:University of Kentucky

In the early commonwealth of Kentucky, higher education was limited to children from prominent families, disciplined apprentices, and young men seeking entry into clerical, legal, and medical professions. As the first university in the territory that would become Kentucky, Transylvania University was the primary center for education. After a merger it became "Kentucky University".

File:Barker Hall.jpg

John Bryan Bowman was appointed head of the new "Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky" (called "A&M"), a department of Kentucky University. It received federal support through the Morrill Land-Grant Act in 1865.{{cite web |title=A Brief History of the University of Kentucky |publisher=University of Kentucky |url=http://www.uky.edu/CampusGuide/uk-history.html |access-date=January 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120902232722/http://www.uky.edu/CampusGuide/uk-history.html |archive-date=September 2, 2012 |url-status=live}} In 1866 it opened with 190 students and 10 professors, on the campus at Ashland, The Henry Clay Estate. In 1869 James Kennedy Patterson replaced Bowman and the first degree was awarded. In 1876, the university began to offer master's degree programs. In 1878 A&M separated from Kentucky University, which reverted to its original name Transylvania University.{{cite web |title=A Chronology of UK |publisher=University of Kentucky Special Collections & Digital Programs Division |date=January 2, 2008 |access-date=January 2, 2008 |url=http://www.uky.edu/Libraries/libpage.php?lweb_id=311&llib_id=13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080220222212/http://www.uky.edu/Libraries/libpage.php?lweb_id=311&llib_id=13 |archive-date=February 20, 2008 |url-status=live}} For the new school, Lexington donated a {{cvt|52|acre|m2|adj=on}} park and fair ground, which became the core of UK's present campus. A&M was initially a male-only institution, but began to admit women in 1880.

In 1892, the official colors of the university, royal blue and white, were adopted. An earlier color set, blue and light yellow, was adopted earlier at a Kentucky-Centre College football game on December 19, 1891.{{cite web |title=University of Kentucky Traditions and songs |access-date=July 24, 2012 |publisher=University of Kentucky |url=http://www.uky.edu/UKHome/subpages/traditions.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120711073947/http://www.uky.edu/UKHome/subpages/traditions.html |archive-date=July 11, 2012 |url-status=live}} The particular hue of blue was determined from a necktie, which was used to demonstrate the color of royal blue.

On February 15, 1882, Administration Building was the first building of three to be completed on the present campus. Three years later, the college formed the Agricultural Experiment Station, which researches issues relating to agribusiness, food processing, nutrition, water and soil resources and the environment.{{cite web |title=agResearch |publisher=University of Kentucky College of Agriculture |year=2007 |access-date=January 7, 2007 |url=http://www.ca.uky.edu/research/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516232453/http://www.ca.uky.edu/research/ |archive-date=May 16, 2008 |url-status=live}} This was followed up by the creation of the university's Agricultural Extension Service in 1910, which was one of the first in the United States.{{cite web |title=History Briefs |publisher=University of Kentucky |date=May 23, 2007 |url=http://www.uky.edu/Home/AboutUK/history2.html |access-date=June 12, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613040216/http://www.uky.edu/Home/AboutUK/history2.html |archive-date=June 13, 2007 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}} The extension service became a model of the federally mandated programs that were required beginning in 1914.

File:Patterson Hall 1905.jpg

Patterson Hall, the school's first women's dormitory, was constructed in 1904. Residents had to cross a swampy depression, where the now demolished Student Center later stood, to reach central campus. Four years later, the school's name was changed to the "State University, Lexington, Kentucky" upon reaching university status, and then to the "University of Kentucky" in 1916. The university led to the creation of the College of Home Economics in 1916, and Mary E. Sweeney was promoted from chair of the Department of Home Economics to dean of the college. (Later renamed the College of Human Environmental Sciences, this educational unit was folded into the College of Agriculture in 2003 as the School of Human Environmental Sciences{{cite web |url=http://www2.ca.uky.edu/hes/?p=12 |title=Human Environmental Sciences |website=UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment |access-date=August 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011041102/http://www2.ca.uky.edu/hes/?p=12 |archive-date=October 11, 2014 |url-status=live}}). The College of Commerce was established in 1925, known today as the Gatton College of Business and Economics.

In 1929, Memorial Hall was completed, dedicated to the 2,756 Kentuckians who died in World War I. This was followed up by the new King Library, which opened in 1931 and was named for a long-time library director, Margaret I. King.

On March 15, 1948, Lyman T. Johnson applied to the University of Kentucky Graduate School for a doctorate degree in the Philosophy of History. Johnson was subsequently denied admission, with the registrar citing the previously passed Day Law. Johnson, citing Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896 filed suit against the university for wrongful discrimination and failure to maintain equal learning intuitions.{{Cite web |last=Momeyer |first=Sydney |title=He 'paved the way' for integration at UK. Who was Lyman T. Johnson? |url=http://www.kykernel.com/news/he-paved-the-way-for-integration-at-uk-who-was-lyman-t-johnson/article_2711390e-dbf5-11e9-85f2-2358e92f8510.html |access-date=2022-04-24 |website=The Kentucky Kernel |language=en}} On April 27, 1949, Hiram Church Ford presided over the court case.{{Cite web |title=The Kentucky Kernel, April 1, 1949 |url=https://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt763x83k32j?q=lyman+t.+johnson&f%5Bformat%5D%5B%5D=newspapers&f%5Bpub_date_sort%5D%5B%5D=1949&per_page=20#page/1/mode/1up/search/lyman+t.+johnson |access-date=2022-04-24 |website=exploreuk.uky.edu}} After one day of testimony, Ford determined that the Commonwealth had failed to establish a graduate school with equal opportunity and educational quality as the graduate students offered to whites.{{Cite web |title=Johnson v. Board of Trustees of University of Kentucky, 83 F. Supp. 707 (E.D. Ky. 1949) |url=https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/83/707/1430703/ |access-date=2022-04-24 |website=Justia Law |language=en}} Citing the Fourteenth amendment, Ford ruled that all qualified individuals, regardless of race, be allowed to attend the university's graduate program until an equally academically acceptable institution is established for the use of African Americans. The university's graduate and professional programs became racially integrated in 1949 when Lyman T. Johnson, an African American, won a lawsuit to be admitted to the graduate program.{{cite web |url=http://sweb.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/SDC/markers/DesegregationJohnson1.html |title=Desegregation of UK – Historical Marker |access-date=July 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626201234/http://sweb.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/SDC/markers/DesegregationJohnson1.html |archive-date=June 26, 2010 |url-status=live}}{{cite press release |url=http://www.uky.edu/PR/News/Archives/1999/APRIL99/johnsondedi.htm |title=UK Dedicated Historical Marker for 50 Years of African Americans |publisher=University of Kentucky |date=April 22, 1999 |access-date=July 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731124208/http://www.uky.edu/PR/News/Archives/1999/APRIL99/johnsondedi.htm |archive-date=July 31, 2013 |url-status=live}} Blacks were not allowed to attend as undergraduates until 1954, following the US Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision.{{cite web |url=https://www.ket.org/civilrights/timeline.htm |title=A Kentucky Civil Rights Timeline |access-date=August 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807135415/http://www.ket.org/civilrights/timeline.htm |archive-date=August 7, 2016 |url-status=live}}

