaccine, Hersh said. “Nanobodies have many qualities that make them ideal for therapeutic development, particularly for COVID-₁₉,” said Hersh. “They are small and stable, making them easier to manipulate, and they can be produced more rapidly and in large quantities at a low cost. They are also easily tolerated by the human immune system and could potentially be inhaled for rapid delivery to the lungs.” Given their special properties, nanobodies are not new to the fight against disease, with researchers — including those at UK — investigating their potential against HIV and other viruses for many years. The UK team, including Martin Chow and Craig Vander Kooi along with Hersh and Whiteheart, have shown that the alpacas are producing antibodies against the SARS-CoV-₂ spike protein. They will soon begin testing these nanobodies as therapeutic agents by testing for their ability to prevent SARS-CoV-2 from interacting with its target cells.
DLAR Veterinarian Jeff Smiley, left, and Amelia Hall draw blood samples from an alpaca that contain virus-binding nanobodies that could confer passive immunity in humans and help fight a COVID-19 infection. Big Boy, Blue Eyes and Emperor have contributed to UK’s nanobody research for more than three years. While the three come to UK’s North Farm twice a year to get vaccinated and have blood drawn, they live at River Hill Ranch, an alpaca farm near Richmond. The partnership with UK is a win-win situation, says farm owner Alvina Maynard. The trio are favorites among those visiting Maynard’s farm for alpaca-themed field trips, camps and yoga lessons. And as part of her herd, their fleece is also used to make artisan socks, scarves and sweaters. “They are supporting local business and we are supporting groundbreaking and potentially lifesaving research,” said Maynard. “I’m beyond thrilled that our alpacas can serve this greater purpose.” In the past three years, the alpacas have helped UK researchers generate more than 50 nanobodies to target proteins involved in a variety of human diseases including cancer, diabetes and neurological disorders. The current COVID-₁₉ nanobody research is funded in part by a pilot grant from UK’s COVID-₁₉ Unified Research Experts Alliance and the Center for Clinical and Translational Science. The goal is that data from the project will support more grant funding for additional research. UK researchers also plan to share the purified nanobodies with colleagues pursuing related COVID-₁₉ research. Those nanobodies that bind to the spike protein could also help scientists understand more about the virus itself and how it is structured. This could aid in the development of other novel types of treatments. ■
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KIM BAKER ’92 FA:
Bringing Performing Arts to Kentucky and Beyond By Linda Perry
T
Photo: Jonathan Roberts
hanks to the opportunity she had in high school, Kim Thomas Baker ’92 FA discovered her true career path. “I had participated in opportunities made available to Kentucky students like Kentucky Music Educators All State and All County, but my big, eye-opening experience came when I was in the inaugural class of the Governor’s School for the Arts (GSA) in 1987 in Louisville at Bellarmine College,” she says. The three-week experience brings young people together from all over the state in all different art forms. “It broadened my awareness and understanding of what culture means to the Commonwealth and the opportunities that existed beyond high school and college and how to create a career. It helped give young people a vision for what might be,” Baker says. “It mixed different art forms so that instrumental musicians would play a piece, dancers would create work and visual artists might do multi-media. There was a kind of mash-up. As a young person, you weren’t exposed to all those types of things at that time.” As if her life has come full circle, since 2014 Baker has been the CEO and president of Kentucky Performing Arts (KPA), formerly known as The Kentucky Center, in Louisville. It is the same organization responsible for the administration of the Governor’s School for the Arts — only one of the various offerings KPA houses under its huge umbrella. KPA’s venues are the primary performance spaces for many of Louisville’s performing arts groups, including the Broadway Series, Kentucky Opera, Louisville Ballet, Louisville Orchestra, StageOne Family Theatre, and KPA’s own presentations, which bring in artists from
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across the world in all art forms. Baker says her journey with performing arts began with learning to play the flute as a 4th grader and continuing into college. She chose UK because after her audition she was recruited by the director of the UK Band and received wonderful scholarships with full tuition. Then she was very excited when she learned about the arts administration program in the College of Fine Arts. “It was a new program, and I heard Holly Salisbury, who was director of the Singletary Center for the Arts, talking about her job. I thought it sounded so interesting and I remember my mom leaning over and saying to me, ‘Maybe you can do that one day,’” Baker says. “I felt very fortunate that this program was so close to home.” The late Salisbury was a big influence on Baker. “She was a role model of a strong woman who worked in the arts and led a creative organization — very involved with the state’s cultural health and welfare,” she says. “She took time to mentor and be very authentic. She saw the bigger picture.” When Baker, a member of Kappa Alpha Theta, graduated, her first job actually was at The Kentucky Center in event programming. “I had applied for what I still think is the most exciting job you can have at an arts center — an entry level position in programming bringing in all these wonderful artists, like Ray Charles, and learning about incredible dance companies from around the world, like the Joffrey Ballet.” She continued to broaden her career experiences and eventually also held administrative positions at the Louisville Gardens arena, the Iroquois Amphitheater (outdoor theater) and the newly-renovated Brown Theatre, which was managed by The Kentucky Center. (Now it is owned by the KPA Foundation). That’s how she returned to the KPA in the late 1990s. “All these opportunities taught me more about different types of entertainment, from athletics, to family shows and more mainstream artists,” Baker says. She now has extensive experience in the areas of arts administration and theatre management, communications, programming and development. Her job is multi-faceted and often very external. “I have a lot of relationships that I maintain with folks around the Commonwealth, with board members, donors, and as staff leadership. I work on long-term vision for the organization, certainly, but the day-to-day things are making sure we are moving the ship in the right direction,” she says. A typical day today is very different from precoronavirus days. Bringing music and theater to Kentuckians used to mean families visiting venues as part of a large audience for a special night out. Since COVID-19, KPA pivoted to continue providing Commonwealth citizens — and indeed, people from all over the world — with enriching entertainment, albeit through a different delivery system via Facebook Live
