WKU didn’t have to look too far for the school’s new Assistant Vice President for Alumni Relations.

Rick Dubose is a familiar face to many on the WKU campus. He graduated from WKU in 1973, and returned to the hill in 1997 to serve as the first major gift officer for the Potter College of Arts and Letters and the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences.

Since 1999, he’s been WKU’s director of corporate and foundation relations.

Dubose starts in his new position May 15, taking over from Donald Smith, who was recently named President of the College Heights Foundation.

Former Congressman Ben Chandler will be the new executive director of the Kentucky Humanities Council. 

The non-profit group is not affiliated with the state, but works closely with state tourism and arts organizations. It is affiliated with the National Endowment for the Humanities.

"Well when I found out that [current director] Virginia Carter was retiring I actually sought out the position because it was a wonderful, unique opportunity for me to do the thing that I love, which is to promote my state, promote the culture, the tradition, the history, the people of the Commonwealth of Kentucky," he says.

Chandler will officially start July 1, as the current executive director transitions to retirement. Chandler says he sought out the new post because of his love for the state and its humanities. The new job will be full-time, and Chandler says he will be involved in the day to day operations of the council.

Media organizations in Tennessee are balking at the amount the Department of Children’s Services is charging for copies of records related to DCS cases.

The media outlets have for months been seeking records for children with prior DCS contact who died or nearly died in the months leading up to July, 2012. After a judge ordered copies of 50 such cases to be handed over to journalists, the DCS tried to charge $9,000 for the records.

The Tennessean newspaper reports its attorney, Robb Harvey, has filed a complaint with the judge point out that the amount the DCS is seeking is nearly nine times what the judge had previously said was reasonable.

DCS attorneys say the extra costs are necessary so that paralegals can be hired and trained to review the case records that are being released to media.

Paul is doing more than just "considering" running for president as he's states, the Kentucky Republican is clearing a path to seek the 2016 Republican presidential nomination with a series of upcoming early primary state visits, a beefed up political operation and a plan to raise his profile.

His first major appearance is Friday night when he's scheduled to be the featured guest at the Iowa Republican Party's annual spring fundraiser. That's considered a plum speaking gig in the state expected to host the leadoff caucuses.

Paul's road is expected to be far from easy, given other big names in the prospective field and the national GOP's wide divide. But he enjoys tea party backing and access to his father Ron Paul's past presidential campaign networks.

Rand Paul heads to New Hampshire later this month and to South Carolina in June, two other early primary states.