In 1939, Governor Happy Chandler appointed the first woman trustee on the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees, Georgia M. Blazer of Ashland.{{cite web |url=http://kdl.kyvl.org/catalog/xt7d251fjp5f_1 |title=Minutes of Mrs. Blazer's first Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees, University of Kentucky, April 4, 1939 |access-date=December 12, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141214045751/http://kdl.kyvl.org/catalog/xt7d251fjp5f_1 |archive-date=December 14, 2014 |url-status=live}} She served from 1939 to 1960. In 1962, Blazer Hall was opened as the Georgia M Blazer Hall for Women in tribute to her.{{cite web |url=http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt7hmg7frh2j_48 |title=Minutes of Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees, University of Kentucky, President Dickey's recommendation and the Board's approval in the naming of the 'Georgia M. Blazer Hall' dormitory for women, (pages 48 & 49), June 4, 1962 |access-date=December 12, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213020532/http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt7hmg7frh2j_48 |archive-date=December 13, 2014 |url-status=live}}

Ground was broken for the Albert B. Chandler Hospital in 1955, when Kentucky Governor Happy Chandler recommended that the Kentucky General Assembly appropriate $5 million for the creation of the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and a medical center at the university.{{ cite news|title=Officials Break Ground on New UK Albert B. Chandler Hospital|first=Amanda|last=Nelson |publisher=University of Kentucky|date=May 30, 2007 |url=http://news.uky.edu/news/display_article.php?artid=2334 |access-date=July 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070830233415/http://news.uky.edu/news/display_article.php?artid=2334 |archive-date=August 30, 2007 |url-status=dead|df=mdy-all }} This was completed after a series of studies were conducted that highlighted the health needs of the citizens, as well as the need to train more physicians. Five years later, the College of Medicine and College of Nursing opened, followed by the College of Dentistry in 1962.

Nine years after the founding of The Northern Extension Center in Covington, representing the Ashland Independent School Board of Education,{{cite web |url=http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt7gqn5z6j5s_25 |title=Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of Trustees of the University of Kentucky, Ashland Delegation Heard on request for off-campus University of Kentucky Center April 2, 1957 |access-date=March 11, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402141712/http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt7gqn5z6j5s_25 |archive-date=April 2, 2015 |url-status=live}} Ashland attorney Henderson Dysard and Ashland Oil & Refining Company founder and CEO Paul G. Blazer presented a proposal to President Dickey and the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees for the university to take over the day-to-day operations and curriculum of the Ashland [municipal] Junior College, creating the Ashland Center of the University of Kentucky in 1957.{{cite web |url=http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt763x83jn3f_11 |title=Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of Trustees of the University of Kentucky, University of Kentucky – Ashland Center Established, June 11, 1957 |access-date=March 11, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402141709/http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt763x83jn3f_11 |archive-date=April 2, 2015 |url-status=live}} University of Kentucky Extension Centers in Fort Knox (1958), Cumberland (1960), and Henderson (1960) followed.

In 1959, the Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce opened and began training professionals at the master's and doctoral level for careers in international affairs.

Authorized by the Kentucky General Assembly and signed by Governor Bert Combs on March 6, 1962, a mandate was placed upon the University of Kentucky to form a community college system. Two years later, the board of trustees implemented the legislation and established the Community College System, creating centers in Covington, Ashland, Fort Knox, Cumberland, Henderson and Elizabethtown. In 1969, the Patterson Office Tower was completed, currently the tallest building on campus.{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}}

File:UKMillerHall.jpg

In May 1970, students at the university began protesting the shootings at Kent State University.{{cite web |url=http://nunncenter.org/oralhistoryprojects/protests-at-uk/ |title=45th anniversary of Kent State protests at UK – Saving Stories |date=May 4, 2015 |publisher=Nunncenter.org |access-date=August 4, 2016}} In response, Governor Louie Nunn deferred to the National Guard in an attempt to disperse the protesters. A ROTC building was destroyed by fire. The Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History at the University of Kentucky Libraries has 13 oral history interviews with participants in the protests, university officials as well as former governor Nunn. Nine years later, the Singletary Center for the Arts opened, named in honor of former university president Otis Singletary.

File:Engineering plaza.jpg

In 1997, the Kentucky General Assembly reorganized the community college system, withdrawing the university's jurisdiction from all but the Lexington Community College. The other colleges were merged with the Kentucky Technical College system and were placed under a separate board of control.

On April 3, 1998, work began on the William T. Young Library, which was the largest university project at the time of completion.{{Cite news |last1=Jester |first1=Art |last2=Stepp |first2=Holly |title=Hub of the University |date=March 22, 1998 |newspaper=Lexington Herald-Leader |page=2}} The six-level William T. Young Library was constructed on south campus and the largest book endowment among all public university libraries in the country. William T. Young got his fortune from selling his peanut butter company to Procter & Gamble in 1955. Nine years after the completion of the William T. Young Library, on April 13, 2007, an entire city block of neighborhood homes were demolished and ground was broken for the Biological Pharmaceutical Complex Building, the largest academic building in the state of Kentucky, and one of the largest in the United States.{{cite web |title=Future of Pharmacy |date=April 13, 2007 |publisher=University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital |url=http://www.mc.uky.edu/pharmacy/building.html |access-date=April 5, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070207034824/http://www.mc.uky.edu/pharmacy/building.html |archive-date=February 7, 2007}}

File:Chemistry-Physics Building (U.K.).jpg

The Biological Pharmaceutical Complex Building complements the adjacent Biomedical Biological Science Research Building, and is expected to be part of the new university research campus.{{cite web |title=Biomedical/Biological Sciences Research Building |publisher=University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital |date=November 17, 2006 |url=http://ukcc.uky.edu/cgi-bin/dynamo?maps.391+campus+0509 |access-date=June 16, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071017035029/http://ukcc.uky.edu/cgi-bin/dynamo?maps.391+campus+0509 |archive-date=October 17, 2007 |url-status=live}} Other recent announcements include the construction of the new $450 million Albert B. Chandler Hospital, which will was one of the largest projects in the state's history in terms of size and economic impact.

In 1997, the Kentucky General Assembly formed a compact with the university. The Top 20 Plan mandates that the University of Kentucky becomes a Top 20 public research university by 2020.{{cite web |last=Todd |first=Lee |title=UK Reaching Top 20 Critical to Moving Kentucky Forward |publisher=University of Kentucky |date=February 28, 2007 |url=http://www.uky.edu/OPBPA/whytop20.htm |access-date=February 28, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070206051957/http://www.uky.edu/OPBPA/whytop20.htm |archive-date=February 6, 2007 |url-status=live}} According to the compact, states with "Top 20" universities feature higher average household incomes, higher education attainments, healthier lives and more financial security.{{cite web |title=Top 20 Business Plan Presentation |publisher=University of Kentucky |year=2005 |access-date=May 28, 2007 |url=http://www.uky.edu/OPBPA/Top20/Top20_sm.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205053622/http://www.uky.edu/OPBPA/Top20/Top20_sm.pdf |archive-date=February 5, 2007 |url-status=live}} The plan would also spur technological advancements due to university-based research and increase the marketability of the state to investors.

