The story of the Paducah campus has always been one of community. As it builds toward the future, the forces behind its foundation take a look back on their ambitious journey to bring UK engineering to Western Kentucky.
For over 25 years, the UK Paducah campus has served the Western Kentucky region. Last September, founding figures of the campus including Lee Todd, Jr., former UK president, Leonard F. O'Hara, former Paducah Community College president, David Denton, former fundraising chairman for the Paducah campus, and Steve Polston, former plant manager and CEO of Lockheed Martin Nuclear Fuel Enrichment Facility in Paducah, Kentucky, sat down to share the remarkable story of how they turned an idea into an institution.
Since celebrating its 25th year, the University of Kentucky Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering Extended Campus at Paducah launched a new degree offering, Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering Technology, in partnership with West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
The new bachelor of science degree joins the established Bachelor of Science Degrees in Chemical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering.
The UK Engineering Paducah Campus also offers professional certificates in aerospace engineering, automotive production engineering and environmental engineering.
The degree programs — created out of a need to retain talent in the area — not only add to the range of opportunities for students, but also meet the regional need for professional engineers in the highly industrialized part of the Commonwealth.
More than 500 students have graduated from the Paducah Campus, with an estimated direct economic impact on Western Kentucky of more than $25 million annually. Two thirds of their graduates also remain in the Western Kentucky area.
As the Paducah Campus recently celebrated their 25th year, Y. Charles Lu, the H.E. Katterjohn Professor in Engineering and director of the Paducah Campus, said the CET program is a remarkable new addition.
“This achievement is indeed remarkable, since this is the very first new academic program in the school’s 25-year history. It will have a huge impact on businesses, industries and students in the region,” he continued. “I also want to express my deepest gratitude to the local community for supporting this new program. Without their generous support, it would not have been possible.”
To learn more about engineering in Paducah visit: www.engr.uky.edu/paducah
