About

FRANKFORT, Ky. (March 11, 2022) – Joined by state lawmakers, university leaders, coaches and student-athletes, Gov. Andy Beshear signed legislation today that allows student-athletes in Kentucky to receive fair compensation for the use of their name, image and likeness.

In June of last year, after consulting with lawmakers and universities, Gov. Beshear was the first governor to sign an executive order immediately allowing students to receive such compensation after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the NCAA and its rules limiting educational benefits for college players as part of their scholarships. Senate Bill 6 codifies the Governor’s Executive Order 2021-418 in state law.

“Today we are once again showing some of that Team Kentucky spirit by working together – universities as well as leadership of both parties – to help our world-class student-athletes in Kentucky,” Gov. Beshear said Wednesday after signing legislation in the statehouse Rotunda. “The Commonwealth of Kentucky will continue to recruit top athletes, and when student-athletes choose to come here to win titles and enjoy our outstanding collegiate environment, they know they have the same rights and opportunities as those in other states. We all agree, for any athlete, their name, image and likeness is their own and no one else’s.”

Kentucky General Assembly members who sponsored the legislation voiced support for the Governor’s actions.

Senate Minority Leader Morgan McGarvey, D-Louisville, expressed his support for compensating college athletes.

“If you want to sign an autograph and get paid for it, you can do it under this bill,” Sen. McGarvey said. “Or if an NCAA video game is going to feature you or your image on it, they would be permitted to give you some kind of royalty or payment for that.”

Sen. McGarvey filed numerous measures in previous legislative sessions relating to name, image and likeness and said he is thrilled to see it cross the finish line.

“We’re not looking to damage or hurt college athletics or compromise the amateur aspect of the game,” Sen. McGarvey added. “With Senate Bill 6, we can make sure that these players are being treated fairly and equitably for what they do.”

“As Coach Calipari said in his committee testimony, SB 6 is model legislation that other states or even the U.S. Congress should take an interest in,” said Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, who sponsored the bill. “SB 6 provides flexibility to allow our universities and our collegiate student-athletes to take full advantage of their NIL.”

Many university leaders, athletic coaches and student-athletes applauded Gov. Beshear’s action.

“Our state legislature passed the NIL bill as a bipartisan bill in our state, and it was nearly unanimous, which shows just how important this is for our student-athletes and our universities,” University of Kentucky men’s basketball head coach John Calipari said. “I think people are going to read this bill from around the country and use it as model legislation the same way they did our executive order. This is exactly what we needed, and I am so proud of our state and appreciative of our legislature, the governor and all of our leaders.”

“This is a huge win, not only for our student-athletes at the University of Louisville but for the student-athletes at every university in the state of Kentucky. Our student-athletes work extremely hard day in and day out, and this legislation now allows them to capitalize on opportunities from their name, image and likeness, which we fully support,” University of Louisville women’s basketball head coach Jeff Walz said. “Many student-athletes also want to give back to the community, and this bill allows them to do even more of that. I’m thankful to Gov. Beshear, Sens. Max Wise and Morgan McGarvey, and all of our leadership for understanding how important this legislation is and rightfully getting it passed.” 

“Thank you Gov. Beshear for your foresight early in this process of pushing this model legislation forward,” Morehead State University President Dr. Jay Morgan said. “SB 6 really sets forth student-athlete opportunities, and we’re proud of that. All of us are in the student success business. Thank you to everyone who included higher education in the development of this bill.”

“The Commonwealth of Kentucky has shown again today that it will be a torchbearer in the name, image and likeness era, continuing the student-athlete-first mindset that our program has been built on for years,” said Kyra Elzy, University of Kentucky women’s basketball head coach. “I want to thank our state legislature, the governor and the administration at UK for working together to make student-athletes a priority in the state of Kentucky. Today’s signing will have a historic impact on young women in this state today and for years to come.”

“I am so thankful to have decided to play collegiately in a state that has been on the forefront of making sure myself and other student-athletes across the state can benefit in this name, image and likeness era,” said Rhyne Howard, current University of Kentucky women’s basketball guard and 2022 SEC Tournament champion and most valuable player. “Today’s legislation will have an impact on young girls for years to come. I appreciate our state legislature, the governor and administration at UK for working together to make an impact on so many.”

“This is an exciting day for college athletics in the state of Kentucky. The University of Louisville owes a huge thank you to our legislators for passing, and our governor for signing into law, a bill that makes the state of Kentucky better,” said Josh Heird, University of Louisville Interim Director of Athletics. “This law will enable every university in this state to compete at the highest level when it comes to attracting and retaining student-athletes. The ability for our student-athletes to generate revenue from their name, image and likeness has been long overdue and UofL looks forward to helping our student-athletes maximize those opportunities.”

