Each year, the Philosophy Department recognizes at least one philosophy major in each class for academic excellence with a monetary, departmental award. We are very pleased to announce the winners of 2022-2023:

2022-23 Award Recipients

A big thank you to all of you for your dedication and hard work, the enthusiasm you put into your exploration of philosophy, and for contributing to the overall high quality of the department. We are incredibly proud of you!

Congratulations!!

By Ryan Girves 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 30, 2023) — The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for Humanities has selected 12  undergraduates as scholars for the university's Gaines Fellowship Program for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 academic years.

The Gaines Fellowship is presented in recognition of outstanding academic performance, demonstrated ability to conduct independent research, an interest in public issues and a desire to enhance understanding of the human condition through the humanities. Founded in 1984 by a gift from John and Joan Gaines, the Gaines Center for the Humanities is designed to enrich the study of the humanities at UK and functions as a laboratory for imaginative and innovative education on

CHSS Workshop Series Grants

The Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences’ Workshop Series Grants are supported by generous donors and the College of Arts and Sciences.  These grants offer funding for faculty and graduate students to create a series of workshops for reading, writing, and discussion of a particular theme across disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.

During the Spring Semester of 2022, CHSS supported four Workshop Series Grants. These workshop events presented new pedagogical and research ideas within A&S and across other UK Colleges as well. Below, we spotlight each series of workshops. We would like to thank our donors and everyone who participated in these workshops, and to congratulate those who planned and executed these innovative events.

By Jesi Jones-Bowman

LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 25, 2021) — Eight University of Kentucky students have been selected for the Sustainability Summer Research Fellowship program, a high-impact learning experience that contributes to the students’ academic growth as well as sustainability-focused research initiatives at UK and within the community at large.

The Sustainability Research Fellowship is a collaborative program coordinated by the Office of Undergraduate Research and sponsored by the UK Student Sustainability Council and UK Sustainability. The fellowship’s goal is to support and promote sustainability-related undergraduate research endeavors. The program, which launched in 2014, has supported 48 undergraduate sustainability summer projects.

“Sustainability Research Fellowships have been

By Elizabeth Chapin

LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 8, 2022) — Julia Bursten, associate professor in the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Philosophy, works together with scientists to help improve scientific methods for their experiments.

As a philosopher of science, Bursten studies epistemology, or the logical and conceptual foundations of scientific knowledge. Her highly interdisciplinary work merging philosophy and scientific research has been supported by both the National Endowment for the Humanities  and the National Science Foundation.

Bursten’s work supported by the NEH is focused on the philosophy of nanoscience, the study of structures and materials on an ultra-small scale.

By Jenny Wells-Hosley

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 9. 2021) — Studying for finals have you stressed? Come unwind (on some aerial fabric or a trapeze) with the University of Kentucky’s new Circus Club.

Circus Club, the first organization of its kind at UK, offers students  opportunities to learn about circus arts through firsthand experience of circus skills, including juggling, acro-balancing and aerial arts.

Jess Farace, founder and president of UK Circus Club, was inspired to start the organization after taking a course with Meg Wallace, associate professor of philosophy in the UK College of Arts and Sciences. The class merged circus arts with philosophical studies. Farace loved the class so much, she wanted to offer all students a chance to experience circus.  

“It's

By Jesi Jones-Bowman

UK undergraduate researchers Bridget Bolt and Gretchen Ruschman. Students are encouraged to explore undergraduate research opportunities at the Research + Creative Experience Expo.

At the University of Kentucky, undergraduates have access to outstanding research and creative work activities led by world-class faculty and staff that promote self-discovery, experiential learning and lifelong achievement.

Explore exciting undergraduate opportunities at the first annual UK Research + Creative Experience Expo 3-5 p.m. Monday, Sept. 13, around the Gatton Student Center’s Social Staircase.

“The goal of the Research + Creative Experience Expo is to introduce undergraduates to the diversity of research and creative work conducted at UK,” said Chad Risko, faculty director of the

Arnold Farr, professor of philosophy in the University of Kentucky's College of Arts & Sciences, has written an article for the Academic Influence website titled "Critical Race Theory: What It Is and What It Is Not."

In the article, Farr states: "In today’s news, Critical Race Theory has become a hot political topic. It seems as if CRT burst on the scene overnight. However, Critical Race has been around for several decades. In this introduction to Critical Race Theory, I will briefly explain what Critical Race Theory (CRT) is and how it originated. I will also distinguish it from theories that it has been confused with. Finally, I will attempt to rescue CRT from several misunderstandings or false interpretations

Dr. Farr (Professor, Philosophy) publishes special project on Critical Race Theory for website "Academic Influence".

https://academicinfluence.com/rankings/people/influential-critical-race-theorists

Former and present graduate students co-authored an edited volume on their experiences running a Summer Philosophy Camp in Lexington, KY. 

Congratulations to Caroline Buchanan, James Lincoln, Suraj Chaudhary, Clay Graham, Andrew Van't Land, Lauren O'Dell and Colin Smith! 

By Jessica Bowman-Jones

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 16, 2020) — Ten University of Kentucky undergraduate student finalists recently competed in the final round of the third 5-Minute Fast Track Research Oral Competition.

