Dear A&S Colleagues,

UofL is proud to be a university with a high degree of research activity, and that would not be possible without our graduate students. Though fewer in numbers than undergraduates, UofL's graduate students play an essential role in the university's ecosystem that often goes unheralded. Not only do they serve as teachers and role models for undergraduates, but they are also key to attracting and retaining our faculty, for whom mentoring talented graduate students can be one of the most meaningful aspects of their work. 

Accordingly, the Graduate School has designated November 6-10 as Graduate Student Appreciation Week. Faculty and staff are encouraged to share a few words of celebration or inspiration with a graduate student by sending them a virtual postcard. Select messages of encouragement will be shared across social media channels that week. Faculty and staff can submit a #UofLGRADitude online at https://forms.office.com/r/cBmDFSezD6.

Finally, departments' DGSs are encouraged to plan a recognition event and submit details using this webform by October 27 for inclusion in a calendar of appreciation events being compiled by the Graduate School.  

This Friday will be Dean Touron’s first annual State of the College address, and all faculty and staff are invited:

• Friday, October 27, 2:00-3:15 pm,
• Middleton Theatre/Strickler 139
• Light refreshments will be served.

An in-person event held during the monthly Faculty Assembly, the State of the College address is meant to foster community within our college and will be followed by a reception. Making this year's address even more special, President Schatzel will be joining us. For those who have a compelling reason for being unable to attend in person, the address will be livestreamed on Teams (with meeting chat and mics turned off). Please contact Jason Sievers (jason.sievers@louisville.edu) for the livestream link, as the previous link has been canceled and will not work. We look forward to seeing you there!

Sincerely,

Julie Wrinn, Chief of Staff

Research Agenda

An interdisciplinary team of UofL researchers led by Melanie Gast (above), Associate Professor of Sociology, and Aishia Brown (School of Public Health and Information Sciences) and Rebecka Bloomer (Kent School of Social Work) have released a new policy report, "Youth and Young Adults of Color Responding to the Twin Pandemics in Louisville." Their team conducted listening sessions in 2021-22 with young people of color in Louisville to ask: How are youth and young adults of color responding to and managing these unprecedented times? What are their concerns and suggestions for supporting the mental health needs of young people of color in Louisville? Gast, Brown, and Bloomer were joined by a team of faculty affiliates of the Ann Braden Institute for Social Justice Research, and by A&S and SPHIS graduate and undergraduate students and a postdoc scholar. Two A&S Sociology grad students, John Broadus and James Joyce, are coauthors on the report.

Working with Louisville Metro Office of Youth Development, researchers recruited 26 youth of color, ultimately reporting on interviews conducted with 17 participants (13 girls and 4 boys) in sessions lasting 45-75 minutes in April 2021-January 2022. Repeatedly, the young respondents mentioned how Covid-19-related closures, uncertainties, traumas, and stresses affected feelings of isolation, anxiety, and depression. All respondents wanted greater access to and availability of safe, community spaces for young people to obtain mental-health and social support and to share voices and concerns. They often felt dismissed by adults and excluded or removed from spaces where they could engage in collective care as a community of young people. They underscored the benefits of accessible community and local spaces for youth mental-health support, collective care, and community-engagement opportunities in Louisville. They pushed for adults and city programs and officials to hear and support the mental health needs of young residents of color through new and revitalized city programs, practices, and funding.

This essential study concludes with recommendations and resources for young people of color and their families who are seeking mental health services. The report exemplifies community-engaged research that seeks to improve our community, and how interdisciplinary research is at UofL is geared towards solving real-world problems. Finally, it illustrates the rich opportunities at UofL and A&S for graduate and undergraduate students to be involved in meaningful research. Download the policy report PDF here or view it on issuu.com here.  

Congratulations to the following A&S faculty on recently receiving extramural funding for research and scholarly activity:

• Rachel Carter (Theatre Arts) - Commonwealth of Kentucky/DOJ - KYOAG SP Training Grant - $14,967
• Andrea Gaughan (Geographic and Environmental Sciences) - Univ of Kentucky Research Foundation/USGS - Perceptions of Greenness: Wetland Assessments through Field Measurements, Remote Sensing, and Citizen Engagement - $17,500
• Benne Holwerda (Physics and Astronomy) - NSF National Science Foundation - ExplOration of Astronomy by Kentucky Students (OAKS) - $222,148
• John Kielkopf (Physics and Astronomy) - Harvard University/NASA - The Confirmation and Characterization of Small TESS Planets 2023 - $25,000.00 
• Cheri Levinson (Psychological and Brain Sciences) - NIH National Institutes of Health - Innovations in Personalizing Treatment for Eating Disorders Using Idiographic Methods and the Impact of Personalization on Psychological, Physical and Sociodemographic Outcomes - $1,411,981
• Regina Roebuck (Classical and Modern Languages) – Japan Foundation - Building a Japanese Concentration in a World Language Major at the University of Louisville - $41,762
• Lee Thompson Michael (Chemistry) - The Trustees of Indiana University/DOE - Exploring Photon-Initiated Electron-Neutral Interactions in Strongly Correlated Lanthanide Complexes - $155,011

