UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health

10/23/2025

National Rural Health Day is November 20th! Learn more below!

📅Mark your calendar!

🌟 NOSORH and the Kentucky Office of Rural Health invite you to join the celebration on November 20 for . 💚

Discover how you can get involved at 👉 powerofrural.org!

10/22/2025

Don't forget! Tomorrow, October 23rd, is the final day to apply for Healthy WAY 2025-26! See below for more details and the link to apply.

Only One Week Left! Apply by October 23!

The UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health is accepting proposals for the 2025-26 Healthy WAY program.

Download the Healthy WAY proposal application:
https://medicine.uky.edu/centers/ruralhealth/healthy-way

Healthy WAY (Wellness in All Youth) is a leadership development and research training program for rural Kentucky high school students. Student-led teams have the opportunity to work on projects to address issues that are impacting youth health and well-being at the school and community level.

Project funding, hands-on research experience, technical support, and research mentoring are available to student teams selected for this competitive program.

Key Dates
Proposals Due: October 23, 2025
Applicants Notified: October 31, 2025
Project Window: November 1, 2025 – March 31, 2026

Please feel free to share this announcement with schools and students in your community.

Contact: Beth Bowling, RN, Rural Project Manager, UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health, beth.bowling@uky.edu, (606) 439-3557 ext. 83545.

10/22/2025

Appalachian Center for Assistive Technology-ACAT Program Manager Keisha Wells and Program Coordinator Crystal Hignite have had a busy week sharing their knowledge and skills for adapting toys during the 2025 Assistive Technology in Pre-Employment Transition Services Workshop in Frankfort, KY.

Adapting toys and making them available for members of our community is one of the many ongoing services provided by the ACAT team.

Families may borrow adapted toys for free from the ACAT lending library, located in Hazard, KY. For more information, please reach out to Keisha at keisha.wells@uky.edu or 606-439-3557.

10/16/2025

Only One Week Left! Apply by October 23!

The UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health is accepting proposals for the 2025-26 Healthy WAY program.

Download the Healthy WAY proposal application:
https://medicine.uky.edu/centers/ruralhealth/healthy-way

Healthy WAY (Wellness in All Youth) is a leadership development and research training program for rural Kentucky high school students. Student-led teams have the opportunity to work on projects to address issues that are impacting youth health and well-being at the school and community level.

Project funding, hands-on research experience, technical support, and research mentoring are available to student teams selected for this competitive program.

Key Dates
Proposals Due: October 23, 2025
Applicants Notified: October 31, 2025
Project Window: November 1, 2025 – March 31, 2026

Please feel free to share this announcement with schools and students in your community.

Contact: Beth Bowling, RN, Rural Project Manager, UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health, beth.bowling@uky.edu, (606) 439-3557 ext. 83545.

10/16/2025

The University of Kentucky Center of Excellence in Rural Health (UK CERH) invites you to save the date for the 2026 Appalachian Research Day: come sit on the porch!

April 8, 2026
The Corbin Center
222 Corbin Center Drive, Corbin, Kentucky

This one-day conference is hosted annually by the UK CERH to share the results of health research conducted with communities in Appalachia. The event includes podium presentations, a poster competition, and a health & research fair.

Watch for the call for abstracts coming soon!

For More Information Contact:
Beth Bowling (beth.bowling@uky.edu)

10/15/2025

Congratulations to Darla Shepherd, Certified Community Health Worker at Kentucky Homeplace!!!

10/15/2025

UK CERH team members were honored to join researchers from a multi-state region of Appalachia to spend two days sharing, learning, and networking during the Appalachian Translational Research Network (ATRN) Annual Health Summit in Abingdon, Virginia, on October 13-14.

Congratulations to our team members whose projects were selected for presentation. AND, we want to wish A VERY BIG CONGRATULATIONS to Kentucky Homeplace Certified Community Health Worker Darla Shepherd for winning the People’s Choice Award for her poster, “Growing Together: Enhancing Wellness in Older Adults in Rural Communities.”

The ATRN Health Summit provides an opportunity to have important discussions surrounding the dynamic and evolving health landscape in the Appalachian region. With a focus on innovative strategies and collaborative approaches, the summit aims to address pressing challenges and explore opportunities for enhancing healthcare delivery and outcomes.

We extend our thanks to ATRN for hosting an excellent summit!

10/09/2025

Come on out on Friday, October 10th! Hope to see you there!!

See you tomorrow for our Community Health Fair in Hazard!

10/02/2025

The UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health and the UK Center for Appalachian Research in Environmental Science invite you to join us, and other community partners, for a Tree Week celebration!

Drop by to visit with community partners, get tree and health information, and enjoy refreshments in the UK CERH lobby on October 7th, between 11:00 am and 1:00 pm, located at 750 Morton Blvd., Hazard, KY.

Tree Week is a celebration of trees and all the ways they affect our lives, including our health! Events are being held all across Kentucky and beyond. Programs include community tree plantings, walks, educational programs, arts, yoga, workshops and seminars, and much more.

For more information about the Tree Week event at the UK CERH, contact: beth.bowling@uky.edu or Joshua.Adams21@uky.edu

For more information about Tree Week events going on across the region and across Kentucky, click on the links to find officially registered Tree Week events!
https://ufi.mgcafe.uky.edu/treeweek
https://www.facebook.com/treeweekky/

09/30/2025

COME JOIN US!!

09/26/2025

09/25/2025

Wrapped up the afternoon of the 10th Annual Kentucky Rural Telehealth Summit with keynote addresses by Dr. John Langefeld, Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Public Health, and Dr. Bruce Scott, Past President of the American Medical Association, followed by a panel presentation on Legal and Billing Changes Impacting Telehealth in Kentucky.

Thanks to all our speakers, exhibitors, sponsors, and planning team for making this incredible day possible. Stay tuned for more photos to come!