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A&S Faculty Appointed to 13th Cohort of the SEC Academic Leadership Program

By Haley Evans

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 22, 2021) — Four University of Kentucky faculty members have been named Southeastern Conference Academic Leadership Development Program Fellows during the 2021-22 academic year. They represent the 13th cohort of SEC ALDP Fellows.

Established in 2008-09, the program seeks to identify, prepare and advance academic leaders for roles within SEC institutions and beyond. Main features of the program include a university-level development program designed by each institution for its own fellows and two SEC-wide three-day workshops held on specified campuses for all program participants.

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, members of cohort 13 will participate in virtual sessions and in-person workshops. The University of Georgia hosted a virtual program launch last week, and the University of South Carolina is scheduled to host an in-person workshop in February. In addition, the fellows will participate in a summer virtual session and a second workshop at the University of Georgia next fall.

In addition to the events planned by SEC member schools, the UK fellows have opportunities to engage in small-group conversations with select members of UK’s administrative leaders, as well as other state leaders in higher education, including Aaron Thompson, president of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education. 

The four 2021-21 SEC ALDP Fellows from UK are:

  • DeShana G. Collett, vice chair of the University Senate Council, course director for clinical methods and patient evaluation management and professor of physician assistant studies in the College of Health Sciences.
  • Sarah Lyon, associate dean of faculty in the College of Arts & Sciences and a professor of anthropology.
  • Carrie B. Oser, associate director of the Center for Health Equity Transformation, associate director of the Substance Use Priority Research Area within the Office of the Vice President for Research and professor of sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences.
  • Kenneth M. Tyler, associate dean of inclusion and internationalization in the College of Education and professor and chair of the Department of Educational, School and Counseling Psychology.

G.T. Lineberry, UK associate provost for faculty advancement, has served as UK’s program liaison since 2012. He is responsible for overseeing the program for UK participants.

“Since the ALDP inception, we have had 46 UK faculty participate in the program,” Lineberry said. “Many have gone on to serve in leadership roles here at UK and elsewhere. By my count, at least 16 of the former fellows are, or already have been, deans or interim deans, associate or vice provosts, vice presidents and/or provosts.” 

"To be selected for the SEC Academic Leadership Development Program is both an investment by the home university in the person and a recognition of his or her academic leadership potential,” said Torie A. Johnson, SEC associate commissioner for academic relations. “The fellows in cohort 13 bring a wealth of experience and expertise to a unique time in the operation of the SEC Academic Leadership Development Program.”

A full list of the 2021-22 SEC ALDP Fellows can be found on the SECU website.

The University of Kentucky is increasingly the first choice for students, faculty and staff to pursue their passions and their professional goals. In the last two years, Forbes has named UK among the best employers for diversity, and INSIGHT into Diversity recognized us as a Diversity Champion four years running. UK is ranked among the top 30 campuses in the nation for LGBTQ* inclusion and safety. UK has been judged a “Great College to Work for" three years in a row, and UK is among only 22 universities in the country on Forbes' list of "America's Best Employers."  We are ranked among the top 10 percent of public institutions for research expenditures — a tangible symbol of our breadth and depth as a university focused on discovery that changes lives and communities. And our patients know and appreciate the fact that UK HealthCare has been named the state’s top hospital for five straight years. Accolades and honors are great. But they are more important for what they represent: the idea that creating a community of belonging and commitment to excellence is how we honor our mission to be not simply the University of Kentucky, but the University for Kentucky.