Part of the growth in numbers comes as the result of major strides in the areas of affordability, access and equity, meaning Cardinals from a variety of backgrounds can take advantage of learning opportunities and experiences with reduced financial burden. This academic year, UofL announced theĢżexpansion of its Border Benefit AwardĢżthat allows students from some neighboring states to attend UofL at in-state tuition rates, along with the investment of $2.4 millionĢżtoward the Cardinal Commitment Grant for in-state residents.

UofL jumped 15 places in the 2023-24 U.S. News and World ReportĢżĢżranking, from No. 146 to No. 131, and also topped the list of ā€œbest valuesā€ among national universities in Kentucky.ĢżIn the past few years, Cardinals have graduated with the second-lowest student debt among all Kentucky four-year public universities.

New leadership helps guide the way

Taking the helm in early 2023, UofLā€™s 19^th president, Kim Schatzel, spent six months in some 40 listening sessions to learn what was important to UofLā€™s students, staff and faculty, as well as community and government leaders.

She outlinedĢżher first eight prioritiesĢżin September, and those priorities became the basis for a new 2023-2025Ģż. Schatzel wasĢżofficially inauguratedĢżon Sept. 29 in a joyous ceremony filled with music and tradition that was held on The Oval outside Grawemeyer Hall. The historic event took place during UofLā€™s yearlong celebration of itsĢż225th anniversary.ĢżIn recognition of her leadership, Schatzel was named among LouisvilleĢżBusiness Firstā€™s Power 50Ģżfor 2024, which identifies the cityā€™s most influential people in business and related communities. The Louisville Defender Newspaper also named Schatzel as one of the ā€œWomen Who Choose to Challengeā€ in the publicationā€™s womenā€™s history recognition edition.ĢżĢż

In spring 2024, the university chose Gerry Bradley as permanent executive vice president and university provost. No stranger to the Cardinal community, Bradley had served as dean of theĢżĢżsince 2016 and as interim provost since July 2023. He previously held that same role from January 2022 to February 2023.

Several other top leadership positions have been filled throughout 2023 and 2024, including: Karlis Kaugars, vice provost for information technology services and chief information officer; Dayna Touron, dean, ;ĢżJohn W. Miller Jr., dean, ; and Kathryn (Katie) Cardarelli,Ģż»å±š²¹²Ō, . This summer, Whitney Nash becomes dean of the , which celebrates 50 years of educating and preparing nurses for distinctive careers.

UofL also welcomed Pat Kelsey to lead the menā€™s basketball program, infusing excitement and enthusiasm into Card Nation.

Renovations, new infrastructure boost student success

The university is updating facilities and building new infrastructure to ensure students have the physical space to unleash their potential.

°Õ³ó±šĢżCenter for Military-Connected StudentsĢżdebuted its newly renovated offices in Brodschi Hall on Belknap Campus. The center focuses on meeting the needs of the more than 2,300 military-connected students enrolled at UofL. At the , construction of a new four-story, $90 million student success hub is underway. It will help us produce the next generation of engineers.

And thanks to a tremendously successful legislative session, the state budget appropriated $260 million toward a new Health Sciences Center Campus simulation center and collaboration hub. Thatā€™s the largest amount of funding for a single project in UofLā€™s history. It also is the largest project being funded in Louisville and represents the most general fund support for any single project among Kentuckyā€™s colleges and universities this session. UofL also received about $69 million for needed repairs on some existing facilities.

