Judy Rouse has been the heart of the WKU in Owensboro campus from 2000 to 2026, and is honored upon her retirement from the university with a student scholarship in her name. Students called her “Mama Judy.” The pink nameplate on her office desk reflected this too! Roles of caring, mentoring, listening, and guidance were natural to her. She acted in a mothering role to countless WKU in Owensboro students from their first advising appointment until she put their WKU in Owensboro graduation stole on their necks.
In addition to serving as Administrative Assistant for the campus, she was Mama Judy for the campus’s faculty and staff too. She circulated birthday cards for signatures, brought donuts to staff meetings, and brought in lunches in a crock pot to name but a few examples of a thousand. Her gestures represented the love and family feeling she brought to working at the campus. Judy Rouse joined the WKU in Owensboro team in 2000 as part-time employee, moved to full-time in 2012, and retired from the university in 2026. In 2021, she received the Christopher Ware Staff Star Award from the WKU Staff Senate.
Gifts made to the Judy Rouse Scholarship will support WKU in Owensboro students.
