The University of Kentucky Board of Trustees meeting approved President Recommendations two through six, including the creation of Champions Blue, LLC.
Peaceful Bluegrass Resistance and United Campus Workers (UCW) at UK protested at the meeting, advocating for diversity, equity and inclusion, and graduate worker stipends on Friday, April 25, in the Gatton Student Center’s Harris Ballroom.
UK cancelled the Harambee Unity Graduation Celebration that honors Black students, the Lavender Graduation that honors LGBTQ+ students and the pinning ceremony for first-generation students, according to UK Spokesperson Jay Blanton.
“Following a number of federal and state policy changes and directives, the university won’t be hosting identity-based or special interest graduation celebrations,” Blanton said. “We need to continue to comply with the law while celebrating our students and their distinctive achievements.”
University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto addressed the celebration cancellations during his President’s Report, saying the university believed this action to be required.
“We believe complying with the law and the directives is the best way to protect our people and our continued capacity to support them,” Capilouto said.
Peaceful Bluegrass Resistance, a grassroots movement, advocated for DEI with founder Craig Blair saying the university’s cancellation of identity-based graduation ceremonies pushed the group to organize the protest.
“They’re (graduates whose ceremonies were cancelled) some of the most marginalized populations in our society,” Blair said. “By separating them and casting them as the enemy, they’re building that white nationalism.”
Blair said the Friday, April 25 protest marked the Peaceful Bluegrass Resistance group’s third protest at UK, with the first time being after the disbandment of UK’s Office for Institutional Diversity, and the second time being after the revocation of certain student visas.
“It’s frustrating, honestly, to see so many colleges and universities standing up, and to see UK just constantly acquiescing,” Blair said. “Although we’re older (and) are alumni, this is not the way that we want our university and Kentucky to be portrayed.”
United Campus Workers at UK also held a demonstration during the UK Board of Trustees meeting, where members advocated to increase stipends for graduate student workers and remove international graduate student fees, according to the group’s base-building lead, Savanna Ploessl.
Ploessl said the average graduate student worker makes $19,000 a year, despite the Office for Student Success reporting the cost of attendance as $25,000 a year. Ploessl said graduate student workers also weren’t allowed to get a second job as part of their contract.
“You’re essentially asking students to go into debt, break their contract or have financial support already from their families, which most of us don’t have,” Ploessl said. “You shouldn’t be required to have that to go to grad school.”
Despite filing a petition to speak to the board, Ploessl said UCW has been unable to discuss their goals with Capilouto or other high-ranking university officials.
“They literally said our issues were irrelevant for this meeting,” Ploessl said. “We’ve been meeting with any upper admin that can meet with us, and most of the time they admit that they don’t have the power to change anything.”
UCW member Anika Jensen was also denied a meeting between Capilouto and the organization, according to Ploessl.
“She (Jensen) asked at least three times, ‘Will you meet with us?’ And he’s denied it,” Ploessl said.
Being denied a meeting, as well as the group’s goals, was something Ploessl said disappointed her, saying it made her feel as though graduate students don’t matter.
“We are the ones that teach the classes, we help run this university. And yet, we’re treated as if we don’t already have degrees, that we aren’t scholars propelling this university forward,” Ploessl said.
Ploessl said UCW’s difficulties with advancing their cause only motivated them to continue advocating for graduate workers’ rights.
“We will continue to fight, we will continue to come together as grad student workers and build our power, and we’ll keep pushing to ask for what we absolutely deserve,” Ploessl said.