performances. “We’re a nonprofit organization, and we didn’t want the arts to go quiet,” Baker says. “So we connected with artists all over the Commonwealth. We saw this as a unique opportunity to bring the arts to the community, but the artists didn’t have a traditional stage and audience.” KPA partnered with Brown-Forman; the Kentucky Tourism, Arts & Heritage Cabinet; Commonwealth of Kentucky; and Commonwealth Credit Union to help support the artists whose livelihoods was suffering. “It exceeded what we could have imagined. It was so much fun with the number of artists presented and the type of work presented,” she says. “There were people who came to watch from other countries. People watched live and made comments, but people also shared it after the fact,” she says. “We had 112 artists, and we are working to continue this effort, but we will have to find additional funding to do so.” Another pivot for KPA was this year’s Governor’s School for the Arts program. Baker says with COVID-19, the challenge was to keep all the students safe who practiced so many different disciplines, from dancing to creative writing and architecture. “We heard about artists who were teaching digitally, and GSA Director Nick Covault designed and replicated the experience online, including online RA’s for the students. In some ways, it opened opportunities for practicing and successful artists to share what was happening with the students,” Baker says. “I sat in on Zoom workshops and watched students do things like perform as a trio from their individual homes — playing together — it was fantastic. It opens their eyes and broadened their worlds. One student said, ‘It wasn’t what I thought it would be, wasn’t what I had expected, but I am so happy that I had this experience.’” Baker and KPA will continue to look for creative ways to bring the performing arts to Kentuckians. She values her skill working to create a collective vision and moving the organization forward. “I’m a collaborator and a leader who likes to pull ideas together to come up with a vision that is embraced and chart a course to get there. My five-year plan is to make sure that KPA weathers this current storm and comes back even stronger than ever as an enduring organization,” she says. Baker, who received the Brook & Pam Smith Arts Innovation Award in 2019, is able to unwind by traveling and spending time with her family (husband Mark Baker ’90 BE and their three daughters ages 9 to 14 — Georgia Mae, Samantha and Olivia —) during outdoor activities. “One thing that people would be surprised to know about me is that I love to roller blade,” she says. “But I don’t go down the big hills in Cherokee Park anymore.” ■
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Class Notes 1960s
Edward R. Cerny ’69 AS lives in Elgin, South Carolina, and is Dave Ramsey preferred financial coach at Edward Cerny Coaching. He previously was the founder of the Coach’s Corner, a corporate communications company.
1970s Sharon K. Hoke ’71 FA is the interim dean of the DePauw University School of Music in Greencastle, Indiana. She is a professor of music emerita at Gettysburg College and the former director of the school’s Sunderman Conservancy of Music. James K. Phillips ’74 MED lives in Bowling Green and is the chairman of the board of directors for the Monticello Banking Co. and an assistant professor of medicine at the UK College of Medicine-Bowling Green Campus. 42
Photos: ExploreUK
Ralph E. Wesley ’67 AS is an ophthalmologist and the founding director of ophthalmic plastic and reconstructive surgery at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. He was honored by the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery with the annual Ralph E. Wesley MD Leadership Lecture. Wesley earned his medical degree from Vanderbilt University. UK Wildcats football was played at McLean Stadium, center, until the completion of Commonwealth Stadium, now Kroger Stadium, in the 1970s. It was named in 1924 for Price Innis McLean, a student athlete who died as a result of injuries sustained in the Kentucky versus Cincinnati football game on November 6, 1923. The area once pastured UK President James Patterson’s cows and was used for military training during WWI. The location of the first college football game ever played in the South took place in 1880 on its field that would eventually be named Stoll Field. It was dedicated in 1916 at the Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt game and was named in honor of Judge Richard C. Stoll, an alumnus and long-term board of trustees member. If you look closely, you will see the small buildings on the corner of Rose Street and Euclid Avenue where the King Alumni House is now located.
Van Wylie ’75 AFE is director of the Small Business Development Center-Dyersburg in Dyersburg, Tennessee. He was named interim dean of the Dyersburg State Community College Jimmy Naifeh Center at Tipton County. Stanley L. Campbell ’76 AS, ’77 CI retired as director of the Centre College Grace Doherty Library in Danville after more than 40 years at the college. Over the past decade, he and a colleague brought a series of important writers to the campus through the Humana-Doherty Library Speaker Series. Those writers were Elizabeth Strout,
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
Jane Smiley, Silas House and Wendell Berry, among others. Michael D. Dykes ’76 ’78 AFE is president and CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association in Washington. He represents members that make more than 85 percent of the milk, cultured products, cheese, ice cream and frozen desserts produced and marketed in the United States. He previously served as vice president of government affairs for the Monsanto Co. where he was responsible for developing and implementing a portfolio of U.S. government relations strategies and programs
that included agricultural biotechnology policy. Adelle Ceal Barry ’77 BE retired as the deputy athletic director at the University of Colorado in Boulder after 37 years at the school. She spent 22 season as the women’s basketball coach, then served as associate athletic director for student services and senior woman’s administrator. Barry was inducted into the Sportswomen of Colorado Hall of Fame in 1994, the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2006, CU’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010 and into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.
Gregory L. Summe ’78 EN lives in Boston and is founder and managing director, Glen Capital Partners LLC. He was appointed director of the Avantor Inc. Board of Directors. He was previously managing director and vice chairman of global buyout at The Carlyle Group.
1980s Andrew T. O’Hare ’80 ’82 AS lives in Bethesda, Maryland, and is president of the Composite Panel Association, which represents the North American composite panel industry on technical, regulatory, quality assur-
ance and product acceptance issues. He had been vice president of public policy for the Fertilizer Institute. Joseph R. Herdy ’81 EN is program manager of advanced capabilities at CFD Research Corp. in Huntsville, Alabama. He is also program manager for the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command program called the Hot Air Tunnel, a hypersonic test laboratory. He was previously deputy program manager of the NASA Space Launch System Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter prime contract for Teledyne Brown Engineering.
During World War I, military personnel were trained on the UK campus in their choice of technical skills, such as auto mechanics and electrical engineering. Some wounded soldiers returning from Europe may have brought the flu with them in 1918. Because of this influenza pandemic, Lexington also had to “shut down,” including the university. But UK still provided medical services to those sick on campus. This photo shows the nurses and kitchen staff of the New Dormitory Hospital pausing for a photo opportunity. Apparently even back then there was a 50-50 chance that some people would wear a mask. The fall semester for this year’s UK students during our own pandemic will see strict guidelines about the wearing of masks, social distancing, and high-tech apps to help maintain student health and provide contact tracing, if necessary.
