$2.5 million gift from Wrigley Miller to support UK College of Communication and Information

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 3, 2024) — Today, the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees formally accepted a $2.5 million gift from philanthropist, entrepreneur, horsewoman and award-winning journalist Misdee Wrigley Miller and her husband — businessman, lifelong horseman and accomplished polo player James Miller — that will support the renovation and expansion of UK’s Pence Hall, the future home of the UK College of Communication and Information.

As owner and CEO of Kentucky-based Wrigley Media Group and LEX Studios, Wrigley Miller helps conceive, create, produce and distribute media content seen around the world. Wrigley Media has had a long partnership with the college with the shared goal of growing the media production workforce in Kentucky.

“Kentucky offers everything visually that is needed to produce films and TV shows — beautiful rolling hills, lakes, charming small towns, urban areas, horse farms, bourbon distilleries,” Wrigley Miller said. “The people element is where a substantial amount of growth and opportunity lies. My goal in supporting the future home of the UK College of Communication and Information is to expand and enrich the educational opportunities offered in Kentucky. The results will be an educated, local crew base that is skilled to produce the film and TV industry work that is headed our way. The film and TV crews that are coming to Kentucky need to hire Kentuckians… and they will!”

“I am deeply grateful for Misdee Wrigley Miller’s gift, which helps further our mission to advance Kentucky in all that we do,” said UK President Eli Capilouto. “These innovative spaces will provide students the opportunity to not only learn, but gain real-world experience, strengthening our state’s workforce and potentially boosting the economy of our community.”

The renovation of Pence Hall, situated centrally on UK’s campus, underscores the university’s commitment to supporting the College of Communication and Information’s growing programs and influence as a regional and national leader in communication education.

The $32 million project will feature five classrooms, an auditorium, a seminar room, two computer labs, a whitebox studio, a podcast studio, and indoor and outdoor gathering spaces in addition to the college’s administration and student support offices. The expanded space is designed to foster learning, collaboration and research. Construction is currently underway with an anticipated completion in Summer 2025.

Learn more about the renovation project here.

”We are so grateful for this gift from Misdee Wrigley Miller in helping us bring to completion a project years in the making,” said Jennifer Greer, dean of the College of Communication and Information. “The Pence Hall project will be transformative in providing collaborative learning spaces and giving our students, staff and faculty a central hub for a new college “neighborhood” consisting of activities in Pence as well as neighboring McVey Hall and Lucille Caudill Little Fine Arts Library.”

In recognition of Wrigley Miller’s generosity, the UK Board of Trustees also announced that the first-floor administrative level of Pence Hall and the second-floor auditorium will be named in her honor.

About Misdee Wrigley Miller

With a broadcasting degree from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and previously appearing on air for the CBS affiliate KOOL-TV in Phoenix, Arizona, Wrigley Miller is the recipient of numerous awards for documentaries she has produced and/or hosted. As a reporter, Wrigley Miller specialized in investigative stories and was recognized with a civic award for her groundbreaking series on domestic violence, which ultimately helped enact legislation in Arizona protecting victims. 

As a fourth-generation horsewoman, Wrigley Miller later decided to leave television news and shift to the horse business, but still produced marketing videos devoted to the horse industry. In 2001, she relocated her horse operation to Lexington, and shortly thereafter was asked to help produce a video for the American Saddlebred Museum and hence was introduced to Post Time Productions. Wrigley Miller worked with the company on a few projects and, noticing the caliber of talent and the opportunity for growth, became a partner in the company that would eventually become Wrigley Media Group.

At the same time, Wrigley Miller continued her equestrian career; she helped Team USA win its first gold medal at the World Equestrian Games 2018 in combined driving, as she became the first woman to win gold in the sport. The Saddlebred Division of Wrigley Miller’s Hillcroft Farm is the first farm since 1932 to win all four coveted World Grand Champion titles with their Saddlebred horses. 

In June 2024, Wrigley Miller opened Kentucky’s largest film and TV production facility. At 50,000 square feet with three soundstages, LEX Studios has the infrastructure to attract national and international television and film production to the Bluegrass State.

A Chicago native, Wrigley Miller divides her time between Kentucky, Florida and the Netherlands. She is a dedicated member of the community through her service on boards that have included the U.S. Equestrian Federation, The Fayette Alliance and the Catalina Island Conservancy.