Understanding the value of the International Studies minor in enhancing her study of politics, Willow Kreutzer graduated from UK with a major in Political Science as well as minors in both International Studies and Women and Gender Studies. To further refine her knowledge in these areas, Willow completed certifications in Peace and Conflict Studies as well as Global Studies. Each of these academic areas stood to complement the other while providing her with a comprehensive background in political theory. Willow sees the International Studies minor as having allowed her to focus her interest in political science within the areas of international relations and politics.  

During her sophomore year, Willow had the opportunity to complete coursework for her IS minor while studying abroad in Spain. She completed demanding courses in international politics that she

Belonging to one of the first graduating classes of the International Studies major, Jon Hibbard was able to combine his interest in European art and culture with his passion for the French language through pursuing a double major in International Studies and French. Jon views the International Studies major as having given him a distinctive opportunity to explore his diverse academic interests in a manner that was complementary to his studies of French and history. In light of the multidisciplinary nature of the major, Jon explained that, “I was able to meet and form connections with many amazing professors and peers I wouldn’t have otherwise met.”

As an undergraduate student, Jon worked at the UK Medical Center to support himself through college. During his junior year, he was given the opportunity to study abroad in Saint-Etienne, France for the full academic year. Jon

Alli Peoples graduated in spring 2018 with her bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Spanish. Upon graduation, she moved to Madrid, Spain, where she is currently working as an English Language and Culture Assistant at the bilingual primary school, CEIP Lepanto. At Lepanto, Alli not only plays an active role in English instruction in the classroom in multiple subject areas, but also in helping students to develop a multicultural mindset. In her words, “being an International Studies major helped me develop a foundation of knowledge that gave me the confidence to pursue a job abroad.” She believes her ability to help cultivate this mindset in her students was greatly enhanced by her coursework as an International Studies major, which helped her to first understand the shared values and identities of her own culture and then employ this knowledge to develop an understanding and

A&S Summer Travel Grants : The College of Arts & Sciences offers awards for international travel. These awards are for independent travel abroad to specified cities and sites, not for formal programs through Education Abroad. Please complete the travel grant application and return to 251 Patterson Office Tower. 

Study Abroad in Italy: Vivere L'Italia: Between Ancient Myths and Modern Film Vivere l'Italia (Living Italy) is a six-week program based in Rome and select locations in Southern Italy. The courses will engage the students in a 360 degree exploration of Italian culture by analyzing how classical myths and modern cinema contributed to reflecting and shaping Italian culture. Students will study the mythology of the ancient Greeks and Romans while visiting archaeological remains and works of art from antiquity

Wildcat Voices Project

Two professors in the UK Linguistics Department are undertaking an expansive project to hear from all students on campus— literally.

UK students come from across the commonwealth and around the world and each of us brings a voice that reflects who we are and where we come from. This project is intended to take a snapshot of the voices of all UK students so we can better understand the voices that make up the University of Kentucky.

Who can participate?
If you are a student and at least 18 years old, you can help the UK Department of Linguistics better understand our community by contributing your voice to the Wildcat Voices project. Just visit our site from any computer or Android phone and add your voice today!

Visit the website to record your voice: https://voices.uky.edu/#

By Nate Harling

Mark Kornbluh, dean of the University of Kentucky College of Arts & Sciences, has named Emily Beaulieu the new Director of International Studies. Beaulieu, an associate professor of comparative politics in the Department of Political Science, has spent 12 years teaching and conducting research at UK.

Beaulieu obtained a bachelor’s degree in International Studies and French from the University of Washington, and her master’s and doctoral degrees in political science from the University of California, San Diego. She has published a number of works relating to international politics, including, “Electoral Protest and Democracy in the Developing World,” for which she constructed an original data set of election-related protest and reform throughout the developing world for a 31 year period.

“I love the idea, as director of International Studies,

Events include:

The Universal Language: Latin
September 17th, 2018, Patterson Hall 218, 4:00pm-5:00pm
Drs. Milena Minkova and Terence Tunberg from the Modern & Classical Languages, Literatures and Cultures Department will present “The Universal Language: Latin” at the International Village LLP.

Cultural Research and Internship Opportunities
September 18th, 2018, Gatton College of Business, 435 UV, 3:00pm-4:00pm
Panelists will include Juliana McDonald, George Crothers, Philip Mink, and Renee Bonzani from the University of Kentucky’s Department of Anthropology. The University of Kentucky Department of Anthropology offers programs in three sub-disciplines of anthropology: archaeology, cultural, and biological. Learn about new and upcoming research, opportunities for field work, as well as their experiences with working with the Museum of

A&S Winter Travel Grants for International Studies Students

Winter Travel Break 2018 to London, Paris and Berlin. Receive up to $1,700 towards your winter break travel! International Studies Majors ONLY. Students must have 30+ earned credit hours to apply. Must have at least a 3.0 GPA to apply. Applications are due September 28, 2018 by 4:00pm in room 251 Patterson Office Tower. For more information attend the IS Travel Grant Budget Workshop or visit:

By Loretta Stafford

Josie Dupler traveled to Iraq and Turkey to teach and tutor immigrant children.

Servant leadership has always been important to University of Kentucky alumna Josie Dupler. After earning a degree in international studies with a minor in Arabic and Islamic studies, Dupler traveled to the middle east to teach, tutor and empower migrant children in Iraq and Turkey. 

Throughout the months of April, May and June, Dupler volunteered with the Light A Candle Project, a nonprofit organization that focuses on providing aid and relief to families fleeing from war-torn areas. While in Iraq, she taught English to children ages two through eight; she also tutored middle and high school students.  

