Catie Lasley - EAHP/EEP
Catie Lasley
I’m Catie Lasley. I currently work in HR as the HR Administrator for the College of Medicine. I accepted this position after working as the Assistant Manager of Employment and then Manager of Employment. I’ve been in HR since November 1999, when I started as a temporary employee.
In the photo with me is my daughter Ada and a photo of my house which I was able to purchase thanks to the UK Employer Assisted Housing Program (EAHP). I have been a long- time student at UK, receiving a BA in English in 2000 and completing course work a master’s degree in Sociology through EEP.
Through the Employee Education Program, UK paid for my education. I don’t believe I would have chosen to invest in pursuing a Master’s degree if I knew I would have to go into debt to pay for the classes. Every manager I’ve had in HR has been tremendously supportive of my educational goals and has been very flexible in allowing me the time I need to go to class and, at the end of the semester, prepare for finals.
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The EAHP Program is one of many offerings I have been able to take advantage of as a UK employee. It was particularly wonderful because it helped my family purchase our first home, even though we didn’t have much saved for a down payment. It was really important to my husband that we get out of rental property and start investing in a home of our own. I was very hesitant, especially since I had never lived in an “owned” home and my parents and siblings all currently rent – I’d never seen it done. |
The program provided the education I needed to be smart about our home purchase and determine how much we could afford. The fact that we were granted a forgivable loan of 5% of the purchase price of the home was the only way we could afford to buy a home in a neighborhood we liked. I am able to walk to work every day – it’s wonderful!
Through the Employee Education Program, UK has also paid for my education for the past five years. I don’t believe I would have chosen to invest in a Master’s degree if I knew I would have to go into debt to pay for the classes. Every manager I’ve had in HR has been tremendously supportive of my educational goals and has been very flexible in allowing me the time I need to go to class and, at the end of the semester, prepare for finals.
Everything just seems so much easier here – without leaving campus, I can take care of my banking at the UK Federal Credit Union, pick up a prescription from the Kentucky Clinic, check out library books for school and educational videos for my daughter from the library, and purchase school books at a discount from the bookstore. Honestly, I can’t imagine how I could handle all my roles of mother, daughter, wife, student and employee without that kind of assistance. Just having all those things within walking distance is so much less stress than having to drive somewhere after work.
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