File:Main Bldg (UK).jpg in the foreground and the Patterson Office Tower in the background]]

The plan produced some results,

1. Enrollment increased.
2. The six-year graduation rate increased from 59.5 percent in 1998 to 61.2 percent in 2007.{{cite web |url=http://news.uky.edu/news/display_article.php?artid=3442 |title=University of Kentucky News |publisher=news.uky.edu |date=April 25, 2008 |access-date=December 29, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719031555/http://news.uky.edu/news/display_article.php?artid=3442 |archive-date=July 19, 2011 |url-status=dead}}
3. Research expenditures increased from $124.8 million in 1996 to $297.6 million in 2003. It dipped slightly to $274 million for 2005. It is currently ranked 28th among public universities in sponsored research.
4. Endowment increased from $195.1 million in 1997 to $538.4 million in 2005.

In 2000, the university launched "The Campaign for the University of Kentucky", a $600 million fundraising effort that was used to "enhance facilities, academic programs, public service, and scholarships." It passed that goal and the effort was raised to $1 billion. In March 2007, $1.022 billion was raised, months before the fundraising effort was set to end.{{cite news |url=http://www.uky.edu/ukymain/spots/spot-10106.html |title=Surpassing the Goal |publisher=University of Kentucky |year=2007 |access-date=June 19, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070626092810/http://www.uky.edu/ukymain/spots/spot-10106.html |archive-date=June 26, 2007 |url-status=live}}

As of 2019, The University of Kentucky has an endowment of 1.407 billion.As of June 30, 2020. {{cite report |url=https://www.nacubo.org/-/media/Documents/Research/2020-NTSE-Public-Tables--Endowment-Market-Values--FINAL-FEBRUARY-19-2021.ashx |title=U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 |publisher=National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA |date=February 19, 2021 |access-date=February 19, 2021}} Prior endowments were $831.8 in 2007,{{cite news |url=http://www.kentucky.com/211/story/54436.html |title=UK reaches billion-dollar milestone in fund-raising |last=Jester |first=Art |date=April 27, 2007 |work=Lexington Herald-Leader |access-date=May 2, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20070801070333/http://www.kentucky.com/211/story/54436.html |archive-date=August 1, 2007}} $538.4 million in 2005, and $195.1 million in 1997, the rapid increases partially attributed to the "Top 20" Plan. Currently, the William T. Young Library book endowment is the largest among public universities in the United States.

In 2018, the new Gatton Student Center was opened on North Campus. The 378,000-square-foot facility contains a cinema, several dining facilities, ballrooms, a bookstore, bank, offices, and more.{{Cite web |url=https://uknow.uky.edu/campus-news/uk-opens-gatton-student-center |title=UK Celebrates New Gatton Student Center |date=August 30, 2018 |website=UKNow |access-date=April 9, 2020}}

{{Infobox US university ranking

| THE_WSJ = 302

| USNWR_NU = 132

| USNWR_W = 356

| QS_W = 681–690

| THES_W = 401–500

| Wamo_NU = 159

| Forbes = 200

| ARWU_W = 301–400

}}

Students are divided into 16 colleges, a graduate school, 93 undergraduate programs, 99 master programs, 66 doctoral programs, and 4 professional programs.{{Update inline|reason=Stale cite may be suppressing current actual numbers.|date=February 2017}} The University of Kentucky has fifteen libraries on campus. The largest is William T. Young Library, a federal depository, hosting subjects related to social sciences, humanities and life sciences collections. In recent years, the university has focused expenditures increasingly on research, following a compact formed by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1997. The directive mandated that the university become a Top 20 public research institution, in terms of an overall ranking to be determined by the university itself, by 2020. The university is ranked tied for 132nd in National Universities and tied for 60th among public universities in the 2020 U.S. News & World Report rankings.{{cite web |title=University of Kentucky |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/university-of-kentucky-1989/overall-rankings |magazine=U.S. News & World Report |year=2020 |access-date=September 16, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112312/https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/university-of-kentucky-1989/overall-rankings |archive-date=February 21, 2019 |url-status=live}} According to the U.S. News & World Report 2023 ranking table, UK Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences is ranked 6th in the nation whereas the Graduate School of Medicine (Research) is ranked 64th (tie).{{cite web |title=University of Kentucky's Graduate School Rankings |year=2023 |website=U.S. News & World Report |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/university-of-kentucky-157085/overall-rankings |access-date=February 19, 2024}}

Students are divided into several colleges based on their interests and specializations:

• College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, founded 1908
• College of Arts and Sciences, founded 1908
• Gatton College of Business and Economics, founded 1925 (originally as the College of Commerce)
• College of Communication & Information, founded 1976
• College of Dentistry, founded 1962

File:Biological-Pharmaceutical Building U.K.jpg is home to the College of Pharmacy]]

• College of Design, founded 1964 (originally as the College of Architecture)
• College of Education, founded 1923
• Pigman College of Engineering, founded 1918 (through a merger of the original Colleges of Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Mines and Metals)
• College of Fine Arts, founded 1976
• College of Health Sciences,{{cite web |url=https://www.uky.edu/chs/ |title=UK College of Health Sciences |publisher=uky.edu |access-date=January 31, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202082151/https://www.uky.edu/chs/ |archive-date=February 2, 2017 |url-status=live}} founded 1966 (originally as the College of Allied Health Personnel)
• J. David Rosenberg College of Law, founded 1908
• College of Medicine, founded 1954
• College of Nursing, founded 1956
• College of Pharmacy, founded 1947 (originally established in 1870 in Louisville)
• College of Public Health, founded 2004
• College of Social Work,{{cite web |url=https://socialwork.uky.edu/ |title=UK College of Social Work |publisher=uky.edu |access-date=January 31, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161110053242/https://socialwork.uky.edu/ |archive-date=November 10, 2016 |url-status=live}} founded 1968
• University of Kentucky Graduate School,{{cite web |url=http://www.gradschool.uky.edu |title=UK Graduate School |publisher=Gradschool.uky.edu |date=January 4, 2013 |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130213070825/http://www.gradschool.uky.edu/ |archive-date=February 13, 2013 |url-status=live}} founded 1912
• Martin School of Public Policy and Administration
• Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce

Other colleges no longer in existence at the University of Kentucky include the College of Library Science (separating out of the College of Arts & Sciences in 1968 and incorporated in 2003 into what is now the College of Communication and Information) and the College of Home Economics (created in 1916 and whose founding dean was Mary E. Sweeney) now a School of Human Environmental Sciences located within the College of Agriculture.{{cite web |title=Statutory Definition, Governing Regulations, Part I |publisher=University of Kentucky |location=Lexington KY |date=June 11, 2013 |url=http://www.uky.edu/regs/files/gr/gr1.pdf |access-date=August 1, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314041752/http://www.uky.edu/regs/files/gr/gr1.pdf |archive-date=March 14, 2012 |url-status=live}}

The Honors Program at the University of Kentucky began in 1958. It offers interdisciplinary, seminar-style classes of 15–20 students each as well as "H-section" classes that accelerate common course offerings such as chemistry, biology, and physics.{{cite web |url=http://www.uky.edu/Honors/prospective/prospective.html |title=UK | Honors | Prospective Students |publisher=Uky.edu |date=October 30, 2012 |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120529203903/http://www.uky.edu/Honors/prospective/prospective.html |archive-date=May 29, 2012 |url-status=live}}

In October 2015, the University of Kentucky received the largest single gift in its history, $23.5 million from alumnus, longtime donor and successful entrepreneur Thomas W. Lewis and his wife Jan to create the Lewis Honors College.