The competition included two virtual preliminary rounds, with the top 10 students advancing to the final championship competition. This year’s final round was hosted in the UK's Worsham Cinema and livestreamed to a virtual audience.

Cultivating students’ presentation and research communication skills, competitors were challenged to present their research in five minutes, using only one static slide, in front of a panel of three judges and a virtual audience.

The top three winners are:

The College of Arts and Sciences is committed to learning and working environments that are diverse, inclusive, and equitable for students, staff, and faculty.

We stand in solidarity with those working to confront systemic racial injustice in our communities and in the United States. We recognize the disproportionate burden of racism and other forms of violence on many within our A&S community during this time. We affirm our support of faculty, students, staff, and alumni in standing against all forms of racism, discrimination, and bias.

During this time of pandemic and continued racism and violence that especially impact marginalized communities of color, we recognize the disproportionate impact on Black and African-American people. In the context of the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and here in Kentucky, Breonna Taylor and David McAtee, we affirm that

By Richard LeComte

The College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding TA Awards recognize excellence in undergraduate instruction by teaching assistants. Fifteen teaching assistants were recognized for the 2019-2020  academic year .

Eligible students are current A&S graduate student teaching assistants in at least their second year of graduate work and must be responsible for instruction in some or all of a course offered by the College. The TAs recognized this year taught in courses offered through A & S departments and interdisciplinary programs. 

“Graduate Teaching Assistants are fundamental to the high-quality education that the College of Arts & Sciences provides to undergraduate students,” said Sarah M. Lyon, A&S associate dean for graduate studies. “I am routinely impressed with their hard work and the contributions they make to pedagogical

By Lindsey Piercy

The University of Kentucky has been named one of the Top Producers of U.S. Fulbright Scholars among colleges and universities for 2019-20. The Chronicle of Higher Education publishes the list annually.

The Fulbright Program is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the United States Department of State. Since its inception in 1946, the prestigious program has provided more than 390,000 participants — chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential — with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, while finding solutions to shared international

By Madison Dyment

Most people have a desire to make their world a better place, but a special few devote their lives to this form of service. Royal Todd, a fourth-year philosophy major with sociology and African American and Africana Studies minors at UK, is one of those few. 

Todd and his family come from the west end of Louisville. From a young age, Todd felt called to be of service to those around him. He has spent his life answering that call in many ways. At 12, he began gospel ministry, preaching his first sermon on his 13th birthday. But it was during high school that Todd began forming his core personality and beliefs.

“From my eighth-grade year to my ninth-grade year, I started doing church work and ministry,” Todd said. “I started putting a lot more emphasis on education and not just being socially competent but also more politically competent.”

By Ryan Girves

The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research recently recognized and awarded 19 students with the Oswald Research and Creativity awards. 

The Oswald Research and Creativity Competition was established in 1964 by then President John Oswald as part of the university’s Centennial Celebration. The program is intended to promote creativity in all fields of study and provides annual awards in seven categories. The competition accepts reports, of all forms of creativity, and scholarship by undergraduate students.

Categories include Biological Sciences; Design, including architecture, landscape architecture, and interior design; Fine Arts, including

Dear Friends,

It is with much sadness that I announce philosophy professor emeritus Ronald Bruzina passed away this May. Dr. Bruzina was an esteemed faculty member in the Department of Philosophy from 1970 until his retirement in 2016. During his distinguished 46-year career in the College of Arts & Sciences, Dr. Bruzina chaired the department from 1978 - 1982 and oversaw numerous dissertations. He was a world-renowned scholar of Husserl and the phenomenological tradition, and an important expert on Edumund Husserl's philosophy. Dr. Bruzina was a dedicated and beloved teacher and will be greatly missed. 

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Dr. Ronald Bruzina, 1936-2019

In May of 2019, Professor Ronald Bruzina passed away in Lexington, KY. Born on July 9, 1936, he received both an M.A. (1961) and a

Dear Friends,

While at UK, Joan Callahan touched the lives of generations of our students and impacted this College and University profoundly for the better.  It was my great honor to induct her in the A&S Hall of Fame in 2010. I asked her good friend and colleague, Patty Cooper, to write a note about Joan that I could share with our faculty. Patty consulted with a few colleagues and wrote the tribute below. Joan will be greatly missed by our community.

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Emerita Professor Joan Callahan (1946-2019) joined the UK Philosophy Department in 1986 and served as Director of the Women’s Studies Program (later renamed Gender and Women’s Studies Program) from 1998-2002 and after a one-year sabbatical returned as Director from 2003 through 2007. She led the move to make GWS a Department with a major and

By Lori Adams

The University of Kentucky has released its Dean's List for the spring 2019 semester. A total of 6,562 students were recognized for their outstanding academic performance. 

To make a Dean’s List in one of the UK colleges, a student must earn a grade-point average of 3.6 or higher and must have earned 12 credits or more in that semester, excluding credits earned in pass-fail classes. Some UK colleges require a 3.5 GPA to make the Dean’s List.

The full Dean's List can be accessed by visiting: www.uky.edu/PR/News/DeansList/.

     Andrew Marquis

     Elizabeth Martin

     Jaime McCaffrey

     Ryan McCoy

     Steven Winterfeldt

     Tyler van Wulven