By Whitney Hale, Amy Jones-Timoney, and Kody Kiser

Hear directly from Hadeel Abdallah what it means to be selected a Rhodes Scholar.

The University of Kentucky is celebrating the announcement that political science and Arabic and Islamic studies senior Hadeel Abdallah, of Lexington, has been named a recipient of the highly prestigious Rhodes Scholarship. Abdallah is one of 32 American women and men selected as Rhodes Scholars representing the United States.

She is the first female from the university and the 10th UK student named a Rhodes Scholar, the last being selected in 1955. UK remains home to the largest

By Lindsey Piercy

Tuesday, Nov. 6, was a big night in United States politics. Americans headed to the polls to cast their ballots for the 2018 midterm elections. Voter turnout appears to have significantly surpassed previous midterms, but final numbers have yet to be released.

Federal, state and local offices were up for grabs across the nation, including all 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the U.S. Senate. Additionally, 39 state and territorial governorships will be among the offices contested.

Stephen Voss, associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Kentucky, specializes in voting behavior and political methodology. He discusses the impact of these election results on a local, state and national level.

UKNow: Our country has become

By Kody Kiser

On Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018, Kentuckians will head to the polls along with their fellow Americans for the 2018 midterm elections. Federal, state and local offices are up for grabs across the nation, including all 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the U.S. Senate. Additionally, 39 state and territorial governorships will be among the offices contested.

On this episode of "Behind the Blue," Associate Professors Emily Beaulieu, who specializes in comparative politics, and Stephen Voss, who specializes in voting behavior and political methodology, join us to discuss the impact of these elections on a local, state and national level. We last spoke with both of them in January 2017. Listen as they offer their insight on the state of politics in the time since the presidential

By Lindsey Piercy

You are probably familiar with the story of David and Goliath. The biblical account is one of the most popular scriptures, perhaps because of its literary meaning — anything is possible.

Nick Wilson can relate to the young, resilient shepherd. The University of Kentucky alum is no stranger to overcoming obstacles and exceeding expectations, making him the perfect competitor for the 37th season of "Survivor," themed "David vs. Goliath." Wilson, a self-

By Lindsey Piercy

The University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences will induct six new members into the A&S Hall of Fame on Friday, Oct. 19. 

For more about each honoree, see their brief biographies below.

Alumni inductees:

Jennifer L. Garr, topical studies, bachelor's degree, 1986

Garr is a native of Louisville, Kentucky. Early in her sophomore year at UK, she chose the path of topical studies with an emphasis in art therapy. Garr’s activities ranged from a semester as staff artist for the Kentucky Kernel to public relations director for the UK Student Center Board. Garr has worked at some of the top advertising companies and management agencies, including Brown & Williamson International, Leo Burnett, J. Walter Thompson, Publicis,

Events include:

The Universal Language: Latin
September 17th, 2018, Patterson Hall 218, 4:00pm-5:00pm
Drs. Milena Minkova and Terence Tunberg from the Modern & Classical Languages, Literatures and Cultures Department will present “The Universal Language: Latin” at the International Village LLP.

Cultural Research and Internship Opportunities
September 18th, 2018, Gatton College of Business, 435 UV, 3:00pm-4:00pm
Panelists will include Juliana McDonald, George Crothers, Philip Mink, and Renee Bonzani from the University of Kentucky’s Department of Anthropology. The University of Kentucky Department of Anthropology offers programs in three sub-disciplines of anthropology: archaeology, cultural, and biological. Learn about new and upcoming research, opportunities for field work, as well as their experiences with working with the Museum of

By Nate Harling

Tiffany Barnes, associate professor in the Department of Political Science in the College of Arts and Sciences, has been selected to receive the Emerging Scholar Award from the American Political Science Association's Legislative Studies Section. The organization recognizes a recipient each year who has received their doctoral degree within the last five years and whose career has shown “unusual promise.”

“My research is fundamentally aimed at advancing our understanding of how individuals from marginalized groups, including women and racial and ethnic minorities, navigate the policy-making process to gain access to power and promote their policy goals. As such, I am thrilled to see research on women and

By Whitney Hale and Jenny Wells

More than 45 of the University of Kentucky's students and recent graduates had the world's most prestigious scholarship, fellowship and internship organizations take note this year. The newest class of highly regarded scholars include UK’s 14th Truman Scholar and first Pickering Fellow.

Helping prepare these UK students and recent alumni to compete for and win such honors is the mission of the UK Office of Nationally Competitive Awards. Under the guidance and leadership of Pat Whitlow, the office identifies and works with young scholars on the application process for large scholastic prizes awarded by regional, national and international sources.

This year UK students and alumni were recognized with the following awards:

By Nick Harling

The University of Kentucky College of Arts & Sciences has named the 2018 recipients of the Trunzo Scholarship for Education Abroad and Internships in Politics, Government, Law, or Public Policy. Since its inaugural year of 2017, this competitive scholarship, sponsored by Robert ’78 and Anne Trunzo, awards funding to students planning to study abroad and to students for participation in internships.

