Don't worry -- this is the last essay to which I'll subject you.

If you're a Kentuckian, the image at the top of this page is as recognizable to you as your most treasured personal items. As a matter of fact, if you're like most Kentuckians, that's the way you feel about the Commonwealth itself -- it's something of a treasure. I know that's the way I feel -- I'll admit to being a rabidly partisan Kentuckian. I've always found it fascinating that a few of the earliest states established themselves not as states, but as commonwealths. There's an implication there that the land and its resources are there for the shared, common benefit of all its citizens.

Of course, we know that's not the case in Kentucky. The history of the Commonwealth, in many ways, is the history of economic exploitation and abject poverty. The western part of the state is much more akin to the Deep South than the rest of the state -- it was occupied by the Confederacy for a good part of the Civil War and its economy was built on a foundation of plantation-style slavery. The Bluegrass, extending from Central Kentucky west to Louisville and north to Covington, is the most well-off region of the state, but the horse industry for which it is famous really only benefits a relatively small percentage of the population -- the ones you might call the "landed gentry."

The eastern part of the state, of course, is reponsible for the image of the state held by many non-Kentuckians -- that of the poverty-stricken, barefoot, inbred mountaineer. That it's not true of the vast majority of Eastern Kentuckians makes no difference to the national media. However, there is some truth to the stereotype, as there is a grain of truth in all stereotypes, but there's a reason for it. Eastern Kentucky's history is one of cruel exploitation by giant multinational corporations with the help of local elites. The area's abundant resources -- timber and coal -- are by now practically tapped out, with nary a cent of the profits realized from their extraction remaining in the region. With the rest of the state's inherent problems exacerbated by the demographics of Appalachia, Kentucky's economic, social, health, and educational indicators are near or at the bottom of those of the fifty states.

And those sad facts are the basis for my philosophy of service. While there may be more immediate or obvious reasons that motivate my professional actions, what remains always in the back of my mind (though it often moves to the forefront) is the fact that, in every way I can, through my curricular and extracurricular activities, I am working to help alleviate the problems that plague us here in the Commonwealth. Thankfully, there are others who feel as I do, but I sometimes feel that there are not enough of them here at the flagship university and landgrant institution of the state, where it seems that the greatest opportunities for service to the state should arise.

That's why I'm happy to be here. I feel that every time a young Kentuckian leaves the University of Kentucky as a Telecommunications graduate, I have played some role in furthering the interests of the state. If that student remains in Kentucky, as so many of them do, then some of the knowledge I imparted, some of the skills I conveyed, and some of the enthusiasm I helped inspire will be put to work not only by the graduate, but by all the people whom that graduate will one day influence. Many of the students I encounter will someday work in highly visible media occupations or will work behind the scenes to improve and make more efficient any number of systems for disseminating information or improving the economic status of the state.

In addition to serving the state through its young people, there are more direct methods that I employ. One interest of mine, which combines my enthusiam for technology with my concern for the state's well-being, is the nature, use, and effectiveness of the state's relatively new rural and community technology centers. Designed to enhance the quality of life and promote economic growth in Kentucky, there is, as yet, no hard evidence that they are achieving the goals of their implementers. What I want to do, what I have begun to do, is to take a serious look at them from the viewpoint of a technologist, educator, and Kentuckian to see if I can discern the problems and the inadequacies, as well as the successes, of the facilities and the system, and then make corrections and/or improvements.

Another way I can directly serve the state is through the way I choose to spend my time away from the university. I am a great believer in the uplifting cultural power of the arts, and especially of music. I have played and sung for literally thousands of Kentuckians -- everything from the Clash to Beethoven to Duke Ellington to my own music. I like to think that is doing something to raise the quality of life in the state. I served for several years on the board of (and still work closely with) the Jazz Arts Foundation -- one of its primary missions is sponsoring the Youth Jazz Ensemble and working through the Lexington Youth Partnership to bring music performance to the underprivileged youth of Fayette County.