The newsletter for the WKU community
February 28, 2023
President's Message: Yield, Commencement and Summer Schedule
Dear Colleagues,

As I shared with you recently, our fall-to-spring retention rates continue to grow in record fashion. This strong performance signals that students feel supported and valued as members of our Hilltopper family.

Now, as we proceed through admission yield season, we have an opportunity to ensure our admitted students also feel welcomed and supported as they make their final college decisions. The connections and relationships we establish with them now will increase their likelihood of enrollment and shape their academic start at WKU.

I appreciate the collaborations between of our Admissions Office and academic colleges as they guide future Hilltoppers through the pre-enrollment process. I encourage every unit to continue honing our yield processes and developing new ways to make the transition from high school to campus as seamless as possible. We remain steadfast in our goal to provide an exceptional experience for every student and to reinforcing confidence in their decision to pursue a WKU degree.
CLIMBING HIGHER
Dr. Jay Gabbard, Professor of Social Work, recently was elected Chair of the Board of Directors of Phi Alpha Social Work Honor Society, International. Learn More
WKU Forensics Team wins 2023 KFA state championship
The WKU Forensics Team won the 2023 Kentucky Forensics Association State Tournament hosted by Owensboro Community and Technical College on February 24-25.
Spotlight: Museum Exhibits
The Kentucky Museum has announced it will open four new exhibitions in 2023, beginning with the Abound Credit Union Celebration of the Arts. The awards ceremony for the exhibition will be held Friday night with the show on display March 4 through April 14.
Coming Home King crowned
Avery Wells of Louisville was crowned WKU’s 2023 Coming Home King on Saturday night. Wells, the son of Andre and Antissa Wells, is a Political Science major and African American Studies minor and was sponsored by National Pan-Hellenic Council and Alpha Xi Delta.
Geoscience graduate student wins WKU 3MT competition
Trayson Lawler, a graduate student in the Geoscience program, is the winner of the third WKU 3MT competition. Lawler’s research involves using over 50 water level monitors and several weather stations in the Lost River watershed in Bowling Green to measure flooding and the fluctuation of the water surface above and below ground under various weather conditions.
Students to present research in Posters-at-the-Capitol
The 21st annual Posters-at-the-Capitol event will be held on Thursday in Frankfort featuring 12 research projects by 24 WKU students, including four from The Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science.
CITL recognizes WKU faculty who have added Blackboard Ultra
The Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning (CITL) would like to recognize WKU faculty who have taken the leap to Blackboard Ultra. It is no small feat, and we appreciate their willingness to be at the forefront of change, especially since Blackboard Ultra represents a more optimal learning experience for our students. To express our gratitude, CITL held a drawing for conference registration for two teaching, learning, and technology conferences to be held in Nashville this year. From our pool of early adopters, we congratulate the winners of that random drawing.
Kentucky Mesonet camera images available on app
The Kentucky Mesonet is now deploying cameras across its network, making it the second statewide mesonet in the country to include real-time photography. Collecting images every 30 minutes, the Mesonet’s photos are now available live (in real-time) on its phone app. Cameras are currently deployed at 24 of the 80 Mesonet stations across the state, with plans to add cameras to the rest of the network throughout the year. All images are collected and archived for posterity, yielding a current total of about 700 GB per day. While photos are collected every 30 minutes during daylight hours currently, the Mesonet plans to increase the frequency of images to one every five minutes and extend photo collection through the night.
WKU Career Fair
The WKU Advising and Career Development Center will host the WKU Career Fair from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday at the Downing Student Union, third floor.
Camp & Recreation Job Fair
WKU's Recreation, Park, and Nonprofit Administration program is hosting its WKU Camp & Recreation Job Fair from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday at the Downing Student Union, first floor lobby.
Tornado Drill Wednesday
WKU will participate in the statewide tornado safety drill on Wednesday. At approximately 9:07 a.m. CT, WKU will test its emergency communications network, including the outdoor warning speakers.
Mahurin Honors College will host Deliberative Dialogues
Honors 251 Citizen and Self students at WKU will host a series of deliberative dialogues scheduled for March 29 through April 7. The campus conversations will be held in-person in the Honors College and International Center (HCIC) Room 1011.
Basketball Event Parking
WKU Parking and Transportation Services has a reminder for the campus community about event parking for this week's KHSAA 4th Region Basketball Tournament games at Diddle Arena.
Board of Regents to meet
The WKU Board of Regents will conduct a quarterly meeting beginning at 9 a.m. Friday at the WKU Innovation Campus located at 2413 Nashville Road in Bowling Green.
Athletics
February
28
Tuesday
Diversity in Graduate Education

The WKU Graduate School will host a Distinguished Lecture in Diversity in Graduate Education by Dr. Terrell Lamont Strayhorn from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. today at the Jody Richards Hall Auditorium.
February
28
Tuesday
WKU Night at the Predators

WKU Night at the Predators will begin with a reception at 5 followed by puck drop at 7 tonight at Bridgestone Arena. Learn More
March
1
Wednesday
Staff Senate

WKU Staff Senate will meet at 10 a.m. Wednesday in Downing Student Union, room 2081. Learn More
Western Kentucky University 
1906 College Heights Blvd. 
Bowling Green, KY 42101