Many of the

You might not expect Lexington, Kentucky, and Cairo, Egypt, to have a lot in common. But according to Arts & Sciences alumna Alix McIntosh, they share a strong sense of community and hospitality.

In October 2017, McIntosh packed her bags and moved to Cairo to continue her career as an advocate for migrants, refugees and victims of trafficking. Working for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nation's Migration Agency, McIntosh focuses on migration-related issues and has the opportunity to learn more about the specific barriers faced by that population and the impact migration has on society.

When McIntosh began her studies at A&S, her interest in the Arab Spring and general migration issues, and the realization that she knew very little about the region inspired her to pursue a

By Sarah Wood

There are 177 international studies majors and 49 minors in the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Kentucky. The International Studies Program has grown from 25 students at its inception in 2007 to more than 200 students this semester. Though the major has grown significantly over the years, it has not had a designated study space. That changed this semester.

“One of the issues in the program is the fact that current and prospective students feel isolated from other students within the major,” said Monica Diaz, director of the International Studies Program. “The problem with not having space is that students feel like, ‘Who do I talk to? Where do I go? How can I find other people within my major?”

The newly renovated rooms on the 14th floor of Patterson Office Tower provide a space where students can study and make connections

By Stephanie Swarts

The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities has selected 12 exceptional undergraduates as new scholars for the university’s Gaines Fellowship Program for the 2018-19 and 2019-20 academic years. Gaines Fellowships are given 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.

Gaines Fellowships are awarded for the tenure of students’ junior and senior years; students in all disciplines and with any intended profession are given equal consideration.

UK’s 12 new Gaines Fellows are:

By Amaya DeVicente 

Last year, 18 percent of the University of Kentucky graduating class graduated with global experience. The university’s International Center has taken steps to increase that percentage.

The UK International Center’s Education Abroad and Exchanges program (UK EA) recently announced a new 2018-19 scholarship and program fee reduction initiative for selected UK exchange partners around the world, ranging from $1,000-$5,000.

UK students who participate in an exchange program have the opportunity to fully immerse themselves in the language and culture of a host university, city and country. They enroll in courses at the host institution for either a semester or an academic year and earn transfer credit, while still paying their regular tuition to UK.

Nicole Funk, a junior from

By Jennifer T. Allen

Alexis Abdullah came to the University of Kentucky from Atlanta with the goal of experiencing different cultures and gaining new perspectives. Ryan Thorn came to Lexington from his hometown of Mercer, Pennsylvania, to experience a new part of the country. As UK seniors, both traveled 8,241 miles last summer to the southwest coast of South Africa to engage in an immersive experience unlike any they had before.

“When I came to college, I knew I wanted to study abroad at some point,” said Abdullah, a senior environmental and sustainability studies major. “I wanted to experience a different culture and gain perspectives that expanded my own. The opportunity to study abroad in South Africa appealed to my interests because of the history of social injustice and human rights struggles that are associated

By Abby Schroering and Sara Shehata

As a land grant university, the University of Kentucky is committed to the advancement of knowledge through research. Even undergraduate students contribute significantly to that mission.

Students of any major, background and skill level have the opportunity to work with professors from all over UK, whether in labs, on faculty projects or even on independent projects that they design themselves.

“For those undergraduates who are interested in building faculty mentorships, gaining critical thinking and presentation skills and deepening their understanding of the subjects that interest them, the UK Office of Undergraduate Research (UGR) is there to help them along the way,” said Evie Russell, assistant director of the UK Office of Undergraduate Research

By Lori Minter

The University of Kentucky has released its Dean's List for the spring 2017 semester.  A total of 6,412 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/.

UK is the University for Kentucky. At UK, we are educating more students, treating more patients with complex illnesses and conducting more research and service than at any time in our 150-year history. To read more about the UK

By Jennifer T. Allen

Tiwaladeoluwa Adekunle plans to change the world. Specifically, she plans to help eradicate poverty and fight injustice.

“It’s important to me that I’m doing meaningful work that is making a difference in this world,” Adekunle said.

Adekunle came to the University of Kentucky from Ghana as a 15-year-old freshman the fall of 2013. This past Sunday she walked across the stage at Rupp Arena and received her degree in international studies and English.

“UK and A&S have been great for me personally because of the support I’ve experienced here,” Adekunle said. “Coming here when I was only 15 could have been really hard, but the faculty I worked with were all so caring. They helped me grow my strengths and empowered me to work on my weak areas.”

When Adekunle came to Lexington, the only person she knew in town was her sister. To

By Jennifer T. Allen

Growing up in a small Appalachian town, Blake Dilynn Donithan dreamt of exploring the world. Looking at the mountains out of her bedroom window in Pikeville, Kentucky, she envisioned traveling first to Russia. She never thought that a few years later she would be in a small village near the Russian-Mongolian border in the Sayan Mountains.

“I had no connection to Russia or the Russian language, and people often questioned my decision to study Russian,” Donithan said. “But I wanted to learn a challenging language that would be an asset in the future. From a young age, I was fascinated with Russian literature, history and culture.”

Now a senior at the University of Kentucky majoring in international studies with a focus on comparative politics and societies in Russia and Eurasia and minoring in

By Jenny Wells

Per UK tradition, a student representative will speak at each of the four University of Kentucky Commencement Ceremonies this week.

The four student speakers are:

Savanah Sellars Sellars, from Yorkville, Illinois, will speak at the 10 a.m. May 5 ceremony. She is graduating with a baccalaureate degree in integrated strategic communication from the UK College of Communication and Information. May 5 is an extra special day for Sellars, because she will commission as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force shortly after the Commencement ceremony ends.  In June, she will begin her military career at Joint Base Langley-Eustis as a public affairs officer