UofLā€™s research and innovation powerhouse flourishes

Research and innovation continued to soar to new heights in academic year 2023-24. Just a few highlights were:

• More than $22 million in funding from the Health Resources and Services Administration was awarded to the Schools ofĢżMedicine ($16 million)²¹²Ō»åĢżNursing ($6.5 million)Ģżfor physician and nurse training to help increase Kentuckiansā€™ access to health care, particularly in underserved rural and urban areas. Ģż
• The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded four grants totaling $11.6 million to researchers affiliated with UofLā€™sĢżto study factors affecting heart health. Through these projects, they hope to better understand how environmental exposures and tobacco products can affect the cardiovascular system, as well as how remodeling takes place in the heart after a heart attack.
• UofL researcher Cheri Levinson has received an $11.5 million grant from the NIH to continue her work addressingĢżthe devastating effects of eating disorders.
• UofL researchers Susan Harkema, Charles Hubscher and collaborators recently won a $1 million grant from the NIH aimed at helping spinal cord injury patients regain function. They are now among four teams exclusively invited to participate in another competition with a potential prize pool of $5 million.
• More than 100 UofL researchers are among the top 2% most-cited in the world, according to a newĢżcompiled by Stanford University and Elsevier. Citations show the value other researchers around the globe place on UofL research.
• Research conducted in UofLā€™s Micro/Nano Technology Center is investigating whether the antibacterial properties ofĢżcicada wingsĢżcan be turned into an antimicrobial for use in places like food service, health care facilities and medical devices.Ģż
• More than 80 of UofLā€™s top researchers, scholars and artistsĢżwere honoredĢżin October at the 2023 Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity Awards ceremony.
• Four University of Louisville innovators have been selected by the prestigious National Academy of Inventors for its 2024 class of SeniorĢżMembers.ĢżThe four inventors selected from UofL–the only ones from Kentucky–are:ĢżThad Druffel, Nobuyuki Matoba, Thomas Roussel and Jagannadh Satyavolu.

Commitment to serve, transform the communityĢż

Throughout the 2023-24 academic year, Cardinals have utilized knowledge and resources to advance the mutual needs of the university and the community. Earlier this spring, more than 400 students danced for 18 hours at the annual raiseRED ³¾²¹°ł²¹³Ł³ó“Ē²Ō.Ģż

The students raised more than $516,000 for Norton Childrenā€™s Cancer Institute and the . This is UofLā€™s largest student philanthropic effort. It has raised more than $5 million in its 11-year history.

In the mean time, former firefighter James Cripps was awarded one of the Ģżfor teaching firefighters throughout Kentucky about occupational cancer and mitigation strategies. A manufacturing administrator at the UofL HealthĢż, he hopes to eliminate some of those risks.

, meanwhile, celebrated a milestone:Ģż200 yearsĢżof compassionate care, medical innovation and serving the underserved. It was Kentuckyā€™s first hospital, first admitting patients in a facility downtown in 1823. Now, to address a real need for citizens south and west of Louisville, UofL Health recently cut the ribbon on UofL Health ā€“ South Hospital in Bullitt County just off Interstate 65.

As part of UofLā€™s ongoing effort to collaborate with five K-12 schools in West Louisville, Central High School Pre-Medical Magnet Program students received white coats this spring, recognizing their hard work and encouraging them to stay focused on their goals. Students shadow UofL doctors and get to practice performing simpler procedures, like sutures, through this immersive curriculum.

Recently, UofLā€™s McConnell Scholars and others heard a presentation by Sen. Katie Britt, R-Alabama, who spoke about the importance of respect and trust in building relationships to address the countryā€™s most pressing issues. A guest of the McConnell Center, Britt spoke as part of its Distinguished Speaker Series. Celebrating its 30th year, the center also broughtĢżOksana Markarova, Ukraineā€™s ambassador to the United States, to Belknap Campus Oct. 30. She gave a public talk and met separately with the McConnell Scholars.

Students begin their next chapter at commencement

On May 11, more than 2,000 of the approximately 3,100 students who applied for degrees and certificates, will go across the stage at the KFC Yum! Center signifying their academic success.

This Commencement holds particular significance for the high school class of 2020, which graduated at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. For some, it will be their first chance to celebrate their educational achievement by taking part in a complete traditional ceremony.

