Students Benefit From LGBTQ* Resources' Scholarships, Grants

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 16, 2018) ― The University of Kentucky Office of LGBTQ* Resources recently announced the winners of its third annual cycle of endowed scholarships and its second cycle of research grants. Ten UK undergraduate students received scholarships totaling $16,000. Three UK graduate and professional students were awarded research grants totaling $3,000.

"These awards serve important roles at the university, helping to support students who are working hard to achieve their academic goals despite unique identity-related obstacles and highlighting young LGBTQ*-focused research that has the potential to positively impact our campus and communities far beyond," said Lance Poston, director of UK’s LGBTQ* Resources.

LGBTQ* undergraduate scholarships were funded by an endowment started by Keisha and Amanda Fallin-Bennett as well as funds raised at the UK Feast on Equality held in December 2017. Six undergraduate scholarship winners received $2,000 and four undergraduate scholarship winners received $1,000. Scholarship winners came from five different colleges and seven states and one other country.

• College of Education undergraduate from Kentucky;
• College of Education undergraduate from Ohio;
• College of Arts and Sciences undergraduate from Kentucky;
• College of Arts and Sciences undergraduate from Texas;
• College of Arts and Sciences undergraduate from New York;
• College of Arts and Sciences undergraduate from Michigan;
• Gatton College of Business and Economics undergraduate from Kentucky;
• College of Pharmacy undergraduate from Illinois;
• College of Pharmacy undergraduate from Florida; and
• College of Fine Arts undergraduate from Malaysia.

In addition to the undergraduate scholarships, this year the Office of LGBTQ* Resources offered Graduate and Professional Students LGBTQ* Research Grants. The grants were made possible by a partnership between the Office of LGBTQ* Resources and UK’s Graduate School and Center for Graduate and Professional Diversity Initiatives. Three graduate students received a $1,000 research grant. Grant recipients include:

• Mikaela Feroli, a second-year doctoral student and teaching assistant in the Department of Gender and Women's Studies in the UK College of Arts and Sciences. Feroli is broadly interested in the ways gender, sexuality, ability and race are produced and shape people's lives. Specifically, Feroli’s dissertation focuses on the experiences of parents who identify as transgender to broaden limited cultural understandings of parenthood. The title of the research is “No Longer Transparent: Working with Transgender Parents in Kentucky to Foster Social Change.”
• Kyle Simon, a second-year developmental psychology doctoral student working with Rachel Farr, UK assistant professor of developmental psychology. Simon’s research interests include identity-based socialization (e.g., how to talk to your child about sexual identity); conceptual grief and ambiguous loss; intended parenthood and family formation; and adoption and foster care outcomes. Before attending UK, Simon, a Houston, Texas native, earned a bachelor's degree from Ohio Wesleyan University. The title of the research is “Development and Extension: The Conceptual Future Parent Grief Scale for LGBTQ+ Individuals.”
• Zakary Clements, a first-year doctoral student in counseling psychology. Clements’ research project goals use real strengths-based narratives from transgender individuals to cultivate positive identity development in transgender people in Kentucky. The title of the research is “Influence of Positive Identity Narratives on the Well-being of Transgender Kentuckians.”

For more information about the Office of LGBTQ* Resources, visit its website at Office of LGBTQ* Resources or connect with the office on Facebook.