Vicki Williams Carroll
B.S., ’73, University of Kentucky M.S, ’77, University of Louisville
Kim Hatch Burse B.A., ’76, University of Kentucky MBA, ’85, University of Kentucky A military base in West Germany was where Kim Hatch Burse was born, but her destiny was awaiting her 4,000 miles away. Her father taught at Tuskegee University and was a distinguished Air Force fighter pilot who flew with Chuck Yeager, his squadron commander in Germany, who broke the sound barrier. Her mother graduated at the top of her class at the University of Louisville, but struggled as a single parent after her divorce. Burse overcame early challenges. She earned two degrees from UK and went on to make history. In 1991, she was named revenue secretary becoming the first African-American woman to hold a cabinet position in Kentucky. One of her primary objectives was to hire more minorities. In two years, she increased the number of minorities in her cabinet by 58 percent, the largest increase among Kentucky’s cabinets. Following her term, Burse became the founding president and CEO of Louisville Development Bancorp. She was the first woman and first African-American CEO of a Louisville bank holding company. Her position allowed her to improve the quality of life for others, as she oversaw the demolition of the housing project where she had once lived and the transformation of the property into a development where former project tenants became homeowners.
With the James Brown lyrics shouting, “Say It Loud, I’m Black and I’m Proud,” as a cultural anthem, Vicki Williams Carroll became the first African-American cheerleader for the Wildcats in 1969. Carroll carried the weight of representing African-American female beauty while cheering for the success of the team, but especially the six football players that made up the largest African-American recruiting class at that time. They all came to cheer for her on her first tryout, which ran late, and got in trouble the next day for missing curfew. Carroll had dreamed of one day cheering for UK. The 60 prospects spent a week together learning the routine for tryouts. She recalls vividly that no one spoke to her. Her faith gave her strength, and she persevered with the inner confidence that she was just as talented. She was named first alternate. When one of the cheerleaders had to drop out, there were discussions about having a special tryout to replace her. Carroll spoke up, reminding the committee of the role of first alternate. Therefore, she made the team as a freshman and cheered for UK for three years. Because Carroll was on the team, travel to away games was impacted. It wasn’t safe to travel to some southern states but a travel schedule was made. Carroll saw the integration of sports at UK from both perspectives, football and basketball. The only African Americans Carroll remembers seeing at basketball games would usually be the janitors and Tom Payne, the first African-American basketball player. Her time as a cheerleader served her well and was the topic of many conversations in job interviews. She now owns her own consulting firm.
Burse, a vice president with Goodwill Industries of Kentucky, continues to provide assistance to those in need. In 1995, she was inducted into the UK Gatton College of Business and Economics Hall of Fame.
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