Free food may be an incentive to attend, but Student Government President Nick Phelps said the main attraction at today’s State of the Campus address is President Lee Todd.

“The things President Todd is doing directly affects students,” Phelps said. “It’s not every day you get the opportunity to be so close to him.”

Students will have the opportunity to hear Todd and Phelps speak today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. between The Main Building and Patterson Office Tower. UK’s student-run radio station, WRFL, will be broadcasting the address live.

Todd wants to talk directly to students about their role for UK and the state, he said in an e-mail to the Kernel.

“I hope they understand how important they are in the life of this university and in the future of this state,” Todd said. “They are our hope for economic progress and for really moving Kentucky forward.”

Phelps said he wants to inform students about what is happening at UK.

“I want to talk about current issues and what’s going on,” Phelps said. “I’ll talk about being a student at UK and try to motivate others to get active.”

Phelps also plans to talk about SG.

“It is a great time to see the leaders of the campus and see what’s going on,” Phelps said. “I want to talk about what’s been going on in SG and what our goals are this year.”

This is the second year UK has held a State of the Campus event, and Todd said it is a great venue to reach the UK community.

“I think it’s important to talk to the entire campus community — students, faculty and staff — about where we stand as an institution and where we’re going,” Todd said.

There will be a student-organization fair at the event with about 60 organizations, Phelps said. It will also be the kick-off for UK’s statewide bus tour, called the See Blue Tour, Todd said.

“We’ll be traveling by bus to 15 communities, across more than 1,000 miles of the Commonwealth, talking to people from all walks of life about their university, the University of Kentucky,” Todd said.

“We want our students, our faculty and our staff to talk about what ‘Blue’ and what UK represent: a sense of excitement, innovation, excellence in everything we do,” he said.

Todd said he encourages students to come to the State of the Campus address because they are a central part of UK.

“We’re asking UK and Kentucky to dream big, to set audacious goals,” Todd said. “Our students need to be — and are — an important part of making those goals happen. An event like this, I hope, makes students feel part of that process.”