Alumni Spotlight

Churchill Downs Incorporated recently announced that Patrick Neely (B.A. Political Science) has been named President of Exacta Systems, a leading provider of technology to support historical horse racing operations. In this role, announced on October 11 and effective immediatley, Neely will be responsible for the overall strategy and operations of the newly acquired business unit which operates within the Company's TwinSpires segment.

Neely brings over 25 years of professional experience in law, advocacy, and business development. Most recently, Neely served as the Chief Development Officer for Exacta, where he oversaw the businesses' government affairs and business development strategy. Neely has held numerous local and national political leadership positions and served as the Executive Director of the Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP). In addition to a B.A. in Political Science from UofL, he earned a Juris Doctor from Washington University School of Law.

“As a founding member of Exacta, I'm thrilled for this opportunity to lead,” said Neely. “I look forward to delivering operational improvements to CDI and continuing to service Exacta's growing portfolio of third-party HHR operators in New Hampshire, Kentucky, Virginia and Wyoming.” Read more. 

Homecoming Week

Today is the beginning of Homecoming Week, which encompasses a range of exciting events for engaging alumni:

• Raise Some L, UofL's annual day of giving and kicks off at 6:02 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 24, and ends at midnight Wednesday, Oct. 25. 
• The annual Black Alumni Summit, October 24-28, welcomes Black alumni community back to campus for 11 different events, as shown in this  video teaser. 
• On Thursday, Oct. 26, our 2023 Alumni Awards honorees will be celebrated. For a list of all honorees and links to their individual bios, please visit  uoflalumni.org/awards. The Alumni Awards ceremony will be livestreamed from the Facebook channel (facebook.com/uoflalumni). 

ABI & GEO Newsletters

The Monday Memo can never convey the depth and richness of activities in all of the college's departments, programs, centers, and institutes. For a deeper dive into two such stellar units, see below. To see your newsletter linked in the Monday Memo, contact julie.wrinn@louisville.edu.

Read the latest in social justice research, programs, & announcements from A&S's Anne Braden Institute for Social Justice Research's October newsletter. 

Each semester, the Department of Geographic and Environmental Sciences posts news and information about its vibrant and dynamic community in its fall newsletter published on the ArcGIS StoryMaps platform.

Kudos

Two Theatre Arts staff received shout-outs in UofL Today for their excellent work, especially in some recent high pressure situations. Kudos to:

• Stephan Carpenter, program coordinator/box office specialist and designated member of emergency personnel in the Theatre Arts (TA). The Thrust Theatre/HPES building flooded Sept. 20 with six inches of water in thirty minutes. Stephan jumped in, coordinated the emergency services, and rescued many supplies. That same day, he trained new box office staff for our production of “The Old Settler” on the opposite side of campus. Graduating in spring 2023, Stephan has immediately shouldered a leadership role. He supervises seven students and handles marketing. Stephan is an exemplary UofL/TA alumnus.  
• Jessica Key, program coordinator sr., has worked in Theatre Arts for eight years alongside six department chairs with mirthful efficiency. Jessica is the “key” to our success. She provides support for our programs: B.S. and M.F.A. in performance, our touring company and our African American Theatre Program (AATP). With a master’s in facility and event management from WKU, her expertise was invaluable in the AATP’s 30th Anniversary Black Light Gala. She creates an atmosphere of trust that is highly valued.  

Kudos to Karen Chandler, Professor of English and Department Chair, on the publication of a special issue published this month entitled "Black Spaces in International Children's Literature" in International Research in Children's Literature (IRCL), an important scholarly journal in the field of children's literature. Chandler co-edited this special edition. Read more. 

UofL's researchers and scholars are dedicated to advancing knowledge and improving our world. To celebrate that work, on October 19 the UofL Office of Research and Innovation recognized dozens of researchers, scholars, and research administrators. Two A&S faculty were among the recipients of major awards:

• The Creative Activity Award went to Tiffany Calvert (Art)
• The Early-Career Researcher Award went to Natalie Christian (Biology)

Congratulations to Patrick C. Exmeyer, Assistant Professor in the Department of Urban and Public Affairs, for receiving the 2023 Donato J. Pugliese Award from the Southeastern Conference for Public Administration (SECoPA) during its annual conference in September 2023 in Atlanta. This award recognizes scholars who have contributed considerable time and effort to enhancing the field of public service by providing opportunities for scholarly and practice-based exchanges, professional development through networking, and development of leaders within the practitioner and academic professions. In addition, Dr. Exmeyer was selected as President-Elect of SECoPA for 2023-24 and to serve as President of SECoPA during the 2024-25 academic year, making him the youngest member to hold each position in the organization’s 45-year history. 

