{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"August 17, 2023 - Kenton Sena (2023 Great Teacher)","description":" LEXINGTON, Ky. (August 17, 2022) \u2013 The University of Kentucky Alumni Association started the Great Teacher Award program in 1961 to honor excellent teaching at the university. There have been more than 300 teachers honored since that first year. Nominations may only be submitted by current students. To receive the award, a candidate must:  Hold the rank of full-time lecturer or above and have been a member of the faculty for the past three years at UK. Have superior knowledge of the subject matter. Have original and innovative classroom presentations. Demonstrate concern for students, both inside and outside the classroom setting. Not have been a recipient of the award for the past 10 years. A committee of the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors and a representative from the student organization Omicron Delta Kappa select the recipients based on objective rating and ranking of the eligible nominations submitted. This episode of Behind the Blue spotlights one of the six 2023 Great Teacher Award winners. Kenton Sena is a lecturer in the Lewis Honors College. He earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in biology with a minor in literature from Asbury University, and his master\u2019s degree and Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky. His thesis research focused on forest restoration on reclaimed surface mines in Appalachia. He received his Ph.D. in Integrated Plant and Soil Science (Forest Science emphasis), focusing on improving methods for detection and characterizing the distribution of a nonnative pathogen (Phytophthora cinnamomi) that causes disease in the American chestnut. He has published papers in journals such as Forests, Ecological Restoration, Science of the Total Environment, and Forest Ecology and Management.  His teaching and research interests include forest restoration ecology, environmental science, and literature of the environment. His service program engages students in environmentally relevant projects in Lexington and across the Commonwealth.  "Behind the Blue" is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of \u201cBehind the Blue\u201d each week. UK\u2019s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university. For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email BehindTheBlue@uky.edu or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue. Transcripts for this or other episodes of Behind the Blue can be downloaded from the show\u2019s blog page. To discover what\u2019s wildly possible at the University of Kentucky, click here. ","author_name":"Behind the Blue","author_url":"http:\/\/behindtheblue.libsyn.com\/podcast","html":"