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By Madison Dyment

The University of Kentucky prides itself on housing a diverse faculty whose work is rewarded with numerous achievements. Srimati Basu, an Associate Professor in Gender Studies and Anthropology, has added to this exalted tradition, having recently been named the president-elect for the Association for Feminist Anthropology (AFA).

Despite conducting most of her work in the anthropology and gender studies field, Basu comes from an English literature background. She received her undergraduate degree from Calcutta, her master’s degree from Purdue and her Ph.D. from Ohio State.

“My major in college was English, my minor in history and philosophy and my master’s is in English,” Basu said. “It was in the middle of my master’s when I thought I wanted to do more

By Lindsey Piercy

From left to right: Regina Hamilton, Derrick White, Bertin Louis, Nikki Brown, Frances Henderson, Kamahra Ewing

In an effort to build institutional excellence, an inclusive curriculum and faculty diversity, the University of Kentucky is welcoming six new educators to the College of Arts and Sciences.

Cluster hiring — hiring multiple scholars into one or more departments based on shared research interest — is a way to advance the university's commitment to diversity and inclusion, while also fostering a learning environment dedicated to collaboration and engagement.

"Not only does hiring multiple faculty members signal our commitment to African American and Africana Studies within the college, but it also creates a

By Lindsey Piercy

 

Two faculty members at the University of Kentucky have been appointed to the Kentucky Advisory Committee of the United States Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR).

Cristina Alcalde and Jennifer Hunt, both in the Department of Gender and Women's Studies (GWS) in the College of Arts and Sciences, were selected as representatives and will each serve a four-year term.

The USCCR is an independent, bipartisan agency charged with advising the president and Congress on civil rights matters. Their mission is to inform the development of national policy and enhance enforcement

Dear Friends,

While at UK, Joan Callahan touched the lives of generations of our students and impacted this College and University profoundly for the better.  It was my great honor to induct her in the A&S Hall of Fame in 2010. I asked her good friend and colleague, Patty Cooper, to write a note about Joan that I could share with our faculty. Patty consulted with a few colleagues and wrote the tribute below. Joan will be greatly missed by our community.

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Emerita Professor Joan Callahan (1946-2019) joined the UK Philosophy Department in 1986 and served as Director of the Women’s Studies Program (later renamed Gender and Women’s Studies Program) from 1998-2002 and after a one-year sabbatical returned as Director from 2003 through 2007. She led the move to make GWS a Department with a major and

GWS is offering two sections of GWS 201: Gender and Popular Culture in the second summer session (June 20-Aug 1). 

GWS 201 examines the role of popular culture in the construction of gendered identities in contemporary society.  We will examine a wide range of pop culture forms [including movies, music, video games, and tv] to illustrate how femininity and masculinity are produced, represented, and consumed. 

 

By Lori Adams

The University of Kentucky has released its Dean's List for the spring 2019 semester. A total of 6,562 students were recognized for their outstanding academic performance. 

To make a Dean’s List in one of the UK colleges, a student must earn a grade-point average of 3.6 or higher and must have earned 12 credits or more in that semester, excluding credits earned in pass-fail classes. Some UK colleges require a 3.5 GPA to make the Dean’s List.

The full Dean's List can be accessed by visiting: www.uky.edu/PR/News/DeansList/.

By Ryan Girves

Back row L to R: Ellen Riggle, Cristina Alcalde, Brandon Colbert, Corey Baker, Janice Kuperstein, Kai Zhang. Front row L to R: Melissa Stein, Michelle, Del Toro, Carol Mason. Mark Cornelison | UK Photo.

The University of Kentucky Office for Institutional Diversity recognized students, faculty and a department with the Inclusive Excellence Awards yesterday at the 2019 University of Kentucky Awards Ceremony. 

"Creating inclusive excellence throughout our campus community requires us to work in collaboration with each other," said Sonja Feist-Price, vice president for institutional diversity. "We have students, faculty, staff, and academic and professional units that give of themselves beyond what anyone would ask or expect. And they do so because of their

By Aaron Porter and Jenny Wells

Today and tomorrow, people from all around the world are coming together on the University of Kentucky campus to explore the global impact of the #MeToo movement.  

This two-day, international symposium, "Comparative Perspectives on #MeToo," will feature scholars, students and activists from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America discussing the impact, scope, connections and challenges associated with #MeToo and similar movements. 

"The issues behind #MeToo and similar movements have affected women and others in higher education and other settings for a long time, yet we rarely have the opportunity to discuss these issues across nations, languages and other differences," said Cristina Alcade, associate dean of inclusion and internationalization in the UK College of Arts and Sciences and co-organizer of

(L to R) Sebastiana Smith, Rory Barron, Jasemine Jones, Erin Hoskins, and Michelle Kuiper

The Department of Gender & Women’s Studies is excited to introduce our first cohort of Tomasky Leaders! The Tomasky Leaders Scholarship Fund, which serves undergraduate students at the University of Kentucky, encourages students to engage in politics and public debate, to pursue higher office, and to lead an activist life.

Scholarship recipients, the Tomasky Leaders, will receive funding for registration and travel fees for leadership and activism trainings, seminars, conferences, programs, and cost-of-living expenses for unpaid internships.

