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Chellgren Center Names 36 New Fellows, Five Endowed Professorships

By Jenny Wells

(Aug. 26, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Chellgren Center for Undergraduate Excellence honored its newest class of Chellgren Fellows Sunday, Aug. 23. Five Chellgren Endowed Professorships were also announced. 

The Chellgren Fellows Program is for students with exceptional academic potential and aspirations, who are eager to participate in a special learning community designed to cultivate extraordinary achievement. Outstanding faculty members from across campus serve as individual mentors for the Fellows.

The students selected as 2015-16 Chellgren Fellows include:

•  Sloan Ander, a biology major from Maricopa, Arizona

•  Annie Baker, a biology major from Olive Hill, Kentucky

•  Esias Bedingar, a biology major from N'Djamena, Chad

•  Drury Bell, a classics major from Prattville, Alabama

•  Curtis Bethel, a pre-med/chemical engineering major from Lexington

•  Andrea Bomkamp, a marketing major from Crescent Springs, Kentucky 

•  Sommer Cade, an architecture major from Louisville

•  Ben Childress, an economics major from Lexington

•  Kylie Colvin, an agricultural biotechnology major from Villa Hills, Kentucky

•  Sarah Coulson, a chemical engineering major from Decherd, Tennessee

•  Brianna Damron, a communication major from Louisville

•  DeAnna Duffy, a psychology major from Elk Grove Village, Illinois

•  Faith Evans, a biology major from Union, Kentucky

•  Heather Gosnell, a chemical engineering major from Aurora, Ohio

•  Jonathan Hamilton, a mechanical engineering major from Eagle River, Alaska 

•  Nicholas Hodge, an architecture major from Lexington

•  Claire Kellan, a French major from Lexington 

•  Aiko Lovejoy, a foreign language & international economics major from Deerfield, Illinois

•  Natalie Malone, a pre-med/psychology major from Smiths Grove, Kentucky 

•  Nicole Martin, a pre-med/chemical engineering major from Bowling Green, Kentucky

•  Nora Mattingly, an international studies major from Louisville

•  Lillian McGhiey, a psychology major from Carmel, Indiana

•  Hannah Meredith, a secondary English education major from Lawrenceburg, Kentucky

•  Elijah Myers, a biology major from Campbellsville, Kentucky

•  Christa Newman, a psychology major from Lexington

•  Bridget Nicholas, a Chinese language and literature major from Covington, Kentucky

•  Aya Omar, a pre-vet/animal science major from Crestwood, Kentucky

•  Christina Pistilli, a biology major from Lexington  

•  Alexander Polus, a computer engineering major from Lexington 

•  Madelyn Roeder, an interdisciplinary early childhood education major from Florence, Kentucky  

•  Shauna Rust, an international studies major from Georgetown, Kentucky

•  Brett Seymore, an accounting major from Princeton, Kentucky

•  Fox Thorpe, a chemical engineering major from Mount Sterling, Kentucky

•  Payton Wallace, an accounting major from Hebron, Kentucky 

•  Brenton Watts, a Spanish major from Jackson, Kentucky 

•  Sylvia Wilson, a biology major from St. Louis  

In addition to the Fellows, five Chellgren Endowed Professorships were also announced at Sunday's reception. The new endowed professors include:

•  Francisco Andrade, Department of Physiology, UK College of Medicine

•  Gail Brion, Department of Civil Engineering, UK College of Engineering

•  Herman Farrell, Department of Theatre, UK College of Fine Arts

•  Jane Jensen, Department of Educational Policy Studies, UK College of Education

•  Kathi Kern, Department of History, UK College of Arts and Sciences

Chellgren Endowed Professors maintain an active research program in their discipline; teach courses in one of the university's programs of excellence or within their college or department; and direct a specific project intended to advance progressive reform of undergraduate education. Each endowed professor conducts a specific project designed to improve undergraduate education. They also collaborate with colleagues in the Chellgren Center on other initiatives and activities that are intended to improve the quality of the undergraduate experience and help UK become a beacon of undergraduate excellence.

The Chellgren Endowed Professors and Chellgren Fellows Program were made possible by the Chellgren Center, which was created in 2005 with an initial gift from Paul Chellgren and his family. His total commitment of $2.25 million was matched by the state’s Endowment Match Program, creating a $4.5 million endowment for the Chellgren Center for Undergraduate Excellence. 

As a UK undergraduate, Chellgren was an Honors Program student and star intercollegiate debater. After earning his MBA from Harvard and a D.D.E. from Oxford University, he began a successful career that culminated with his retirement as chairman and CEO of Ashland Inc. He was inducted into UK’s Hall of Distinguished Alumni in 2000 and the Gatton College of Business and Economics Hall of Fame in 1995, and served on the UK Board of Trustees for 11 years. His commitment to improving and enriching undergraduate education at UK continues to impact thousands of UK students, faculty and staff. 

The Chellgren Center is part of the Academy of Undergraduate Excellence within the Division of Undergraduate Education at UK.