Congratulations to Linda Fuselier, Professor of Biology and Department Chair, for winning the grand prize and $250 in the Cards Commuter Challenge. Anyone who has caught sight of Linda wheeling her bicycle through A&S hallways will not be surprised at her success in bicycling to/from work over ten days throughout the Cards Commuter Challenge. Explore all your options for getting around and set up carpools on Cardinal Directions.

Ann C. Hall, professor of Comparative Humanities, co-edited a collection of essays, Dramatic Apparitions and Theatrical Ghosts: The Staging of Illusion Across Time and Cultures, (Bloomsbury/Methuen 2023). An essay titled “The Holiest of Ghosts: Staging the Supernatural in the Early Middle Ages” was contributed by Andrew Rabin, professor and vice chair, Department of English.

Kudos to history professor Dr. Tracy K’Myer, whose 1999 oral history with Robert R. Douglas, emeritus Art professor who passed away earlier this year, uncovered Douglas’s role in establishing one of Louisville’s most treasured performing arts traditions, Shakespeare in the Park. Read more in LEO’s article, "Oral History Ties Late Artist Robert Douglas to the Origins of Shakespeare in Central Park." 

Congratulations to Cody Smith (3rd from left, below), a French major with minors in Spanish and Linguistics, on receiving the Kentucky World Language Association's (KWLA) Amici Linguarum award for students at the KWLA Fall Conference on September 30. This newly created award recognizes students of World Languages at the postsecondary and K-12 level for their contributions to the World Languages profession. In the words of one of his professors, “Mr. Smith embodies all the qualities of what an outstanding World Languages teacher should be, and he is only a freshman. . . I cannot wait to see what he is able to accomplish in the future.”

Kaila Adia Story, associate professor, Audre Lorde Chair of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies, Pan African Studies, had the distinct opportunity to teach and talk with over 125 Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) teachers over the course of two sessions about Black feminist theory and activism as a part of JCPS's 2023-24 Speaker Series. The annual JCPS Speaker Series brings together national experts in education to present to JCPS teachers during their professional development to help them better address the needs of students.

Kudos to Tate Lucky, a senior who is editor-in-chief of the Louisville Cardinalstudent newspaper, for an excellent interview with Dean Touron entitled, "We have got to be a force for good" Arts and Sciences dean Dayna Touron details latest college plans." 

The Kentucky Chapter of the American Institute of Architects has awarded Patrick Piuma, the director of A&S's Urban Design Studio, Department of Urban and Public Affairs, its 2023 Allied Professional Award. This award honors an individual directly involved in the architectural engineering and construction industry who has consistently endeavored to work harmoniously with architects and other allied professionals toward the implementation of creative and innovative design solutions.

Human Resources

Open Enrollment begins Monday, October 23, 2023, and continues through Wednesday, November 8, 2023. This year, Open Enrollment for 2024 benefits will occur in the Workday system. To enroll during Open Enrollment, view the Workday Open Enrollment one-page guide, Workday PowerPoint guide and/or watch a recording located on the Open Enrollment webpage. Highlights:

•  Open Enrollment for UofL Employees will occur in the Workday system.
• You must provide designated beneficiary information to enroll in a medical plan. 
• Benefits will host virtual HRtalks Benefit Vendor sessions and Open Enrollment Information sessions during Open Enrollment. 
• You must enroll by 11:59 p.m. November 8, 2023, or your 2024 elections will match your 2023 elections (same plans and coverage level with 2024 rates) except for Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). 
• To participate in a health care or dependent care Flexible Spending Account in 2024, you must enroll, even if you were enrolled in an account for 2023. FSAs will default to “no election” if you do not enroll. 

Please extend a warm welcome to the following new staff in A&S:

• Jimmy Kidd, Academic Counselor, Honors
• LyShanna Cunningham, Coordinator - DECC
• Zeeshan Ul Haq, Research Proposal Officer II – Research Office

Enroll in Get Healthy Now and earn points for 2024. Employees must earn 480 wellness points between now and November 30, 2023, to qualify for the $40 Get Healthy Now monthly incentive in 2024. Employees are required to complete the Personal Health Profile (PHP), which is worth 200 wellness points, regardless of results. The remaining 280 wellness points may be earned through a variety of activities/programs from now through November 30, 2023. Full list of point opportunities is in the Get Health Now Incentive Guide.