The Lewis Honors College was transitioned from the Honors Program at UK in 2015. From 2017, the Honors Program became the Lewis Honors College. On July 10, 2017, Christian Brady was announced as the inaugural dean of the college.{{Cite web |url=http://www.uky.edu/honors |title=Lewis Honors College {{!}} Academy for Undergraduate Excellence |website=www.uky.edu |access-date=2017-09-17}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.lanereport.com/79292/2017/07/uk-names-first-lewis-honors-college-dean/ |title=UK names first Lewis Honors College dean |website=www.lanereport.com |date=July 10, 2017 |language=en-US |access-date=2017-09-17}} Its headquarters are in Lewis Hall, which also serves as one of several residence halls for Honors College students.{{cite web |last=Wells |first=Jenny |title=Board Approves Creation of the UK Lewis Honors College |publisher=University of Kentucky |date=May 3, 2016 |url=https://uknow.uky.edu/content/board-approves-creation-uk-lewis-honors-college |access-date=May 5, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160713214417/http://uknow.uky.edu/content/board-approves-creation-uk-lewis-honors-college |archive-date=July 13, 2016 |url-status=live}}

{{Main|University of Kentucky student life}}

The University of Kentucky strives for a diverse and international student population, with a selective admissions process.

In fall 2014, there were 30,000 students enrolled for the first time. This is due in part by the high number of out-of-state students. The percentage mix of students at this time were 62% in state and 38% out-of-state. During this time, the freshman class was recorded at 5,000 students.{{cite news |title=Enrollment at University of Kentucky Tops 30,000 |url=http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/education/article44508666.html |work=Lexington Herald-Leader |access-date=April 28, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420104846/http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/education/article44508666.html |archive-date=April 20, 2016 |url-status=live}}

The University of Kentucky Student Government Association (UKSGA) represents all undergraduate, graduate and professional students enrolled at the university in several critical ways. UKSGA exists to increase student influence over academic policy and to provide many helpful, creative and necessary student services. UKSGA also exists to protect and expand student substantive and procedural rights with the university and surrounding municipalities. Finally, UKSGA exists to better represent the student body in relations with faculty, administration, Board of Trustees and the Commonwealth of Kentucky.{{cite web |url=http://uksga.org |title=University of Kentucky Student Government | The UKSGA homepage |publisher=Uksga.org |date=February 5, 2012 |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105133719/http://uksga.org/ |archive-date=November 5, 2012 |url-status=live}}

UKSGA includes an Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branch.

• Executive Branch: oversees day-to-day operations, manages budget, and facilitates major programs.
• Legislative Branch: includes the Student Senate. There are 46 legislators in this branch. Their goal is to allocate funds, approve presidential appointments, facilitate legislative changes, and represent the larger student voice.
• Judicial: composed of one chief justice and six Supreme Court justices. The Supreme Court rules on the constitutionality of legislation, handles claims levied against SGA officials, hears any election rules violation complaints and validates election results.{{cite web |title=UKSGA |url=http://uksga.org/about |website=Student Government Association |access-date=April 28, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160503151307/http://uksga.org/about |archive-date=May 3, 2016 |url-status=dead}}

Several of their current programs include:

• Kentucky Wildcab: a late night transportation service designed to enhance the safety efforts of the university and surrounding community in partnership with UK Transportation.{{cite web |url=http://uksga.org/services/ |title=University of Kentucky Student Government Services |publisher=Uksga.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010130829/http://uksga.org/programs-and-services/cats-cruiser |archive-date=October 10, 2012 |access-date=April 9, 2020}}
• Wildcat Wardrobe: provides UK students with free professional dress clothing for interviews and jobs{{Cite web |url=http://uksga.org/services/ |title=UKSGA: Services |website=uksga.org |access-date=April 9, 2020}}
• Safe CATS: provides UK students with a safer way to travel around campus by having SafeCats team members escort students to their destinations on-foot or by golf cart{{cite web |url=http://uksga.org/programs-and-services/safecats |title=SafeCats | University of Kentucky Student Government |publisher=Uksga.org |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010122352/http://uksga.org/programs-and-services/safecats |archive-date=October 10, 2012 |url-status=dead}}
• Student Legal Services: free on-site consultation for any legal issue by a local attorney{{cite web |url=http://uksga.org/programs-and-services/student-legal-service |title=Student Legal Service | University of Kentucky Student Government |publisher=Uksga.org |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010123825/http://uksga.org/programs-and-services/student-legal-service |archive-date=October 10, 2012 |url-status=dead}}
• Childcare Grants: available for part-time and full-time UK students, both at the undergraduate and graduate level, who need financial assistance for day-care service for their children.{{cite web |url=http://uksga.org/applications/childcare-grants |title=Childcare Grants | University of Kentucky Student Government |publisher=Uksga.org |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010121545/http://uksga.org/applications/childcare-grants |archive-date=October 10, 2012 |url-status=dead}}
• Scholarships{{cite web |url=http://uksga.org/applications/scholarships-awards |title=Scholarships & Awards | University of Kentucky Student Government |publisher=Uksga.org |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010131847/http://uksga.org/applications/scholarships-awards |archive-date=October 10, 2012 |url-status=dead}}
• Student Organization Funding: General Funding Grants, Club Sports Grants, Service Grants, Academic/Professional Conferences, and Senate Special Projects{{cite web |url=http://uksga.org/funding |title=Funding | University of Kentucky Student Government |publisher=Uksga.org |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010130639/http://uksga.org/funding |archive-date=October 10, 2012 |access-date=April 9, 2020}}

Several distinguished student body presidents include Governor Steve Beshear.{{cite web |url=http://governor.ky.gov/about/Pages/default.aspx |title=About Meet the Governor |publisher=Governor.ky.gov |access-date=February 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130111221706/http://governor.ky.gov/about/Pages/default.aspx |archive-date=January 11, 2013 |url-status=dead}}

In the early twentieth century, a group called The Strollers consisted of performers either studying or employed at the university or nearby. They performed regularly at the Lexington Opera House. In 1910, their first production there was the 1839 historical play Richelieu.{{Cite book |last=Morelock |first=Kolan Thomas |title=Taking the Town. Collegiate and Community Culture in the Bluegrass, 1880–1917 |year=2008 |isbn=9780813173054 |page=261}} At the end of the spring semester in 1918, as World War I was nearing its end, they performed several skits about war life and then projected large photographic images "showing actual battle scenes" and the humanitarian work of the Red Cross. University girls dressed as nurses served as ushers.{{Cite news |date=May 3, 1918 |title=Strollers Score Once Again At Opera House |work=The Kentucky Kernel |location=Lexington |page=1 |volume=10}}