 “Dealing with name-image-likeness issues is an ongoing process for our student-athletes and our schools,” University of Kentucky head football coach Mark Stoops said. “This legislation will help our student-athletes continue to maximize opportunities while giving our schools more flexibility in supporting and protecting our young people. We are appreciative of Gov. Beshear and the legislature for their work on this.”

“I’m grateful to Gov. Beshear for his hard work in getting this legislation passed. Name, image and likeness has changed the landscape of collegiate athletics in the last year and our student-athletes have benefited tremendously from all the opportunities,” University of Louisville head football coach Scott Satterfield said. “I’m thankful to the leadership in the commonwealth for understanding the importance of NIL and how greatly it impacts the well-being of our student-athletes and also allows us to compete on the same level with the rest of the schools across the country.”

“It’s a great day for college athletes and universities in the commonwealth,” University of Louisville women’s head volleyball coach Dani Busboom Kelly said. “With this new NIL law, our team has a clear road to maximize their opportunities around name image likeness. After a historic run last season I’m excited to see the opportunities our players will have and will have in the future.”

Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the NCAA in a significant case that challenged the association’s ability to have national limits on benefits for athletes that are related to education, but more broadly the case has raised questions about the NCAA’s ability to limit benefits at all.

The NCAA Board of Governors has preliminarily approved changes to their eligibility rules that would allow such compensation, and the U.S. Congress has held hearings on creating a national standard for compensation. However, until that happens, Kentucky colleges and universities would have faced a competitive disadvantage without the Governor’s executive order and Senate Bill 6.

Kentucky colleges and universities have been directed to provide education and other resources to assist students with financial literacy, time management and social media and brand management. Additionally, colleges and universities will retain the flexibility to reasonably limit the time, dates and associations from which the student-athlete may earn compensation.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 10, 2021) **— **University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto updated the campus community on the university's credit rating in a message sent this morning (Wednesday, Nov. 10).

Campus Community,

I write to you often to tout the remarkable accomplishments of this place and our people.

Others across the country also are taking notice of your work and our community’s efforts.

Earlier this week, one of the country’s leading credit rating agencies — Standard & Poor’s (S&P) — announced an upgrade of UK’s bond rating outlook: AA+ on general receipt bonds, up from AA. Other ratings within our bond portfolio were upgraded as well. It’s the second such upgrade of our credit rating since 2015 — remarkable in a time when many universities have struggled to maintain stable financial outlooks.

Credit rating reports might otherwise be dry reading. But whether buying a house or securing debt for long-term construction of facilities, strong credit ratings positively impact your ability to make continued progress in securing financial support for necessary investments.

They are also noted by our partner policymakers at the state level — as well as donors here and throughout the country— who understand that an investment in the University of Kentucky is a good one for the future of the state.

In an important sense, the ratings reflect a vote of confidence in our operations and future outlook for our institution.

As S&P said in its report about our ratings outlook:

“The rating reflects our view of UK's very strong enterprise and extremely strong financial profile characterized by a healthy market position and trend of positive year of year full-time equivalent enrollment increases with relatively favorable retention and graduation rates, very strong financial operating surpluses, good revenue diversity largely due to UKHC, excellent financial resources, and modest debt and contingent liabilities with a low debt burden. In addition, in our view UK's management and governance is an example of best in class and as Kentucky's flagship higher educational institution, the university enjoys the commonwealth's support for its operations and for limited capital needs while these needs are also met, in part, by very strong philanthropic support.”

It’s strong language that reflects the tireless and exemplary work of people throughout this institution — from staff who support and faculty who teach our students to a nationally regarded health care system that is not only growing financially, but increasing in size to meet the needs of our Commonwealth.

And, of course, there is the hard work of unsung heroes in every corner of the campus, in our finance and administration areas, who so effectively manage UK’s budget and operations. That work — and sound stewardship — has enabled us over the past decade to continue to make progress on the critical infrastructure needs we have across our campus and support our commitment to the Commonwealth's future as the University **_for _**Kentucky.

On days like this and so many others, I am reminded — constantly and compellingly — that there is nothing we can’t do as a community. I am gratified to be at a place, and part of a community, that embraces the power of we in so many ways.

Thank you.

Eli Capilouto

President

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 21, 2021) **— **At the University of Kentucky we put the success of our students at the center of all we do by pioneering innovative ways to help them cross the commencement stage and go on to become leaders in their fields.