William G. Simpson, ’82 AS, ’88 MED is a gastroenterologist for the Digestive Health Institute of Montana at Kalispell Regional Medical Center in Kalispell. He was previously director of endoscopy for Northeastern Health System in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and was an adjunct clinical assistant professor of gastroenterology at Oklahoma State College of Osteopathic Medicine.
lace earned his law degree from the Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase School of Law.
Robert A. Arnold ’83 AFE is a professor and acting dean of the Thomas More University College of Business in Crestview Hills. He has served as department chairman, division chairman, and director of Thomas More’s Accelerated and Graduate Program. Arnold is also an attorney, earning his law degree from the Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law.
Dana R. Canedy ’88 CI is senior vice president and publisher of the Simon & Schuster trade imprint in New York. She had been administrator of the Pulitzer Prizes and was a lead writer and editor on the New York Times series “How Race Is Lived in America,” which won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for national reporting. In 2008, Canedy’s book, “A Journal For Jordan,” was published following the death of her fiancé while he was serving in Iraq.
Mark E. Meade ’83 EN, ’87 BE lives in Nicholasville and is senior vice president for Quantam Spatial Inc. a geospatial data firm, where he manages global services and overall marketing. He was appointed to the National Geospatial Advisory Committee.
Vincent M. Holloway ’84 EN is vice president, defense information technology services for Tetra Tech, a consulting and engineering services firm, in the company’s Arlington, Virginia, office. He was previously a program manager for Booz Allen Hamilton.
Thomas E. Hisle ’88 BE lives in Lexington and is regional sales manager for Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia for American Enterprise Group Inc., a subsidiary of Great Western Insurance Co.
Harry D. Wallace ’83 AFE is an attorney, CEO and chairman of the Heritage Bank Board of Directors in Burlington. He had been legal counsel to the bank and a cofounder and partner at Wallace Boggs PLLC. Walwww. u kal u mni. net
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Class Notes Machelle Rogers Manuel ’88 ’96 PHA is vice president, head of global medical affairs for Amylyx Pharmaceuticals in Boston. She was previously head of global medical scientific affairs and a member of the initial medical affairs leadership team for Ironwood Pharmaceuticals.
Aaron Thompson ’90 ’92 AS is president of Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education in Frankfort. He was previously interim president of Kentucky State University and executive vice president, provost, and faculty member at Eastern Kentucky University.
Thomas C. Bondurant ’91 AS, ’94 LAW is an attorney in Germantown, Tennessee. He also writes about comic books at cbr.com. Lisa Bramble Cooper ’91 BE lives in Fort Thomas and is executive director of the Northern Kentucky Area
David A. Breaux ’89 AS retired as dean of the Delta State University College of Arts and Sciences in Cleveland, Mississippi. He had been dean of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Graduate School.
Paul Daruwala ’92 PHA is chief operating officer for Cidara Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company in San Diego. He was previously vice president of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. U.S. Viral Hepatitis Franchise.
Stephanie Kimble Mains ’89 BE lives in Marietta, Georgia, and was named to the board of directors of Diamondback Energy Inc. She had been president and CEO of ABB Electrification Products Industrial Solutions.
1990s Kris A. Miller ’90 AS, ’92 ED is a human resources specialist for Remedy Intelligent Staffing in Lexington. Marilyn E. Moore ’90 ED is a full professor at National University in La Jolla, California, serving as the Faculty Reading Program lead and coordinator of the state Reading and Literacy (Added Authorization) Program. She earned her doctorate in curriculum and instruction with a specialization in reading. 44
Development District (KNADD). She was named one of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Women’s Initiative 2020 Outstanding Women of Northern Kentucky. She was previously a public administration specialist and associate director for community development for NKADD.
Many UK alumni are already familiar with the history of F. Paul Anderson, dean of the College of Engineering from 1918 to 1934 and his devotion to his favorite dog, Jerry. In fact, he was frequently photographed with Jerry. For a different approach, here’s a snapshot of Anderson having a chat with a parrot outside in 1931. Anderson was a native of South Bend, Indiana, and received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at Purdue University in 1890 and a master’s degree in engineering, also at Purdue, in 1894. During his time at UK, Anderson built the engineering program from a few classes to a full, thorough engineering program. Previously, he had been an engineer for the Southern Railway Co. for 25 years. Anderson also promoted the advancement of the X-ray in the United States. Later in life, he was the director and eventually president of the American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers and member of the National Research Council, where he received a gold medal award for his outstanding achievements.
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
Leonard R. Davis ’93 BE is the head women’s golf coach at Florida Southern College in Carol Springs. He was inducted into the Women’s Golf Coaches Association Hall of Fame. In his 23 seasons as coach, Davis, a former UK player and assistant coach, has led the Moccasins to four NCAA Division II National Championships and five runner-up finishes. Jon W. Parker ’93 SW is executive director of Aids Volunteers of Kentucky Inc. in Lexington. He was named a Lexington-Fayette County Health Department Board of Health 2020 Dr. Rice C. Leach Public Health Hero.
Growth
Learning
Connection
Success
INTRODUCING
THE UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY ALUMNI PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT BOOK CLUB! A perk of UK Alumni Association Membership, the professional development book club is a private online community, where alumni and friends can connect with each other and explore books related to business, professional development, management, leadership and more. It’s free — all you have to do is get a copy of the book and enjoy! Whether you are in a period of career transition, growth or exploration, this is the book club for you!
Sign up and learn more at: www.pbc.guru/uky Prefer a lifelong learning book club? We have that, too! Learn more at www.pbc.guru/uky. The book clubs are managed by PBC Guru. PBC Guru manages professional book clubs for companies and alumni associations and will be moderating the group to help make this program a great experience for all participants.
