Please join the College of Arts & Sciences Diversity Committee as they host a coffee and tea reception on June 16. This college-wide event is a great way to meet fellow staff members from other departments as well as discuss issues that are important to you and your workplace.

The reception will take place in 245 POT from 3:00pm – 4:00pm on June 16. We hope to see you there!

The Novel Electronic Materials conference is going international after two workshops were held at UK in 2005 and 2008. Wuhan University in China is the new host of the conference which will be made up of scientific representatives from around the world, including Gang Cao, UK physics professor and Director of the Center for Advanced Materials. The meeting is intended to provide an opportunity to communicate recent developments, tackle challenges and establish possible collaborative research in multiple fields of science, including physics, chemistry, and engineering. The group of approximately 350 participants and 65 scheduled speakers will discuss topics ranging from orbital physics and spin excitations, to magnetism and organic semiconductors.

Cao and his global scientific colleagues will meet in China June 10-15 for the UK organized workshop.

I walk to work. Everyday. I realize that not everyone has this opportunity, and even when presented with it, often times it is not the most logical or efficient means of commuting. Fortunately for me, walking to work is the best way to commute. Stepping out my door, I stick in my ear buds and within 15 minutes or so, I'm at the office. Walking to work gives me a chance to clear my mind and commute peacefully, not having to deal with rush hour traffic. With the morning sun shining down on me, I know it's going to be a good day - and I haven't even had my first cup of coffee.

UK sociology professor Shannon Bell and University of Oregon sociology professor Richard York received recognition for the Best Article by the Rural Sociological Society. Bell’s work currently focuses on the barriers to local participation in the environmental justice movement in response to mountaintop removal in Central Appalachia.

The article, “Community Economic Identity: The Coal Industry and Ideology Construction in West Virginia,” was published in the March 2010 issue of Rural Sociology. Using the Appalachian coal industry as a case study, the article explores the relationship between capitalist modes of production and ecological destruction, chronicling the ways in which declines in industry jobs and the rising tide of protest against mining practices have challenged the coal industry’s hold on political power.

In an exciting victory this past weekend, the UK Women’s Softball Team advanced past Michigan to seal the program’s first NCAA Super Regional bid. With UK down by one, senior Meagan Aull hit her tenth home run of the season to put the Cats back in the game. Junior Rachel Riley’s pitching performance also played a major role in the win – Michigan only got one hit and walked four. The full recap is at the UK Official Athletics Site.

While Aull and Riley are talented players on the field, they are also outstanding students in the classroom. Both are A&S biology majors and have received All-SEC Academic Team Honors during their time on the field. Aull will be applying to dental school this summer and Riley to medical school next summer.

Congratulations to both of our student athletes and to the UK Women’s Softball Team!

I am pleased to note that two distinguished A&S professors recently received honorary degrees. Gurney Norman, English professor, Kentucky Poet Laureate in 2009-2010, and director of UK’s Creative Writing Program, received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Berea College. With a career spanning over 30 years at UK, Norman is a respected authority on the literary culture of Appalachia. He is the author of several works, including Divine Right’s Trip and Kinfolks. Norman has also written and presented documentary films for KET and been involved with three short films based on his stories.

A frequent lecturer in Appalachia and senior writer-in-residence at Hindman Settlement School's annual Appalachian Writers Workshop, Norman was honored in 2002 by the Eastern Kentucky Leadership Conference and in 2007 with the Appalachian Studies Association Helen M. Lewis Community Service Award for his work in the region.

Several A&S faculty members are part of an international conference being held here in Lexington May 13-15. A&S Biology professor Phillip Crowley and psychology professor Thomas Zentall along with agricultural economics professor Helen Pushkarskaya and computer science professor Judy Goldsmith lead the UK interdisciplinary team on Comparative Decision Making (CDM) and scheduled the conference. Close to 25 researchers from UK’s colleges of Agriculture, A&S, Business & Economics, Education, Engineering, and Medicine formed the CDM group to explore different viewpoints, methods, and applications of decision-making analysis on campus and beyond. While the group meets regularly for seminars and other events, their ultimate goal is to create a new Graduate Certificate Program in Comparative Decision Making Studies.

The conference will include speakers from across the globe, faculty and student poster presentations, and discussions on how to encourage the development of the emerging CDM field. Zentall and Crowley plan to edit a book based on the presentations which will be published by Oxford press.

The conference is hosted at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Lexington May 13-15.

The Loudoun House will be the site of a Lexington Art League gallery talk and panel discussion featuring several College of Arts & Sciences faculty members. History department professor and chair Francie Chassen-Lopez will moderate the discussion which will feature commentary by Ana Liberato, sociology professor, Christina Alcalde, gender and women’s studies professor, Sophia Wallace, political science professor, and Andres Cruz, editor of La Voz de Kentucky, on topics of globalization, immigration, and migration.

I am very pleased to announce the recipients of the College’s 2010-2011 Awards for Outstanding Teaching.  They are Ben Braun (Mathematics), Nathan DeWall (Psychology), Paul Koester (Mathematics) and Linda Worley (Modern and Classical Languages).  Drs. Braun, DeWall, Koester, and Worley are all exemplary practitioners of the art of teaching and are to be congratulated for their dedication to making the classroom a rewarding place for students and instructors alike.  These faculty members have also made significant contributions to education beyond the classroom, including to University-wide and national educational initiatives.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank Peter Mirabito (chair), Chana Akins, Juliana McDonald, and Leon Sachs for their sterling effort as this year’s selection committee.


Congratulations to our distinguished faculty recipients!

Take a trip this summer and go places with A&S online courses! Learn about Japanese culture, astronomy, oceanography, Greek and Roman mythology, and many other subjects from home or abroad. This is a perfect opportunity for students who want to continue their studies or explore new topics. Online courses also offer plenty of flexibility for busy summer work schedules. With over 50 courses, A&S has something for everyone – from anthropology and biology to political science and statistics.


The courses range from general education classes to requirements for your major and will be offered in two summer sessions.



Summer Session I

4-week Session (May 10-June 7)

First 6-week session (May 10-June 21)



Summer Session II

8-week session (June 9-August 4)

Second 6-week session (June 23-August 4)



Please check course pre-requisites, APEX, and discuss summer registration with your academic advisor. For more information and a complete list of courses, visit: www.as.uky.edu/OnlineEd



Enroll this summer and see where A&S online courses can take you!