UofL President Kim Schatzel will preside at both the 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. ceremonies. °Õ³ó±šĢżĢżalso will host a doctoral hooding and graduation ceremony for more than 100 graduates at 2 p.m. Friday, May 10, on Belknap Campus in the Swain Student Activities Center (SAC) Ballroom, second floor. All of these ceremonies will be broadcast live atĢż.

Eating disorders affect an estimated 9% of Americans ā€” nearly 30 million people ā€” and can impact a personā€™s eating behaviors and perceptions about food and their bodies. The UofL prototype technology, dubbed Awaken Emerse, helps users virtually face and overcome their associated fears, such as the fear of gaining weight.

ā€œResearch shows exposure treatment can be really effective in taking back control over these devastating and life-altering fears,ā€ said Christina Ralph-Nearman, a assistant research professor, researcher and co-inventor of the technology. ā€œOur virtual simulation allows people to do that in a safe way.ā€Ģż

In a pilot study, Awaken Emerse ā€” invented by Ralph-Nearman and researcher Cheri Levinson ā€” was shown to be effective in helping participants face their fears of gaining weight. The new grant, $125,000 through the NEDAā€™s Feeding Hope Fund, will support work by the inventors, along with Andrew Karem of the J.B. Speed School of Engineering, to expand the platform to be more inclusive of all body types and sizes, ethnicities, races and gender identities and to further test outcomes in a clinical setting.ĢżĢż

ā€œEating disorders donā€™t just affect one type of person ā€” there are a multitude of factors that can influence them,ā€ said Levinson, associate professor and director of the Eating Anxiety Treatment (EAT) Lab. ā€œTreatment and prevention options should reflect that full range of experience.ā€

The NEDA grant comes on the heels of some $11.5 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support Levinsonā€™s work to better understand and address some of the most devastating effects of eating disorders. That research will investigate how eating disorders may develop in childhood and adolescence, their contribution to suicidal behaviors and how innovative personalized treatments, like VR simulation, may offer hope.

ā€œDespite the high prevalence of eating disorders, there still arenā€™t many options for treatment and prevention,ā€ she said. ā€œThis work will not only create new options by leveraging technology, but open previously unopened doors for treating people on a personal, individual level.ā€

Work to develop the VR technology has also been supported by the UofL Office of Research and Innovationā€™s intellectual property and new ventures teams. This includes patenting, coaching by entrepreneur-in-residence Alice Shade, and training and financial support through two innovation development programs: KYNETIC, focused on furthering biomedical technologies, and PRePARE, focused on technologies that address a health or societal problem resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eating disorders affect an estimated 9% of Americans ā€” nearly 30 million people ā€” and can impact a personā€™s eating behaviors and perceptions about food and their bodies. The UofL research, backed by three grants, will investigate how eating disorders may develop in childhood and adolescence, their contribution to suicidal behaviors and how innovative personalized treatment may offer hope.

ā€œUofL has made a longstanding commitment to groundbreaking research and discovery that makes a positive impact on our world,ā€ said President Kim Schatzel. ā€œThis is research that can save and improve the lives of millions of Americans and many, many more around the world impacted by eating disorders.ā€

The work is led by researcher Cheri Levinson, who specializes in the study and intervention of eating and anxiety disorders. The key, she said, is a personalized approach to diagnosis and treatment, recognizing that these disorders affect people of all different ages, ethnicities, gender identities and backgrounds, and individualizing treatment to each specific person.

ā€œDespite the high prevalence of these conditions, there are few available treatment and prevention options,ā€ said Levinson, an associate professor in the UofL College of Arts and Sciences and director of the Eating Anxiety Treatment (EAT) Lab. ā€œThis work not only will create options, but opens this whole possibility for treatments that are personalized based on the individual. Because eating disorders donā€™t just affect one kind of person and there are a multitude of different factors that can influence them.ā€

Through an NIH research project grant totaling nearly $4 million, Levinsonā€™s team will study how eating disorders develop in childhood and beyond, with the hope their findings can help avert the large personal and societal costs associated with childhood onset and chronic disorders. Recent show more than one in five kids worldwide may show signs of disordered eating.

