kentuckykernel
The show must go on
UK students make music from home By Lauren Campbell news@kykernel.com
Music students once filled the stages of the nowclosed Singletary Center for the Arts. Now, they play at home in their bedrooms, preparing for the day when crowds can again gather. Due to COVID-19, the UK School of Music was forced to quickly change the course of its semester and choose to cancel or
reschedule its countless events. Aubree Turner, a junior arts administration major and vocal performance minor, was set to perform in one of the many canceled performances. “I was supposed to perform in the UK Choristers Spring Concert and in the combined choirs and orchestra Beethoven’s Ninth Concert,” Turner said. “While I am obviously not
able to meet and perform with my classmates, my director and professor, Beth Wilson, has done an excellent job of making sure we are being enriched despite the canceled concerts.” Turner said that Wilson invited a revered choral group, Cantus, to speak with her class over Zoom. “They shared so much valuable information with us, and I am very thankful that my musical soul is still
being poured into during this time,” said Turner. Sophomore music major Katherine Goble said her professors have also come up with new activities. “We are doing other fun things, such as having the head players of professional orchestras have Zoom Q&As with us as well as doing fun assignments, such as for choir, finding what makes the difference
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between good and incredible choirs,” Goble said. “And in orchestra, watching performances of the Berlin Philharmonic and writing about it, or sending tapes and a resume as if we were auditioning somewhere, and critiquing them so we can improve them.” UK, like universities across the country, canceled in-person classes for the remainder of the spring semester. The adjustment to online instruction has been challenging for many, but for art classes, the change has limited practical application of skills. “Where we have gotten into difficulty are classes that are nearly impossible to teach remotely,” said Robert Jenson, a professor of art history. “Imagine taking a ceramics course in which there are no clay, no kilns, no wheels, and so on. What exactly can you do in such a class? Our ceramics faculty have been able this semester to give students drawing and planning projects for things that they cannot actually make. If they take advanced ceramics later on, they can put those ideas into physical form.” Goble is a violinist in the UK Orchestra and a member of the Women’s Choir. Besides the move to online classes, she has to adjust to life with no concerts and playing music alone. “I always get emotional playing music because however the audience feels, it’s twice that for the musicians,” Goble said. “In a big orchestra, it’s almost like being at a rock concert with sounds coming from all sides of you while you are playing your heart out.”
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And while the orchestra’s last rehearsal occurred before it was decided the campus was closing down, Goble and many of her fellow musicians had a feeling it would happen. “At our last rehearsal, the conductor was talking about what a privilege it has been to make beautiful music with us and how he hopes that we can come together and make music again soon,” Goble said. “We were playing Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2. That piece is just incredibly beautiful and sentimental, especially at the beginning. It was extremely emotional knowing we probably wouldn’t be able to play with one another for a while.” But because students in the UK Orchestra and University Choirs are enrolled and graded for their work and participation, they have not stopped making music.For their more traditional courses, many of which also require performances, music students are using video-conferencing and video submissions to have their work critiqued. “Many of my classes are having extra office hours just to check on us and our mental health,” Goble said. “We’re taking videos and sending them to our teachers so our violin professors can still hear us play with good sound quality.” Goble said her professors are doing a great job using online resources. “Except for missing the laughter and comradery in the halls of Fine Arts, I feel like I am getting the same education,” said Goble.
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Tuesday, April 21, 2020
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LOOKING BACK, MOVING FORWARD UK PLANNING FISCAL BUDGET IN FACE OF UNEXPECTED LOSSES UK is starting to craft a budget for the next fiscal year starting July 1, after the Kentucky General Assembly concluded with a budget plan for the state on Wednesday, April 15. The state’s budget is a “continuation budget”, lasting for one year instead of the usual two. In an email on April 17, President Capilouto said the school would be receiving approximately $260 million from the state budget, essentially the same amount as last year, but will be losing revenue from less certain enrollment numbers, millions less in revenue from the hospital system, and significantly less in revenue from investments. The current pandemic and resulting economic issues have adjusted the assumptions usually used to create a budget, said Capilouto, and he acknowledged that the economic picture would look different in two or even six months. “We will face painful choices and tough decisions. In the midst of so much uncertainty, we know already that we will start 2020-2021 with tens of millions less in rev-
enue than we had last year,” Capilouto said. Capilouto said more communication about the budget process would be forthcoming. - Haley Blackburn
UK EXTENDS PASS/FAIL GRADING OPTIONS UK undergraduate students can now take any of their Spring 2020 classes under a pass/fail grading system. UK does not typically allow students to take major, minor or UK Core classes pass/ fail. However, the University Senate Council voted to make the change in order to promote student success despite the changes brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. “We know this isn’t how [students] planned to finish out the Spring 2020 semester,” UK Provost David Blackwell said in an email. “We couldn’t be more proud of how [they] have handled these hardships.” Students wishing to change a course from letter grading to pass/fail grading should contact their advisors. Students also still have the option to withdraw from a course or request an Incomplete if they feel unable to finish the course. All changes must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on May 1.
