Emily Wiley

Student Speaker, May 2024

Emily Wiley, from London, Kentucky, will graduate with a master’s in public administration and a graduate certificate in non-profit management from the Martin School for Public Policy and Administration. She will deliver the student address at the 6 p.m. Friday, May 3 ceremony.

Before coming to UK, Wiley graduated from Morehead State University in 2022 with a bachelor’s degree in agribusiness.  She also served as student body president for two years.

During her time at UK, she has worked as a research assistant for the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and a graduate fellow for the agriculture, natural resources and energy committees for the Legislative Research Commission in Frankfort.

Wiley says being selected to address her peers at Commencement is a privilege that she will never lose sight of.

"I applied to be a commencement speaker due to my experience as a student who faced an immensely adverse circumstance: losing a parent. Thanks to the support of the Martin School faculty and staff, I was able to continue my degree and graduate on time as a first-generation college student,” Wiley said. “I hope that my story resonates with many, as we all have faced obstacles while pursuing our degrees. As I detail in my speech, regardless of the barriers that have come before the Spring 2024 graduating class, our passions have driven us to the path of our degrees. That is a remarkable feat, and I am proud to walk across the stage alongside thousands of my fellow Wildcats."

Wiley says through rigorous courses and research, the education she’s received from UK has fully prepared her to work in Kentucky policy after graduation.