By Hillary Smith

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 6, 2020) — Members of the University of Kentucky Spinal Cord and Brain Injury Research Center (SCoBIRC), in collaboration with UK College of Arts and Sciences, are working to increase the representation of Black undergraduate students in neuroscience.

“It is our obligation as professors and scientists to train the next generation of neuroscientists and to promote diversity and inclusivity in doing so,” said Mark Prendergast, director of the neuroscience B.S. degree program within the College of Arts & Sciences.

SCoBIRC is providing $25,000 to fund five yearly research training awards for undergraduate

By Richard LeComte

LEXINGTON, KY (July 20, 2020) – Three current faculty members and one incoming assistant professor of the University of Kentucky’s Psychology Department have delved into studies addressing the effects the COVID-19 virus pandemic has had on Americans. The projects range from exploring the virus’s effects on spike proteins on the brain to how middle- and high-schoolers are changing their consumption of media after schools went online.

These incipient efforts will bear fruit for helping the United States cope with the disaster and demonstrate the relevance of research in UK’s College of Arts & Sciences. The faculty members are Pooja Sidney, Christia Brown and Mark Prendergast; the incoming faculty member, Matthew Kim, is coming from the University of Washington.

Pooja

On July1 , 2020, Dr. Lynda Sharrett-Field will become the new Director of Undergraduate Studies in Neuroscience, replacing Dr. Robin Cooper.

You may begin contacting Dr. Sharrett-Field with any questions beginning now, at lsharrett@uky.edu

Dr. Cooper will be appointed Associate Director of the major and will work closely with Director Dr. Mark Prendergast.  Dr. Sharrett-Field received her Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology (Neuroscience track) in 2013 and has been a member of the Psychology Department since that time, focusing on the teaching of behavioral neuroscience.  Since 2015, Dr. Sharrett-Field has been a member of the Advisory Board of the Neuroscience B.S. Program. She looks forward to working with you all !

By Richard LeComte

Three University of Kentucky professors have received the College of Arts & Sciences Award for the Promotion of Diversity and Inclusion. The award recognizes a faculty member who has helped to develop a more diverse atmosphere in the College.

The College Inclusivity Committee reviewed the nominations. The awardees are: DaMaris Hill, associate professor of English and Creative Writing;  

Congratulations to undergraduate researcher Abigail Wilcox and graduate student Caleb Bailey !!

Abby and Caleb were awarded a grant, entitled "Tauopathic Characterization of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: The Impact of Alcohol-Induced Neuroinflammation on Insulin Insensitivity in Sustained Tau Phosphorylation", from the University of Kentucky Substance Abuse Research Priority Area (SUPRA).

These studies will examine a new theory of how alcohol damages the developing brain !

By Whitney Hale

LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 5, 2020) — University of Kentucky Office of Nationally Competitive Awards has announced that five recent UK graduates of the College of Arts & Sciences received Fulbright U.S. Student Program scholarships. The UK recipients are among approximately 2,100 U.S. students who will travel abroad for the 2020-21 academic year.

Recipients of Fulbright grants are selected based on academic or professional achievement as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The program operates in more than 160 countries. 

The UK alumni awarded Fulbright grants are:

By Whitney Hale

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 13, 2020) — The University of Kentucky Office of Nationally Competitive Awards has announced that five students and alumnae have been selected to receive government-funded National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships. In addition, six other UK students received honorable mention recognition from the foundation. Included among the recipients are College of Arts & Sciences alumni and current undergraduates. 

NSF Fellows receive a three-year annual stipend of $34,000 along with a $12,000 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees for a research-based master's or doctoral degree in a STEM (science, technology,

By Danielle Donham

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 4, 2020) — The University of Kentucky has honored two senior students with the Otis A. Singletary Outstanding Senior Award at the virtual Lead Blue: Student Organizations Celebration and Award Ceremony on April 28. This year’s recipients were Michael Hamilton and Joe Walden.

The Otis A. Singletary Outstanding Senior Award was established in 1978 as the first award recognizing overall student leadership at UK. The award is named after former University of Kentucky President Otis A. Singletary.

Students nominated for this award have displayed outstanding leadership while attending the University of Kentucky, made significant contributions to academics

By Richard LeComte

The College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding TA Awards recognize excellence in undergraduate instruction by teaching assistants. Fifteen teaching assistants were recognized for the 2019-2020  academic year .

Eligible students are current A&S graduate student teaching assistants in at least their second year of graduate work and must be responsible for instruction in some or all of a course offered by the College. The TAs recognized this year taught in courses offered through A & S departments and interdisciplinary programs. 

“Graduate Teaching Assistants are fundamental to the high-quality education that the College of Arts & Sciences provides to undergraduate students,” said Sarah M. Lyon, A&S associate dean for graduate studies. “I am routinely impressed with their hard work and the contributions they make to

By Gabriela Antenore

The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities has selected 12 undergraduate students as new scholars for the Gaines Fellowship Program.

The Gaines Fellowship is presented 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. Founded in 1984 by a gift from John and Joan Gaines, the Gaines Center for the Humanities functions as a laboratory for imaginative and innovative education on UK’s campus. The Gaines Center is designed to enrich the study of the humanities at the

By Allison Perry

Growing up in an area heavily impacted by the opioid epidemic, University of Kentucky grad student Samantha Malone knew she wanted to pursue a career that involved research on substance use.

