VIDEO: Undeniable Progress at the University of Kentucky, More to Come

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 16, 2018) — Spring — even if the weather doesn’t always cooperate — is a time of renewal and reflection. Near the end of a semester, it’s an opportunity to consider what’s ahead of us even as we ponder progress made.

At UK, we have a lot to ponder and several points of pride from the past year to share:

--Our 2017 designation as a Diversity Champion by Insight Into Diversity Magazine.

--Our continued top ranking among public universities for National Merit Scholars.

--The completion of a $450 million transformation of our student housing, places where living and learning is taking place in creative communities across the campus.

--A record number of patients treated with the most advanced care at a hospital ranked once again as the best in Kentucky.

--Record graduation rates and new efforts to ensure that finances are not an impediment to an education at UK.

--And a thousand of our closest friends — students dancing in common cause at DanceBlue — raising more than $1.8 million to defeat pediatric cancer. 

But we’re not satisfied. We never are. At the University of Kentucky, we continually ask a question of ourselves, one with many answers and endless, tantalizing possibilities:

“What if we ….?”

What if we do more in the coming year to stop the scourge of drug abuse?       

What if we heal more patients and reach more communities through a growing network of care?          

What if we conduct research that solves the seemingly insoluble — new solutions to long-term energy challenges; safer, cleaner drinking water in villages and towns close to home and thousands of miles away from here; innovations for sustainable farming and food production; partnering with the Commonwealth to create high-paying jobs in advanced manufacturing?

What if we stir passions with music on stages from Lexington to New York and China, to schools in Pikeville and Owensboro, and open minds with creative writing that draws acclaim across the country?

What if we teach more students — helping them graduate on time and without debt — providing them with a distinctive education, meaningful internships and experiences abroad that enable them to do a deep dive into what fuels their passions, in a community that strives every day to be a place of belonging for all who call UK home?          

That’s the question and the answers we seek every day at the University of Kentucky … your University for Kentucky.

Discover why the entire University of Kentucky family has so much to be proud of by watching the video above.