Professional News

UK Lewis Honors College Dean Becomes Interim Dean of Arts and Sciences

Christian Brady at a podium
Christian Brady at a 2018 Lewis Honors College awards ceremony. He has been appointed interim dean of the UK College of Arts and Sciences. Mark Cornelison | UK Photo.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 1, 2020) University of Kentucky Provost David W. Blackwell has named Christian Brady as interim dean of the UK College of Arts and Sciences.

Brady, the inaugural dean of the University of Kentucky’s Lewis Honors College, replaces Mark Kornbluh. UK will announce an acting dean for Lewis Honors College in the coming days, Blackwell said.

“It’s an honor to serve with scholars and teachers across the broadest array of disciplines on our campus, particularly at such a critical juncture in the life of our university,” Brady said. “Higher education — and the disciplines in Arts and Sciences — have never been more important. Now, more than ever, our society needs students with the critical-thinking skills and searching minds that a broad education produces. I look forward to helping the faculty, staff and students of the College of Arts and Sciences continue their vital work and prepare the college for the next dean.”  

Brady came to UK in 2017 after 10 years as dean of the Schreyer Honors College at Penn State University. Previously, he directed the honors program at Tulane University where he also was an associate professor of classical studies and Jewish studies.

Brady received his bachelor’s degree from Cornell University in history and Near Eastern studies, and he received the school’s first minor in religious studies. He went on to earn a master’s degree from Wheaton College in biblical and theological studies, a graduate diploma in Jewish studies from the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies at the University of Oxford, and a D.Phil. in Oriental studies from the University of Oxford where he was a member of St. Cross College.

The Lewis Honors College is dedicated to excellence in undergraduate education and engages students holistically to learn and thrive. It draws students from around the state, region, country, and world who represent a variety of majors and academic colleges.

With 5,800 students, 440 faculty members, 19 departments, seven interdisciplinary programs, 29 majors and 37 minors, the College of Arts and Sciences is UK's largest college and touches almost every UK student by providing foundations for advanced study in every field. Kornbluh had been dean there since 2009.

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.