A second project grant, also nearly $4 million, will identify patterns of anorexia nervosa ā€” an eating disorder characterized by a fear of gaining weight ā€” that contribute to suicide risk, with data providing a model of personalized psychiatric medicine and new methods of prevention and treatment.ĢżCurrently, patients with anorexia have a suicide risk 18 times higher than those without an eating disorder.

The third grant, a prestigious NIH Directorā€™s New Innovator Award, also worth nearly $4 million across two phases, will further the creation and dissemination of a novel personalized treatment for eating disorders and integrate social determinants of health (food insecurity, racism) into treatment. The New Innovator Award, part of NIHā€™s High-Risk, High-Reward Research program, supports unusually innovative research from early-career investigators who are within 10 years of their final degree or clinical residency. Levinson is the first from UofL and the first studying eating disorders to receive this award.

ā€œOur mission at the College of Arts and Sciences is to improve life in the Commonwealth, including by creating new knowledge through groundbreaking research and innovation,ā€ said Dayna Touron, the collegeā€™s dean. ā€œDr. Levinsonā€™s work will undoubtedly improve the lives of millions living with eating disorders, and we are very proud to count her among our faculty.ā€

These grants are the culmination of years of groundbreaking work by Levinson and her team, for which they earned a UofL Trailblazer Award in early 2023. The research has also received support through UofLā€™s Office of Research and Innovation, including mentoring through the Ascending Stars Fellows Program for promising mid-career faculty.Ģż

Work to develop a companion personalized treatment application and virtual reality technology has also been supported by the officeā€™s Innovation and Commercialization and UofL New Ventures teams. This includes patenting, entrepreneurial coaching and training and financial support through two innovation development programs: KYNETIC, focused on furthering biomedical technologies, and PRePARE, focused on technologies that address a health or societal problem resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

ā€œUofL has built a strong and vibrant ecosystem and supports for important research like this, that can improve and save lives,ā€ said Kevin Gardner, UofLā€™s executive vice president for research and innovation. ā€œWeā€™re so proud of the work Dr. Levinson and her team are doing and the positive impacts it will have across the U.S. and the globe.ā€

The Body Project recently received a $125,000 grant from JHF, which provides grants aimed at improving health outcomes and supporting medical research in Louisville and Kentucky.

The funding will be used for training, materials, staffing and outreach for the Body Project to expand across Louisville, especially into the West End, a traditionally lower-income area with a high population of underrepresented minorities.

The Body Project has been used successfully in two private, all-girls Louisville high schools, and , over several years and is expected to be used in and beginning this fall.Ģż

It is part of UofLā€™s founded by Cheri Levinson, associate professor in the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, and directed by clinical psychology doctoral student Brenna Williams. UofL grad Jillian Winn is a study coordinator for the High School Body Project expansion.

Levinson is also medical director of the , the stateā€™s only center of its kind.

Jennifer Shanks, a personal wellness counselor at Mercy Academy, called eating disorders a ā€œhidden illnessā€ made worse by poor role-modeling of body images and ā€œexacerbated by social media messaging.ā€Ģż

The EAT Lab is staffed by a team of postdoctoral fellows, doctoral, graduate and undergraduate UofL students. The team coordinates all aspects of the lab, including current work developing and implementing National Institute of Mental Health-funded research into new treatments and technologies for eating disorders and promoting outreach and support for those with eating disorders in the community.

A 2019 article published in the journal presented the first findings from Body Project implementation at Mercy and Presentation. The data showed the project was effective in decreasing feelings of social appearance anxiety, physical and social anxiety sensitivity, rumination, worry, perfectionism and guilt.Ģż

More than 600 high school students have taken part in the project. A version of the Body Project has also been developed for college students.

