Mental Fitness and Changemaking: UK Women’s Forum February Professional Development Sessions
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 8, 2022) — The University of Kentucky Women’s Forum is excited to announce two professional development sessions for February. These sessions are free and open to the entire UK community.
From noon-1 p.m., Friday, Feb. 11, the UK Women’s Forum will welcome Marian Fish Guinn of MG Coaching and Consulting for a virtual presentation titled “Mental Fitness: How to Grow Core Mental Muscles to Thrive in Challenging Times.” In this presentation, Marian will introduce you to research-based tools to handle life’s challenges with a more positive mindset, and less stress. Register for this free virtual event here: https://uky.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYtde6qqDgsGdxzoINkNRDI09KR0u-jh2XB.
Then, from 9-10 a.m., Friday, Feb. 25, Rikketta Franklin will lead the virtual Coffee & Connect conversation, “Being a Changemaker.” After this discussion, participants will have the knowledge to build and foster communities of respect by establishing core values, understanding active bystandership and collaboration. Register for this free, virtual event here: https://uky.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYocOutqTMuHNDjC3nXcKPK5Usrf5rpbqA1.
Marian Guinn, Partner, MG Coaching and Consulting, has a passion for leadership and believes that concentrated effort to improve the capacity of leaders is critical to future success. Marian obtained post-graduate certification in Executive Coaching from the College of Executive Coaching and holds a Master of Business Administration from the UK Gatton College of Business and Economics. She holds the designation of PCC, Professional Coach Certification from the International Coach Federation.
Prior to establishing MG Coaching and Consulting, Marian gained real-world experience with leadership and management roles first at UK HealthCare as director of fund development, and more recently as CEO of God’s Pantry Food Bank, where she successfully led the food bank for 19 years through multimillion-dollar campaigns, building projects and significant program growth.
Marian serves as a past chair of the KNN Board of Directors, and vice-chair of the ICF Bluegrass Chapter Board. She is a past member of the Gatton College MBA Advisory Council. Marian has been recognized as one of Central Kentucky’s most influential leaders by the Lexington Herald-Leader, inducted into the Gatton College of Business and Economics Hall of Fame, and received the Kentucky Nonprofit Network’s Distinguished Nonprofit Leadership Award.
Rikketta C. Franklin is a native of Flint, Michigan, and started her professional career in higher education as a student outreach specialist with TRiO at her Alma mater of Lincoln University of Missouri. It was there that she discovered her passion for working with non-traditional students like herself. Her journey to Kentucky began with a resident director position at UK. In her capacity as a complex director, Rikketta worked with the First-Generation and Agriculture Living-Learning Programs to assist in the coordination of specialized programming to create supportive communities that focus on helping students to lead productive lives.
Currently, she serves as the violence intervention coordinator with the VIP Center at UK. In this role, she engages and educates faculty, staff and professional students on topics surrounding interpersonal violence. In addition to working at UK, Rikketta is also the proud owner of Cynette Tutelage and Consulting, LLC. Her company works with others to develop and implement instructional workshops, create graphic and visual materials, and offer creative consultancy services.
Rikketta’s educational background includes a Master of Arts in Education with a concentration in adult education and training from the University of Phoenix and a Bachelor of Liberal Arts with an emphasis in vocal music and philosophy from Lincoln University of Missouri.
Please visit the UK Women’s Forum website for more details about these events and future signature events, and the Sarah Bennett Holmes Award.
Questions about these events can be directed to UKWF@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.
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.