Instilling Humanities throughout Campus and the Commonwealth

Through the Bale Boone Symposium, the Gaines Center promotes dialogue, intellectual exploration, and partnerships among campus, Bluegrass, and Commonwealth communities by sponsoring an array of public humanities and arts events.

These events are a testament to the influence and memory of Joy Bale Boone and George Street Boone, who were committed to the betterment of the humanities. The Bale Boone Symposium is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Past Symposiums: 

• 2024 - An Evening with Emily St. John Mandel: Emily St. John Mandel is the author of the critically acclaimed novel “Station Eleven,” a finalist for the 2014 National Book Award, as well as “The Glass Hotel,” which was a 2020 finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. Mandel is the author of several other novels — “Last Night in Montreal,” “The Singer’s Gun” and “The Lola Quartet,” — all of which were Indie Next picks. In her lectures, Mandel captivates audiences with stories about her early writing career and her thoughtful reflections on writing literary fiction with the strongest possible narrative drive. A poised speaker whose works continue to grow in scale and ambition, her moderated conversation with Gaines Center Director Michelle Sizemore, Ph.D., focused on the role of the humanities in a world navigating climate change, global pandemics and fracturing leadership. You can view a recording of the event by clicking here.  
• 2023 - An Evening with George Saunders: George Saunders is the author of 12 books, including "Lincoln in the Bardo," which won the 2017 Man Booker Prize for best work of fiction in English. He has received MacArthur and Guggenheim Fellowships, the PEN/Malamud Prize for excellence in the short story and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2013, he was named one of the world’s 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine. In support of his work, he has appeared on "The Colbert Report," "Late Night with David Letterman," "All Things Considered" and "The Diane Rehm Show." You can view the recording of the event by clicking here. 
• 2022 - An Evening with Bill T. Jones: Bill T. Jones, Artistic director of New York Live Arts and artistic director/co-founder of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company headlined the 2022 Bale Boone Symposium. Jones is recognized for his contributions as a dancer and choreographer. Renowned for provocative performances that blend an eclectic mix of modern and traditional dance, he creates works that challenge us to confront tough subjects and inspire us to greater heights. Performances by UK Department of Theatre and Dance and Blackbird Dance Theatre opened the event.  
• 2021 - An Evening with Rhiannon Giddens: Rhiannon Giddens is the co-founder of the GRAMMY award-winning string band Carolina Chocolate Drops, in which she also plays banjo and fiddle. She began gaining recognition as a solo artist when she stole the show at the T Bone Burnett– produced Another Day, Another Time concert at New York City’s Town Hall in 2013. The elegant bearing, prodigious voice, and fierce spirit that brought the audience to its feet that night is also abundantly evident on Giddens’ critically acclaimed solo debut, the Grammy nominated album, Tomorrow Is My Turn, which masterfully blends American musical genres like gospel, jazz, blues, and country, showcasing her extraordinary emotional range and dazzling vocal prowess.
• 2019 - An American Marriage: The Gaines Center for the Humanities was pleased to welcome acclaimed author and professor Tayari Jones, who presided over the most successful Bale Boone Symposium to date, with more than 1,200 attendees present at her keynote lecture. Jones is the author of four novels: An American Marriage, an Oprah Book Club pick; Silver Sparrow, chosen for the NEA’s Big Read Library; The Untelling; and Leaving Atlanta. 
• 2018 - Kentucky Reads: All the King's Men (An Evening with Jon Meacham) As a capstone to Kentucky Humanities’ statewide literacy initiative Kentucky Reads: All the King’s Men, Meacham spoke on the relevance of Robert Penn Warren’s work, from politics to race to regional culture, as well as Warren’s impact on literature and American culture.

To read about Bale Boone events prior to 2018, click here. 

Applications for the 2026 Bingham Seminar are now closed. Applications for the 2028 Bingham Seminar will open during summer 2026.

The Bingham Seminar provides faculty and students a chance to explore a subject not within the university's regular course offerings and to do so on-site, as the Gaines Center provides funding to offset the cost of travel, either in the US or abroad. The Seminar meets according to a regular course pattern during the spring 2026 semester, with the travel portion taking place over spring break, or early in May following finals week. 

