Behind the Blue

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 4, 2020) – Mike Richey came to the University of Kentucky from Muhlenberg County in the fall of 1969 as a freshman. Now in his 51st year on campus, his great love for UK continues to grow and he demonstrates it every day as the institution’s chief philanthropy officer.

On this week’s edition of the “Behind the Blue” podcast, Carl Nathe of UK Public Relations and Strategic Communications talks with Richey about ‘Kentucky Can: The 21st Century Campaign for the University of Kentucky’ and other topics.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 25, 2020) – Lexington native and University of Kentucky alumnus George C. Wright is back home for the 2019-20 academic year to help UK celebrate the 70th anniversary of the integration of the university by Lyman T. Johnson. Wright earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at UK, and his Ph.D. in history from Duke University. He has been awarded an honorary doctorate from Kentucky, is a member of UK’s Distinguished Alumni, and was presented the UK Libraries’ Medallion for Intellectual Achievement in 2015.

On this week’s edition of the “Behind the Blue” podcast, Carl Nathe of UK Public Relations and Strategic Communications talks with Wright about his life, his career, and his ongoing educational efforts.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 18, 2020) – On November 8th,, the University of Kentucky announced a historic $20 million gift to the College of Law from Lexington native and College of Law alumnus J. David Rosenberg and his wife, Dianne. The gift is the third largest single donation in university history.

Founded in 1908, the College of Law was one of the nation’s first state law schools. It is housed in a recently renovated $53 million state-of-the-art building, dedicated in November of 2019. The college has routinely been named among the best values in legal education.

Rosenberg is a senior partner in the Cincinnati firm of Keating, Muething & Klekamp, where he has practiced since 1974. He credits his legal education at the University of Kentucky for his success and leadership roles in law, finance and his community. His endowment will focus on scholarship opportunities for future generations of UK law students and faculty support as the college seeks to retain and recruit outstanding legal scholars.

On this episode of Behind the Blue, UKPR’s Amy Jones-Timoney and Carl Nathe met with Rosenberg on the day of the announcement to discuss his gift, his ties to the University and to Lexington, and his efforts to live a life of service, commitment and giving.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 12, 2020) – The University of Kentucky continues to make higher education more available and accessible to people throughout Kentucky, across the nation, and around the world. Kathi Kern is UK’s Associate Provost for Teaching, Learning, and Innovation. Since 2010, Dr. Kern has served as the director of the Center for the Enhancement of Learning & Teaching (CELT), working to establish the University as a center for international faculty development.  She is now working to expand the university’s teaching mission into a virtual space with ‘UK Online.’

On this week’s edition of “Behind the Blue,” UKPR’s Carl Nathe visits with Kern to bring us the latest information about ‘UK Online,’ the opportunities provided by new technologies and virtual environments, and how to best bring UK to the students who can’t come to campus.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 05, 2020) – Now in his 11th year at the helm of UK’s largest college, Mark Kornbluh is the currently the longest-serving of UK’s 18 deans. The College of Arts and Sciences spans the liberal arts and hard sciences, social science fields and new and emerging areas, such as dual degree programs that focus on world languages and so-called STEM areas (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).

Dean Kornbluh is an innovator in thinking about – and acting on – new approaches to teaching, learning, research and discovery. In this edition of Behind the Blue, he talks with Kody Kiser and Jay Blanton about trends in teaching, the importance of diversity, and the special points of distinction that make UK stand out in the 21st century.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 29, 2020) - Science colors everything we do. From the moment we wake up in the morning until we go to bed at night, science is all around us. We’re looking forward to another year of Everything is Science – the week-long festival featuring experts from Lexington and beyond, who will give presentations, demonstrations and conversation in laid-back spaces.

Everything is Science: Life in Technicolor will focus on colors – with events like, “We Heard it Through the Grapevine: Purple and Green in Science” and “It’s a Gray Area: Black & White in Science.” The experts will focus on the science of sleep, climate change and homelessness, color theory and linguistics.

Local restaurants and bars participating in the week-long festival will host guests Monday, February 24-28.

On this episode of Behind the Blue, Kristen Mark, an associate professor and director of UK’s Sexual Health Promotion Lab, and Jarrod Creameans, a graduate student in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, talk about why science matters and how you can join in the conversation about science that is happening all around us – not just in research labs.  

Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of “Behind the Blue,” email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 21, 2020) – The University of Kentucky recently received $3 million from the National Institute on Drug Abuse and National Institute on General Medical Sciences to fund new opioid-related research in the criminal justice system.

Known as the Geographic variation in Addiction Treatment (GATE) study, the 5-year project is led by Carrie Oser, professor of sociology in the UK College of Arts & Sciences. Oser and her colleagues will be focusing on the factors that influence a person’s decision to use one of the three FDA-approved medications for the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD) – methadone, buprenorphine and extended-release naltrexone.

Although research shows that these medications are highly effective at reducing opioid use, infectious disease transmission, and drug-related criminal behavior, uptake of these medications is low – only about 7% of people with OUD receive medications – and more than half of KY counties do not have any providers who prescribe medications for OUD.  It is even more challenging for those involved in the criminal justice system. In the past few years, the Kentucky Department of Corrections has addressed this issue by making naltrexone available inside their institutions and is currently piloting expansion at three prisons by offering buprenorphine to individuals with OUD that meet clinical and medical protocols.

On this episode of Behind the Blue, Oser talks with UKPR’s Allison Perry about the GATE study and its goals, to identify how a person’s individual characteristics, personal networks and structural factors influence their decision whether or not to take medication for OUD both during incarceration and following release, and it will specifically look at the differences between urban and rural populations. While other studies have looked at individual and structural factors as predictors of medication use, this study is unique in its focus on the people surrounding the person with OUD and how their support – or lack thereof – and opinions influences decisions on taking medication.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 15, 2020) – The University of Kentucky launched the Smart Campus Initiative in 2019, involving students and faculty from across the campus looking at new ways of teaching and learning, among other objectives.

On this week’s edition of “Behind the Blue,” UKPR’s Carl Nathe talks with three key leaders who are helping to implement this unique project and how it promises to benefit UK and the entire Commonwealth of Kentucky.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 10, 2019) – The University of Kentucky strives to provide a caring community which provides its students with a sense of belonging. One of the ways UK accomplishes this is through the services offered through the University Counseling Center. 

Mary Chandler Bolin, director of the center, is widely respected across campus and around the nation for her commitment, expertise, and innovations. She is the recent recipient of a major national award from her peers.

In this edition of the Behind the Blue podcast, Carl Nathe of UK Public Relations and Strategic Communications talks with Chandler Bolin about the center, the wide arrange of services it offers, and her career.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 3, 2019) – University of Kentucky alumnus Dr. Aaron Thompson, the President of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, has conducted listening tours across the Commonwealth over the past year.

The goal is to learn what students, parents, community leaders and employers think on key issues in education.

In short, Thompson hopes to learn how to improve education in the bluegrass state.

To learn more about his findings on the tour, and what the Council will do with that information, ‘Behind the Blue’ talked with Thompson during his visit to UK. On this episode, they discuss his beginnings, his insights and what he hopes to see for the future of education and institutions of higher learning in Kentucky.

"Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email [email protected] or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue.

To discover what’s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here.