Compiled by Tasha Ramsey

Three students of Japan studies have been accepted by the JET (Japan Exchange and Teaching) program, sponsored by the Japanese government. Mikayla Rogers (Japan studies minor), Naomi Hayes (Japan studies minor), and Samantha Warford (Japan studies major) will work full-time as Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs) in the public school system in Japan this fall. We caught up with two of the three participants for some questions as they prepare for their travels.

Naomi Hayes

Hometown: Louisville, KY
Major: Biology
Minor: Japan Studies
Year: Senior
Fun fact: President of Korean pop dance group on campus for four years

Mikayla Rogers

Photo: (L to R) Stuart Nealis (UK grad student), Dwight Cropper (Kentucky Native American Heritage Commission), Josh McConaughy (Archaeological Conservancy), Kary Stackelbeck (KHC), Charlie Holbrook (local attorney), Bruce VanHorn (President, Town Square Bank), Helen Danser (Chair, KNAHC), and George Crothers (UK anthropology professor) at dedication.

By Gail Hairston

(May 28, 2015) — University of Kentucky anthropology doctoral students and professors played an instrumental role in the donation of a prehistoric Native American mound in Greenup County to the Archaeological Conservancy, a national nonprofit dedicated to acquiring and protecting endangered archaeological sites.

By Whitney Harder

(May 28, 2015) — “I never really thought I’d be working on something like this,” said Michael Roup, who earned his bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics from the University of Kentucky earlier this month. Roup is referring to his work on unveiling text in ancient scrolls with computer software.

Roup, a UK Presidential Scholar from Crestwood, Kentucky, joined the ancient scrolls team led by UK Department of Computer Science Professor and Chair Brent Seales last summer. Roup has since been

The Department of Geography is proud to announce that Carolyn Finney will be joining the department's faculty this fall. She most recently was in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at the University of California-Berkeley.

“Her research interests are broad, and coalesce around questions of difference, identity, nature, and place. Her work is exciting in the way it challenges the academy’s traditional boundaries of research, teaching, and service; and her commitment to public engagement in a variety of guises and settings also requires a methodological attention to participation, partnerships, collaboration, and perhaps even entails a radical epistemology. Dr. Finney’s book, Black Spaces, White Spaces out last year, UNC press, widely noted and favorably received; and has drawn much attention

By Whitney Harder

(March 26, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Department of Biology welcomed researchers from Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as renowned Dutch scientist Serge Daan, as it hosted the 4th Biennial Conference of Rhythms in the Southeast Region (RISER) this past weekend.

At the UK/Lexmark Center for Innovation in Math and Science Education on Saturday, May 23, researchers presented their work in oral and poster presentations throughout the day. Daan, the Niko Tinbergen Distinguished Honorary Professor in Behavioural Biology at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, delivered a keynote speech on the history of the chronobiology. 

Chronobiology is the study of

By Blair Hoover, Rebecca Stratton

(May 19, 2015) — Locally grown produce returns to the University of Kentucky for the Lexington Farmers Market's fourth season on UK's campus.

Through Aug. 12, a variety of local vendors will set up on Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. in the lawn at E.S. Good Barn located on University Drive. The farmers market is open to the general public and the UK community.

The market will take place rain or shine. Free parking is available from 3 to 6 p.m. at the nearby

By Jenny Wells

(May 18, 2015) — May 9, approximately 3,000 students participated in the University of Kentucky May 2015 Commencement Ceremonies. Full videos of each ceremony are now available online (see below) and will also air on UKTV Channel 16 (on Time Warner Cable in Lexington) starting next week.

UKTV will air the ceremonies every Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 9 a.m., 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. beginning May 22 and continuing through June 7. The Graduate and Professional Ceremony will air during the 9 a.m. time slots, with the Undergraduate Ceremonies following at the 1 and 6 p.m. times. 

All ceremonies took place Saturday, May 9 in Rupp Arena. Read more about the May 2015 Commencement Ceremonies.

The 9 a.m. Graduate and Professional Ceremony:

By Sarah Schuetze

They conduct lab research and teach classes, but they are neither faculty nor graduate students. Postdoctoral scholars, or postdocs, serve an important role at UK, a research institution. However, they are scattered across various departments and have not always had an opportunity to meet and share their work.

Professor Susan Odom in Chemistry said, “Most postdocs don’t have any kind of formal gatherings that are specifically targeted toward them.“ In 2014, Odom collaborated with Matt Casselman, a postdoc in Chemistry, to organize UK’s Society of Postdoctoral Scholars (SOPS). SOPS offers weekly activities like professional development workshops or research presentations.  

On Friday, June

By Eli Capilouto

The end of another academic year provides an opportunity to reflect on all that the UK family has accomplished together. It’s been a successful year, and I’ve been sharing several hallmarks of our progress with communities around our state.  

We’re a University of choice for an increasing number of students. Our enrollment passed 30,000 for the first time in Fall 2014. Among those students were 113 National Merit, National Achievement and National Hispanic Scholars, bringing the total to 289 in the last three years. This places us in the Top 10 among public institutions with these scholars.

This past weekend, we awarded degrees to a larger number of students than at any point in our history. During the May Commencement, the University conferred more than 4,500 undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. This cohort of students is added to

By Kody Kiser, Amy Jones-Timoney

(May 13, 2015) — The University of Kentucky continues to celebrate its 150-year history with a special video featuring the poetry of Frank X Walker.   

The UK English professor and poet, noted for coining the term Affrilachia and co-founder of the Affrilachian Poets, wrote “Seedtime in the Commonwealth” and presented it during the Founder’s Day Convocation in February.