CONTACT The alteration does not apply to graduate or professional courses. Graduate and professional students should contact faculty about whether or not P grades will be accepted in their programs. Additionally, Blackwell recommended that students verify grading requirements when applying to graduate or professional programs. - Emily Girard
EJ MONTGOMERY DECLARES FOR NBA DRAFT The 6-foot-10 forward “tested the waters” after his freshman season in 20182019, but will now enter his name in the draft and sign with an agent, forgoing his remaining college eligibility. “The circumstances were unfortunate, but I am thankful that I was able to play for a great coach and coaching staff and compete every day in practice and in games to challenge myself to become a better all-around player,” Montgomery said. He also thanked his teammates, his family and friends and the BBN for their support. Montgomery made 25 starts as a Wildcat this past season and averaged 6.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. “At 6-10 with perimeter skills, athleticism and an ability to block shots, someone is going to get a big-time prospect with EJ,” UK head coach John Calipari said in a press release. “His skill set is where the game is going.” The sophomore also totaled 31 blocks, 12 steals and 17 assists. He’s the fifth UK player this offseason to announce his departure for the draft, joining freshman Tyrese Maxey, sophomores Immanuel Quickley and Ashton Hagans and junior Nick Richards. With Montgomery’s departure, the Cats will return just one of this year’s nine scholarship players for next season.player this offseason to announce his deparature for the draft, joining freshman Tyrese Maxey, sophomores Immanuel Quickley and Ashton Hagans and junior Nick Richards.
Editor-in-chief
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Managing editor Michael Clubb editor@kykernel.com News/features editor Lauren Campbell news@kykernel.com Asst. news editors Sports editor
Haley Blackburn Emily Girard
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ON THE COVER UK sophomore music major Katherine Goble poses for a portrait on her front porch on Thursday, April 16, 2020, in Lexington, Kentucky. ARDEN BARNES I STAFF
- Erika Bonner
spring 2020 | 3
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
news
Communications of UK students requested in suit of tenured professor
By Sarah Michels news@kykernel.com
Journalism professor Leland “Buck” Ryan has requested the disclosure of communications between him and at least seven former students as part of his second lawsuit against the University of Kentucky, according to reporting done by the Kentucky Kernel. In early March, in accordance with the federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), several of Ryan’s former journalism students were notified that their communications with Ryan were being requested as part of a pretrial discovery phase. They were given 10 days to file a written objection to disclosure under FERPA with the Fayette County Clerk’s Office if they chose to do so. It is unclear whether or not any students have made any objections on these grounds. Ryan’s counsel, Robert Abell, said that his office has received some, but not all, of the completed document requests. They are currently in the process of reviewing those that have been produced and are awaiting the others. The second lawsuit was initially filed weeks after Ryan’s previous lawsuit against UK ad-
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ministrators regarding alleged rights violations during termination proceedings was dismissed on Nov. 18, 2019. The current lawsuit, Buck Ryan v. Board of Trustees of the University of Kentucky et al, names as defendants the Board of Trustees, Title IX Coordinator Martha Alexander and a former journalism student who filed a complaint with the Office of Institutional Equity (OIE) against Ryan in 2018. Filed in early December 2019, the lawsuit charges the University and Alexander with retaliation and the former student, who was granted anonymity from the Kernel, with defamation and false light against Ryan. Ryan’s former student said she became uncomfortable when Ryan began texting and calling her outside of class time and on the weekends. According to her written statement, Ryan once offered her tickets to attend a UK football game with him, an invitation she did not respond to. According to Ryan’s counsel, these tickets were later offered to 25 other people, including students and faculty. The former student filed a complaint with the OIE office on grounds that Ryan had violated UK’s discrimination and/or sexual ha-
rassment policy. According to a Kernel article about the first lawsuit, Ryan said that the OIE, the office that enforces Title IX, was unfairly weaponized against him after the student’s complaint was filed. The current suit states that UK’s retaliation and the student’s allegedly baseless claim against Ryan has caused him “great emotional distress and mental anguish, embarrassment and humiliation, as well as damage to his personal and professional reputations.” Depending on the findings of the document requests, as well as depositions and interrogatories - written questions answered under oath - some students may be called as witnesses when the second case goes to trial, according to Ryan’s counsel, Robert Abell. Currently, the civil case is still in the pre-trial discovery phase, a process that has been prolonged due to coronavirus complications. Once significant progress is made in the discovery phase, a trial date will be set. Abell said that he anticipates the court date to be scheduled sometime in the first quarter of 2021. The students were not told what exactly the prosecution is looking for within their communications with Ryan.
