1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

News from Transy

National Endowment for the Arts awards grant to Unlearn Fear + Hate project

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University professors Kurt Gohde and Kremena Todorova have received $10,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts to create a permanent, illuminated artwork as part of their ongoing Unlearn Fear + Hate cycle of artworks. The artwork will be a large sculptural halo mounted on a downtown building. The location for the installation is to be determined. The NEA grant provides initial funding for the sculptural halo, and includes LexArts as a partner. This grant will also help to facilitate the creation of hand-painted illuminations made by people within the Lexington community. The purpose of Unlearn Fear + Hate is to promote community engagement and dialog. “In part a visual petition to unlearn fear and prejudice, in part a commitment to treating others with compassion and justice, Unlearn Fear + Hate invites everyone to participate,” Todorova said. The wide-ranging public artwork is named after words from a poem by Kentucky Poet Laureate Frank X Walker. Unlearn Fear + Hate kicked off last summer with the installation of a smaller sculptural halo on the side of the downtown 21c Museum Hotel. Since then it has resonated throughout Lexington with other art installations, photography, stenciling and more—with participation from numerous school and community groups. Also, Transylvania incorporated the theme into its curriculum. “The idea for Unlearn Fear + Hate was born in 2015, during a summer of national tensions and local conversations that were difficult and, at times, antagonizing,” Gohde said. “It

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Transylvania breaks ground on $4.5 million Carpenter Academic Center

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University broke ground on its $4.5 million renovation of the iconic Haupt Humanities Building at a ceremony on Friday, May 26. The project will modernize the classroom building, which will be renamed the Carpenter Academic Center in honor of its lead donors, Pete ’64 and Marilyn Carpenter. Over the next 18 months, it will undergo a complete rejuvenation that upgrades classrooms, provides student gathering spaces and integrates cutting-edge technologies. Every Transylvania student takes at least one class in the 57-year-old building, and the project will ensure that the spaces are advanced, flexible and sized for active learning. “Like individuals, institutions that endure over time require moments of renewal in order to flourish,” President Seamus Carey said. “It’s time for us to focus on the heart and soul of a campus devoted to the liberal arts and sciences and refurbish a space that has been a central part of the Transylvania experience for almost 60 years.” The donors joined other members of the Transylvania community for the groundbreaking. Pete Carpenter is a Kentucky native from Mount Vernon who retired in 2001 as vice chairman of CSX Corporation. “My education at Transylvania left me with a desire for lifelong learning,” he said. “Institutions like Transylvania are the basis to the success some of us have been fortunate enough to have enjoyed. It’s crucial to give back to these institutions in order to help prepare and educate our next generation of

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Pioneering United Way leader to deliver Transylvania commencement address

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LEXINGTON, Ky.— Bill Farmer, president and CEO of United Way of the Bluegrass, will deliver Transylvania University’s commencement address on Saturday, May 27, as the 237-year-old institution celebrates its 2017 graduates. “Community partnership is an integral part of a liberal arts education,” Transylvania President Seamus Carey said. “Mr. Farmer’s dedication to the Lexington community offers compelling evidence of how one individual can improve the lives of many. His example will remind our graduates of their responsibility to bravely tackle the challenges that lie ahead while they imagine the possibilities.” Farmer, who is the first African American to head the United Way of the Bluegrass, has helped the organization focus on improving educational opportunities, health outcomes and financial security among struggling central Kentucky families. He is building partnerships with local businesses, universities and individual volunteers to achieve those goals through social change. Transylvania’s commencement will begin at 9 a.m. in front of historic Old Morrison. The rain location will be the Clive M. Beck Center. Students in this year’s graduating class have distinguished themselves academically, with numerous accolades awarded to them. Class of 2017 highlights • Thirty-three percent of the 215 graduating seniors are receiving Latin honors for a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5, and 40 percent are receiving program honors. • Two of the 26 national Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society graduate fellowships were awarded to Transylvania seniors. • Students will pursue advanced degrees at institutions such as Vanderbilt,

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Transylvania named best Kentucky college for alumni job placement rates

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University ranks first among Kentucky colleges for landing a job after graduation. Zippia, a career advice website, recently included the university on a list of the best schools in each state for job placement rates. This ranking underscores the importance of a liberal arts education in creating not only well-rounded individuals but also sought-after employees. “A Transylvania education prepares our students to excel in the workplace,” President Seamus Carey said. “We teach them to be skilled communicators, creative thinkers and lifelong learners.” Transylvania graduates consistently find desirable jobs, such as principal project engineer for the Walt Disney Corporation, director of finance at Humana, and chief of exhibit planning at the Smithsonian Institution. To help current students get there, the Career Development office finds them internships at places like the Kentucky Supreme Court, the Edward Jones Investments national headquarters, and the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City. They also get real-world experience and advice through Transylvania’s 100 Doors to Success mentoring program. Future employment, after all, is a big consideration for parents and prospective students. Getting a good job after graduation is perhaps the most important thing on the minds of first-year college students, according to Zippia. “Not all schools are equal in this, and some colleges are vastly more supportive of their students’ post-graduation concerns than others.”

Lexington author wins Transylvania’s Judy Gaines Young Book Award

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Local author Crystal Wilkinson has won Transylvania University’s 2017 Judy Gaines Young Book Award for her novel, “The Birds of Opulence.” Wilkinson is a founding member of the Affrilachian Poets collective, the Appalachian Writer in Residence at Berea College and co-owner of Wild Fig Books & Coffee in Lexington. Wilkinson will receive the award on Tuesday, March 21, at 5 p.m. in Transylvania’s Carrick Theater. The event, which will be free and open to the public, will include a reading and book signing. This is the third year for the Judy Gaines Young Book Award, which honors recent works by writers in the Appalachian region. The University of Kentucky Press—the publisher of this year’s winner—describes the novel as “a lyrical exploration of love and loss that centers on several generations of women in a bucolic southern black township as they live with and sometimes surrender to madness.” Wilkinson is an “extraordinary storyteller,” said Transylvania English professor Kremena Todorova. “Her characters in ‘The Birds of Opulence’ are ordinary people dealing with everyday events like birth, postpartum depression, illness and the fast-spreading gossip of small-town folks. Yet, Wilkinson asks us to care about her people. Using language that is irresistibly beautiful, Wilkinson beckons us to enter her characters’ lives, to begin to do what the novel’s opening word asks us to do: ‘Imagine.’” “The Birds of Opulence” has won several other honors, including the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence. Transylvania’s award is funded by

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