A&S Events

Thank you to all the participants in the ULASSA Fall Festival Chili Cookoff held on October 19. Congratulations to the following winners and runners-up:

• 1^st place chili ~  Sydney Miller     Turkey Meat Chili
• 2^nd place chili ~  Josh Boydstun    Vegan Chili
• 3^rd place chili ~ Cynthia Houchens  White Chicken Chili

Cornbread winners and runner ups:

• 1^st place cornbread ~ Paula Huffman   Corn pudding
• 2^nd place cornbread ~ Cynthia Houchens   Dolly Parton Sweet cornbread
• 3^rd place cornbread ~ Josh Boydstun   Vegan Maple cornbread

The Jewish Studies program presents the Lee Shai Weissbach Memorial Lecture in American Jewish History: “A Multiracial Jewish Family in Early America” by Professor Laura Leibman. This annual lecture in honor of faculty emeritus Lee Shai Weissbach will take place on October 24. See flyer below for details.

The College's Anne Braden Institute for Social Justice Research is thrilled to announce that this year's Anne Braden Memorial Lecture will be delivered by 2022  MacArthur fellow and Rice University professor of Creative Writing Kiese Laymon. To learn more about Laymon's biography and other ABI happenings, read the ABI fall 2023 newsletter, The Subversive." See flyer below.

The UofL Center for GIS proudly presents GIS Day 2023, featuring keynote address, "Mapping the Future for Everyone: A story of Louisville Startup GoodMaps and the global impact of UofL’s GIS graduates," by Theresa Reno-Weber. Join us on Wednesday, November 15th, 2023, from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at the SAC Ballrooms CD. Register by November 14th. More information can be found at www.ulcgis.org/gisday. 

A&S Series

Fall Urban & Public Affairs Garden Gatherings. Mondays, 1-2pm at the Urban & Public Affairs Garden (426 W. Bloom St., behind Bettie Johnson Hall) continue on October 23, 20; November 6, 13, 20, and 27. UofL’s organic campus gardens are great places to relax, reconnect, learn, and savor the sweet taste of sustainability! Stop by anytime to sample the goodness and help us keep things watered and weeded. Tools and gloves provided, but bring bags to harvest into. Everyone who comes is welcome to share in the harvest! Connect with us and get all the details on Facebook or Instagram.

Next up in the Department of Geographic and Environmental Sciences' speaker series is Matthew Harrell of APK Development on October 24. See series flyer below for details.

The 30th "Reel" Latin America(n) Film Festival, organized by the Department of Classical and Modern Languages, has one final film this week, on Thursday, Oct. 26. See below for showtimes and co-sponsors, and visit the festival website. Questions: Manuel Medina, manuel.medina@louisville.edu. The UofL calendar lists more 2023 Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month Events.

The Hite Institute of Art + Design is excited to participate in the 2023 Louisville Photo Biennial, a collaborative event across Louisville, Southern Indiana, and Central Kentucky, with exhibitions at the Schneider Hall Galleries, October 5 - November 4, 2023. In our campus galleries we will be hosting two solo exhibition by photo faculty Mary Carothers and Mitch Eckert, as well as a group photo exhibition curated by M.A. Candidate Donna Charging, THIS IS NOT THE END. Featured artists in THIS IS NOT THE END are Anthony Two Moons, Bré Taylor, Courtney M. Leonard, Nora Moore Lloyd, Tashine Azure, Tom Jones, and Trevino Brings Plenty, representing seven different Native American tribes, whose contemporary photo-based work seeks to present a pathbreaking discourse on the subject of the assumed colonial lens in conversation with collective indigenous knowledge and individual self-knowledge. Read more on our website here. 

UofL Events

Delphi Center Programs

Using Library Resources to Enhance Diversity in Your Course. The Delphi Center is proud to partner with the University of Louisville Libraries for this hands-on, virtual workshop on Wednesday, Oct. 25 from 12-1:30 p.m. During this session, we will walk through the process of evaluating the learning content within one's course for the representation of diverse perspectives and cultures. Participants will also explore the use of library resources to increase diversity without increasing learning material costs for students. Learn more and register to attend at uofl.me/library-resources.

 Teaching with AI: Emerging Research and What it Means for Higher Ed. What are we learning about the implications of ChatGPT and other forms of AI on higher education? Join the Delphi Center and the Writing Center for a virtual workshop Thursday, Nov. 2 from 12-1:15 pm in which we will summarize emerging empirical research on how AI is affecting students and instructors. Participants will also get to discuss ideas and next steps for their own instruction given research findings. Register to attend at uofl.me/AI-Workshops.

Data Visualization with Express & Illustrator. Interested in using compelling visuals to convey data-driven narratives? Discover how to harness the creative power of Adobe Express and Illustrator to design eye-catching graphics and informative visualizations, as well as techniques to transform raw data into engaging visuals that resonate with your audience during this virtual workshop. Register to attend on Thursday, Nov. 9 from 1-2:30 p.m. at uofl.me/adobe-workshops.