Western Kentucky University holds 2026 convocation, honors dean for their work
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – As Western Kentucky University is set to welcome students back to the classroom, faculty and staff crowded into Van Meter Hall for the convocation and hear some of the successes at the following year brought in.
Dr. Timothy Caboni, president of Western Kentucky University, said 2025 was a tough year on the hill, citing main issues with dorms and traffic but said that the year had plenty of positives to build momentum into this year.
Retention rates for sophomores increased, as well as four and five year graduation rates, something Caboni credits to interventions implemented, such as the Summer Scholars Program to help students better prepare for the rigors of college.
“We built the Summer Scholars program, really saying that if you have between a 2.0 and a 2.49 GPA, you can come to WKU, but we’re going to ask you to start six weeks before everyone else, because we want to help get you ready for the rigors of pursuing a college degree,” Caboni said. “So you take one class in how to do college, in one class that’s in your either in your major or in the core.”
One of Caboni’s main goals for the university is for WKU to become a Carnegie R-2 research university. In an effort to reach that goal, university officials have begun working on a doctorate program for data analytics and are partnering with the CAYA, formerly Lifeskills, within the College of Health and Human Services to better provide opportunities while implementing what they’ve learned into the community.
“It really is going to be a support center for all of the work that happens in the College of Health and Human Services, but it’s also a translational research center,” Caboni said.
“So ensuring that asking and answering questions is the front part. But the back side is making sure that whatever we learn then gets implemented and applied across the state and across the Commonwealth to improve health outcomes for all of those communities.”
Ultimately, Caboni praised the quality and efforts of the educators and honored one dean for their work within the university.
Dr. Corinne Murphy, Dean of Education and Behavioral Sciences, was awarded with the Spirit of WKU Award for her dedication to the university, the students and its staff.
Murphy says that she is thankful to be nominated and to create an environment of accessibility for the students.
“It really is about making sure that our people, all people, have access to the opportunities that allow them to grow and to develop. The future is really based off of what we do today, and it’s in honor of what has been done yesterday, in the days before,” Murphy said.