“I’m from East Tennessee, and substance use is huge there,” said Malone, a second-year Ph.D. student in the UK Department of Psychology’s Cognitive Neuroscience program. “So I really wanted to go into neuroscience research involving substance use disorder just because of where I’m from, and I know how big of an impact research like this has on our community.”

Malone was one of the dozens of researchers from UK and beyond presenting a

Dr. Chen joined the University of Kentucky Spinal Cord and Brain Injury Research Center and Department of Neuroscience in early 2020. She came from the Department of Neurology and Neurotherapeutics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX

University of Kentucky Assistant Professor of Sociology Mairead Moloney is interested in why women who are middle age and older sleep less than the general population – specifically women in Appalachia, who have some of the highest rates of insomnia in the nation.

Moloney wanted to conduct a comprehensive study to learn more about insomnia among women in Appalachia and help address this health disparity, but a sleep intervention study examining cognitive behavioral therapy and sleep medication use was out of her expertise.

Through UK's Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health program, Moloney met UK Associate Professor of Pharmacy Daniela Moga and Assistant Professor of Psychology Christal Badour, whose expertise and research backgrounds were a

By Lindsey Piercy

This week, University of Kentucky graduates are busy preparing to walk across the Rupp Arena stage, shake President Eli Capilouto's hand and accept their long-awaited diploma. That piece of paper signifies the end of a journey — a journey of self-discovery.

Ndeye Matou Amar's journey to Commencement has been filled with overwhelming challenges and inspirational successes. On Dec. 20, she will boldly stand in front of the Class of 2019 — as the selected student speaker — and tell her story of resilience.

When Amar reflects on how far she's come in the last decade, she's overcome with emotion. Ten years ago, she left behind her life in Senegal, West Africa to start a new life in the "Land of Opportunity."

Amar quickly realized opportunities aren't simply attained through

By Ryan Girves

The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research recently recognized and awarded 19 students with the Oswald Research and Creativity awards. 

The Oswald Research and Creativity Competition was established in 1964 by then President John Oswald as part of the university’s Centennial Celebration. The program is intended to promote creativity in all fields of study and provides annual awards in seven categories. The competition accepts reports, of all forms of creativity, and scholarship by undergraduate students.

Categories include Biological Sciences; Design, including architecture, landscape architecture, and interior

By Jenny Wells-Hosley

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has selected five UK professors to serve in its Clinical Scholars program. From left: Craig Miller, Angela Grubbs, Julie Plasencia, Audrey Darville and Charles Carlson. Photo by Renee Fox.

A team from the University of Kentucky has been selected to participate in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's (RWJF) Clinical Scholars leadership program to address children's health and education in Appalachia.

The UK team of five, which includes a dentist, dietitian, two nurse practitioners and a clinical psychologist, will receive $525,000 for their project "Coordinating Activities to Support Empowerment of Youth (CASEY) Health." The group is focusing on addressing a "wicked problem" in Appalachia by designing and evaluating a health education curriculum for elementary school children in

By Lindsey Piercy

Christia Spears Brown's professional roles as a researcher, teacher and advocate for public policy issues are integrated around her interests in issues of diversity and equality. Pete Comparoni | UK Photo.

When it comes to talking politics with your children, you may think they would rather be playing video games or texting their friends — but that's not exactly true.

With the 2020 U.S. presidential election fast approaching, should the youngest members of society be engaged in the political discussion? If so, how can parents and schools help navigate that conversation.

Findings of a new collaborative study — conducted by researchers at the University of Kentucky, University of Kansas, University of Texas at Austin, Whitman College and University of Texas at Tyler — aim to

By Lindsey Piercy

For more than a decade, Rachel Farr has studied various aspects of family life. More specifically, she's zeroed in on a highly debated topic — adoption among same-sex couples.

As more and more gay and lesbian adults adopt children, their parenting skills are being called into question. As an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Kentucky, Farr has spent her academic career evaluating and answering these questions with research.

"LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) parenting and adoption are both topics that I care deeply about from personal and professional vantage points," she said. "I think it is vitally important that

By Julie Wrinn

Jonathan Golding joined the UK Psychology Department in 1988 and has been an active researcher ever since, achieving full professorship for his investigations into legal decision-making and various aspects of memory, specifically in juror decision-making in victimization cases. A legendary teacher, he has received numerous teaching accolades, most notably Kentucky Professor of the Year (2011) and the Alumni Association's Great Teacher Award (2014).

Where Golding has arguably had the biggest impact at UK, however, is in career counseling, especially for undergraduate psychology majors. After decades of devoting himself to mentoring undergraduates and guiding their career explorations, he began realizing that the possibilities for psychology majors had grown so tremendously that it was impossible to cover the material in a single

By Alyssa Perez

Recent University of Kentucky graduate Christian Soares has been awarded a fellowship worth $8,500 by The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi — the nation's oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines. Soares is one of 58 recipients nationwide to receive a Phi Kappa Phi Fellowship.

Soares received a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Kentucky. As a Phi Kappa Phi Fellow, Soares will pursue a dual Doctor of Medicine and Master of Public Health at Duke University.

Since its creation in 1932, the fellowship program has become one of the society's most visible and financially well-supported endeavors, allocating $615,000 annually to outstanding students for first-year graduate or