Rory Barron is a student activist at the University of Kentucky who has participated in many local activist organizations and will be attending the Civil Liberties

By Whitney Hale

University of Kentucky juniors Shania Goble, of Inez, Kentucky, and Katie Huffman, of Harrodsburg, Kentucky, have been awarded English-Speaking Union (ESU) Scholarships presented by the English-Speaking Union Kentucky Branch. The scholarships will cover Goble and Huffman's expenses for summer study at Oxford University.

The Kentucky Branch of the English-Speaking Union awards a limited number of scholarships to qualified Kentucky college students for courses offered at institutions in the United Kingdom. Scholarship awards include tuition, lodging and meals for three-week courses at the recipient's chosen institution. Scholarships also include one week of lodging in London and a cash allowance. 

ESU scholarships are awarded for

By Chris Crumrine, Amy Jones-Timoney, Kody Kiser, and Brad Nally

 

“To actually be in Washington, D.C. is unlike anything that you can experience in a classroom or here in Kentucky,” says Hayley Leach. “The hands-on experience is unlike anything you can get.”

That is the primary goal of the University of Kentucky’s WilDCats at the Capitol program — to provide students with unique opportunities in the nation’s capital; support them through organized housing, academic credit and financial aid; and provide a rewarding and professional experience that will serve them beyond graduation.

Over the last year, more than 40 UK students from multiple disciplines have walked the halls of Congress alongside elected officials and policymakers, gaining a dynamic academic and professional experience

Alli Peoples graduated in spring 2018 with her bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Spanish. Upon graduation, she moved to Madrid, Spain, where she is currently working as an English Language and Culture Assistant at the bilingual primary school, CEIP Lepanto. At Lepanto, Alli not only plays an active role in English instruction in the classroom in multiple subject areas, but also in helping students to develop a multicultural mindset. In her words, “being an International Studies major helped me develop a foundation of knowledge that gave me the confidence to pursue a job abroad.” She believes her ability to help cultivate this mindset in her students was greatly enhanced by her coursework as an International Studies major, which helped her to first understand the shared values and identities of her own culture and then employ this knowledge to develop an understanding and

Jennifer Hunt, faculty in Gender and Women's Studies, was recently interviewed for the Excited Utterance: The Evidence and Proof Podcast. 

Listen to Jennifer Hunt's interview, "The Cost of Character"

The new internship catalog for 2018-2019 is here!

GWS makes available an intership catalogue that includes internships, as well as, leadership tranings, seminars, and conferences that students may be interested in.  

You can access the catalogue here.

By: Loralyn Cecil

Andrea Jenkins, who made history last November as the first openly transgender black woman elected to public office in the U.S, will join Garth Greenwell, a native Kentuckian and author of "What Belongs to You," as keynote speakers at the second annual Kentucky Gender and Women’s Studies Conference.

The conference takes place on Sept. 8, in the Bill Gatton Student Center at the University of Kentucky. Registration is free for UK students, faculty and staff. The public is welcome to attend and can register in advance or on-site the day of the event.

Jenkins, who was elected to serve on the Minneapolis City Council, is a writer, performance artist, poet and transgender activist. She developed her reputation for addressing youth violence and improving neighborhoods. Jenkins is a nationally

By Nate Harling

The University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences is entering the eighth year of its Passport to the World initiative, a yearlong exploration of the culture and history of different areas of the world and interdisciplinary topics. This year’s program explores the role migration has played and continues to play in shaping societies across the globe, and here at home.  

“Migration has played a crucial role in human history, and in shaping contemporary societies, and we want to emphasize and critically examine interconnections among world areas and people across the globe, as well as how migration is central to our societies,” said Cristina Alcalde, associate dean of inclusion and internationalization in the college, and one of the co-organizers of

 

 

Dr. Anastasia Todd is our newest assistant professor. She specializes in Feminist Disability Studies, Girlhood Studies, and Affect Theory. Her research has been showcased in journals such as Transformations and Girlhood Studies with titles such as “Disabled Girlhood and Flexible Exceptionalism in HBO’s Miss You Can Do It” and “’Cute Girl in Wheelchair—Why?’: Cripping Youtube,” which was nominated for the Center for LGBTQ Studies Sylvia Rivera Award in Transgender Studies. She has also had featured book chapters in Youth Meditations and Affective Relations and MTV and Teen Pregnancy: Critical Essays on 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom. Dr. Todd has taught courses on Women and Sexuality, Gender and Disability, History of Feminist Thought, Feminist Methods, and Affect Theory. She will be joining us from Arizona State University where she earned her

Luke Bradley and Janice Fernheimer received the University of Kentucky 2018 Excellent Undergraduate Research Mentor Award. This student-nominated award recognizes UK faculty members who demonstrate an outstanding commitment to mentoring undergraduate researchers, providing exceptional undergraduate research experiences, as well as supporting and promoting the undergraduate research initiatives on campus.

Eighteen faculty mentors were nominated for the award by their students.

Bradley is an associate professor and research mentor in the Department of Neuroscience and the Department of Molecular and

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

Several University of Kentucky faculty members within the College of Arts and Sciences presented research at the Association for Asian Studies annual conference last weekend.

The four-day event, in Washington, D.C., brought together scholars, professors, researchers and authors from around the world to present research and discuss topics devoted to the study of Asia.

The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) is the largest Asian Studies conference held in North America. More than 3,000 people attended this year, including UK faculty:

Srimati Basu, professor of gender and women's studies; Masamichi Inoue, associate professor of