Published: August 25, 2009 01:39 pm      

Ky. native and alumnus returns to deliver UC’s opening address

Special to the Times-Tribune

A Smilax, Ky. native and Union College graduate who now works on college access issues across the nation is returning to his home state to help Union kickoff the academic year.

 Billy Hensley, Ph.D., a 1998 graduate of Union College, will return to campus Sept. 3 to give the address at Fall Convocation. 

Originally from Smilax, Hensley graduated from Leslie County High School in 1993 and from Union in 1998.  He earned a master’s in education from Union in 2001, and in 2009 completed a Ph.D. in educational studies at the University of Cincinnati.  Hensley’s dissertation, “Seeking Safe Spaces: The Impact of Campus Climate on College Choice,” has been nominated for the Garvin Dissertation Award given to the outstanding dissertation of the year in the College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services at the university. 

As a college access professional, Hensley has worked with the Ohio College Access Network and the KnowledgeWorks Foundation and has given keynote addresses around the country, including a presentation to the Ohio State Legislature in 2006. His work in Ohio helped increase the number of college access programs by designing sustainability plans for programs in Appalachian and urban communities. Over the course of his career, he has helped secure state and federal grants for college access initiatives totaling more than $35 million.

Hensley is also active in social justice issues and has served on several boards, including the Urban Appalachian Council of Greater Cincinnati, the Youth Council of the Southwest Ohio Workforce Policy Board and the Diversity Council of the University of Cincinnati. He has served as trustee of Emmanuel Fellowship Church in Akron, Ohio, and as a class agent for Union College. Hensley received the Exemplary Service Award from the Southwest Ohio Secondary Teaching Academy in 2007 and the Union College Rising Star Award in 2003.  

Hensley now practices as an educational consultant in Denver, Colo. 

Fall Convocation is open to the public and will take place in Union’s Robsion Arena at 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 3.

 For more information about Union, visit www.unionky.edu.