News

a gaines center for the humanities mini grant event Eros Across Time and Tradition

Feb 21, 2026

The 2026 Annual Philosophy Graduate Student Conference, "Eros Across Time and Tradition," will take place on Friday February 20 and Saturday February 21, 2026. Inspired by Plato's Symposium, this year's conference offers a spirited yet reflective gathering of speech, song, and verse devoted to love in all its forms. Keynotes and graduate speakers engage Persian poetry, Greek philosophy, Judeo-Christian thought, and beyond in a bold reawakening of love's enduring mysteries in this age of alienation.

THE 2026 GAINES LECTURE FOR OUTSTANDING RESEARCH IN THE HUMANITIES Digitizing Prison Dreams: Incarcerated Podcasters and Their Views on Freedom

Feb 18, 2026

Join us for the 2nd annual Gaines Lecture for Outstanding Research in the Humanities featuring Assistant Professor Dr. Brandon Erby (Writing, Rhetoric, and Digital Studies). Dr.

a gaines center for the humanities cooperative event Slavery in the New History of Capitalism with David McNally

Feb 12, 2026

David McNally is Distinguished Professor of History and holds the NEH-Cullen Chair in History and Business at the University of Houston. His eight books include, most recently, Slavery and Capitalism published by University of California Press (2025). McNally's lecture is presented by the Global Crisis Cooperative, 2025-2026 recipients of Gaines Center for the Humanities Cooperative funding. The lecture will take place on Thursday February 12 at 3.30pm in room 191 of the Gatton Business & Economics Building.

SAVE THE DATE A Conversation with Frank X Walker and Amy Murrell Taylor

Feb 9, 2026

Please join us for a reading from and conversation about Professor Frank X. Walker’s (Creative Writing) and Professor Amy Taylor’s (History) award-winning books, Load in Nine Times and Embattled Freedom. The conversation will be moderated by Professor of History and Senior Adviser to the President, George C. Wright. Their conversation will take place in the John Jacob Niles Gallery, 3.30pm-4.30pm, on Monday February 9.

Applications open until midnight, Monday February 2, 2026 Now Accepting Applications for the 2026 Gaines Fellowship

Feb 2, 2026

The application for the Gaines Fellowship is open; applications will be accepted through Monday February 2, 2026. The Gaines Fellowship is an intensive two-year program awarded to 12 outstanding undergraduate students each year. Selected fellows take a four-credit hour seminar course as a small cohort focused on the humanities with outstanding UK faculty both semesters of their junior year.

GAINES CENTER SPRING FORUM Public Education and Its Built Environment

Jan 22, 2026

Join us in Bingham Davis House on Thursday January 22, 4.00pm-5.00pm, for the Gaines Center Spring Forum featuring Eric Weber (College of Education) and Leen Katrib (College of Design).

NOW AVAILABLE TO STREAM The 2025 Bale Boone Symposium with Ebony G. Patterson

Jan 12, 2026

The 2025 Bale Boone Symposium with Ebony G. Patterson is now available to stream on our YouTube channel. CLICK HERE TO STREAM

now available to stream 2025 Breathitt Lecture with Lucas Carlos de Lima

Jun 30, 2025

The 2025 Breathitt Lecture, Crystal Palaces: Designing a Better World Amidst Social Chaos presented by Lucas Carlos de Lima, is now available to stream on our YouTube channel. Click here to view the lecture.

Gaines Class of 2027 Gaines Center Selects Newest Cohort of Fellows

May 31, 2025

The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities is thrilled to announce the selection of 12 undergraduates as the newest class of Gaines Fellows. These students will join the prestigious Gaines Fellowship Program in the Humanities for the 2025-2026 academic year.

Gaines Center featured in the Journal of Appalachian Studies

Dec 16, 2024

The Gaines Center for the Humanities' annual Lafayette Seminar featured in the latest edition of the Journal of Appalachian Studies. The article, authored by Associate Director Dr. Chelsea Brislin, revisited the two-day 2024 Lafayette Seminar, a series of public events on the topic of Monsters, Myths, and the Metaphysical. Check out the article in the Volume 30, Number 2 edition, available now at this link.