The first theater on UK grounds was the Campus Theater. In 1922, the university bought the Consolidated Baptist Church, a historically black congregation. The church's pastor had been Peter Vinegar. A group of performers and their benefactors, led by Carol M. Sax, raised more money to make the church into a theater, calling it Romany.{{Cite news |date=March 11, 1927 |title=Romany History Reads Like a Picturesque Tale As Progress of Past Three Years Is Recalled |work=The Kentucky Kernel |page=1}} They performed The Miracle of Sister Beatrice by Maurice Maeterlinck in 1927.{{Cite news |date=May 3, 1932 |title=5 Years Ago This Week |work=Kentucky Kernel |page=2}} In 1928, it was renamed Guignol Theater, after Théâtre du Grand Guignol in Paris, a theater on the Rue Chaptal from 1897 to 1962, housed in a former chapel and with seats for 293.{{Cite book |last=Cone |first=Carl B. |title=The University of Kentucky. A Pictorial History |date=2014 |isbn=9780813157542 |page=82}} After leaving Lexington, Sax staged Arthur Wilmurt's The Guest Room on Broadway in 1931; it ran for a respectable 67 shows. Eleanor Roosevelt attended opening night of his production of I.J. Golden's Re-Echo in New York in 1934; it ran for only 5 shows.{{Cite web |title=Carol Sax |url=https://playbill.com/person/carol-sax-vault-0000018443 |access-date=August 3, 2024 |website=Playbill}}

Frank C. Fowler was the second director of the Kentucky Guignol; he had received his master's degree from Brown University in 1928 and was hired by UK that same year.{{Cite news |date=May 13, 1938 |title=Little Theatre Flourishes Under Fowler's Tutelage |work=The Kentucky Kernel |page=6}} He was followed by Wallace Briggs.{{Cite book |last=Briggs |first=Wallace Neal |title=Riverside Remembered |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |year=2014 |isbn=9780813147789}} The fire that gutted UK's Guignol in 1947 is captured on film.{{Cite web |last=UKY Archives |title=Guignol Theater fire, University of Kentucky, 1947 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoaW2WGCl64 |website=YouTube}} In the 1930s and 1940s, one-act plays written by students were performed annually.{{Cite news |date=January 10, 1939 |title=Little Theatre Opens Contest |work=The Kentucky Kernel |page=3}} A new Guignol Theater was opened in the Fine Arts Building in February, 1950 with a production of Medea.{{Cite journal |last=Martin |first=Boyd |date=February 26, 1950 |title=U of K's Guignol Theater Has A Dignified Opening |journal=Courier-Journal |publication-place=Louisville |page=12}} Two Blind Mice, a political satire by Samuel and Bella Spewack, followed after Medea.{{Cite journal |date=March 26, 1950 |title=Cast Chosen For Guignol Play To Be Presented April 24–29 |journal=Lexington Herald-Leader}}

During the 1950s, plays performed at the Guignol would often go on tour throughout Kentucky in the summer months.{{Cite news |date=1953-07-10 |title=Guignol's 'Born Yesterday' Readies For Road Tour |work=The Kentucky Kernel |page=1}}

The Electrical and Computer Engineering Department was the home of one of the earliest college amateur radio stations in the United States, beginning with W4JP that began continuous operation prior to World War I.{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211030614/http://www.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/UKARC/history/early/intro.html |archive-date=February 11, 2009 |title=The Early Years: A Pictorial History |publisher=University of Kentucky Amateur Radio Club |access-date=July 24, 2012 |url=http://www.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/UKARC/history/early/intro.html}} In 1927, the station was relicensed as 9JL (later W9JL).{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211030619/http://www.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/UKARC/history/w9jl/intro.html |archive-date=February 11, 2009 |title=The Middle Years: A Pictorial History |publisher=University of Kentucky Amateur Radio Club |access-date=July 24, 2012 |url=http://www.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/UKARC/history/w9jl/intro.html}}

Students currently run two independent FM stations. The first, 91.3 FM WUKY, is a Triple-A station and was the first university-owned FM radio station in the United States and Kentucky's first public radio station.{{cite web |url=http://www.wuky.org/history |title=History |publisher=WUKY |access-date=July 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426122057/http://www.wuky.org/history |archive-date=April 26, 2012 |url-status=live}} The operations started on October 17, 1940, as WBKY out of Beattyville, although the station moved five years later to Lexington.

In 1971, WBKY was one of the first to carry NPR's "All Things Considered" and helped debut National Public Radio, changing its call letters to WUKY in 1989 to better reflect its affiliation with the university. In 2007, it became the first Lexington radio station to broadcast in high-definition digital radio. The second is 88.1 FM WRFL-"Radio Free Lexington" which has been in operation since 1988.{{cite news |title=About |publisher=WRFL |url=http://wrfl881.org/about.html |access-date=May 8, 2007 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070313194831/http://www.wrfl881.org/about.html |archive-date=March 13, 2007}} WRFL is operated by students and broadcasts live 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and features music that is spread across most genres.

The campus is also served by the Kentucky Kernel, a student-run, financially independent daily newspaper, with the first issue published in 1915.{{cite web |url=http://sweb.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/SDC/markers/KYKernel1.html |title=Kentucky Kernel Historical Marker |access-date=July 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626195019/http://sweb.uky.edu/StudentOrgs/SDC/markers/KYKernel1.html |archive-date=June 26, 2010 |url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt72jm23bv99_1/viewer? |title=The Kentucky Kernel, First Issue |date=September 16, 1915 |access-date=July 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731175436/http://exploreuk.uky.edu/catalog/xt72jm23bv99_1/viewer |archive-date=July 31, 2013 |url-status=live}} The official yearbook of the University of Kentucky is the Kentuckian, first published in 1906. The Kentuckian was preceded by at least one previous book, the Echo.

The University of Kentucky Black Student Union (BSU) was established on February 17, 1968. They were the first organization on campus that was created to support and protect students of color. Their goal was to fight for change on campus for diverse students. They work closely with other organizations on campus such as the Student Activities Board, Student Government Association and various fraternities. Their main mission is to educate the campus community on Black American students and to assist incoming minority students.{{cite web |title=Our Mission |url=https://ukbsu.weebly.com/our-mission.html |website=UK Black Student Union |access-date=February 25, 2021}}

Jim Embry, born in Richmond, Kentucky, was the founding member of the organization, as well as, the first elected president. 51 years later, Embry is still fighting for progress in the social injustices and systemic racism on campus.{{cite web |last1=Peters |first1=Hailey |title=More than an organization: How Black Student Union has been fostering community, igniting change |url=http://www.kykernel.com/lifestyle/more-than-an-organization-how-black-student-union-has-been-fostering-community-igniting-change/article_27901760-3907-11e9-b7b1-53cd01f6ffbc.html |website=The Kentucky Kernel |access-date=February 25, 2021}}