In partnership with the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA), local community volunteers are trained in how to present Body Project materials over four weeks. Participants are asked to assess eating disorder symptoms, such as a desire to be thin, body dissatisfaction, anxiety and depression, both before and after the projectā€™s duration.

In the grant application, Levinson noted that eating disorders are diagnosed at younger ages than ever — sometimes as early as 12 years old. Last year, 10,000 deaths in the U.S. were blamed on eating disorders.

In addition, despite stereotypes that eating disorders affect only affluent, young, white women, they ā€œimpact everyone regardless of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status or sexual orientation,ā€ Levinson said.Ģż

In Kentucky, the few prevention and treatment options that exist are not available to everyone who needs them.Ģż

ā€œDespite the high prevalence of EDs in children and adolescents in Kentucky, there are few prevention and treatment options,ā€ Levinson said. ā€œFor example, there is no program in the U.S. that accepts Kentucky Medicaid for higher-level ED treatment, meaning that our children and adolescents in Kentucky supported by Medicaid are often left to die without treatment.ā€

Since 2012, the JHF has invested more than $69 million in more than .

The UofL clinical psychologist worked for the successful passage last month of Senate Bill 82, which Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear signed into law March 27.

Levinson testified before a joint legislative committee and helped others advocating for the council, believing it will help ensure attention and services are brought to Kentuckians often hidden in their suffering from what she described as ā€œa silent epidemic.ā€

ā€œIt was pretty amazing,ā€ Levinson said. ā€œThe senators and representatives were very supportive. You could tell the people there cared.ā€

All sorts of people ā€“ young, old and from all walks of life — have some sort of eating disorder, which can be anorexia, bulimia, binge eating or other feeding disorders. And while the public might consider those physical problems, the truth is they often are rooted in emotional issues and anxiety ā€“ and are preventable and treatable.

, assistant professor of psychological and brain sciences, also is founding director of UofLā€™s . There she and graduate students help serve clients, also through UofLā€™s Noble Kelley Psychological Services Center, and they research better, novel ways to support them,

For example, the laboratory group is piloting a tailored approach that uses a smartphone app to deliver a personalized treatment. There also are support groups and other treatment studies, all currently offered online, particularly during the coronavirus-related adjustments.

Levinson also is clinical director for a private practice, Louisville Center for Eating Disorders, which will have a role in the new councilā€™s initial makeup. The center will suggest as members some names of people who have eating disorders or those with experience working with them to ensure they have a voice in the councilā€™s work.

The attaches the council to the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which will have representatives on it. Others on the 19-member body include representatives from insurance, health care, social work, education and dietetics. ā€œGetting all of those important people together in the room ā€“ just to get all those people together is a big deal,ā€ she said.

The council would help oversee eating disorder awareness, education and prevention programs; identify strategies to improve access to diagnostic and treatment programs; help the cabinet identify research projects; collaborate on data-based research; recommend legislative or regulatory changes; and apply for grant funding.

ā€œThe ultimate charge of the bill is to create more and better treatment,ā€ Levinson said. Beyond UofL and her private clinic, Levinson said Kentucky doesnā€™t offer much in the way of comprehensive treatment for eating disorders, and many people with disorders who require more intensive treatment have to travel as far as to Missouri, the first state to offer an eating disorders council.

However, Levinson believes that higher awareness and better training in communities might help people screen for and recognize the early warning signs so they can intervene before the disorders develop.

ā€œAnxiety is ā€˜theā€™ predisposing factor for an eating disorder,ā€ she said.

Levinson cited studies that indicated 50% of students in middle school say they are on a diet to lose weight and that 50% of middle and high school students report some type of eating disorder behavior.

ā€œEating disorders are treatable,ā€ she said. With early prevention, proper care and family support, people can conquer the illnesses that otherwise could lead to an array of other health problems.