Now, a program supporting that mission is receiving national recognition for its notable contributions to undergraduate education.

UK LEADS is one of three recipients of the EDGE Commendation for Innovation in Undergraduate Education. The highly competitive award, given annually, honors a small cohort of individuals and institutions who are on the leading “EDGE” of undergraduate education.

“As Kentucky’s university, we must open wider the doors of access and possibility to students — the future of our state and world,” UK President Eli Capilouto said. “The UK LEADS program reflects our commitment to put students first in everything we do, demonstrated through our efforts reduce to unmet financial need among UK students.”

For many students, financial need is the most challenging obstacle to staying in school and achieving their goals.

UK is determined to do something about it. 

Through an extensive review of internal data, UK discovered that one-third of students who left the university had GPAs of 3.0 of higher. Additionally, the persistence rates of students with $5,000 or more in unmet financial need was significantly lower than students with less unmet need — regardless of academic skill.

The LEADS program (Leveraging Economic Affordability for Developing Success) has expanded the boundaries of what is possible by using data-driven analytics to better understand the impact of unmet financial need on student success.

Launched in 2016 as a pilot program, the LEADS initiative uses a predictive model to guide UK’s approach to scholarships by placing a greater emphasis on the recruitment of high need in-state students.

Using this data informed approach, the program has targeted students whose only barrier to success is financial, distributing more than 6,000 annual awards and in excess of $30 million in institutional and donor provided funds.

And it’s working — resulting in more students returning year after year and making progress on their degrees.

In fact, UK has achieved record second fall retention rates four of the past five years (including preliminary data for the current year) and has been at 86% for the past two years. Similarly, gains have been made in six-year graduation rates. UK has seen records four of the past five years and has a preliminary rate of 68% for the current year.

That’s more students — more Kentuckians — equipping themselves with credentials that will positively impact their futures.

“For six years, the UK LEADS program has proven to be a game-changer for many students whose only barrier to success at our institution is financial aid,” Kirsten Turner, vice president for student success, said. “Supporting these students brightens hundreds of individual futures each year, while also contributing to greater success for the Commonwealth and beyond.”

The EDGE awards will be conferred on Oct. 22 at the Edgerton Salute: A National Convening for Recognition of Undergraduate Innovators.

About Russ Edgerton

The EDGE awards are given annually by the John N. Gardner Institute to recognize the professional life of Russ Edgerton, former president of the American Association for Higher Education and senior program officer for the PEW Charitable Trusts. As a higher education leader, his contribution to undergraduate education reform still benefits countless institutions and the students they serve.

“As the co-founder of one of the many organizations and initiatives that Russ Edgerton conceived of 22 years ago, it has been truly inspirational to have the opportunity to serve on this award selection committee with other friends and mentees of Russ Edgerton to seek out and honor and now disseminate the kind of undergraduate education innovative improvement initiatives that are exactly the kinds of efforts that Russ worked so hard to conceive and inspire,” said John Gardner, founder and executive chair of the institute.

More information about Edgerton, and the national convening, can be found at www.jngi.org.

About the John N. Gardner Institute 

The John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education is a nonprofit organization dedicated to partnering with colleges, universities, philanthropic organizations and educators, among other entities, to increase institutional responsibility for improving outcomes associated with teaching, learning, retention and completion.

The institute strives to advance higher education’s larger goal of achieving equity and social justice. Specific focus is given to helping institutions develop and implement strategic action plans for first-year, second-year and/or transfer student success; improving teaching, learning and success in gateway courses; and conducting professional development focused on advancing educational excellence.

For more information about the Gardner Institute, visit www.jngi.org.

The University of Kentucky is increasingly the first choice for students, faculty and staff to pursue their passions and their professional goals. In the last two years, Forbes has named UK among the best employers for diversity, and INSIGHT into Diversity recognized us as a Diversity Champion four years running. UK is ranked among the top 30 campuses in the nation for LGBTQ* inclusion and safety. UK has been judged a “Great College to Work for" three years in a row, and UK is among only 22 universities in the country on Forbes' list of "America's Best Employers."  We are ranked among the top 10 percent of public institutions for research expenditures — a tangible symbol of our breadth and depth as a university focused on discovery that changes lives and communities. And our patients know and appreciate the fact that UK HealthCare has been named the state’s top hospital for five straight years. Accolades and honors are great. But they are more important for what they represent: the idea that creating a community of belonging and commitment to excellence is how we honor our mission to be not simply the University of Kentucky, but the University for Kentucky.