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Class Notes Sarah Bonewits Feldner ’95 CI is dean and associate professor of communications studies in the Marquette University J. William and Mary Diederich College of Communication in Milwaukee. She was previously associate dean for graduate studies and research in the college and served as the director of the Marquette Core Curriculum. John C. Settle ’95 ED lives in Bowling Green and retired as the executive director for the West Kentucky Educational Cooperative. He was previously the Murray State University director of research and school services. John L. Verburg ’95 AS is the pastor at Springs Mennonite Church in Springs, Pennsylvania. He has 33 years in the pastoral ministry, including service with mission boards in both Guatemala and Alabama. He has also served as professor of sociology for colleges in Alabama, Idaho, Wyoming and Kentucky. Nathan R. Ladd ’96 HS is a physical therapist at Progressive Rehab Inc. in Owensboro, specializing in home health geriatric care and dry needling. He was previously a physical therapy technician at Owensboro Physical Therapy. Charles W. Lickfold ’96 EN is senior vice president and chief information 46
principal (grades 7-12) at Southaven’s Northpoint Christian School in Southaven, Mississippi. He was previously the secondary school principal at Heritage Christian Academy.
Welcome Week at the University of Kentucky in the mid-1950s included a tour of campus hosted by tour guide Chappell Wilson (in suit coat). Plans for student’s returning to campus in fall 2020 include Welcome Week, too, but as a modified version from previous years to acclimate students but also ensure their safety.
officer for Catalent Inc., a global provider of delivery technologies, development, drug manufacturing, biologics, gene therapies and consumer health products headquartered in Somerset, New Jersey. He had been chief information officer for Alcari Corp. Charles D. Butler ’97 BE is senior vice president and chief financial officer for Lexmark Inc. in Lexington. He was previously vice president of financial planning and analysis for Lexmark. He also served as vice president of sales operations and business analytics, director of corporate finance, and senior manager of financial planning and analysis. Mandala Wilson Decker ’97 LAW, ’02 LAW is a patent attorney and member at Stites & Harbison
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
PLLC, part of the Intellectual Property & Technology Service Group in the firm’s Louisville office. She was named to Managing Intellectual Property magazine’s IP Stars list for 2020 as a Kentucky Patent Star. Her practice focuses on intellectual property protection strategy, including counseling clients on infringement, validity and patentability, transfer of intellectual property, patent drafting and patent prosecution. Danny W. Hollis ’97 CI is a professor in the Marshall University W. Page Pitt School of Journalism and Mass Communications in Huntington, West Virginia. He received the university’s Dr. Charles E. Hedrick Outstanding Faculty Award for 2019-2020. Bradley Q. Wheeler ’97 ’98 ED is the upper school
Gilmore S. Chung ’98 ’04 AS, ’08 MED lives in Los Angeles and is director of addiction services at Venice Family Clinic, a community health center serving citizens living in poverty. Melissa Moore Murphy ’98 AS, ’01 LAW lives in Lexington and was appointed as judge for the Fayette District Court Division 4 Judicial District by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. She was previously an attorney for Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government. Joshua L. Proffitt ’99 BE, ’02 LAW is president of LHC Group Inc., an in-home health care services company in Lafayette, Louisiana. He was previously vice president, assistant general counsel and director of mergers and acquisitions for the company.
2000s Justin A. Sanders ’00 AS is an attorney at the Becker Law Office in the firm’s Florence office, focusing on civil litigation. He earned his law degree from the Pepperdine University School of Law.
JON CARLOFTIS Bradley S. Eilerman ’01 MED lives in Union and is lead physician, director of clinical research and clinical endocrinologist for the St. Elizabeth Physicians group.
ing teaching hospital for Harvard Medical School. He was previously a surgeon in the Ohio State University Medical Center Department of Surgery.
Brent D. Hutchinson ’01 AFE is executive director of Davis House Child Advocacy Center in Franklin. He had been executive director of the Hindman Settlement School and has about 25 years of executive experience in leadership, team development, fundraising, program implementation and community development.
Genny D. Ballard ’05 AS is a professor of Spanish at Centre College in Danville. She is one of the founders of the Centre College After School Program for immigrant, migrant and first generation K-12 students.
LaKenya R. Middlebrook ’02 AS is an attorney in Knoxville, Tennessee. She was appointed executive director of the Knoxville Police Advisory and Review Committee by the Knoxville mayor. Middlebrook earned her law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law. Shubin K. Saha ’02 AFE is CEO of Kentucky Fresh Harvest LLC in Stanford. He was appointed to the AgriTech Advisory Council by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. Saha was previously production and IPM manager for Fresh Harvest and an Extension vegetable and protected agriculture specialist in the UK Department of Horticulture. Ian L. Valerio ’04 MED is a reconstructive surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, a lead-
James L. Kay ’05 AS, ’09 LAW lives in Versailles and is the Woodford County judge-executive. He was appointed to the AgriTech Advisory Council by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. Kay had been the state representative for the 56th District in the Kentucky House of Representatives. Donate L. Tichenor ’06 AS is principal of Booker T. Washington Elementary School in Lexington. He was previously the school’s professional growth and effectiveness coach. Tichenor started his career as an admissions counselor and career transition specialist with the Job Corps program, helping teenagers and young adults prepare for the world of work. He joined the Fayette County Public Schools in 2009 and has worked in many capacities, including as a social studies teacher and behavior interventionist, among others.
