UK Board Approves Name Changes, Restructuring of Academic Units

LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 19, 2012) ― The UK Board of Trustees approved a number of name changes for a building and various educational units at its June 19 meeting.

The official name of the former Northside Library building is now "The UK/Lexmark Center for Innovation in Math and Science Education." The facility's name recognizes Lexmark's public partnership with the university, as well as the purpose of the building. UK purchased the facility, located on Russell Cave Road, in 2008 with plans to renovate the space and create a UK community-based outreach center for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) related programs.

A joint venture between UK and Lexmark International, Inc., the project is on schedule to be completely renovated by the beginning of the 2012 fall semester. Lexmark has invested $1 million toward the $2.5 million renovation, and the university has supplied the rest of the funds.

The proposed name was jointly approved by the UK provost and Paul Rooke, CEO, Lexmark, in recognition of Lexmark's significant gift to the university.

The Board of Trustees also has approved a change in name for the UK College of Fine Arts' Department of Art to the UK School of Art and Visual Studies. The name change reflects the growth in the university's visual arts program and better reflects the practices and academic goals of the seven undergraduate and graduate degrees offered by UK in art education, art history and art studio. While teaching and scholarship continue to develop and explore the aesthetic and expressive dimensions of the visual arts, the practice of production and interpretation in the visual realm extends far beyond the traditional field of "art."

UK Department of Art's name change to UK School of Art and Visual Studies is effective July 1, 2012.

In addition to the name change, the College of Fine Arts also has named two new directors. Beginning July 1, Skip Gray and Robert Jensen will take over as interim directors of the School of Music and the School of Art and Visual Studies, respectively. Gray replaces Ben Arnold, who has served as director of the UK School of Music for nine years and will continue serving as a professor of musicology. Jensen replaces Benjamin C. Withers, who served as chair of the UK Department of Art for eight years and has recently been named director of the UK Honors Program. Withers will also maintain his faculty position as a professor of art history.

A professor of tuba and euphonium, Gray joined the UK faculty in the fall of 1980. He has appeared as a tuba soloist, clinician and conductor throughout the United States, Europe, Japan and Australia, and serves as principal tuba with the Lexington Philharmonic. Gray's special interest is introducing new works for the solo tuba. The former officer of the International Tuba-Euphonium Association (ITEA), has commissioned and given premiere performances of many new works. Gray's 2005 solo CD "Tuba Europa - a musical journey across the continent" was one of three finalists for the 2006 ITEA Roger Bobo Award for the outstanding tuba solo recording of the year. Gray holds a doctorate from the University of Illinois.

Jensen, who holds a doctorate from the University of California, Berkeley, is an associate professor of art history with field emphases in the history of modernism and the economics of art. Since joining the UK faculty in 1994, he has taught numerous undergraduate and graduate courses on a wide range of subjects, ranging from contemporary art to the history of the art market. Jensen’s first book, "Marketing Modernism in Fin-de-siècle Europe," explored how the ideas and visual language of French modern art spread across Europe in the late 19th - and early 20th-centuries.  He has often collaborated with University of Chicago economist, David Galenson, on the econometric study of artistic importance, especially in regard to the varied life cycles of artists’ careers. Jensen has also long been interested in and published essays on theoretical issues related to photography and mechanical reproduction. Currently, he is working on a book titled "The Geography of Innovation: Essays on Artists’ Market Practices."

With approval from the UK Board, the Gatton College of Business and Economics is restructuring its School of Management effective July 1, 2012. Three departments will replace the School of Management.  They are: Department of Marketing and Supply Chain, Department of Management; and Department of Finance and Quantitative Methods.

A majority of the college faculty and administration determined the restructuring was needed to move toward a leadership position in business education.  

In other action:

The UK Board approved changing the name of the College of Education's Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling to Department of Early Childhood, Special Education, and Rehabilitation Counseling effective July 1, 2012.  The change reflects each of the programs of the department.

The College of Agriculture's Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences was changed to Department of Dietetics and Human Nutrition to better reflect the two undergraduate degrees offered by the department. The change, effective July 1, 2012, will also avoid confusion with the college's Department of Animal and Food Science's food science program.

MEDIA CONTACT:  Kathy Johnson, (859) 257-3155 or kathy.johnson@uky.edu