News
By Whitney Hale
The 35th annual Kentucky Women Writers Conference has unveiled its line-up for the literary event scheduled Sept. 20–21, 2013, and tickets may now be purchased. The conference, which will feature Louisville poet Kiki Petrosino and other acclaimed writers from around the nation, will also offer five new postgraduate scholarships to attend the event.
The Kentucky Women Writers Conference is an annual event known for bringing notable women writers to Lexington for readings, writing workshops and discussions. A program housed in the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences, the conference is made possible in part by continued community partnerships, including its primary venue, the Carnegie
By Whitney Hale
Florida playwright Jo Morello has won the second biennial Prize for Women Playwrights presented by the Kentucky Women Writers Conference (KWWC) for her full-length play, E.G.O.: The Passions of Eugene Gladstone O'Neill. The prize carries a $500 cash award and a fully staged theatrical production at Balagula Theatre in Lexington, where it will be produced as a world premiere in September 2013. Morello's script was selected by American playwright, television writer and activist Kia Corthron from a pool of more
By Whitney Hale
In celebration of the University of Kentucky's upcoming sesquicentennial in 2015, the 52nd of 150 weekly installments chronicles a set of rules and guidelines of proper behavior given to women at the institution in 1918.
The Woman’s Self Government Association of the University of Kentucky was founded in 1918 to enact and enforce regulations to promote the welfare and further the best living conditions of the women of UK. Article II of their constitution stated that "all women of the University of Kentucky, residing in the halls of residence, fraternity houses and boarding houses were members of the Association until they proved themselves incapable of self-government." The association addressed rules and guidelines for lights out; absences from halls of residences; callers; entertainment; walking and automobiling; picnicking, lunching, and
by Sarah Geegan The African American and Africana Studies (AAAS) program emerged in Fall 2011, uniting African American Studies & Research Program with Africana Studies, to create greater community presence, to provide international study opportunities in the focus area and to work toward creating an undergraduate major. In the Fall 2013, the area will expand even further, as two new distinguished faculty join the program. DaMaris B. Hill, currently a visiting professor of African-American literature from Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, and Chamara Jewel Kwakye, from University of Illinois, will begin teaching in the fall. DaMaris B. Hill is a writer and scholar who earned her doctorate in English-creative writing and women, gender and sexuality studies from the University of Kansas. Her story "On the
By Whitney Hale, Breanna Shelton
The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities has chosen 12 outstanding undergraduates as new scholars for the university's Gaines Fellowship Program for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 academic years. Gaines Fellowships are given in recognition of outstanding academic performance, demonstrated ability to conduct independent research, an interest in public issues and a desire to enhance understanding of the human condition through the humanities.
Gaines Fellowships are awarded for the tenure of a student's junior and senior years, or for the last two years of a five-year program; students in all disciplines and with any intended profession are given equal consideration.
UK's 12
By Whitney Hale, Mack McCormick
University Press of Kentucky (UPK) author bell hooks has been named the recipient of the 2013 Black Caucus of the American Library Association’s (BCALA) Best Poetry Award for her book "Appalachian Elegy: Poetry and Place."
The BCALA Literary Awards recognize excellence in adult fiction, nonfiction, poetry and publishing by African American authors published during the previous year, including an award for Best Poetry and a citation for Outstanding Contribution to Publishing. The award will be presented to hooks at the Annual Conference of the American Library Association
By Whitney Hale
The Kentucky Women Writers Conference will feature best-selling novelist and National Book Award finalist Bonnie Jo Campbell as its keynote speaker at the 2013 conference, scheduled for Sept. 20 and 21.
"Campbell is a fearless teacher and writer whose fiction is shaped by the exigencies of rural Michigan," said Julie Wrinn, director of the Kentucky Women Writers Conference "The vivid sense of place in her work should resonate with Kentuckians, and you might even say that her characters 'kick ass.'"
Bonnie Jo Campbell is the author of the best-selling novel "Once Upon a River" (Norton, 2011), a river odyssey through rural
The James S. Brown Award is given to honor the memory of Professor James S. Brown, a sociologist on the faculty of the University of Kentucky from 1946 to 1982, whose pioneering studies of society, demography, and migration in Appalachia (including his ethnography of “Beech Creek”) helped to establish the field of Appalachian Studies at U.K. and beyond.
The Award supports graduate student research on the Appalachian region. To be eligible, students must be actively enrolled in a master’s or doctoral degree program at U.K. The Award must be used to meet costs of doing research relevant to social life in Appalachia including travel, lodging, copying, interviewing, ethnography, data collection, archival research, transcribing, and other legitimate research expenses. Except under special circumstances, awards will not exceed $1,500. The award does not cover registration or travel
By Erin Berger
An intervention created by a group of University of Kentucky faculty has proven successful in encouraging young women in an area of eastern Kentucky to complete the series of HPV vaccines to guard against cervical cancer.
In 2012, cervical cancer affected approximately 12,000 women in the United States and was responsible for another 4,200 deaths. In rural eastern Kentucky, women are more likely to die from cervical cancer than women residing elsewhere in the United States.
“The worst part about these statistics is that no woman should ever experience cervical cancer,” said Robin Vanderpool, assistant professor of health behavior in the University of Kentucky College of Public Health.
Cervical cancer, a disease that is both preventable and treatable, remains a national public health concern particularly for women in medically
by Sarah Geegan
The University of Kentucky has become one of only 20 universities in the United States to offer a Ph.D. in a rapidly expanding academic field — gender and women's studies.
