Elizabethtown native Catherine LaRoche is moving back to Kentucky to become Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement at WKU in Bowling Green. She graduated from Central Hardin High School in 2005 and the University of Louisville in 2009. She is currently Assistant Dean of Students at the University of Arizona. When asked how this new job came about, Dr. LaRoche replied, “I was not a hundred percent looking for jobs at the time. I actually had a friend who lives in Texas and they were like ‘Hey, a recruiter reached out to me for the Assistant Vice President position at Western Kentucky. I’m not interested in leaving Texas. So I recommended you because I know you’re from Kentucky, so why don’t you take a look and see if it’s something you’re interested in.’ ” When offered the new job, she said, “It was kind of a no-brainer for me. When I got the offer, I kind of already knew, like if they offered it to me, I will most likely say yes.” When asked what she wanted to accomplish in her new position, Dr. LaRoche laid out her first ninety days plan. “It’s going to definitely get to understand where the division or the University is at. What are the priorities? You know, at a lot of colleges, a big priority, especially in the state of Kentucky, is retention, retaining students at the University beyond their first year. And then the other piece is: how do you increase enrollment?” When she begins her new position, Dr. LaRoche stated that staff will be one of her top priorities. “I want to see my staff succeed, so that is a big thing that I will bring to the University, is figuring out where my staff are? Where do they want to be? What is their potential and really help them reach their goals.” For students and families considering WKU, Dr. LaRoche said this. “Really what families can think about or look forward to when sending their student to WKU is those students really getting the opportunity to engage at high levels. Those living on campus, living off campus after their first two years and really just making sure they’re getting involved. That they’re successful both inside and outside of the classroom and then also making sure that they feel welcome, they feel connected to the university.” Dr. LaRoche will begin her new job as Assistant President for Student Engagement at WKU on July 17.
WQXE NEWS
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet wants to remind Kentuckians to watch out and share the roadway with all highway users. The month of May is Motorcycle And Bike Safety Awareness Month and the Cabinet’s Office of Highway Safety is joining The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in sharing tips to help prevent crashes, injuries and deaths on the commonwealth’s roadways. Drivers are reminded to perform regular visual checks using mirrors and looking at blind spots before changing lanes and to use turn signals before lane changes to alert others of your movements. Motorcyclists are encouraged to wear a DOT compliant helmet, wear bright color protective gear along with reflective tape and stickers to increase visibility while positioning themselves in the lane to maintain visibility and using turns signals and hand signals to indicate movements. Bicyclists should wear a properly fitted helmet, scan ahead for obstacles in your path and ride in the same direction as traffic while also using hand signals to communicate your movements to traffic around you. Kentucky haD over 1500 crashes involving motorcyclists in 2022 which resulted in 99 motorcyclists deaths. More information can be found at Ride.KY.gov
Scholarship Central held two events recently to award over $350,000 in scholarships. Scholarship Central is the online one stop portal offered by the Central Kentucky Community Foundation which serves as a philanthropic resource to people who wish to help improve life in their communities. This year 142 students were awarded 182 scholarships to help recipients continue their educational career this coming fall. To see a full list of the awardees and scholarships currently offered, visit the foundation’s website at CKCF4People.org.
A Larue county woman was stabbed multiple times Tuesday. According to the Larue County Sheriff’s Department, deputies responded to Earl Jones Road for a domestic situation that turned violent. Tracy Johnson is accused of arguing with his mother before getting a kitchen knife and stabbing her several times. Johnson also allegedly assaulted his brother who attempted to intervene. The suspect fled the scene, but was apprehended by officials. He was charged with First Degree Domestic Assault and Fourth Degree Domestic Assault. The mother’s injuries are not considered to be life threatening.
Today is the last day to apply for an absentee ballot for the May primary. “The easiest and most secure way to do that is to go GoVoteKY.com. You’re also welcome to call our office directly. The in-person excused absentee voting, those days are May 3rd-5th and 8th-10th. That’s going to be from 8 AM to 4:30 PM down on the first floor. In order to qualify for absentee voting, you have to qualify by age, illness or disability, or you will be out of town on the early voting days and primary election day. I always want to remind pregnant women, if you’re in the third trimester, we strongly recommend you voting absentee because babies are gonna come when babies come. So we want to make sure that’s available to those folks and nobody misses out,” said Hardin County Clerk Brian D Smith. You have until 11:59 PM EST to apply online for your absentee ballot.