BASED ON AN ENROLLMENT OF 10 STUDENTS: THE GAINES CENTER PROVIDES:

For FACULTY:
$4,000 research and study grant
Up to $2,000 of travel expenses
Up to $2,000 towards a special Thomas D. Clark Lecturer 

for STUDENTS 
$1,000 travel scholarship per student 

The Gaines Center also offers funding to invite a special lecturer to help further enrich the experience. This lecturer may speak with the course, but must also host a lecture that is free and open to the public. 

Established to honor Edward T. Breathitt, an eminent Kentuckian (Governor of KY, 1963-67) and a UK alum with exceptional passion for higher education and the humanities, this lectureship is awarded to an undergraduate whose qualities of mind and spirit have been expressed eloquently on one of more of the basic concerns of the humanities: form, value, and memory. The award is presented by the Gaines Center for the Humanities, and the Edward T. Breathitt Lectureship recipient receives a special award and an honorarium of $500.

Applications for the prestigious 2026 Edward T. Breathitt Undergraduate Lectureship in the Humanities will open in February 2025.

Click the links below to view available lectures. 

Past Lectures: 

• 2024: Joshua Cola, Art History, presented A Hit of Nostalgia: Mark McCloud's Through the Looking Glass and Blotter Art in the 1990s.
• 2023: Hayden Osborne, Secondary English Education, presented Take Me to the Lakes: folklore, evermore, and Wordsworth
• 2022: Matthew Kluemper, Digital Media + Design, presented Photographic Retellings of Kentucky Urban Legends
• 2021: Emily Andreasson, Interiors + Modern/Classical Languages, presented:
  Ellipsis: Creating Space for Expression and Healing Amidst the Liminal Experience of Displacement
• 2019: Tiana Thé, Political Science + Environmental/Sustainability Studies, presented:
  The Era of #MeToo: Ignoring a Dangerous Contradiction in a Prism of Freedom

To see a list of past Breathitt lectures prior to 2019, click here. 

Gaines' annual Lafayette Seminar offers an opportunity for Lexington community members, elected officials, and faculty and students to discuss such issues as the local economy, town and gown relationships, and the creation of successful public spaces.  The Seminars are supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Click the links below to view available seminars. 

Past Seminars: 

• 2024: Monsters, Myths, and the Metaphysical
  • Monsters, Myths, and the Metaphysical Showcase
  • Screening of cult classic Buffy the Vampire Slayer, followed by a moderated Q&A with Dr. Jeanmarie Rouhier-Willoughby
  • Lecture, with Dr. Jeanmarie Rouhier-Willoughby: The Evolution of the Sexy Vampire
  • Lecture, with Eleanor Haskins-Wagner: The Local Folklore of Mothman
  • Themed refreshments provided by Chef Tanya Whitehouse, UK Food Connection
  • Historic Lexington Ghost Walk, with Marley Knockers
• 2023: The Central Kentucky Slavery Project
  • Keynote with Dr. Amrita Myers: Julia Chinn's Old Kentucky Home: Slavery in Central Kentucky
  • Panel, with Shea Brown and Kathy Newfont: The Digital Access Project
  • Panel, with Reinette Jones, Kopana Terry, and Jennifer Bartlett: Freedom on the Move
  • Panel, with Crystal Gregory: The Material Studies Lab
• 2022: Dr. Pat Heist & Dr. Jarrad Gollihue: Mountain Moonshine
• 2021: Imani Perry: On Anthems
• 2020: Sena Jeter Naslund & David King: Literary Migrations: Kentucky Authors Writing Beyond Place

To see a list of past Lafayette Seminars, click here. 

The Gaines Lecture for Outstanding Research in the Humanities recognizes advances in the Humanities at the University of Kentucky, spotlighting ground-breaking work related to our annual theme. The inaugural lecture will be given by Anastasia Todd, Assistant Professor in Gender and Women’s Studies, for our Year on Health and the Humanities.