1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

Transy Partners

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 partners with the state and LFUCG for Fourth Street improvements

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University and Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government plan to work together on a $1.3 million project to improve the West Fourth Street corridor from Upper to Jefferson streets. The work, which is expected to take place next year, will include new sidewalks, street and pedestrian lighting, signage, traffic and drainage improvements and further development of the Legacy Trail. The project will extend the look and feel of the previous streetscape improvements on Fourth Street alongside the school’s Athletics Complex between Jefferson Street and Newtown Pike.
 Transylvania will match 20 percent of a state grant paid for by federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funds, which support innovative improvements to traffic flow and air quality. Lexington and Lextran received a total of $7.7 million from the CMAQ program.
 “These road and trail projects will help Lexington continue to strive to have a clean, healthy environment to support its strong quality of life for families and businesses,” former Gov. Steve Beshear said. Mayor Jim Gray also praised the funding. “These are the kinds of projects that improve quality of life in Lexington,” he said.
 The Transylvania community especially will benefit from the improvements because students often walk and bike along Fourth Street to reach the Athletics Complex.
 Previously the site of an abandoned tobacco warehouse, the sports venue is another example of how Transylvania has invested in developing this corridor—which connects not only the residents of north Lexington with downtown but

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MLK Day a holiday, but not a day of rest

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Martin Luther King Jr. Day is more than just time off work or school. It’s a call to service, and Transylvania University is answering it. The school and its students will engage community members in a wide variety of activities on the Jan. 20 holiday—from knitting mittens for the needy to participating in Lexington’s Freedom March. The school has honored this nationwide Day of Service for more than a decade, said Karen Anderson, coordinator of community service and civic engagement. “It’s a day off of work—but a day on for your community,” she said. It’s a time for Transylvania to partner with service agencies and welcome other volunteers to campus. Community members are invited to join campus activities organized to help support our neighbors in need. This year’s volunteers include high school students from Estill County, who will make sandwiches for the homeless. “Last year I brought my students because I felt like they would benefit from going to a college campus and being around college students and actually seeing college students participate in activities that better someone else,” said Ashley Flynn, the AmeriCorps Kentucky College Coach for Estill County High School. “For the students to spend their day off from school serving others is just what Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service is all about,” she said. It helps teach youth that service is a life-long continuum of engaging with the community, Anderson said. Plus, “It’s a

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Fourth Street improvements will transform north Lexington

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Collaboration. According to Lexington Mayor Jim Gray, that’s what made it happen. Connections. That’s what Urban County Council member Chris Ford wants the improvements to create. Transformation. And that’s what Bluegrass Community and Technical College President Augusta Julian expects for the surrounding neighborhood. It may have seemed like just another annoying road project to some who traveled it, creating the usual traffic snarls and inconvenient detours, but those who live in the area know differently. The Fourth Street improvements may truly transform the neighborhood. Several local dignitaries gathered last week at BCTC’s Newtown campus to celebrate the completion of the Fourth Street road project as well as a number of other important construction projects in the area, including Transylvania’s Athletics Complex. The newly reconfigured Fourth Street—which is now two-way between Newtown Pike and Jefferson Street, with freshly painted bike lanes, inviting sidewalks, and improved lighting—is indeed a critical connection between the residents of north Lexington and the downtown area and between the campuses of Transylvania University and BCTC. Said Ford, “The project is truly about mobility and connectivity.” The collaboration required to make the project a reality was the first indication of the connections this project could forge. It took a cooperative approach among multiple parties to envision the Fourth Street improvements and sustain the momentum for their completion: District 7 of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, R.J. Corman Railroad Group, Transylvania University, and BCTC. Julian

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Transylvania University and the Carnegie Center sign partnership agreement

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O’Brien and Williams sign the agreement in the board room of Old Morrison. LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University President R. Owen Williams and President of the Board of Directors of the Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning Eileen M. O’Brien signed an agreement today to explore the possibility of a significant partnership. “Our goal is for both Transylvania and the Carnegie Center to work together to better enhance our commitment to lifetime learning,” said Williams. The yearlong commitment begins July 1, 2011. During this time, the Carnegie Center and Transylvania will each share space with the other for programs, concerts, lectures, receptions and similar events, will expand or modify current programs at the Carnegie Center and will formalize and expand service learning and volunteer support. “We are excited to have this collaborative effort with Transylvania formally acknowledged,” said O’Brien. “Both organizations have demonstrated such a tremendous commitment to lifetime learning and the literary arts, which bodes well for our future.” Transylvania has a long history of its students volunteering in various capacities at the Carnegie Center. “We believe we can do more than what we’ve been doing and are excited about the possibility of making the Carnegie Center even stronger,” said Williams.  “This is a win-win agreement.”