Journalism professor Buck Ryan before a College of Communication and Information meeting with President Eli Capilouto on Friday, September 21, 2018 in Lexington, Kentucky. PHOTO BY MICHAEL CLUBB | STAFF
Abell said that the communications are relevant to the case since they were the basis of the former student’s complaint with the OIE office against Ryan. “I can’t see any reason why my communications would be very relevant,” said Abbey Huffman, who took two of Ryan’s classes. “Any communication I had with him was quick, normal and me talking to my professor.” This was a common sentiment amongst the other students, most of whom did not object to disclosure of their emails under FERPA. “I don’t know how this is going to end up, but I’d rather them have every bit of information that could help,” said
Bailey Vandiver, a UK senior and former Kernel editor who chose not to file an objection under FERPA. In an email to students in early December 2019, University President Eli Capilouto said the current lawsuit was “without merit” and that UK would not allow the intimidation of any member of its community. Ryan was previously investigated for sexual misconduct by the OIE in 2015. Vandiver said that she has heard bits and pieces of stories about Ryan’s alleged misconduct within his professional capacity as a professor. “You start to get a vibe or feeling of a little bit of discomfort; maybe
nothing explicit that ever happened to you but just a little bit of, ‘is he overstepping his bounds in general as a professor?’” Vandiver said. Arden Barnes, a senior journalism student, said that she attributes some of Ryan’s actions to his unique communication style and the way he is as a person. She said Ryan occasionally emailed her personally during her time in his journalism class. “It wasn’t weird, it was very ‘Buck.’ Not in a bad way, just kind of like unsolicited help in a way,” said Barnes. “Just little things that weren’t out of the ordinary but also weren’t things that all my professors were doing either.”
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
opinions Live from quarantine—it’s Saturday Night Live By Jade Grisham opinions@kykernel.com
Does anyone else feel completely drained from the depressing news we get every waking hour? Now before you cancel me, I’m not trying to underplay the great severity of this pandemic. But I think it’s safe to say we all need a good laugh during these trying times – am I right? With millions of people working from home, from online school to reporters broadcasting straight from their living rooms, it is a well-established fact that we are all learning to live in a new era. That being said, late-night entertainment hopped on the workfrom-home bandwagon to ensure we all remember to laugh and go to bed with smiles on our faces, even during the coronavirus outbreak.
Late-night television is a crucial part of American culture, and COVID-19 has reinvented the way we view it. Shows like The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon & Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC), Conan (TBS), The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS), Jimmy Kimmel Live! (ABC), The Daily Show with Trevor Noah & Lights Out with David Spade (Comedy Central) and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO) have admirably continued to distribute their content throughout this pandemic. As expected, the shows are not as perfect as usual — the “TV magic” is absent. They aren’t filmed in their state-of-the-art studios or operated by the staff that produces the show from the ground up. There is the obvious absence of the live-studio audience that provides that unmatched late-night energy.
Rather, the show is filmed on an iPhone by the host or a family member. The conversation between the host and guest are through either a FaceTime or Zoom conference call. The visually appealing graphic aspects of the show are either from an image in the background on a television or a drawing created by their children. These aspects of television production that were once overlooked are now understood as what makes these shows exceptional and what we look forward to at the end of each day. But these shows have seamlessly transitioned by making viewers feel that they are getting a glimpse inside their lives. Seeing celebrity figures expressing their anxiety concerning the virus and quarantine makes us feel more connected as humans. Viewers are getting to really see
the personalities of the hosts and celebrities all across the world. It truly makes us realize that we are all not that different from one another. The entire process is humanizing. Furthermore, I could not help but wish that my favorite latenight entertainment show, Saturday Night Live (NBC), could somehow do a show. But with quarantine and social distancing I thought that it would be merely impossible for them pull off a sketch comedy show—except it wasn’t. On April 11, 2020, Saturday Night Live aired a historical episode titled, “Saturday Night Live at Home.” The episode was not actually live, but instead prerecorded from home. Tom Hanks hosted the first SNL At Home episode. He was the first celebrity reported to have contracted the coronavirus, so I believe SNL and Hanks thought
it was only fitting that he would host the first quarantine episode. SNL had various sketches that involved one cast member recording themselves performing at home along with make-shift sets, costumes and graphics. Then they’d have some sketches where they would do Zoom calls in which cast members performed a sketch collaboratively. At the end of the show, they beautifully paid homage to one of their crew members, music producer Hal Willner, who passed away from the coronavirus. This episode was exactly what we needed during this time. A mix of humor and humility. All things considered, the coronavirus is no joke. But in order to get through rough times like these, we all need laughter to push through. Stay safe everyone.
