To culminate its 50th anniversary celebration, Kentucky Humanities, in partnership with The University of Kentucky's Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences (A&S) and Space Tango, will host space pioneer Story Musgrave and Space Tango co-creator Kris Kimel. The duo will discuss Dr. Musgrave’s illustrious career and life experiences as well as the trajectory of the space program across the years, where it is now, and where it’s heading especially in light of Space Tango's Humanity in Deep Space initiatives.

- Dr. Story Musgrave, is an American physician, a retired NASA astronaut, an author, a public speaker and consultant to both Disney's Imagineering group and Applied Minds in California. In 1996, he became only the second astronaut to fly on six spaceflights (spending a total of 1,281 hours, 59 minutes, 22 seconds on space missions) and he is the most formally educated astronaut with six academic degrees. Often called the “Dean of NASA,” including earning his M.S. in physiology and biophysics from the University of Kentucky, Musgrave is the only astronaut to fly aboard all five space shuttles and he participated in the design and development of all space shuttle extra-vehicular activity equipment, including spacesuits, life support systems, airlocks, and Manned Maneuvering Units. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors including induction into the International Space Hall of Fame.

- Kris Kimel is the Co-Founder and Chairman of Space Tango. He is also the former President of the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation (KSTC), an independent non-profit company focused on initiatives in science, technology, entrepreneurship and disruptive innovation. Kimel also founded the IdeaFestival an international event centering on innovation, discovery, and creative thinking across different disciplines (science, the humanities, design, etc.) He holds bachelor and masters’ degrees from the University of Kentucky.

The “Introducing Environmental Humanities at the University of Kentucky and the Wider Community” workshop seeks to support the University of Kentucky’s newly established Environmental Humanities Initiative. This workshop is in the form of a Zoom meeting (rather than a Zoom webinar) which will provide a platform for everyone’s input. We have invited speakers from two different environmental humanities programs to speak about their own EH initiative’s origins, challenges, and structures. Dr. Walker, from Colby College’s Environmental Humanities Initiative, as well as Dr. Engelhardt and Anna Hamilton, from the Mellon-funded Coasts, Climates, the Humanities, and the Environment Consortium, will relay their own experiences whilst allowing for discussion across our group. We invite you to come along and share in this exciting and informative project.

Over the past year, the teaching of “critical race theory” in public schools has become a hot-button political issue, dividing parents, teachers, and school board officials alike, sparking a national conversation about who should determine the content of public-school curriculum, and leading to the introduction of legislation that would limit what could be taught in Kentucky classrooms. The Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences is bringing together scholars and community members to discuss critical social problems, in this case the influence of political polarization on public school curriculum. We will discuss what exactly critical race theory is, seek to understand why legislation affecting school curriculum is being introduced in Kentucky, and explore what its impact might be. Our panelists include: Nikki Brown, UK Professor of History and African American and Africana Studies; Arnold Farr, UK Professor of Philosophy and Fayette-Urban County Council-at-Large Candidate; Tyler Murphy, Chair of the Fayette County Board of Education and a National Board-Certified Social Studies Teacher at Boyle County High School; Pragya Upreti, a Senior at Lafayette High School and the research lead for the Kentucky Student Voice Team, an independent youth-led organization focusing on education research, policy, and advocacy; Steve Voss, UK Professor of Political Science; and Lucy Waterbury, a Fayette County Public School Parent, School Based Decision Making Council Parent Representative, PTSA Leader, and co-founder of Save Our Schools Kentucky.

Zoom Recording:

https://uky.zoom.us/rec/share/byUgIwTqswWUAez8GWahqCGsp_wv6boeKWPMCnLiiZ5VdjENrawbgJTHx7xlmGoi.ftX49F4uUFGxxshp

“The Social Psychology of Citizens and Subjects: Generalized Others and the Pathways to Inequality and Social Structure,” a chapter from the book: Political Sociology: A Synthetic Theory of Power, Interaction and Bargaining

Introduction to a book manuscript that is tentatively entitled “Royal Reformer: The Achievements of Victoria of Prussia/Germany, 1858-1901”; or  “Unknown Empress: Victoria of Prussia/Germany and Liberal Reform.” 

Join us for a film screening of The 24th, a historical film written and directed by Kevin Willmott! This film screening will be held virtually followed by a brief Q&A discussion. For more insight on the film, check out this interview.

Read more on Kevin Willmott's extensive works HERE.

Watch The 24th movie trailer!

This event is sponsored by:

• International Film Certificate Program
• Gaines Center for Humanities
• UK History Department
• Commonwealth Institute for Black Studies
• Rosenberg College of Law
• Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences
• UK Veteran's Resource CEnter
• William T. Young Library
• UK Office of Institutional Diversity

To register, click HERE! Contact Pearl James for more information.

Feeling a bit lost as a new or not-so-new faculty member during this uncertain time? Our faculty peer mentoring programs can help. Research shows that faculty peer mentoring creates various benefits for mentees, including but not limited to higher research productivity, increased teaching proficiency, more robust networks and collegial relationships, better work-life balance, and higher career satisfaction.

Please join Sarah Lyon, Associate Dean of Faculty, and Karen Petrone, Director of the Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences, for a workshop to help you get the mentoring you need to thrive in your faculty career.

REGISTRATION HERE!