Kentucky

Kentucky Senate panel advances bill to encourage cutting-edge research

Published

9 months ago

February 22, 2024

Kentucky Senate panel advances bill to encourage cutting-edge research

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky lawmakers on Thursday started advancing an ambitious measure aimed at stimulating cutting-edge research while promoting teamwork among the state’s public universities.

The Senate Education Committee quickly advanced the bill that would create a framework for cross-campus projects pairing up researchers at various schools. The measure is sponsored by Republican Senate President Robert Stivers and is designated as Senate Bill 1, signifying its top-priority status. The proposal goes to the full Senate next and would still need House approval.

The legislation is meant to be a catalyst to stimulate far-reaching research capable of attracting lucrative federal grants and other support while raising Kentucky’s research profile. Projects could focus on medical breakthroughs but could build on schools’ existing strengths in other types of research as well.

“You can’t catch a fish until you cast something into the water,” Stivers told the committee. “I’ve never seen them jump in my boat. So this is an attempt to go fishing.”

The goal is to reel in research projects capable of improving lives across the Bluegrass State.

By providing state-backed seed funding, the goal is to help nurture the research projects, with the expectation that the work would prove successful enough to attract outside funding.

The bill would establish an endowed research fund administered by the state Council on Postsecondary Education. The council would solicit and review joint funding applications submitted by two or more public universities. It’s meant to enhance collaboration among Kentucky schools often seen as competitors.

The council would select five research consortiums to receive funding for an initial five years. Interest earnings from the research fund would be transferred into accounts supporting each project.

“This is precisely what Kentucky needs now to catapult us forward in developing premier research consortiums by banding together, pooling our resources to chart a path to success in Kentucky’s future,” Stivers said in a news release after the committee hearing.

The council would review the performance of each research team to determine whether its funding support should be renewed for up to five more years. If a research team’s funding is discontinued, the council would review other applications to fill the vacancy.

Details about state funding for the initiative would be decided in coming weeks. The Senate is currently working on its version of the next two-year state budget. The final version will ultimately be hashed out by Senate and House negotiators next month. Stivers will be a key participant in those negotiations.

The state’s research reputation got a boost last year when the University of Kentucky’s Markey Cancer Center achieved the highest level of recognition from the National Cancer Institute. Its elevated status — putting it among several dozen cancer centers nationally to attain the designation — will bolster research and patient care in a state plagued by some of the nation’s highest cancer rates.

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Kentucky

Trends all lean Kentucky's way in Governor's Cup

Published

8 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

Trends all lean Kentucky's way in Governor's Cup

Mark Stoops owns a five-game winning streak in the Governor’s Cup series. The Wildcats have won three games in a row at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium and have not lost to Louisville at Kroger Field since 2017 when Bobby Petrino was holding the call sheet and and Lamar Jackson was playing quarterback. The Wildcats have also covered a lot of spreads in this series.

Stoops is 7-2-1 against-the-spread (ATS) in this series with with covers as a double-digit dog in 2014 and 2016. Kentucky has beaten Louisville outright as a dog three times since 2016 and has covered five straight in this series. Those are not the only trends going in Kentucky’s direction heading into this Week 14 contest.

Louisville is 0-4-1 ATS as a road favorite under Jeff Brohm with outright losses to Pittsburgh and Stanford. Kentucky is 5-0-1 ATS as a dog in its last six outing including four games this season. Kentucky covered numbers as a double-digit dog against Georgia, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Texas this season.

The visitor is 11-3-1 ATS (5-10 outright) in the last 14 meetings of this series with 10 outright wins but Kentucky has won the last two meetings at Kroger Field covering each times as a three-point favorite. In 2019, Kentucky ran away for a 45-13 victory and cruised to a 26-13 victory in 2022.

Kentucky has consistently overachieved pregame expectations in this series. The Wildcats are currently a 3.5-point dog with a total of 48.5. That’s a projected final score of 26-22.5. Will UK exceed expectations again against Louisville? A win would equal four outright upsets for the Big Blue in the last eight meetings of the series.

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Kentucky

ESPN predicts the winner between Kentucky and Western Kentucky

Published

16 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

ESPN predicts the winner between Kentucky and Western Kentucky

Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats are getting ready to host the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers for an in-state battle in Rupp Arena. This is a game that is always fun as it brings different parts of Kentucky together to share in the state’s favorite pastime, which is basketball.

WKU is 3-2 on the season with wins over Lipscomb, Jackson State, and Campbellsville. The Hilltoppers lost to Wichita State and Grand Canyon.

While Kentucky steamrolled Lipscomb, they are a solid team, and Western Kentucky was able to take them down 66-61, so the Wildcats can’t look past this matchup. This shouldn’t be an issue as Coach Pope respects the game and doesn’t let his team look past an opponent.

While WKU is a solid mid-major team, ESPN doesn’t seem to think the Wildcats will have any issue taking down the Hilltoppers, as they give Kentucky a 97.5% chance to win this game.

The best player for the Hilltoppers is guard Don McHenry, who is averaging 17.2 points per game five games into the season. The 6’2 guard is shooting 32.4% from three on the season, but he lets a lot of them fly, so the Wildcats can let him get hot from deep.

The goal for this Kentucky team when they take on WKU should be to keep working on defense and rebounding while the offense keeps doing what it has been doing all season long. If the Wildcats can keep improving in these two areas, they will be hard to beat come SEC play and March.

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Kentucky

Liberty 38-21 Western Kentucky (Nov 23, 2024) Game Recap – ESPN

Published

1 day ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

Liberty 38-21 Western Kentucky (Nov 23, 2024) Game Recap – ESPN

LYNCHBURG, Va. — — Quinton Cooley rushed for 166 yards and two touchdowns, Billy Lucas added 131 yards and a score, and Liberty gained 419 on the ground with four touchdowns in a 38-21 victory over Western Kentucky on Saturday.

Liberty (8-2, 5-2 Conference USA) has won eight-plus games for the sixth consecutive season to keep alive hopes of a second straight trip to the conference championship game. The Flames play Sam Houston (8-3, 5-2) on Friday.

Liberty scored 21 straight points to close the first quarter, the last covering 90 yards in just 45 seconds to take a 21-7 lead.

Amarian Williams made two interceptions, including one with 2:03 remaining to seal it. Caden Veltkamp was intercepted three times before finishing 20 of 34 for 262 yards and two touchdowns for Western Kentucky (7-4, 5-2).

Cooley reached 1,000 yards rushing for the second straight season. The Flames entered ranked No. 5 nationally in rushing yards/game (249.8). Quarterback Kaidon Salter also carried 11 times for 66 yards and a touchdown. Three other players had at least two rushes for Liberty, which ended with 63 carries.

The Flames, in their season finale at Williams Stadium, avoided dropping multiple conference games at home for the first time since 2005.

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