Receives 2020 Award of Excellence from National Garden Clubs
Jon Carloftis ’86 CI, award-winning landscape designer, author, popular lecturer and one of the pioneers in the design of rooftop and small-space gardens in New York City, is the recipient of a national 2020 Award of Excellence from National Garden Clubs Inc., one of the nation’s most-recognized nonprofits and largest volunteer gardening organization in the world. This award recognizes individuals, organizations or institutions that make significant contributions to gardening and their communities. Nominated by The Garden Club of Kentucky Inc., Carloftis’ career in gardening and landscape design spans more than 30 years. In 1988, he launched his career in New York City, where his design skills and talents for creating gardens in small spaces captured the attention of noted celebrities, including Julianne Moore, Edward Norton and Mike Myers, as well as a number of renowned art collectors. In addition, he designed rooftop gardens for corporate clients, including the headquarters of Google in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood. He has also written a number of popular garden-industry books including “Beautiful Gardens of Kentucky,” an introspective of 21 public and private gardens throughout the Bluegrass, “Beyond the Windowsill: Add Style to Your Home with the Beauty of Indoor Plants” and “First a Garden,” which he co-authored. Carloftis says his classes in business communications were the impetus for his entrepreneurial spirit while his love of horticulture was fostered was gained through courses in the UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment. He is the owner of Jon Carloftis Fine Gardens and Rockcastle River Trading Company, a unique retail shopping destination situated on 50 bucolic acres on the Carloftis family homestead in Kentucky. In recent years, Carloftis, a 10th generation Kentuckian, returned to his roots in Lexington to purchase and restore “Botherum,” one of the city’s most historically and architecturally unique residences. Carloftis has also crafted garden designs for institutions in Kentucky, including the Kentucky Governor’s mansion, Eastern Kentucky University, University of the Cumberlands, Corbin Middle School and the Baptist Health Lexington Cancer Center Garden, which was dedicated in memory of his mother. Ongoing commercial and residential projects throughout the state include the Maker’s Mark Distillery and the Castle and Key Distillery. ■ www. u kal u mni. net
47
Career Corner with Amanda
Schagane
SUMMER INTERNSHIPS CHANGE DUE TO COVID-19 According to a poll, there was a sharp increase in employers revoking internships as high as 22 percent with the vast majority moved to the virtual workplace. The data was more optimistic for full-time recruits’ offers revoked at 4.4 percent. Some employers offered creative solutions to UK students participating in internships. Donna Doolin, a marketing senior from Lincoln, Illinois, interned with WinStar Farm in Versailles, allowing her to hone her communications skills and develop strong customer service skills while conducting farm tours and learning how to use Horse Farm Management and other search engine/information databases. WinStar has been cautious to keep employees safe. Doolin’s internship shifted to projects that she could complete from home until state regulations allowed WinStar to open for tours. Then Doolin was on-site conducting farm tours in person. WinStar’s flexibility to shift quickly to online and customized projects in Doolin’s interest areas allowed her to maximize her internship experience. Lauren Hudson, a neuroscience and biology junior from Villa Hills, interned with Nathan Vanderford at UK HealthCare Markey Cancer Center. She was responsible for assisting with studies on cancer education in Appalachia Kentucky, including the development of a cancer education curriculum for Kentucky middle and high schools. Hudson says one of the most important skills she developed was the ability to convert experimental data into a publishable scientific paper. When COVID-19 hit, Hudson was wrapping up data collection on an experiment and completed her internship remotely, converting the data into an article for publication. Thanks to Zoom, she was still able to meet regularly with her mentor and wrap up the internship with a great experience and new skills. Carla Bravo, an international studies pre-law student from Brandenburg, interned with the Russel Immigration Law Firm in Louisville. Bravo’s legal internship included researching evidence, writing drafts for applications, assisting with client interviews and document translations. Along with developing her reading and writing skills, she was exposed to immigration-related cases, fueling her passion for work related to the immigration system. Bravo was offered remote projects but chose to rotate in the office with other staff to decrease COVID-19 exposure risks. While working with clients took on different forms, Bravo maximized her experience in the law firm and contributed significantly to office efforts. These are some of the best practices for virtual internships from the National Association of Colleges and Employers: offer a virtual onboarding experience; ensure buy-in from intern managers; provide interns with technology, as needed; stick to a regular schedule; provide networking opportunities; and communicate regularly providing feedback to interns. If you are interested in hiring UK interns, visit www.uky.edu/careercenter/employers to get started. If your employer has never hosted interns, but would like to, we can help with that, too. UK Alumni Association Active and Life Members are eligible for two complimentary appointments per year with a certified career counselor. Call 859-257-8905 or 800-269 ALUM (2586) to schedule an appointment. Visit www.ukalumni.net/career to learn more about resume critiques, networking events, Central Kentucky Job Club and other Alumni Career Services. To post a job opening, employers may visit www.ukalumni.net/employers and email job leads to ukalumnicareer@uky.edu.
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Class Notes
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
Joseph Ross ’06 LAW lives in Russellville and is the Logan County attorney. He was appointed to the Kentucky Prosecutor’s Advisory Council, a nine-person council consisting of three county attorneys and three commonwealth attorneys, two citizen members and the Kentucky attorney general and addresses issues that affect the state’s prosecutors. Tamara K. Wellman ’07 ’13 NUR lives in Ashland and is a nurse practitioner with Marshall Family Medicine. Jon R. Fisher ’09 AFE is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Ebony B. Hutchinson ’09 ED is principal at William Wells Brown Elementary School in Lexington. She has 16 years of experience in the field of education, having started her career as a primary teacher in the Shelby County Public Schools, where she also served as a district instructional elementary math coach and instructional coach. She joined Fayette County Public Schools in 2013 as a curriculum coach at Garden Springs Elementary before moving to the role of professional growth and effectiveness coach at The Academy for Leadership at Millcreek Elementary School.
Regan N. Schmidt ’09 LAW is general counsel and chief compliance officer for Tempoe LLC and SmartPay Leasing LLC in Cincinnati. She was previously a partner at Taft Stettinius and Hollister LLP.
2010s Lamar K. Allen ’10 ED is the STEM teacher at Yates Elementary School in Lexington. Christine M. Kindler ’12 ’13 AS is a doctoral student in the clinical psychology program at Howard University in Washington, where she is a research assistant in the Global Community Health Lab. She received the Humanity in Action Berlin Fellowship, which recognizes commitment to social justice and human rights. Tyler W. Reed ’12 ED AS is principal at Frankfort High School in Kentucky. He was previously the school’s interim principal and assistant principal at Paris High School. He also served as a dual learning and behavior disorders and moderate to severe disabilities special education teacher at Frankfort High School and previously at East Jessamine High School.
