<description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;strong style= "mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; LEXINGTON, Ky. (December 11, 2025)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; – There's a first time for everything — and on Friday, 71-year-old University of Kentucky College of Education graduate Ellen London will experience a significant first: attending a graduation ceremony to accept a diploma.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; Ellen, who just earned her second master's degree, didn't attend the commencement ceremonies for her bachelor's or first master's degrees at other universities. She didn't even attend her own high school graduation, saying she was "too shy" to be in the spotlight.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; As she dons a cap and gown for the first time and readies herself to cross the stage at Rupp Arena, she'll be cheered on by friends and family, including two family members who are also part of the UK community: her daughter, Tessa London-Bounds, M.D., a cardiothoracic surgeon with the UK Gill Heart Institute, and her 10-year-old grandson, Harry, a cello player in the College of Fine Arts' UK String Project.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; In this episode of "Behind the Blue," this trio joins us to talk about their nomadic upbringing, love of learning, and how the University of Kentucky has been able to provide each one of them with a vastly different educational experience. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; "Behind the Blue" is available via a variety of podcast providers, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Subscribe to receive new episodes each week, featuring UK's latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists, writers and the most important news impacting the university.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; "Behind the Blue" is a joint production of the University of Kentucky and UK HealthCare. Transcripts for this or other episodes of "Behind the Blue" can be downloaded from the show's&lt;/span&gt; &lt;a href="http://behindtheblue.libsyn.com/"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; blog page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt;. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;a href= "https://www.uky.edu/advancing-kentucky/"&gt;&lt;span style= "font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"&gt; To discover how the University of Kentucky is advancing our Commonwealth, click here.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Behind the Blue

University of Kentucky Public Relations / UK HealthCare

December 11, 2025 - Ellen London & Family (UK Family Connections)

DEC 11, 202550 MIN
Behind the Blue

December 11, 2025 - Ellen London & Family (UK Family Connections)

DEC 11, 202550 MIN

Description

LEXINGTON, Ky. (December 11, 2025) – There's a first time for everything — and on Friday, 71-year-old University of Kentucky College of Education graduate Ellen London will experience a significant first: attending a graduation ceremony to accept a diploma. Ellen, who just earned her second master's degree, didn't attend the commencement ceremonies for her bachelor's or first master's degrees at other universities. She didn't even attend her own high school graduation, saying she was "too shy" to be in the spotlight. As she dons a cap and gown for the first time and readies herself to cross the stage at Rupp Arena, she'll be cheered on by friends and family, including two family members who are also part of the UK community: her daughter, Tessa London-Bounds, M.D., a cardiothoracic surgeon with the UK Gill Heart Institute, and her 10-year-old grandson, Harry, a cello player in the College of Fine Arts' UK String Project. In this episode of "Behind the Blue," this trio joins us to talk about their nomadic upbringing, love of learning, and how the University of Kentucky has been able to provide each one of them with a vastly different educational experience. "Behind the Blue" is available via a variety of podcast providers, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Subscribe to receive new episodes each week, featuring UK's latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists, writers and the most important news impacting the university. "Behind the Blue" is a joint production of the University of Kentucky and UK HealthCare. Transcripts for this or other episodes of "Behind the Blue" can be downloaded from the show's blog page. To discover how the University of Kentucky is advancing our Commonwealth, click here.