Brett Setzer
482 posts
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
The University of Kentucky has drifted from its original Morrill Act mandate—to educate the industrial classes for the public good—into a self-perpetuating "degree mill" that prioritizes institutional expansion over the state’s actual economic needs. Senator Morrill’s vision was to create institutions to teach “agriculture and the mechanic arts” in order to “promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions in life.” Instead, under the leadership of Eric Monday and a Board of Trustees led by E. Britt Brockman, UK’s budget has ballooned to $8.6B for FY 2026, representing an unprecedented 2.83% of Kentucky’s GDP. This 69% budget growth since 2021 far outpaces the state's 28% economic growth, creating a "Recirculating Degree Economy" that serves the institution rather than the workforce. The administration has exploited its influence, housing the Center for Business and Economic Research to provide self-serving economic modeling funded by general funds. While UK leadership aggressively pursues "Top 20" status and record enrollments in business and healthcare, they ignore a looming national trade emergency. State funding is being funneled into this academic machine instead of KCTCS and other technical colleges that produce the skilled trades—such as electricians and machinists—essential for attracting manufacturing and infrastructure investment. Furthermore, UK’s fiscal strategy under Eric Monday is characterized by recklessness and a "Dunning-Kruger" mentality. The administration utilizes capital bonds as a "personal piggybank" and relies on outsourcing contracts with entities like Greystar and Aramark. This creates a predatory dichotomy: the university celebrates record graduation rates for the "knowledge economy" while simultaneously stripping its own essential workers of benefits and institutional protections through third-party management or transition to Beyond Blue LLC roles. Ultimately, the university has become a bloated bureaucracy of "golden parachutes" and administrative layers that underperforms compared to its peers in critical sectors like AI, healthcare technology, research technology, and NIL. By prioritizing high-salary roles over the land-grant mission, UK is failing to provide the upward mobility it claims to champion. This failure is underscored by the United Campus Workers' petition for fair wages and job security, highlighting that the institution has structured its operations to deny mobility to those maintaining its campus operations. To bridge this gap, UK must abandon Monday and his model of installing non-expert administrators and instead recruit industry-leading experts capable of driving the innovation necessary to finally catch up to its peers. Expect more commentary in the coming days and weeks exposing these issues—similar to the recent Athletics NIL —including upcoming posts regarding Kroeger field entertainment district, UK Innovation and the CATS AI (Commonwealth AI Transdisciplinary Strategy) initiative.* *All information provided is obtained through public sources by someone who Bleeds Blue and hates what our flagship institution is doing to the Commonwealth. #FireEricMonday
He was 43 years old, at summit of his career, winning 1996 NCAA title. Not many people can maintain that level of commitment for another 30 years, but Rick Pitino (@RealPitino) is doing just that, causing us to dream what it would have been like had he said no to Celtics in 1997.
So according to KY, a public school kid is equal to 3/4 of a Private School kid? Somebody make this make sense.
Never forget, before Kentucky hired Mark Pope there were reports that Billy Donovan could potentially be interested in the job. Kentucky AD Mitch Barnhart decided that he didn't want to wait the extra four days for the Bulls season to end to interview him
Thank you Kentucky!
Jim Madaleno was the best athletic trainer in the game. 💙🤍 Randall Cobb and Jeremy Jarmon talk about the impact he made on the both of them during their time at Kentucky. Stay tuned for an episode with Jim coming very soon. ⏳ #BBN
🚨 BREAKING: EVERY SINGLE High School in Oklahoma will now have its own Turning Point USA chapter, Oklahoma State Superintendent @RyanWalters_ announced “Radical leftist teachers’ unions have dominated classrooms for far too long, and we are taking them back.” LFG! 🇺🇸
Not only a great player but a better person!
Yesterday, the Superintendent for the cash-strapped Fayette County Public Schools was before a Legislative Committee, and was grilled about his district's spending habits. Questions included why the district was spending $120,000 a month on travel, and why he was getting reimbursements for more than $60,000. What was the Superintendent's response? This is a post-pandemic world..... Keep in mind that in 2024, Fayette County Schools spent almost twice what Jefferson County Public Schools did on travel, despite being only half the size.