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Class Notes Vernell Bennett-Fairs ’13 ED is vice president for student affairs at Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi. She was one of 31 senior-level higher education professionals to participate in the 2020 Millennium Leadership Initiative, a premier leadership development program of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. Amanda Perry Ellis ’13 ED is associate vice president for P-20 policy and programs for the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education in Frankfort. She is a retired teacher and was previously chief academic officer and associate commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Education Office of Teaching and Learning. Alissa L. Young ’14 ED is president of Hopkinsville Community College in Hopkinsville. She was selected for the Leadership Kentucky Class of 2020. She was previously the school’s chief academic affairs officer. Jeremiah Hawkins ’15 ’17 DES is an associate at RBS Design Group Architecture in Owensboro. Hope B. Nottmeyer ’15 CI is the media specialist at Salem Community High School in Salem, Illinois.
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Cody L. Rakes ’15 AFE is director of farm and land for the Loretto Motherhouse Farm in Nerinx. Julian D. Bryson ’16 FA is director of choral studies at Jacksonville University in Jacksonville, Florida, and a founding member of Triad: Boston’s Choral Collective. He tied for third place in the American Prize National Nonprofit Competitions in the Performing Arts American Prize in Composition, 2019-2020, in the major choral music division. Kelsey J. Nunley ’17 CI, ’17 AFE is head softball coach at Soddy Daisy High School in Tennessee. She had been the team’s assistant coach and previously spent three season as a pitcher for in the National Pro Fastpitch League. She led UK to the Women’s College World Series in 2014. Veronica L. Steen ’18 DES is a lighting designer with The Lighting Practice in the firm’s New York office.
Information in Class Notes is compiled from previously published items in newspapers and other media outlets, as well as items submitted by individual alumni. Send us your class note by emailing ukalumni@uky.edu or submitting your information in the online community at www.ukalumni.net/class. COLLEGE INDEX Agriculture, Food Fine Arts — FA & Environment — AFE The Graduate School — GS Arts & Sciences — AS Health Sciences — HS Business & Economics — BE Law — LAW Communication & Medicine — MED Information — CI Nursing — NUR Dentistry — DE Pharmacy — PHA Design — DES Public Health — PH Education — ED Social Work — SW Engineering — EN
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Sarah M. Cronin ’19 BE is an officer with the Cincinnati Police Department. Michael J. Rothacker ’19 LAW is an attorney at Circeo Fannin PSC in Lexington. He was previously a law clerk at the firm.
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
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Embracing a Tradition of
Unscripted Opportunities by Ja’Nae Clapp
T
he University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy (UKCOP) has developed a stellar reputation for molding the future minds of pharmaceutical medicine. But what happens to those who don’t go on to become practicing pharmacists in the traditional sense? Dennis Bashaw, a 1986 UKCOP graduate, broke the mold and demonstrated just how a professional degree in pharmacy could lead to an unexpected and fulfilling career. Pharmacy is an ever-changing career field, and with these changes, pharmacists are not as bound to traditional roles as they once were. Dennis began his post-graduate career by completing a pharmacy residency at the National Institutes of Health. He went on to work with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), where he was commissioned as an officer in the US Public Health Service (USPHS). At that time, he was one of only three Doctors of Pharmacy (also known as a PharmD) in the then Division of Biopharmaceutics. Bashaw remarks, “Pharmacy is a gateway profession. One can take their pharmacy degree and move into many different non-traditional roles.” At the FDA, he was initially responsible for reviewing the pharmacokinetics of new therapeutic entities for pulmonary drugs and
FDA headquarters, were specifically deployed to Louisiana to inspect pharmacies for damage and assess their operating status. Following the completion of this mission, his group was then tasked with running a shelter pharmacy in Baton Rouge. “At the time we were redeployed to the shelter pharmacy mission (45 days after landfall), the people remaining in the shelter were truly those that had lost everything, including their support networks.” “What belongings they had were piled up next to their cot on a convention hall floor. Beyond traditional dispensing, I had to help put their medication records in order and transition them to new health care providers as the shelters began to consolidate.” Upon reaching the mandatory retirement limit of 30 years of service in the USPHS, Captain Bashaw retired. Still, he returned to the FDA, following a mandatory “break in service” as Senior Science Advisor to the Director-Office of Clinical Pharmacology, where he still serves today. His primary role is to oversee dermal absorption related policies including sunscreens, and nanotechnology. With regards to sunscreens, he was one of the FDA co-authors of the two notable Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) publications on
“Pharmacy is a gateway profession. One can take their pharmacy degree and move into many different non-traditional roles.” analgesics. Over his 30-year career at the FDA, he worked in a number of different therapeutic areas and rose to be a Division Director, a position he held for over a decade. Beyond his daily role at the FDA as a Commissioned Officer, Bashaw had a passion for serving others. He drew upon his basic pharmacy skills learned at UKCOP to support disaster relief operations following four different hurricanes. As an example of a blending of traditional and non-traditional roles, after Hurricane Katrina, as part of the mass deployment of resources from the USPHS, he, along with two other officers from
sunscreen absorption that have been widely reported in the news media. His contribution to the studies was the development of the study paradigm and supervising the initial patient dosing at the clinic site. Following the study, he was the lead author on the FDA issued study guidance document for these types of studies. While an inspiration to many, Bashaw has had a profound impact on at least two people, specifically his niece Shelby Ferrell, a fourth-year pharmacy student at UKCOP and his nephew, Mitchell Wong, a third-year pharmacy student at Rutgers School of Pharmacy. Ferrell says
Dennis Bashaw with his niece and current UKCOP student Shelby Ferrell
that her uncle was her inspiration for attending pharmacy school. “I was very excited to follow in my uncle’s footsteps and continue the UK tradition,” said Ferrell. “UK is very important to my family, and we are very proud to be from here.” Ferrell spoke about the unique opportunity of seeing her uncle’s commitment to keeping people safe and his dedication to life-long learning. She hopes to embody those same qualities as she enters the patient care side of pharmacy. “I am very lucky to have him as my uncle,” said Ferrell. Dr. Bashaw’s opportunities were made possible by his critical thinking skills and the specializations within UKCOP’s program. His choice was the industrial area of concentration, but each specialty offers its students opportunities they won’t find within the others. He advises students to carve their own paths. “The ability to converse on a breadth of pharmacy topics made me a better candidate for the FDA and complemented my clinical skills learned at UKCOP,” he said. His story demonstrates the UK College of Pharmacy’s long-standing tradition of giving students remarkable opportunities to develop in their agility, creativity, and self-awareness. The College, along with the University of Kentucky, encourages all students to pave their own way, no matter how non-traditional they might be.
