RICHMOND, Ky. (March 2, 2018) – The newest member of the Eastern Kentucky University Board of Regents is a familiar face to many on the Richmond campus.
Laura Babbage, of Lexington, has been appointed by Gov. Matt Bevin to serve a term that expires on June 30, 2021. The 1981 EKU graduate, who has served since 1994 as a founding member of the Business Advisory Council in her alma mater’s College of Business and Technology, will be sworn in at the next meeting of the board.
“EKU instilled in me many of the work values I still hold today,” said Babbage, a member of the University’s Hall of Distinguished Alumni, along with her husband of 39 years, Bob. “I value the nurturing culture that EKU provides to first-time college students, as well as students who come to college later in life. It will be an honor to serve on the board at an institution that continues to strongly support students and those values.
“We have all been given gifts which we are required to use for good,” she added. “Throughout my life, I have had the good fortune to use my gifts. Serving on the EKU board is one more opportunity to use my gifts and talents to help the commonwealth form and shape inquisitive minds. I am thankful for the opportunity to give back to my commonwealth and Eastern Kentucky University in this way.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Eastern, Babbage added a master’s degree in international business from the Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Business at the University of Kentucky, and a master’s of divinity degree from Lexington Theological Seminary. She went on to serve as chief executive officer for Urgent Treatment Centers of Kentucky Inc., as regional vice president for Women’s Health Partners Inc., and as a chaplain for St. Joseph Hospital and the University of Kentucky Medical Center.
She is well known throughout the Lexington area for her volunteer efforts, serving on numerous boards, committees and task forces. An avid traveler, she climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro with her oldest son in 2010 and has cycled the hills of Tuscany, Italy, and segments of the Tour de France. A bicycle accident in France in 2016 resulted in a traumatic brain injury, from which she has fully recovered.
Add Comment