Nineteen sororities and twenty-three fraternities representing over 3,000 students.{{cite web |title=Greek Welcome |publisher=University of Kentucky |date=September 21, 2006 |access-date=January 11, 2008 |url=http://www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/Greek |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080114190836/http://www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/Greek/ |archive-date=January 14, 2008 |url-status=dead}} There are also non-Greek organizations on campus, like Alpha Kappa Psi, a business fraternity and Tau Beta Sigma, a band fraternity. In 2007, the UK paper The Kentucky Kernel unleashed criticism and gained national attention for an editorial cartoon that depicted an African American pledge being auctioned; it was a comment on racial segregation in UK's Greek system.{{Cite web |last=Jaschik |first=Scott |title=New Furor Over Race and Cartoons |url=https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/10/08/new-furor-over-race-and-cartoons |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=Inside Higher Ed |language=en}} FarmHouse's chapter was suspended in 2021 for four years by the university, after a pledge died while attending a party in the fraternity's house.{{Cite web |last=Girard |first=Emily |title=UK's FarmHouse chapter suspended following investigations into Hazelwood's death |url=http://www.kykernel.com/news/uks-farmhouse-chapter-suspended-following-investigations-into-hazelwoods-death/article_9fbd0da8-635a-11ec-8a2c-13382c482ecb.html |access-date=2022-04-25 |website=The Kentucky Kernel |language=en}} In 2023, Phi Tau was suspended for misuse of alcohol and other violations of law.{{Cite web |last=Stanley |first=Hannah |title=Phi Kappa Tau fraternity revoked as a UK student organization |url=https://kykernel.com/94668/news/phi-kappa-tau-fraternity-revoked-as-a-uk-student-organization/ |access-date=2023-04-27 |website=Kentucky Kernel}}

{{Main|Kentucky Wildcats}}

{{See also|Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball|Kentucky Wildcats football|University of Kentucky cheerleading squad|Kentucky Wildcats women's basketball|Kentucky Wildcats men's soccer|Kentucky Wildcats softball}}

File:rupparenaK.JPG performing the traditional "Big K" cheer during a basketball game. Seating Capacity of Rupp Arena is 23,500.]]

University of Kentucky student-athletes compete as the Wildcats under colors Kentucky blue and white.

Beginning in the 1890s, students at the A&M scheduled football games with neighboring colleges.{{cite web |title=History Briefs |publisher=University of Kentucky |date=May 23, 2007 |url=http://www.uky.edu/Home/AboutUK/history3.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021119074028/http://www.uky.edu/Home/AboutUK/history3.html |archive-date=November 19, 2002}} In 1902, the women's basketball program began on campus, and the men's team was added one year later. The "Wildcats" became associated with the university shortly after a football victory over Illinois on October 9, 1909. The then-chief of the military department, Commandant Carbuiser, stated that the team had "fought like wildcats." The slogan was later adopted by the university, and a costumed mascot debuted in 1976.

In 1930, then-high school coach Adolph Rupp was hired as a basketball coach and worked in that capacity for 42 years, retiring 1972. During his tenure, he led the men's basketball team to four NCAA championships in 1948, 1949, 1951 and 1958. The Wildcats later won a fifth championship under Joe B. Hall in 1978, another in 1996 under Rick Pitino and the next under Orlando "Tubby" Smith in 1998. In 2007, the University of Kentucky named Billy Gillispie as the head coach of the men's basketball team and on March 30, 2009, the university named John Calipari as the head coach of the Wildcats. Calipari coached the team to its eighth national title in 2012.

The university boasts of numerous national championships, with its latest coming in spring 2021 in women’s volleyball for the fall 2020 season. UK also boasts of a cross country national team championship (women's, 1988), eight individual championships in gymnastics, an Olympic medalist in track and field, and 24 national championships in cheerleading. (Not an NCAA recognized championship){{cite web |title=Stats-at-a-glance |publisher=University of Kentucky |date=May 23, 2007 |url=http://www.uky.edu/Home/AboutUK/facts.html. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070629200653/http://www.uky.edu/Home/AboutUK/facts.html |archive-date=June 29, 2007}} After defeating number-one ranked Oklahoma 13–7 in the Sugar Bowl under legendary coach Bear Bryant, Kentucky was also a co-national champion for the 1950 season.

File:KentuckyCommonwealthStadium-EZInterior.jpg

The University of Kentucky Dance team was ranked fifth in the nation in Hip Hop and seventh in Pom in 2015.{{cite web |url=http://www.ukathletics.com/page/spirit-dance |title=Dance Team – UK Wildcats |date=July 30, 2015 |access-date=December 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161129025941/http://ukathletics.com/page/spirit-dance |archive-date=November 29, 2016 |url-status=live}}

Other athletic programs sponsored at the varsity level include baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country running, football, men's and women's golf, women's gymnastics, the coeducational sport of rifle, men's and women's soccer, women's softball, men's and women's swimming and diving, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track and field and women's volleyball.{{cite web |title=ukatlhetics.com |publisher=University of Kentucky |year=2008 |access-date=January 3, 2008 |url=http://www.ukathletics.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110224000436/http://www.ukathletics.com/ |archive-date=February 24, 2011 |url-status=live}} The school also has a popular club-level men's ice hockey team and a rugby program that competes at the Division 1 level.

The University of Kentucky football coach is Mark Stoops, named the successor to Joker Phillips, who was the first African American football coach in Kentucky's history.

Notable among a number of songs commonly played and sung at various events such as commencement, convocation and athletic games is the University of Kentucky fight song: On, On, U of K.{{cite web |url=http://ukbands.org/schoolsongs.html |title=School Songs |publisher=University of Kentucky Bands |access-date=July 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120116220612/http://ukbands.org/schoolsongs.html |archive-date=January 16, 2012 |url-status=live}} Additionally, the song Kentucky Fight is played before games.

In April 2024, a Title IX sexual violence lawsuit was filed against the University of Kentucky which alleged that there was a "toxic, sexually hostile environment" within the university swim program during the time Lars Jorgensen was swim coach between 2013 and 2023. The lawsuit further accused the university of "complicity" with Jorgensen and allowed him "to prey on, sexually harass, and commit horrific sexual assaults and violent rapes against young female coaches and collegiate athletes who were reliant on him."{{cite news|url=https://theathletic.com/5410705/2024/04/12/kentucky-swimming-lars-jorgensen-sexual-assault-allegations/|title=Kentucky accused of 'complicity' as former swim coach allegedly committed sexual violence|first=Katie|last=Strang|publisher=The Athletic|date=2024-04-12}}{{cite news|url=https://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/college/kentucky/2024/04/13/kentucky-swimming-lars-jorgensen-lawsuit-mitch-barnhart/73312300007/|title=Ex-Kentucky swim coach Lars Jorgensen accused of rape, sexual assault in lawsuit|first=Ryan|last=Black|publisher=Louisville Courier Journal|date=April 13, 2024|accessdate=April 16, 2024}}

University of Kentucky partnered up with South Korean Esport Organization Gen.G Esports and International Studies Abroad (ISA) to launch an international esports exchange programme in Seoul, South Korea.{{Cite web |last=Hyrliková |first=Henrieta |date=2021-04-16 |title=University of Kentucky, Gen.G and ISA join forces to launch student exchange programme in South Korea |url=https://esportsinsider.com/2021/04/university-of-kentucky-geng-isa-launch-student-exchange-programme-south-korea/ |access-date=2021-04-18 |website=Esports Insider |language=en-GB}}

{{See|Traditions at the University of Kentucky}}

{{Main|List of University of Kentucky buildings}}

File:WilliamtyounglibraryUK.JPG

The University of Kentucky offers seven main dining facilities, 23 residence halls, and numerous recreation facilities spread between three distinct campuses: north, south, and central. It is also home to more than 250 student-run organizations.