ple beauty, insight, and humor in Prine’s songs, which has made him a favorite among other songwriters ranging from superstars like Johnny Cash and Roger Waters to twelve-year-olds learning their first few guitar chords and trying to piece together a rhyme. I remember sitting in my bedroom after my guitar teacher taught me the song “Paradise.” Having been raised on radio classic rock, the song changed me. The energy of the song wasn’t in the loudness or speed, but in the story. The song made me feel emotions that were “grown-up”. I felt prepared for how it would feel when the places we cherish are destroyed, and I knew that I had a friend in John Prine who would help me. Years later, when I visited home and drove by the apartments and neighborhoods that had replaced the fields and woods
where I had once played, I knew there was a song that would offer some comfort. Prine’s power was that his songs were all about the story, not about the artist. He could take on any character and speak their truth. From a lonely woman bored to death in “Angel from Montgomery” or a drug-addicted Vietnam veteran coming home in “Sam Stone,” Prine could portray strong feelings through words and advocate for others. Some of his songs were deeply introspective and made it feel like you were sitting right beside him on a porch talking about the “Souvenirs” that life leaves us in our mind, or what he thought would happen “When I Get to Heaven.” I’m glad he left us with that last song. I listened to it a few times on repeat on my porch when I found
out that John Prine had passed away. That song gave me some hope that his final moments were filled with thoughts of the good times to come. I looked up at the giant full moon and knew that somewhere past it he was dancing in a big nightclub with his family and friends while enjoying a vodka and ginger-ale. Although he has left us behind, his legacy remains. He knew the power of a story and how telling one well could bring a lot of good into the world. Whether it was giving a voice to the forgotten or letting you know that you aren’t alone in feeling the way you do, John Prine’s stories were characterized by honesty, wisdom, compassion, and a healthy dose of humor. As the prospect of life with coronavirus seems to stretch endlessly before us, we could use a few more stories in our world.
We can talk about the things we used to do that we can’t wait to do again, continue the memories of those we lose along the way, and once we are finished, I hope we can tell a happy story of kindness and community that will inspire our children just like John Prine inspired us.
Remembering John Prine, the songs and the stories
By Cameron Luker opinions@kykernel.com
Over the past few weeks, the coronavirus outbreak has left us stuck inside, bored and lonely. It has been hard on a lot of us as we feel disconnected from others and nature. In these dark times, we should take some time to celebrate the life of someone who could make every feeling of alienation and loss leave your body with the strum of his guitar a song and a smile. John Prine lose his fight against COVID-19 on Tuesday, April 7. The folk singer started his career as a mailman who said “this is awful” at an open mic night at a bar in Chicago and took the stage himself. His career took off quickly with the help of some famous admirers including Kris Kristofferson and Bob Dylan. You can escape into the sim-
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news MUSIC
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Learning continues, and not just for current UK music students. College of Fine Arts Recruitment Officer Nathan Williams said not a whole lot has changed for recruiting incoming students. “Luckily all of our
School of Music auditions took place prior to the outbreak of COVID-19,” said Williams. “However, if students are interested in being a part of the ensembles, our voice and instrumental studio pro-
fessors are very flexible and offer online auditions for the fall.” Williams said that they have lost the chance for students to complete on-campus visits and shadowing opportunities. “With that said, many
of my student ambassadors are speaking to prospective students via Zoom, which has been a great tool for the College of Fine Arts Student Affairs team,” said Williams.
UK sophomore music major Katherine Goble collaborates with her friend Annie Brown using Acapella, an app that allows the user to record, synchronize and share songs. PHOTO PROVIDED BY KATHERINE GOBLE
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