CHANGE OF LOCATION: The Kentucky Court of Justice’s fifth annual Black History Month Celebration on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at 1:30 p.m. EST, has been relocated to the Administrative Office of the Courts. The event will be held in the main conference room of the Administrative Office of the Courts, 1001 Vandalay Dr., Frankfort, KY 40601.
FRANKFORT, Ky. – Feb. 7, 2025 – The Judicial Branch will hold its fifth annual Black History Month Celebration Tuesday, Feb. 11, in Frankfort.
The public is invited to the event, which will feature keynote speaker Shericka Smith, a mental health coordinator for Fayette County Public Schools. The event will take place at 1:30 p.m. EST in the Supreme Court Courtroom at the Capitol, 700 Capitol Ave. The Administrative Office of the Courts will provide light refreshments.
Smith’s remarks, titled Then to Now: The Enduring Legacy of Black Professionals, will reflect this year’s national Black History Month theme, African Americans and Labor.
Smith holds an undergraduate degree from Transylvania University and a master’s degree in school social work from the University of Louisville. In 2022, she graduated as part of the inaugural class of the University of Kentucky’s Doctor of Social Work Program, where she researched the impact of childhood trauma and the lack of mental health resources for Black families. She is also a part-time instructor at UK’s College of Social Work.
Chief Justice of the Commonwealth Debra Hembree Lambert will present the Justice William E. McAnulty Jr. Award at the event. The award recognizes individuals who’ve made a significant impact on the Kentucky Court of Justice. This impact can be through years of service, leadership, job performance or efforts toward improving racial and ethnic diversity and equity in the Judicial Branch.
AOC Employee Growth & Development advisor Aimee Lay will deliver opening and closing remarks. Fayette County District Judge Melissa Moore Murphy will perform the Black National Anthem. AOC Director Zach Ramsey will introduce Chief Justice Lambert.
The celebration will be livestreamed and available as a recording on the Kentucky Court of Justice YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@KentuckyCourts.
Administrative Office of the Courts
The Administrative Office of the Courts in Frankfort is the operations arm for the state court system. The AOC supports the activities of nearly 3,300 court system employees and the 412 elected justices, judges and circuit court clerks. As the fiscal agent for the state court system, the AOC executes the Judicial Branch budget.
