A 1998 graduate of the University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law. Prior to joining the university in 2010, he was with the law firm of Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP, in its Lexington office, and was formerly a member in the law firm of McMurry & Livingston, PLLC, in Paducah, Kentucky, where he focused primarily in the area of real estate law.
Dean Murphy oversees day-to-day nonacademic operations at the Rosenberg College of Law, including supervision of marketing & communications, information technology, the continuing legal education departments, alumni affairs, and capital project management and building operations. Dean Murphy also serves as the college’s diversity officer.
A nationally recognized leader and expert in building place-based partnerships, Blatz has designed, developed and implemented strategies that drive large-scale community improvement through partnership with local leaders and organizations. Prior to taking the helm of StriveTogether, Blatz served as deputy director and the senior director of operations.
Blatz began her career in the education sector, as executive director of Ohio College Access Network, a network of community-based programs focused on improving access to and attainment of postsecondary education. She serves as a PolicyLink Ambassador for Health Equity and as a LEAP Ambassador, where she collaborates with national leaders to improve existing programs and find new ways to tackle challenges facing children and families. She earned a master’s degree from Miami University and a bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, from the University of Kentucky.
After earning a bachelor’s degree from Berea College, Joshua Frazier-Sparks was selected for the Teach for America New Mexico Corps where he taught middle school science in Gallup, N.M. Later, he returned to Kentucky as an admissions counselor for Berea College before beginning a six-year career with Teach for America, ending as executive director of Teach For America Appalachia. Through his efforts, the Kentucky legislature created a permanent pathway to nontraditional teacher certification via Teach for America. He also developed a teacher training program that delivers measurable student outcomes.
Frazier-Sparks went on to earn a master’s degree in education from the University of Kentucky and is pursuing an MBA at the University of Illinois. He led strategy and execution of two philanthropic portfolios at Walmart.org focused on economic opportunity and inclusive communities. He now leads strategy and execution of Walmart’s Racial Equity Shared Value Networks, where he works with leaders across the business to innovate and optimize efforts to accelerate equity across four key systems: education, finance, criminal justice and health.
As vice president for operations and sustainability at Berea College, Singleton is responsible for providing leadership in setting and implementing policies and creating and assessing standards that address all aspects of the college’s environmental sustainability. Singleton joined the college in August 2011 as associate vice president for operations and sustainability. Prior to coming to Berea, he served in various corporate executive management and operations management roles for 26 years, with companies such as Sherwin-Williams and Coors. In that time, he gained extensive domestic and international experience in operations and sustainability management and directing capital projects.
Singleton earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Eastern Kentucky University in 1987. In 1994, he earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Kentucky, and an executive MBA from Sullivan University in 2006.
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