The university campus is home to numerous notable structures, such as Main Building, a four-story administration building dating to 1882, which was gutted by fire on May 15, 2001. The Patterson Office Tower is the tallest building on campus.

The University of Kentucky once operated 14 community colleges with more than 100 extended sites, centers and campuses under the Kentucky Community and Technical College System, but relinquished control under the Postsecondary Education Improvement Act of 1997.{{cite news |last=Gilmore |first=Amanda |title=Merger of ACC, ATC completed |work=The Daily Independent |date=July 1, 2003 |access-date=January 2, 2008 |url=http://commentsengine.cnhi.zope.net/archives/dailyindependent/story_detail?story_id=7782}}{{Dead link|date=July 2018|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes }} The network of community colleges is now known as the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS). Adjoining Lexington Community College, despite the reorganization of the community colleges, remained integrated with the university, but separated from the University of Kentucky in 2004 and became a part of KCTCS; it is now known as Bluegrass Community and Technical College.

The College of Engineering currently operates a satellite campus in Paducah, located on the campus of West Kentucky Community and Technical College.{{cite web |title=A Rich Heritage: A Historic Timeline |publisher=West Kentucky Community and Technical College |year=2007 |access-date=January 7, 2007 |url=http://www.westkentucky.kctcs.edu/aboutus/wkctcdhist.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060909220212/http://www.westkentucky.kctcs.edu/aboutus/wkctcdhist.shtml |archive-date=September 9, 2006}}

File:Funkhouser building.jpg

The University of Kentucky is home to seven campus libraries. Among them is the William T. Young Library, which houses a general undergraduate collection and social sciences, humanities, business, biology, and agricultural materials. The library is also a Federal Depository Library and a public library for the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

File:University of Kentucky Arboretum - DSC09377.JPG

File:Atrium of Don and Cathy Jacobs Science Building.jpg

The University of Kentucky has several noteworthy landmarks:

• Kroger Field
• Memorial Coliseum
• Memorial Hall
• Singletary Center for the Arts
• University of Kentucky Art Museum
• University of Kentucky/Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government Arboretum
• University of Kentucky Research and Education Center Botanical Garden
• William T. Young Library

• Kimberly W. Anderson, Chemist, Gill Eminent Professor of Chemical Engineering and Associate Dean for Administration and Academic Affairs in the College of Engineering{{Cite web |title=Anderson, Kimberly {{!}} University of Kentucky College of Engineering |url=https://www.engr.uky.edu/directory/anderson-kimberly |access-date=February 26, 2021 |website=www.engr.uky.edu}}
• John Clubbe, expert on Byron, Guggenheim Fellow
• Gary Ferland, Astrophysicist
• Lori Stewart Gonzalez, speech pathologist and 23rd president of Ohio University
• Arthur G. Hunt, American plant and soils scientist
• Milena Minkova, Latinist specializing in Neo-Latin studies and spoken Latin
• Melynda Price, Professor of Law, Director of African American and Africana Studies Program in the College of Arts and Sciences
• Juan Trigos, composer and conductor
• Terence Tunberg, Latinist specialising in Neo-Latin studies and spoken Latin
• Ronald Werner-Wilson (born 1962), Chair of the Family Studies Department and Kathryn Louise Chellgren Endowed Professor for Research in Family Studies

{{Main|List of University of Kentucky alumni}}

The university has more than 140,246 alumni in the state of Kentucky,{{cite web |title=Alumni throughout the Bluegrass State |publisher=University of Kentucky Alumni Association |date=January 2007 |access-date=January 11, 2008 |url=http://www.ukalumni.net/Maps/statewebmap.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090123065959/http://www.ukalumni.net/Maps/statewebmap.htm |archive-date=January 23, 2009 |url-status=live}} 216,737 in the United States,{{cite web |title=Alumni across the nation |publisher=University of Kentucky Alumni Association |date=January 2007 |access-date=January 11, 2008 |url=http://www.ukalumni.net/Maps/framemap.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090123065922/http://www.ukalumni.net/Maps/framemap.htm |archive-date=January 23, 2009 |url-status=live}} and 1,119 internationally.{{cite web |title=Alumni around the world |publisher=University of Kentucky Alumni Association |date=January 2007 |access-date=January 11, 2008 |url=http://www.ukalumni.net/Maps/worldmap.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090123070004/http://www.ukalumni.net/Maps/worldmap.htm |archive-date=January 23, 2009 |url-status=live}} The University of Kentucky Alumni Association is the primary affiliation for former students and faculty, and is located at the corner of Rose Street and Euclid Avenue. The building, dedicated in 1963, is named for Helen G. King, the first permanent director of the association and a former "Miss University of Kentucky". The association also meets at Spindletop Hall, a large mansion along Iron Works Pike, which serves as a central alumni gathering point.{{cite news |title=Mission & History |year=2007 |access-date=January 11, 2008 |publisher=University of Kentucky Alumni Association |url=http://www.ukalumni.net/pages.php?page_id=6 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070515165033/http://www.ukalumni.net/pages.php?page_id=6 |archive-date=May 15, 2007 |url-status=live}}

The University of Kentucky boasts seven governors, including four former Governors of Kentucky: Steve Beshear, Ernie Fletcher, Paul E. Patton, and Albert "Happy" Chandler; Chandler was also a former U.S. Senator, and was the Commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1945 to 1951. Rounding out the other seven are the former Governor of Ohio Ted Strickland, former Governor of North Carolina Beverly Perdue, and former Governor of Arkansas Tom Jefferson Terral. Former U.S. Representative Ken Lucas from the commonwealth's fourth congressional district, and current U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell are other government officials that called the university home. Kelly Craft (née Guilfoil), former United States Ambassador to the United Nations and United States Ambassador to Canada, attended the university.

The United Methodist Bishop Alfred W. Gwinn also attended the university.

Carol Martin "Bill" Gatton, an automobile dealer executive, was the donor of the largest gift ever to the university, and is the namesake for the Gatton College of Business and Economics and the Gatton Student Center. Paul Chellgren, Chairman and CEO of Ashland Inc., also attended the university, and is the namesake for Chellgren Hall, formerly known as Woodland Glen I.

The university was also the home of Thomas Hunt Morgan, a scientist and winner of the 1933 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and William Lipscomb, 1976 winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Doris Yvonne Wilkinson was the first African American to graduate from the university as an undergraduate student in 1958, and Joyce Hamilton Berry, a former clinical psychologist, was the first female African American to earn a Ph.D. from UK in 1970. Journalist and Miss USA 2021 Elle Smith, an African American, also attended the university.{{cite web|url=https://www.wkyt.com/2021/11/30/university-kentucky-grad-elle-smith-wins-miss-usa-2021/|title=University of Kentucky grad Elle Smith wins Miss USA 2021|date=November 30, 2021|work=WKYT-TV}}

Actresses such as Miss Elizabeth, Ashley Judd, and Adunni Ade also attended the university. Randall Cobb, a wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers; Josh Hines-Allen, a defensive end for the Jacksonville Jaguars; Anthony Davis, a power forward and center for Los Angeles Lakers; and Derek Bryant, a former outfielder for the Oakland Athletics from 1973 to 1981, are a few sports alumni from the university.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}} Tyrese Maxey is a point guard for the 76ers.{{Cite web |title=Tyrese Maxey – Men's Basketball |url=https://ukathletics.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/tyrese--maxey/7521 |access-date=2021-04-24 |website=University of Kentucky Athletics |date=November 14, 2018 |language=en}}

File:Kelly Knight Craft (cropped).jpg|Kelly Craft, US Ambassador to the United Nations, US Ambassador to Canada

File:Ashley Judd head.jpg|Ashley Judd, actress

File:William n lipscomb jr.jpg|William Lipscomb, 1976 winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry

File:Mitch McConnell 2016 official photo (1).jpg|Mitch McConnell, U.S. Senator, longest-serving Senate Party Leader in U.S. History

File:Thomas Hunt Morgan.jpg|Thomas Hunt Morgan, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and father of modern genetics

File:Benchandler.jpeg| Ben Chandler, U.S. Congressman from Kentucky, 2004 to 2011.

