Gaines Center selects newest cohort of Gaines Fellows
LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 25, 2025) — The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities announced the selection of 12 undergraduates as the newest class of Gaines Fellows. These students will join the prestigious Gaines Fellowship Program in the Humanities for the 2025-26 academic year.
The Gaines Fellowship is a distinguished, two-year program that enriches the undergraduate experience by fostering an interdisciplinary approach to the humanities. Fellows are selected based on their academic performance, ability to conduct independent research, commitment to addressing public issues and passion for deepening the understanding of the human condition through the humanities.
As Kentucky’s flagship university, UK is dedicated to cultivating the next generation of leaders who will tackle the state’s most pressing challenges. The Gaines Fellows embody this mission, representing more than 15 degree programs and demonstrating a profound dedication to academic excellence and civic engagement.
The 12 newly selected Gaines Fellows are:
- Sidney Acree - English (College of Arts and Sciences and Lewis Honors College); Burkesville, Kentucky
- Priscilla Agbozo - exploratory business (Gatton College of Business and Economics and Lewis Honors College); Mesaiees, Qatar
- Hunter Coady - biology and English (College of Arts and Sciences and Lewis Honors College); Crestwood, Kentucky
- Carter Franklin - international studies and Spanish (College of Arts and Sciences and Lewis Honors College); Louisville
- Eduarda Frizzo Pereira - economics (Gatton College of Business and Economics) and political science (College of Arts and Sciences); Porto Alegre, Brazil
- AJ Hopkins - natural resources and environmental science (Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment), law and justice (College of Arts and Sciences) and Lewis Honors College; Independence, Kentucky
- Matthew Mitchem - political science and economics (College of Arts and Sciences), public policy (Martin School) and Lewis Honors College; Nicholasville, Kentucky
- Riley Owen - biology and neuroscience (College of Arts and Sciences and Lewis Honors College), Burlington; Kentucky
- Prisha Patel - architecture (College of Design and Lewis Honors College); Lexington
- Cecilia Rhein - integrated strategic communication (College of Communication and Information); Lexington
- Da’Vazjah Scharkley - psychology and social sciences research (College of Arts and Sciences); Adairville, Kentucky
- Sanai Wright - English and history (College of Arts and Sciences and Lewis Honors College); Chicago
“Being awarded the Gaines Fellowship is truly an immense honor,” said Prisha Patel. “I am beyond grateful and ecstatic to be selected for this opportunity as a first-generation student. Coming from a mother who has always said ‘anything is possible,’ I have been instilled with this mindset. This opportunity is a perfect example of this expression. I hope this experience gives me a deeper insight into my studies in architecture and the applications of intersectionality within it. I am thrilled to engage and interact with all sorts of diverse people, whether it be my peers, faculty or even external individuals.”
“I am completely ecstatic — the humanities are not just a discipline, but a passion I hold so close to my heart,” said Carter Franklin. “To me, they are the key to delivering impactful change and making a difference in the world.”
Gaines Fellows engage in a rigorous academic experience that includes a specially designed, four-credit-hour-per-semester humanities seminar during their junior year. Additionally, each junior fellow must complete a jury project, which involves proposing and, optionally, implementing an improvement for a local community. In their senior year, fellows undertake an independent study project ranging from six to 15 credit hours, culminating in a thesis that must be submitted and defended before a committee of three university faculty members and the Gaines Center director.
Beyond coursework, Gaines Fellows benefit from an immersive educational experience that includes field trips, lectures and other enriching activities designed to broaden their perspectives and deepen their intellectual curiosity.
Founded in 1984 through the generosity of John and Joan Gaines, the Gaines Center for the Humanities serves as a beacon of innovative education at UK. As a laboratory for creativity and interdisciplinary scholarship, the center continues to advance the university’s mission of developing thoughtful, engaged leaders poised to shape the future of Kentucky and beyond.
For more information, call the Gaines Center at 859-257-1537 or email Associate Director Chelsea Brislin at clbris4@uky.edu.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.