ALUMNI ASSOCIATIO
UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY NATIONAL ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
1985 OFFICERS
President
Julia Kurtz Tackett '68 Lexington President-Elect David G. Ravencraft '58 Reston, Va. Treasurer Mrs. Joe F. Morris '38 Lexington Secretary Jay Brumfield '48 Lexington
ASSOCIATION STAFF
Director
Jay Brumfield '48 Associate Director Bob C. Whitaker '58 Editor
Liz Howard Demoran '68 Membership Coordinator
Ada D. Refbord '39 Staff Brenda Bain Julia Brothers Linda Brumfield Margie Carby Ruth Elliott Amelia Gano Carolyn Griffith Ruby Hardin Ennis Johnson Betty W. Nelson '52
By LIZ DEMORAN
FRIENDraising  that's what the University of Kentucky National Alumni Association does best. FUNraising is the province of the UK Athletics Association. FUNDraising is what the UK Development Office does by seeking contributions to the Annual Fund and individual colleges, by receiving gifts from wills, trusts and bequests and by uncovering corporate support for the University.
The UK National Alumni Association has a dual purpose  serving alumni with programs and membership benefits and serving the University with programs to undergird the continuing academic progress at UK, to attract quality students and to reward a quality faculty.
Among the most popular programs for alumni are area club gatherings and trips to Rupp Arena, the Kentucky Alumnus magazine, membership availability at Spindletop Hall and the basketball scorecard. The Association also sponsors class reunions, Homecoming, overseas trips, an annual photo contest, library privileges, University Press book discounts, and the Hall of Distinguished Alumni recognition program.
Foremost among service programs to the University is the grassroots support movement for Kentucky higher education and for UK. This campaign began with an "academics only" Rally Night last August when alumni gathered simultaneously at 34 locations throughout the state.
Julia Tacket David Ravencraft
1985 President 1986 President
It was followed up by special coverage of Council on Higher Education and legislative actions pertaining to a strategic plan for higher education. The contents of the plan will ultimately affect the lifestyle of every Kentuckian as it establishes a framework for the availability of academic programs and research at each of the eight public universities in Kentucky.
To volunteer for this program, call Jay Brumfield at 257-8907.
Quality students are attracted to a university because the academic oppor-
tunities and faculty are first-rate, because scholarship and financial aid is available and because the alumni they know talk proudly about their alma mater. The National Alumni Association helps out on all three counts.
The Association encourages exceptional teaching which is at the heart of a strong academic program by presenting up to six awards annually for Great Teaching. As one program to keep highly qualified professors at UK, the Alumni Professorship is now a designation carried by seven professors who not only contribute in the classroom but also in the research laboratory. How exciting to be taught by the very people who are creating new knowledge, who are discovering how quarks and neurons and monoclonal antibodies and minds work so that that information can be used to increase our life expectancy and enhance our quality of life as well!
In the past five years, funds for alumni club-sponsored scholarships have risen from about $2,000 to nearly $11,000 annually. Clubs also host UK Open Houses in their local communities for prospective students. Many alumni participate in a career advising network for students or serve on college advisory boards. The Association itself provides over 20 scholarships to outstanding students, marching band members and to each of the 13 community colleges. The Association also provides "real world" experience through its internship program with alumni publications, alumni administration and public relations.
Among the alumni who provide the "pride factor" are shuttle astronaut Story Musgrave who took a UK pennant into orbit last July; Dr. Joe Kramer who is seeing to it that movie script writers include his UK connection in the story of his life they are writing, and the Helton family of Pineville in which all four siblings and 11 grandchildren have earned degrees at UK.
One of them, Cinder Parsons, is active in the club program and has served on the board of directors. Altogether, 57 alumni volunteer their time to direct the activities of the Alumni Association. Another 65 serve as alumni club presidents and hundreds of others also serve as officers of local clubs. In 1985 Judge Julia Kurtz Tackett of Lexington is president of the National Alumni Association, a position she will yield to David Ravencraft of Washington, D.C. for 1986. The board and alumni clubs represent a nationwide network of pride in the University of Kentucky. Let it show!
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