File: Louise Slaughter official photo.jpg | Louise Slaughter, U.S. Congresswoman from New York, 1987 to 2018. Chair of the House Rules Committee, 2007 to 2011.

File: Happy Chandler - Harris and Ewing Crop.jpg | Albert "Happy" Chandler, 44th and 49th Governor of Kentucky; Commissioner of Major League Baseball, 1945 to 1951.

• Education in Kentucky
• List of forestry universities and colleges

{{Clear}}

{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• Bashaw, Carolyn Terry. " 'To serve the people of the state of Kentucky': Sarah Gibson Blanding and the development of administrative skill, 1923–1941." Filson Club History Quarterly (1991) 65#2 pp. 281–301. Blanding was the innovative Dean of Women.
• Birdwhistell, Terry L., and Deirdre A. Scaggs. Our Rightful Place: A History of Women at the University of Kentucky, 1880–1945 (University Press of Kentucky, 2020) [https://books.google.com/books?id=j8vcDwAAQBAJ&dq=Birdwhistell,+Terry+L.+Kentucky&pg=PA251 online]
• Birdwhistell, Terry L. "Divided We Fall: State College and the Normal School Movement in Kentucky, 1880–1910." Register of the Kentucky Historical Society 88.4 (1990): 431–456. [https://uknowledge.uky.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1013&context=libraries_facpub online]
• Cone, Carl B. The University of Kentucky: A pictorial history (University Press of Kentucky, 2014) [https://books.google.com/books?id=0sAeBgAAQBAJ&dq=%22+University+of+Kentucky%22+history&pg=PP1 online].
• Ellis, William E. A history of education in Kentucky (University Press of Kentucky, 2011). [https://books.google.com/books?id=NigFCeHbpvIC&dq=History+education+kENTUCKY&pg=PT8 excerpt]; also see [https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/185/monograph/book/1966 complete text online], the major scholarly survey; also see [https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=45065 online book review]
• Gooden, Susan H. "Tuning the Local Network to a National Channel: Educational Leadership and the College of Education at the University of Kentucky, 1917–27." Register of the Kentucky Historical Society 93.3 (1995): 307–332. {{jstor|23383959}}
• Groves, John Russell Jr. "An examination of major initiatives in campus planning at the University of Kentucky, 1919–1991" (PhD dissertation, University of Kentucky; ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 1992. 9233608).
• Kaleidoscope University of Kentucky Journal of Undergraduate Scholarship. Lexington, KY: Office of Undergraduate Research, University of Kentucky, 2002. Print.
• Kiesel, Linda Raney. "Kentucky's land-grant legacy: An analysis of the administration of John Bryan Bowman and James Kennedy Patterson, 1865–1890" (PhD dissertation, University of Kentucky ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2003. 3074495).
• Laws, Federal and State, Incorporating, Regulating and Endowing State University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky. Lexington, Ky. : University of Kentucky: N.p., 1913. Print.
• McVey, Frank L. The Gates Open Slowly: A History of Education in Kentucky (1949), older scholarly survey. [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.524880 online]
• Morelock, Kolan. Taking the town: Collegiate and community culture in the Bluegrass, 1880–1917 (University Press of Kentucky, 2008) [https://books.google.com/books?id=u6kpuibgrf0C&dq=richard++angelo+kentucky&pg=PP1 online].
• Moyen, Eric. Frank L. McVey and the University of Kentucky: A progressive president and the modernization of a southern university (University Press of Kentucky, 2011) [https://books.google.com/books?id=Fby1K8Sx6A4C&dq=%22+University+of+Kentucky%22+history&pg=PP2 online].
• Newberry, Anthony L. "The University of Kentucky community college system: History, current status, and future challenges." Community College Journal of Research and Practice 20.6 (1996): 519–538.
• Russell, Mark W. "Beyond Blue and White: University of Kentucky Presidents and Desegregation, 1941–1987" (PhD dissertation, . University of Kentucky, 2014) [https://uknowledge.uky.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=epe_etds online].

• Baker, S. Zebulon. " 'On the Opposite Side of the Fence': The University of Kentucky and the Racial Desegregation of the Southeastern Conference." Register of the Kentucky Historical Society 115.4 (2017): 561–610. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/44981260 online]
• Nelli, Humbert S. "Herman L. Donovan and the Emergence of 'Big-Time' Athletics at the University of Kentucky." Register of the Kentucky Historical Society 88.2 (1990): 163–182. {{jstor|23382463}}
• Nelli, Humbert S. The Winning Tradition: A History of Kentucky Wildcat Basketball (1984) [https://books.google.com/books?id=WswfBgAAQBAJ&dq=The+Winning+Tradition:+A+History+of+Kentucky+Wildcat+Basketball+&pg=PP1 online]
• Nelli, Humbert S. "Adolph Rupp, the Kentucky Wildcats, and the Basketball Scandal of 1951." Register of the Kentucky Historical Society' 84.1 (1986): 51–75. {{jstor|23381140}}
• Stanley, Gregory Kent. Before big blue: Sports at the University of Kentucky, 1880–1940 (University Press of Kentucky, 2014) [https://books.google.com/books?id=MaYfBgAAQBAJ&dq=%22+University+of+Kentucky%22+history&pg=PP1 online].
• Stanley, Gregory Kent. " '... And Not to Make Athletes of Them': Banning Women's Sports at the University of Kentucky, 1902–24." Register of the Kentucky Historical Society 93.4 (1995): 422–445. Fierce debates led in 1924 to ending all varsity competition for women for the next fifty years.
• Stanley, Gregory Kent. " 'Not conducive to the best interests of this institution': President James Kennedy Patterson, the Board of Trustees, and University of Kentucky Athletics, 1890–1910," Filson Club History Quarterly (1995) 69#2 pp. 159–170. President Patterson said football was too dangerous and not conducive to moral character. The Board overruled him in response to popular demand.
• {{Cite book|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv2175qqf|title=Kentucky Basketball: Two Decades Behind the Scenes|first1=Mike|last1=Pratt|first2=Tom|last2=Leach|date=January 18, 2021|publisher=University Press of Kentucky|doi=10.2307/j.ctv2175qqf.15|jstor=j.ctv2175qqf }}

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• [https://exploreuk.uky.edu/fa/findingaid/?id=xt7n8p5v980r Digitized images of the University of Kentucky from the Glass plate negative collection, 1898–1918] housed at the University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections Research Center

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