ā€œYou can recover, and people donā€™t have to live with this for the rest of their lives,ā€ she said.

ā€œWe can say, ā€˜this is the symptom that is causing all your other symptoms, and this is what we need to be working on in therapy,ā€™ā€ said lab director and assistant professor, Dr. Cheri Levinson. ā€œThis opens this whole possibility for treatments that are personalized based on the individual.ā€

The team used network analysis, collecting data via a mobile application, to map these connections. For example, Levinson said, one person may develop anorexia nervosa due to fear of weight gain. While for others, the reason could be completely different.

In one study, published in the , the researchers found there may be a connection to social anxiety. A second study, published in the , found a connection between eating disorders and trauma, or PTSD. Ģż

Co-author and doctoral candidate, Irina Vanzhula, said many psychologists already try to personalize treatment plans for each individual patient. Ģż

ā€œBut the issue with that is that they personalize treatment based on their opinion, and their clinical impression,ā€ she said.Ģż

The UofL team wants that personalization to be more objective ā€” based on data, not opinion. Levinson, a practicing licensed psychologist, said that they can help doctors make better decisions and get to the cause of the problem more directly, rather than guessing. Ģż

ā€œBy using this data-driven approach, weā€™re going to be able to say, ā€˜hey, this is where you should start, and this is how you should do it,ā€™ā€ she said.Ģż

The UofL EAT Lab is currently looking for participants for its You can listen to the researchersā€™ full radio interview on .Ģż

Levinson will discuss the labā€™s research on the association between eating disorders and anxiety. In addition, she will describe therapies that incorporate technological innovations.

ā€œThe most common treatments for eating disorders only work for about 50 percent of individuals,ā€ Levinson said. ā€œIn the Eating Anxiety Treatment Lab, we are working on developing novel treatments personalized to the individual. Many of our treatments use technology to help improve treatment and reach more people.ā€

Levinsonā€™s talk begins at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 17, at Against the Grain Brewery, 401 E. Main St. in Louisville. A 30-minute presentation will be followed by an informal Q&A session.

Upcoming Beer with a Scientist dates are March 14 and April 18.

The College of Arts and Sciences and the Liberal Studies Project host the monthly Meet the Professor series to highlight the college’s research and cultural offerings.

ThisĢżsemester’sĢżtalks are:

Sept. 7:Ģż“Attending to What Remains: Public Memory at Louisvilleā€™s Cave Hill Cemetery,ā€ Stephen Schneider, English associate professor. He will discuss the cemeteryā€™s memorial landscape that has become a museum of municipal history dedicated to notables ranging from Louisvilleā€™s first mayor to Muhammad Ali.

ĢżOct. 5:Ģżā€œPipe Politics, Contested Waters: Embedded Infrastructures of Millennial Mumbai,ā€ Lisa Bjorkman, urban and public affairs assistant professor. She will talk about the deterioration of the Indian cityā€™s water-delivery system despite economic growth and development and its social, political and hydraulic effects.

Nov. 2:Ģżā€œHow to Tame a Fox and Build a Dog,ā€ Lee Dugatkin, biology professor. Drawing on his 2017 book title, the science historian will share the story of lead scientist Lyudmila Trut and a research team in Siberia that for six decades has been domesticating silver foxes to replay the evolution of dogs in real time.

Dec. 7:Ģżā€œUsing Technology to Develop Novel Treatments for Eating Disorders,ā€ Cheri Levinson, psychological and brain sciences assistant professor. The director of UofLā€™s new Eating Anxiety Treatment (EAT) laboratory and clinic will talk about the deadliest of mental illnesses and discuss her ongoing research to develop novel interventions to treat the disorders.

The Thursday luncheon talks begin at noon in the University Club. Reservations are required, with $15 payment by check. To reserve a spot, contact Janna Tajibaeva via email or 502-852-2247 no later than the Monday before each event.

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