The former Kentucky poet

By Jenny Wells

(May 8, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Board of Trustees today approved University Research Professorships for 2015-16 for four faculty members. The professorships carry a $40,000 award to support research. Funds for these annual awards are provided by the Office of the Vice President for Research.

Now in its 39th year, the University Research Professors program's purpose is to enhance and encourage scholarly research productivity, to provide an opportunity for concentrated research effort for selected faculty members, and to recognize outstanding research achievement by members of the faculty.

The 2015-16 University Research Professors are:

Lance E. De Long, a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the UK College of Arts and Sciences, has had

By Whitney Hale

(May 12, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities and the UK College of Arts and Sciences are teaming up to present a series of workshops on violence and the human condition. The first of several events, a workshop on political violence and how it is measured, will take place Wednesday-Friday, May 13-15, at various locations across campus. This workshop is free and open to the public.

Arts and Sciences and the Gaines Center are sponsoring a year of programming around the broad theme of "Violence and the Human Condition."  Over the course of the 2015-16 academic year, faculty members from many different UK departments will collaborate with each other and with visiting experts from other

By Whitney Harder

(May 11, 2015) — Dave Moecher, professor and chair of the University of Kentucky Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, has been named the Earth and Environmental Sciences Endowed Alumni Professor.

The Earth and Environmental Sciences Endowed Alumni Professorship is awarded to a tenured full professor who has made outstanding contributions to research and education in the field of earth and environmental sciences. The establishment of the professorship was driven completely by alumni; namely Ken Neavel, William Foley, Steve Sullivan and Jim Pear.  

"It is a profound honor to be awarded the Earth and Environmental Sciences Alumni Professorship because I have a high regard for and appreciation of the

By Blair Hoover, Rebecca Stratton

(May 8, 2015) — Three University of Kentucky students have received the Undergraduate Research Abroad Scholarship (UGRAS), which will support their international independent research projects during the 2015 summer session.

Annie Griggs, a biology major in the College of Arts and Sciences, Faith VanMeter, a psychology major in the College of Arts and Sciences and Marcel Roman, a political science and international studies double major in the College of Arts and Sciences are the recipients of the scholarship — chosen because they demonstrate the ability to explore exceptional academic undergraduate research abroad with the support of UK faculty mentors.  UGRAS is a result of funding from a collaboration between the

By Jenny Wells

(May 8, 2015) — On Saturday, May 9, thousands will fill Rupp Arena to celebrate the University of Kentucky Class of 2015.

The May 2015 Commencement Ceremonies will recognize the accomplishments of undergraduate, graduate and professional students who will have completed their degrees by the end of the spring 2015 semester. Graduate and professional degrees will be conferred at 9 a.m.; and undergraduate degrees will be conferred at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m.  All ceremonies will be streamed live on UKNow. 

Saturday's ceremonies include: 

By Whitney Hale

(May 7, 2015) — Two seems to be a lucky number for graduating senior Sibi Rajendran, of Frankfort, Kentucky.

Two years ago, Rajendran, the son of Narayanan and Preetha Rajendran, graduated from two high schools simultaneously in two different Kentucky communities. He finished his secondary studies at Franklin County High School, in Frankfort, and the Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science, in Bowling Green, in May of 2013.

On May 9, with the benefit of college studies completed at the Gatton Academy, Rajendran is finishing up his major in biology and minor in

By Laura Skillman

(May 7, 2015) — For several years, University of Kentucky students have been able to take classes related to the wine, beer and distilled spirits industries. Now, those courses will come together into a cohesive undergraduate certification program that will prepare students for careers in this growing economic sector.

Wine, brewing and distillation form a multi-billion dollar industry with myriad career opportunities in science, engineering and the arts, said Seth DeBolt, horticulture professor in the College of Agriculture, Food and Environment.

“Through the undergraduate certificate in distillation, wine and brewing studies (DWBS), students will gain the knowledge and skills needed to pursue various career options within

By Whitney Hale

(May 7, 2015) — Two University of Kentucky seniors have been chosen for internships with Space Camp Turkey. Emily Furnish, a chemistry and music performance major, and Damir Kocer, an economics and marketing major, will serve among a select group of Turkish and American counselors at the facility in Izmir, Turkey.

As one of three space and science education centers, Space Camp Turkey is focused on motivating young people from around the world in pursuing careers in science, math and

By Sarah Schuetze

“We thought we’d do one more run,” said Cory Zigmund about a trip he took to Colorado to visit his brother during the summer of 2013. They were on a backcountry glacier and planned to hike to the top and snowboard down. On the ride down, Zigmund hit a ditch on the rough slope and wiped out, completely dislocating his shoulder. As a trained U.S. Navy SEAL medic, Zigmund knew how to fix it, but his brother had to do it. Step-by-step, he walked his brother through the processes of popping his bone back into joint so they could complete the run.

Zigmund has filled his life with adventures — most of which have not required impromptu medical assistance on the face of a glacier. But even the especially challenging ones haven’t discouraged him from taking advantage of an opportunity to explore something new.

Hiking, climbing, snowboarding, and diving

By Whitney Hale, Mack McCormick

(May 6, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Department of History, in partnership with University Press of Kentucky, will celebrate the life and career of late University of Kentucky Professor of History Lance Banning. The event scheduled for May 15 will feature a talk on Banning’s legacy by Oakland University Associate Professor of History Todd Estes, one of Banning's first doctoral students.

Editor of a posthumous collection of Banning’s essays,