In Memoriam Jack W. Strother ’33 Grayson, Ky. Life Member William D. Judge ’40 Mount Sterling, Ky. Robert M. Drake Jr. ’42 Lexington, Ky. Life Member, Fellow Jane Hayes Barrett ’43 Los Angeles, Calif. Life Member, Fellow James A. Beazley ’43 Danville, Ky. Life Member Ellen O’Bannon Cleveland ’45 Greensboro, N.C.
Ann Barron Greis ’46 Lexington, Ky. Life Member Evelyn Greene Morris ’46 Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Alexander C. Reed Jr. ’48 Irving, Texas Life Member Lamar R. Kissling ’49 Tullahoma, Tenn. George T. Murray ’49 Los Angeles, Calif. Fellow Daniel Lawrence Coleman ’50 Bowling Green, Ky. Fellow
Raymond H. Burch Jr. ’51 Gainesville, Ga. Edward L. Craig ’51 Birmingham, Ala.
52
Laurence H. Wolfe ’51 Proctorville, Ohio
William E. Scott ’62 Versailles, Ky.
William H. McCann ’52 Lexington, Ky. Fellow
Henry M. Chapman ’63 Lexington, Ky.
Rachel J. Lewis ’52 Lexington, Ky. William A. Rice ’53 Harlan, Ky. Robert T. Stevens Sr. ’53 Aberdeen, Ohio
John W. Conner ’64 Harrogate, Tenn. Life Member George R. Bergen III ’65 Jeffersonville, Ind. Life Member Marie Gander Armstrong ’65 Louisville, Ky.
Billy D. McDonald ’54 Wilmore, Ky. Life Member
Ronald D. Hockensmith Sr. ’65 Brookhaven, Ga.
Fred D. Williams ’54 Raleigh, N.C. Life Member
Dorothy M. Schremser ’66 Plymouth, Mich. Life Member
George B. Stone ’55 Mount Sterling, Ky.
Charles E. Atkins Jr. ’67 Vero Beach, Fla. Life Member, Fellow
Bobby C. Brown ’57 Mount Pleasant, S.C. Joyce Manning Childers ’57 Deerfield Beach, Fla. Kenneth W. Towery ’59 Louisville, Ky. Life Member, Fellow William R. Houghton ’60 Rockport, Mass.
David M. Gibson ’67 Winchester, Ky. Barth A. Holohan Jr. ’67 Saint Louis, Mo. Life Member Joseph M. Whitmer ’67 Lexington, Ky. Life Member, Fellow
Charles F. Hanna ’61 Tyler, Texas
Rodger P. Bird ’69 Henderson, Ky. Life Member
Gene D. Smith ’61 London, Ky.
Firmon M. Cook III ’69 Princeton, Ky.
Mellwood Cooksey Jr. ’62 Louisville, Ky.
Peggy J. Satterly ’69 Lawrenceburg, Ky.
George W. Ransdell Sr. ’62 Lexington, Ky.
Lawrence E. Barker ’70 Bettendorf, Iowa
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
William C. Madauss ’70 Superior, Colo. Life Member Ann Sharon Tandy ’70 Lexington, Ky. Arthur J. Bentley ’71 Haverhill, Ohio Edward W. Maynard ’71 Shelbyville, Ky. Melinda A. Freeman ’72 Somerset, Ky. Michael J. Goetz ’72 Ft. Mitchell, Ky. Donald L. Quire ’72 Louisville, Ky. Life Member David S. Walls ’72 Sebastopol, Calif. Carolyn Hiner Worley ’72 Kissimmee, Fla. Robert J. Clement ’74 Cadiz, Ky. Life Member, Fellow William David Marshall ’74 Flemingsburg, Ky. Nancy Reed Hines ’76 Richmond, Va. Rebecca Gibson Dettor ’77 Walton, Ky. Alexander Poulos ’77 Pikeville, Ky. Fellow Janet Smith Clawson ’78 Lexington, Ky. Life Member, Fellow
William A. Hailey ’78 Belden, Miss.
Daniel W. James ’91 London, Ky. Life Member
Joseph P. Rowlett ’78 New Bern, N.C. Geraldine Skarvan Shaw ’79 Lexington, Ky. Evelyn R. Carter ’80 Odenton, Md.
Laura A. Larkin ’92 Louisville, Ky. Richard Ashley Grana ’94 Paducah, Ky. Leslie Eades Esarey ’99 Winchester, Ky.
Daniel R. Watkins ’80 Nicholasville, Ky.
Carol Leavell Barr ’02 Lexington, Ky.
Matthew S. Cottle ’81 San Luis Obispo, Calif.
A William D. Thompson ’87 Dallas, Texas AL LEGACY
Christopher e University of KentuckyS. Crowe ’88 Center, Ohio Alumni PlazaLewis Paver.
FORMER STUDENTS AND FRIENDS
J. Roy Holsclaw Lexington, Ky. Fellow
Vicky Foley Baker Lake Worth, Fla. Life Member, Fellow
Jane D. Howard Prestonsburg, Ky. Life Member, Fellow
Ted D. Ballard Lexington, Ky. Fellow
Betty L. Lamb Lexington, Ky.
Alan Bloomfield Lexington, Ky. Fellow
Preston W. Madden Lexington, Ky. Fellow Adalin Grossman Moskowitz Germantown, Tenn.
LE AVE A Clarence G. Musgrave SONAL LEGACY Christopher Robert Rabel ’20 PER Jane Woods Guy Lexington, Ky. LE Lexington, Ky. Paris, Ky. AVE A and support the University of Kentucky Lillian H. Press with aPER Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. Nettie G. Hughbanks Bellevue, Wash. SONAL LEGACY Lexington, Ky. Dennis H. Lynch ’10 Lexington, Ky.
Charles Gunnels Williamstown, Ky.
