WKU News

As part of Parent and Family Weekend, the family of WKU senior Emma Grace Young of Bowling Green, Ky. was recognized as WKU’s 2024 Family of the Year.

Young, a fourth generation Hilltopper, is majoring in computer science and Chinese. She is also a Mahurin Honors College scholar and part of WKU's Chinese Flagship program.

In her essay, Young said, “For as long as I can remember, in the spirit of what it means to be a Hilltopper, our family has spent each week leading up to football games preparing food to feed hundreds of WKU fans at ELPO Law’s tailgate. Not only do we invite the general public, signifying our love for WKU, our family invites WKU’s game day custodial and gate staff, first responders and law enforcement officers. Because WKU’s ticket staff can’t make it to the tailgate tent, our family takes plates of food and delivers them to the workers. It is a special time to watch WKU employees and first responders receive a meal, knowing they are valued by some of the Hill’s most enthusiastic fans.”

A selection committee of alumni and staff reviewed nearly 200 nominations for this year’s Family of the Year. The Young family received a prize package including tickets to all weekend events and an $800 student scholarship for the 2025 spring semester.  

Contact: Ginny Hensley, ginny.hensley@wku.edu

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Western Kentucky University prides itself on positioning its students, faculty and staff for long term success. As a student-centered, applied research university, WKU helps students expand on classroom learning by integrating education with real-world applications in the communities we serve. Our hilltop campus is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, which was recently named by Reader’s Digest as one of the nicest towns in America, just an hour’s drive from Nashville, Tennessee.