Brett Setzer
500 posts
What's really going on at UK? Good question. Here are some answers: uknow.uky.edu/campus-news/op…
The University of Kentucky Was Built for the People. Let's Not Forget That. In 1862, in the middle of a civil war, Abraham Lincoln signed the Morrill Act, a radical bet that higher education shouldn't be reserved for the wealthy. Every state would get federal land to establish a university whose mission was clear: serve the working people. Teach agriculture, mechanical arts, and the practical sciences. Lift up communities that had never seen the inside of a college classroom. The University of Kentucky exists because of that promise. Not because of a business plan. Not because of a revenue model. Not because someone saw an opportunity to build a brand. UK was born from the idea that a public university belongs to the people of the Commonwealth, the coal miner's daughter in Harlan County, the farmer's son in Christian County, the first-generation student in any of Kentucky's 120 counties who dared to believe education could change the trajectory of a family. That mission is sacred. And it's worth saying plainly: “it is being eroded.” When a land-grant university begins operating more like a holding company than an institution of learning, spinning up LLCs, layering subsidiaries, embedding consultants so deeply they become indistinguishable from leadership and something fundamental shifts. The question stops being “How do we serve Kentucky?" and starts being "How do we grow the enterprise?" Those are not the same question. When transparency gives way to complexity. When organizational charts require a forensic accountant to interpret, when public dollars flow through structures that obscure rather than illuminate, the people who own this university lose their ability to hold it accountable. And accountability isn't a bureaucratic inconvenience. For a land-grant institution, it's the whole point. The public trust IS the product. Kentucky ranks near the bottom nationally in educational attainment, health outcomes, and household income. These aren't abstract statistics, they represent the very communities the Morrill Act was designed to serve. Every dollar, every decision, every partnership should be measured against one standard: “Does this move the needle for the people of this Commonwealth?” Not for the consultants. Not for the contractors. Not for the executives. For the people. A university can pursue excellence and still honor its soul. It can modernize without corporatizing. It can grow without forgetting who it grows for. But that requires intentionality. It requires leaders who understand that a land-grant charter isn't a historical footnote, it's a living covenant. The University of Kentucky doesn't belong to its administration. It doesn't belong to its board. It doesn't belong to the firms it contracts with or the subsidiaries it creates. It belongs to Kentucky. And Kentucky deserves to know that the institution built in its name is still being run in its interest. @GovAndyBeshear
BCTC vacating Cooper Drive campus as UK moves ahead with entertainment district kentucky.com/sports/college…
A statement from Gov. Beshear.
You’re kidding, @universityofky. The nerve to even mention @UKAthletics while Kentucky taxpayers are already covering a seven-figure @UKYpres (and wife’s expense account and perks), and @UKMitchBarnhart golden parachute is beyond insulting. #BBN doesn’t need my money. It doesn’t need yours. From performance funding to lower rankings, the Capilouto administration is already taking enough. Enough is enough for #UKY
Like father like son, Matt Insell is ready to lead the Lady Raiders Story by Jacob Burgess 📸 by @E24Media mtsusidelines.com/2026/03/24/lik…
WATCH: @UKYpres shares an update on the future of @UKAthletics. Hear what he’s learned from his listening tour and what’s ahead. As a reminder, you can follow the progress on this process at go.uky.edu/BusinessOfUKY. youtube.com/watch?v=bG7DT2…
After a great conversation with @KoryAllen I am extremely excited and blessed to receive an offer from @ToledoFB ! #AGTG @coach_mjacobs @BrianFolkerts @JacobBonacci @LoganM_CFB @Oakley_Watkins @jhyde61 @trey_hood21