Taylor of Kentucky and support the University Breonna
David R. Reber ’88 Nicholasville, Ky.
a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. LE with AVE A PER SONAL LEGACY A LE AVE A and support the University of Kentucky www.wildcatalumniplaza.com with a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. wildcatalumniplaza.com AL LEGACY PER859-257-8905 SONAL LEGACY (ALUM) 59-257-8905 (ALUM) LE AVE A A LE AVE A e University of Kentucky and support the University of Kentucky Alumni Paver. PER SONAL PER LEGACY with www.wildcatalumniplaza.com a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. NAL Plaza LEGACY SONAL LEGACY VE A LE AVE A 859-257-8905 (ALUM) LE AVE A and support the University of Kentucky the University of Kentucky and support the University of Kentucky with a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. at Alumni Plaza Paver. with a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. SONAL LEGACY PERLESONAL LEGACY PER SONAL LEGACY AVE A LE AVE A port the University of Kentucky and support the University and of Kentucky support the University of Kentucky www.wildcatalumniplaza.com Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. with a Wildcat Alumni Plazawith Paver. a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. PER SONAL LEGACY PER SONAL LEGACY 859-257-8905 (ALUM)
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Louisville, Ky.
and support the University of Kentucky with a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver.
w.wildcatalumniplaza.com 859-257-8905 (ALUM) www.wildcatalumniplaza.com 859-257-8905 (ALUM)
and support the University of Kentucky www.wildcatalumniplaza.com with a Wildcat Alumni Plaza Paver. 859-257-8905 (ALUM)
www.wildcatalumniplaza.com www.wildcatalumniplaza.com 859-257-8905 (ALUM)859-257-8905 (ALUM) www.wildcatalumniplaza.com www.wildcatalumniplaza.com 859-257-8905 (ALUM) 859-257-8905 (ALUM)
www.wildcatalumniplaza.com 859-257-8905 (ALUM)
www. u kal u mni. net
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Creative Juices Jill A. Day ’09 ED is the coauthor of “Introductory Principles of Sport and Physical Education,” a textbook that helps students majoring in kinesiology-exercise science explore the history of physical activity, as well as being an introduction to modern issues in sport. The information is foundational for a variety of fitness and clinical careers because it helps students understand the mechanisms underlying human movement, exercise and physical activity. Day, who is a lecturer at UK, teaches the class, “History and Philosophy of Physical Education and Sport.” She wrote the book for exercise science majors in the UK College of Education Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion, who are pursuing a variety of careers in areas such as physical therapy, personal training, sports administration, pharmacy and biomechanics, to name only a few. The book has been created to be used in conjunction with lectures and each chapter has engagement points, such as exercises and quizzes that are designed to help students understand the material covered in class.
Emily Anne Jordan, a junior honors student at the UK College of Nursing, has written “The War Queens: Extraordinary Women Who Ruled the Battlefield,” a book that celebrates the forgotten heroes of the past — woman war leaders. Coauthored with her father, the book tells the story of the ingenious wartime tactics of some of history’s most powerful female leaders, from the stifling battlefields of ancient Egypt to the frigid waters off the Falkland Islands. History’s killer queens come in all colors, ages, and leadership styles. Elizabeth Tudor and Golda Meir played the roles of high-stakes gamblers who studied maps with an unblinking, calculating eye. Angola’s Queen Njinga was willing to shed (and occasionally drink) blood to establish a stable kingdom in an Africa ravaged by the slave trade. The daunting thresholds these exceptional women had to cross — and the clever, sometimes violent ways in which they smashed obstacles in their paths — are evoked in vivid detail. The narrative sidles up to these war queens in the most dire, tumultuous moments of their reigns and examines the brilliant methods and maneuvers they each used to defend themselves and their people from enemy forces. They walked through war’s kiln and emerged from the other side — some burnished to greatness, others burned to cinders. 54
K E N TUCKY A LU MN I MAG A ZIN E Fall 2020
David A. Collier ’70 EN ’72 BE has written “The Entity: Climate Change 2647,” a second novel in a trilogy where his original mysterious entity returns to Earth to find more climate destruction and human chaos, triggering mass migration, war, disease, famine, and the collapse of governments. Mariama J. Lockington, research administrative coordinator in the UK College of Education, has written “For Black Girls Like Me,” a book for youngsters that deals with heavy topics — racism, microaggressions and mental health — but it is also about friendship, finding a voice and having hope. Marilyn E. Moore ’90 ED is the author of “Designing a Successful Tutoring Session for Struggling Readers,” which addresses components of tutoring sessions, word recognition and fluency strategies, comprehension and writing strategies, and STEAM, among others. Jessica Rouse Pass ’07 ’14 CI is the coauthor along with Kelsey B. Vogt, who also attended UK, of “Willy Woolly Winglewish Wonders Where He Is,” a children’s book about a grasshopper who finds himself in a new place and learns that life is full of adventures. Margaret Mohr-Schroeder, UK College of Education associate dean, is one of three coauthors of “The Handbook of Research on STEM Education,” a synthesis of research and presentation of policy within the realm of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. UK and the UK Alumni Association do not necessarily endorse books or other original material mentioned in Creative Juices. The University of Kentucky and the UK Alumni Association are not responsible for the content, views and opinions expressed on websites mentioned in Creative Juices or found via links off of those websites.
Quick Take PROTECTION BASICS
Photo: UK Public Relations & Marketing
Our favorite Wildcat, Bowman, sets a safety example for all individuals arriving on campus — wear a mask! Bowman donned his new look in July as some UK faculty and staff returned in preparation for the fall semester and the beginning of classes. This Wildcat knows it’s the right thing to do to make a huge difference for everyone’s safety.
56 KENT UCKY A LUMNI M AG A ZIN E Fall 2020
We will show the world what the
On September 16, 2020, we will build a brighter future. We will celebrate our commitment to bettering ourselves and our communities. We will contribute to the education of tomorrow’s workforce. We will rally as one and declare: On, On U of K!
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At UK HealthCare, we’re dedicated to one mission: helping Kentucky get healthier. It’s what drives our research, our outreach, and our expert care, and it’s why we’ve been ranked Kentucky’s #1 hospital for the fifth year in a row by U.S. News Best Hospitals, with a cancer center that’s among the top 30 in the nation. See why Kentuckians come to us when it matters most at ukhealthcare.com/best
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