Professional News

Sarah Bennett Holmes Award Nominees Named

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 20, 2020) The University of Kentucky Women's Forum has announced the seven women who have been nominated for the 2020 Sarah Bennett Holmes Award.

The award is granted annually to women working at UK who promote the growth and well-being of other women at the university and across the Commonwealth. Two awards will be presented — one to a faculty member and one to a staff member.

The 2020 faculty nominees are Deborah Reed of the College of Nursing and the College of Agriculture, Food and Environment; Kristen Mark of the Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion in the College of Education; and Mary Arthur of the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources in the College of Agriculture, Food and Environment.

The 2020 staff nominees are Karen Black, Polk Dalton Clinic; Emily Clear, College of Public Health; Fadyia Lowe, University Health Services; and Samantha Mullins, Sanders-Brown Center on Aging.

The UK Women’s Forum invites the campus to attend the annual award ceremony and luncheon beginning 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, March 25, at the Gatton Student Center Ballroom. Cost is $15 per individual, or departments/offices can purchase a table of eight for $120. Please visit the UK Women’s Forum website to register and for information regarding payment, or click this link to go directly to the registration page. The registration deadline is March 18, 2020.

Established in 1994, the Sarah Bennett Holmes Award honors a distinguished former dean of women at the University of Kentucky. Sarah Bennett Holmes, who was widowed at a young age, raised four children while completing her own education. She went on to have a successful career at UK where she inspired young women to persevere in the face of hardship and pursue their career goals. Among her accomplishments, Holmes developed work programs for women during the Depression.

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.