University Press of Kentucky

Each constituent institution is represented on a statewide editorial board, which determines editorial policy. ==Offices==

Offices for the Administrative, Editorial, Production, and Marketing departments are found at the University of Kentucky, which is responsible for the overhead cost of the publishing operation. In 2012, UPK was moved under the aegis of the University of Kentucky Libraries, headed by Dean Terry Birdwhistell. Bruce F. Denbo, UPK's first director, was succeeded by Kenneth H. Cherry, who came to UPK from the University of Tennessee Press. During his tenure, the size of the press more than quadrupled. Ken Cherry retired in the Fall of 2001, and his successor, Stephen Wrinn, formerly of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, began as new director in April 2002. In August 2016, Leila Salisbury took over as director of the Press. Salisbury, who began her career at UPK, had served as director of the University Press of Mississippi since 2008. In 2020, Ashley Runyon, former director of trade publications at Indiana University Press, was named director. == Publications ==

UPK's editorial program focuses on the humanities and the social sciences. Its commitment to film and military studies has earned it a national reputation in recent years. Since the formation of the consortium, the press has broadened its appeal to readers in Kentucky and Appalachia with publications of special regional interest. During the 1970s, it produced the Kentucky Nature Series and the 47-volume Kentucky Bicentennial Bookshelf. The press publishes classic novels by Kentucky authors including Harriet Arnow, Janice Holt Giles, John Fox, Jr., James Still, and Jesse Stuart. In 2023, the press began publishing the series Appalachian Futures, beginning with the book Tar Hollow Trans. UPK's goal with the series was to elevate Appalachian writers of often-ignored backgrounds. The editors of Appalachian Futures are Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle, Davis Shoulders, and Crystal Wilkinson. Appalachian Futures is part of a larger publisher movement to diversify modern Appalachian literature, with other major contributors including West Virginia University Press, Haymarket Books, and Hub City Press. ==See also==