UKWF Annual Conference--Resilient by Design: Cultivating Strength and Balance

UK Wildcat Forum is excited to host our biggest event of the year, our annual in person conference, on Thursday, December 10, 2026, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Check in begins at 8:30 a.m.

This year’s theme, Resilient by Design: Cultivating Strength and Balance, focuses on building strength, finding balance, and discovering intentional ways to navigate change, challenges, and growth.

What to Expect

Our morning keynote speaker, Katie Neal, PCC, will kick off the day with Find Your Footing: How to Lead When the Ground Keeps Shifting. As a certified executive coach and award winning communications leader, Katie will explore what it means to lead with resilience during times of uncertainty and change, helping attendees identify what anchors them and where they still have agency.

Later in the day, Dr. Krissalyn Love will inspire attendees with Heroism on Your Terms: Knowing When to Rise and When to Rest. Drawing on her experience as an educator, researcher, and community leader, Dr. Love will encourage participants to recognize their inner strength, embrace their power, and understand when it is just as important to rest as it is to rise.

Attendees can also look forward to engaging breakout sessions and networking opportunities with fellow Wildcats and leaders from the University of Kentucky and the Lexington community.

Whether attendees are finding their footing through times of change, learning when to rise and when to rest, exploring new perspectives, or simply taking time to recharge, this will be the place to connect, grow, and cultivate strength and balance.