By Lindsey Piercy

The American Council on Education has announced that Chana Akins, professor of psychology at the University of Kentucky, has been named an ACE Fellow for the 2018-19 academic year.

Established in 1965, the ACE Fellows Program is designed to strengthen institutions and leadership in American higher education by identifying and preparing faculty and staff for senior positions in college and university administration through its distinctive and intensive nominator-driven, cohort-based mentorship model. Following nomination by the senior administration of their institutions and a rigorous application process, 45 fellows were selected this year.

More than 2,000 higher education leaders have participated in the ACE Fellows Program over the past five decades, with more than 80 percent of fellows having gone on to serve as senior leaders of

By Blair Hoover Conner

The University of Kentucky recognized exceptional faculty and teaching assistants at the Outstanding Teaching Awards at the 2018 University of Kentucky Awards Ceremony on Thursday, April 19, in the Lexmark Room at the Main Building. Recipients of Inclusive Excellence Awards, in partnership with the Office for Institutional Diversity, were also recognized.

UK Provost David Blackwell presented the William B. Sturgill Award, the Albert D. and Elizabeth H. Kirwan Memorial Prize, the Outstanding Teaching Faculty and Teaching Assistant Awards.

"The diversity of disciplines reflected in the Outstanding Teaching Award winners speaks to the breadth and depth that distinguishes the University of Kentucky," Blackwell said. "But, of course, no matter the discipline, each recipient shares something of lasting importance: the art of great teaching

By Lindsey Piercy

Two University of Kentucky faculty members were honored for their outstanding contributions to teaching and scholarship at the 2018 Provost Awards ceremony held April 19.

Keh-Fei Liu, professor of physics and astronomy, was presented the 2018 Albert D. and Elizabeth H. Kirwan Memorial Prize, given each year to a faculty member in recognition of outstanding contributions to original research or scholarship, with an emphasis on work produced four years prior to the award.

Dibakar Bhattacharyya, professor of chemical and materials engineering, was presented the 2018 Sturgill Award, given each year to a graduate faculty member who has provided outstanding contributions to graduate education at UK.

Keh-Fei Liu

In his 37 years at UK, Liu has successfully built an internationally recognized research program in

By Lindsey Piercy

In front of a crowd of fellow classmates, faculty, staff and local leaders, victimology student Ann Pitts stepped to the podium and began to share a heartfelt story of hurt, hope and healing.

"Beyond protecting society from crime, we need to protect our survivors," Pitts said. "This has inspired a fire in me to keep pushing for change."

Pitts is one of several passionate students who had a hand in organizing the Clothesline Project held on the University of Kentucky campus on April 12.

"I decided to speak because I believe if you want to change things, you have to be brave. I wasn't just being brave for myself but for all of the survivors in the audience," Pitts continued. "I was silent for three years of my life, but I know now that it's time to speak up. I don't want survivors to think speaking out is the only option towards

Awards are rolling in for Political Science major Hadeel Abdallah.

First, she won entry into the College of Arts & Science's Trunzo Scholars Program, taking the top ($5,000) award so that she could pursue a nationally recognized internship.

Then, she won the university's VanMeter Award for outstanding volunteer and community service.

But the big prize -- and the big surprise -- came today.  A number of top UK administrators joined Hadeel's mentors, Prof. Jesse C. Johnson and Prof. Tiffany Barnes, in a surprise visit to Hadeel's class to announce that she'd received the nationally competitive $30,000 Truman Scholarship for graduate study.  Given to students intending to pursue a career in public service.

Charles P. Roland, alumni professor emeritus at the University of Kentucky, celebrated a major milestone last weekend. On Sunday, the leading scholar turned 100 years old.

Family, friends and colleagues threw a surprise party in his honor. Festivities included a military honor guard and the singing of “Happy Birthday to You” and the Army song by the UK Department of History's faculty. One of Roland's doctoral students, Thomas Appleton, presented a resolution commending Roland on behalf of UK President Eli Capilouto.

Roland, the son and grandson of teachers, holds a bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University, a master's degree from George Washington University and a doctoral degree in history from Louisiana State University.

As a former captain in the United States Army, Roland's achievements reach far

By Lindsey Piercy

A group of UK College of Arts & Sciences students in the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures and Cultures, are being recognized for outstanding accomplishments on a national level.

Sophia Decker was named the 2018 recipient for best student paper at the Eta Sigma Phi (National Classics Honor Society) convention, held March 23-25, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. The paper titled, "Dorians Are Allowed to Speak Doric: Theocritus’ Idyll XV in the Context of Panhellenization" will be published in its entirety in the society's newsletter, NUNTIUS. Developed under the guidance of Jackie Murray, assistant professor of classics at UK, the paper reads the idyll as a manifesto for the survival of Greek regional dialects against the spread of a standardized form of Greek.

Valerio Caldesi Valeri, assistant professor of classics and Eta

Science is all around us, from the design of the buildings we drive by on our way to work, to the brewing of our favorite beverages, to the development of pharmaceuticals to help us live longer and healthier lives. But how much do you know about how these everyday commodities actually work?

A group of professors and students at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy, along with community partners like Keeneland and AllTech are working together to introduce the Lexington community to the science around us. Everything is Science is a science festival that will be held at different locations all throughout the city, with concurrent events happening Thursday, April 26th through Saturday, April 28th.

Everything is Science aims to bridge the gap between scientists and the general public while making science accessible. Their mission is to demonstrate how

By Kaitlyn Summe

The University of Kentucky's #IAmAWomanInSTEM project will host a week of activities featuring speakers and panels to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education and careers. This celebration week — #IAmAWomanInSTEMWeek — was created to encourage, empower and motivate women in STEM by sharing their stories and helping them network with other students and professionals.

The week of events was organized by Kayla Kuhfeldt, a senior from Grand Rapids, Michigan, studying biology and health, society and populations in the UK College of Arts and Sciences.

“Being a woman pursuing a career in a STEM field can feel daunting, however there are plenty of