Campus News

WELD Participants Announced for 2022

LEXINGTON, Ky., (March 8, 2022) — The University of Kentucky Women’s Executive Leadership Development (WELD) program has announced its 2022 cohort of faculty and staff participants. The eight-month WELD program is designed to develop the next generation of UK leaders through retreats, monthly meetings, conversations with upper-level administrators, and a group project.  To date, there have been 151 participants with a record number of 31 participants in this year’s cohort.

To kick off the 2022 WELD program, UK Vice President for Institutional Diversity Katrice Albert, Ph.D., will speak at 2:30 p.m., Friday, April 8, in the Grand Courtroom of the J. David Rosenberg College of Law. This event is open to the current WELD cohort and all WELD alumni.

The 2022 participants are:

  • Ruth Adams, Professor, College of Fine Arts                      
  • Azetta Beatty, HR Manager, Work-Life
  • Kalea Benner, Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, College of Social Work
  • Jennifer Bradshaw, Assistant Dean, College of Arts & Sciences
  • Allison Burkette, Professor, College of Arts & Sciences
  • Ashley Clark, Associate Professor, College of Dentistry
  • Morgan Dezarn, Director of Pediatric Heart Program, College of Medicine
  • Sarah Ellison, Assistant Dean of Advising, Center for Student Success
  • Erika Engstrom, Professor, College Communication and Information
  • Kimberly Henken,  Extension Engagement Director, Cooperative Extension
  • Ashley Hinton, Student Wellness Director Associate, Campus Recreation and Wellness
  • Johanna Hoch, Associate Professor, College of Health Sciences
  • Pearl James, Associate Dean, Lewis Honors College
  • Angela Keene, Director of Human Resources, College of Pharmacy
  • Diane Loeffler, Senior Lecturer, College of Social Work
  • April Lyons, Assistant Dean of Finance & Administration, College of Education
  • Heather McAtee, Assistant Athletic Director for Academics and Eligibility, Athletics
  • Courtney McCarty, Assistant Director for Facilities and Operations, Center for Applied Energy Research
  • Miko McFarland, Executive Director of Education Abroad and Exchanges, UK International Center
  • Rosa Mejia-Cruz, Director of Communications, College of Pharmacy
  • Alicia Modenbach, Lecturer, Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering
  • Jimmi Nicholson, Director of Admissions, College of Law
  • Kristen Perry, Professor, College of Education
  • Jill Rappoport, Associate Professor, College of Arts & Sciences
  • Thalethia Routt, Acting Associate Vice President Institutional Equity
  • Elizabeth Salt, Associate Professor, College of Nursing
  • Shannon Sauer-Zavala, Assistant Professor, College of Arts and Sciences
  • Schyler Simpson, Director of Student Affairs, College of Communication and Information
  • Alice Turkington, Academic Ombud and Associate Professor, College of Arts and Sciences
  • Helen Turner, Associate Professor, College of Design
  • Martina Vasil, Associate Professor, College of Fine Arts

The WELD program is offered by the Provost’s Office for Faculty Advancement and is directed by Chana Akins, Professor of Psychology, Assistant Provost for Faculty Advancement Initiatives, in collaboration with Patrice Carroll, Director of Training & Development, HR.

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.   

In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.