<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><item href="/news/2026/3/stewardship-accountability-and-public-trust.php" dsn="news"><featured/><pubDate>03/19/2026</pubDate><title>Stewardship, Accountability, and Public Trust</title><author/><summary>Earlier this month, I wrote to you about the state budget process and the House proposal’s potential impact on Kentucky’s public universities.</summary><image><img src="/president/messages/Office%20of%20the%20President%20graphic.jpg" alt="Placeholder"/></image><caption/><description>Dear Thorobred Family,   Earlier this month, I wrote to you about the state budget process and the House proposal’s potential impact on Kentucky’s public universities. Since then, the process has continued to move forward, and the Senate’s version of the budget has taken a more favorable approach to higher education. That is an encouraging development, even as the process continues and final decisions still lie ahead.   At the same time, recen...</description></item>