Professor and director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Gender and Women's Studies, Ellen Riggle, said, "As we see in the media every day, gender is at the core of politics and economics, language and performance. It is a hot topic among academics, and it impacts everyone. Its immediate relevance in our lives invokes interest among students and professors."
Because of the increasing number of both undergraduate and master's programs in gender and women's studies, Riggle said that these programs need faculty trained in scholarship of the
Susan Bordo, the Otis A. Singletary Chair in the Humanities and professor of English and Gender & Women's Studies was recently published in the The Chronicle of Higher Education. Click here to read the full article, "When Fictionalized Facts Matter: From 'Anne of the Thousand Days' to Hilary Mantel's new 'Bring Up the Bodies''.
By Whitney Hale
University of Kentucky Gaines Fellow and knitter Catherine Brereton will unveil the final product of the Diversity Project, which sought to create a visual representation of the community through a large piece of yarn-art. The unveiling of this blanket will be part of Gayla, UK OUTsource's birthday bash, scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 26, in the UK Student Center Small Ballroom.
The Diversity Project blanket is one of several festivities being presented at the Gayla. The event will also include drag shows, music and free food. In addition, donations toward a one-time scholarship of $1,000 will be collected by the project. Applications for this scholarship, which will be presented to a local LGBT
By Sarah Geegan
The Appalachian Center and the University Press of Kentucky are hosting three events Friday, April 20, to celebrate Appalachia-related books published during this academic year.
The events, which will take place both at Memorial Hall and the Appalachian Center, honor books that contribute to the understanding of the Appalachian region and were published by UK faculty or by the University Press of Kentucky during this academic year.
Helen Lewis and Judi Jennings will give an Appalachian forum based on their new book, "Helen Matthews Lewis: Living Social Justice in Appalachia," at 3:30 p.m. in Memorial Hall.
By Jenny Wells
Karen Tice, associate professor in the University of Kentucky College of Education Department of Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation, recently authored her new book, "Queens of Academe: Beauty Pageantry, Student Bodies, and Campus Life," published by Oxford University Press.
Tice, who also holds a joint appointment in the UK College of Arts and Sciences Department of Gender and Women's Studies, will lecture on the topic from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 18, in the President's Room at the Singletary Center for the Arts. A reception will follow. Tice also will be at Morris Book Shop on East High Street for a book signing from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 26.
From the Oxford University Press site:
"In 'Queens of Academe,' Karen W. Tice
By Whitney Hale, Lea Mann
The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities has chosen 10 outstanding undergraduates as new scholars for the university's Gaines Fellowship Program for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 academic years.
Gaines Fellowships are given in recognition of outstanding academic performance, demonstrated ability to conduct independent research, an interest in public issues and a desire to enhance understanding of the human condition through the humanities. Fellowships are awarded for the tenure of a student's junior and senior years, or for the last two years of a five-year program; students in all disciplines and with any intended profession are given equal consideration.
UK's 10 new Gaines
By Sarah Geegan
The African American and Africana Studies Program at the University of Kentucky will present the 18th annual Black Women's Conference March 22-24.
The conference, titled, "Learning the Ropes: Black Girlhood, Identity and the Power of Play," will center specifically on the lives and expressions of African-American girls. Incorporating expert speakers, performances, panels and activities both on campus and in the community, the conference will reveal the significance of play in the lives of African-American girls.
Melynda Price, professor in the UK College of Law
By Kathy Johnson
University of Kentucky educators and others will be honored with teaching and public service awards today in UK's second annual Founders Day Award Ceremony at 4 p.m. in Worsham Theater in the UK Student Center. Members of the campus and local communities are invited. A reception will follow in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Cultural Center.
The university was created by legislative act on Feb. 22, 1865. While Founders Day has been celebrated in various ways over those years, the Founders Day Award Ceremony was established last year to recognize outstanding teaching, research and public service among faculty.
The Provost's Awards for teaching and service, the Sullivan Medallions for community service, the Sturgill Award for contributions to graduate education, and the Kirwan Prize for outstanding research will be presented in today's
By Sarah Geegan
Three experts in the areas of gender, sexuality and politics of identity will share insight with UK students in professor Vershawn Young's classes this spring.
Young, of the Department of Gender and Women's Studies and the Department of English, will incorporate the speaker series including Daniel Black, Lisa Moore and Sharon Bridgforth into his ENG 480 and GWS 595 classes. These courses focus on gender and race in documentary film through the work of late film maker Marlon Riggs. Riggs' work addressed representations of African Americans in the
By Sarah Geegan, Jessica Powers
The University of Kentucky Department of Gender and Women's Studies will host a series of lectures covering the diverse topic of queens. The lectures will be given by professors Rusty Barrett, Susan Bordo and Karen Tice.
Barrett, assistant professor of linguistics, will present his lecture, titled "Sickening Queens," Thursday, Feb. 16. The lecture will showcase linguistic research to explore how drag performances reflect social and cultural differences related to class and ethnicity — including differences in language
By Sarah Geegan, Jonathon Spalding
It started with a simple question, then grew into a large online survey with responses from over 1,000 people from across the U.S. and abroad. A new book by Ellen Riggle and Sharon Rostosky, “A Positive View of LGBTQ: Embracing Identity and Cultivating Well-Being," explores what’s positive about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer identities.
“It is the right question at the right time. People want to share their positive experiences,” said Riggle, UK professor in the departments of Gender and Women’s Studies and Political Science.