The 2018 Recipients of the Trunzo Scholarship for Education Abroad are:

By Jenny Wells

Elizabeth Dempsey, of Cedar City, Utah, will speak at the 10 a.m. UK Commencement ceremony on May 6. She is graduating with a bachelor's degree in political science from UK College or Arts and Sciences with minors in communication and military leadership.

Per University of Kentucky tradition, UK President Eli Capilouto has selected student representatives to speak at each of the four UK Commencement Ceremonies. The ceremonies will be held Friday, May 4, and Sunday, May 6, in Rupp Arena.

The four student speakers are:

Esias Bedingar

Bedingar, from N’Djamena, Chad, will speak at the 10 a.m. ceremony on May 4. He is graduating with a bachelor's degree in public health from the UK

The Political Science Department’s investment in undergraduate research started paying major dividends this semester, with students producing and presenting scientific research to an unprecedented degree.

Three students – Gammon Fain, Anne Klette, and Vandenbosch Outstanding Senior finalist Elizabeth Dade – took their research projects to national disciplinary conferences, where they received advice on their work from scholars at top academic institutions around the country.  Fain, in particular, managed an historic achievement: He won the 2018 Rifai Award for best student paper at the annual meeting of the Kentucky Political Science Association – the first time the University of Kentucky has ever

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 Whitney Hale, Amy Jones-Timoney, and Kody Kiser

See how UK Truman Scholar Hadeel Abdallah learned about her Truman Scholarship from UK President Eli Capilouto.

The University of Kentucky Office of Nationally Competitive Awards has announced that political science and Arabic and Islamic studiesjunior Hadeel Abdallah, of Lexington, has been named a 2018 Truman Scholar and will receive $30,000 to support her graduate study. Abdallah is the 14th UK student to receive the honor from the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation.  

“The Truman Scholarship is a

Awards are rolling in for Political Science major Hadeel Abdallah.

First, she won entry into the College of Arts & Science's Trunzo Scholars Program, taking the top ($5,000) award so that she could pursue a nationally recognized internship.

Then, she won the university's VanMeter Award for outstanding volunteer and community service.

But the big prize -- and the big surprise -- came today.  A number of top UK administrators joined Hadeel's mentors, Prof. Jesse C. Johnson and Prof. Tiffany Barnes, in a surprise visit to Hadeel's class to announce that she'd received the nationally competitive $30,000 Truman Scholarship for graduate study.  Given to students intending to pursue a career in public service.

By Whitney Hale

The University of Kentucky Office of Nationally Competitive Awards has announced that recent College of Arts & Sciences philosophy graduate Benjamin Troupe, of Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, was named a finalist for the Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship. Troupe is one of 60 national finalists who will interview for the fellowship in Washington, D.C., in mid-April.

Funded by the U.S. Department of State and administered by The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars, the Pickering

By Gail Hairston, Amy Jones-Timoney, and Kody Kiser

Many people can say they’ve been “around the world,” but only a few of those have actually set foot on all seven continents.

University of Kentucky alumnus Jason Darnall (1999) can beat that boast by miles ... at a jog. From a standing start, it has taken less than six years for Darnall to run around the world, touching foot on all seven continents, including ice-bound Antarctica, one marathon at a time. Along the way, he has earned about $10,000 in charitable contributions to cancer and asthma research.

He started his world tour of marathons with resolve. The second marathon he ever ran was Boston, in April 2012. That’s when he learned about the other World Marathon Majors, the six biggest, most competitive marathons in the world — Boston, New York, Chicago, London, Tokyo and Berlin. Once he

Dateline: Lexington, KY

By D. Stephen Voss, Political Science Department Publicity Director

The American Political Science Association contacted Prof. Abby Córdova on Wednesday to announce that she and a coauthor will be receiving APSA's Centennial Center grant for their research on female representation in El Salvador.

The $1,800 grant from the Women & Politics Fund, associated with the Centennial Center for Political Science and Public Affairs, supplements funding that Córdova previously received through Iowa State University's Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics.  It will allow Córdova and coauthor Annabella España-Nájera of Cal State-Fresno to pursue a

Dateling: Frankfort, KY

By D. Stephen Voss, Political Science Department Publicity Director

Kentucky's State Senate recognized the passing of Emeritus Prof. S. Sidney Ulmer, a long-serving and distinguished member of the UK Political Science Department, on February 7 by adopting a resolution in his honor authored by Sen Tom Buford (R-Nicholasville).

Senate Resolution #142 posthumously thanked Ulmer for his service to the United States as a pilot during World War II as well as for his many contributions to the University of Kentucky, which included 25 years on the faculty and six years chairing the Political Science Department.

Prof. Ulmer, a highly regard expert in judicial politics, passed

By Chris Crumrine

Thirteen University of Kentucky students are working alongside lawmakers and elected officials in Washington, D.C., this semester as participants in the inaugural class of the Wildcats at the Capitol program. The program allows students to participate during the academic year, utilize their financial aid and remain full-time students enrolled in credit-bearing courses.

The program is a partnership between the Department of Political Science, the College of Arts and Sciences and the Office of the President, with the shared goal of providing an affordable opportunity for students to intern in the nation’s capital without