>> As we expected on day one, traffic has moved pretty well actually better than some people expected.

>> A portion of I-65 is officially closed for the summer here.

What drivers ran into on day one of the 60 day project.

[MUSIC] >> You can just walk in, no questions asked.

Just grab them.

They're sitting right here in the front.

>> How a local health department is working to keep families safe this summer.

[MUSIC] >> Working together, we're able to really showcase who we are as a community.

[MUSIC] >> And we hop over to Hopkins County for Mondays on main.

>> Production of Kentucky edition is made possible in part by the KET Millennium Fund.

>> Good evening and welcome to Kentucky Edition for this Monday, June 1st.

Happy birthday Kentucky.

I'm Renee Shaw and we thank you for spending some of your Monday night with us.

Work is underway on an otherwise busy five mile stretch of I-65 in Louisville from downtown to the airport.

Construction on both north and south highways began today, shutting down both directions for the next two months.

During that time, three bridges will be replaced.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says the bridges were built in the late 1950s and have exceeded their lifespan, a state transportation official says more than 100,000 drivers had to adjust their commutes today.

>> Since you go 65 and you go 65 north and you go into the right hand lanes in what we call the collector distributor in order to to go east or west on the water.

Some people were kind of doing that by habit.

We're actually now we actually have a temporary barrier wall, and we are splitting westbound traffic on the left side and eastbound traffic on the right side.

And we saw a lot of people making last minute decisions or getting trapped on the right side and having to go eastbound and turn around proper level road.

So as we expected on day one, traffic is moved pretty well, actually better than some people expected.

We're happy about that.

But we also identified some needs and some areas where things could be a little better.

And 65 in Watterson is one of those locations.

One of the reasons why June 1st through July 31st was picked is because it's the sweetest of the sweet spots for I-65 corridor.

You're obviously school is out, but you also have, you know, some of these events.

You have the fair, you have the street rod nationals, you have other things later in the summer.

So that's a sweet spot as far as reduced traffic.

Now, it's not a huge significant reduction, but that's why that two month time frame was was picked.

Now the weekly travel, you know, since Covid, I think we've seen some more of these work from home days.

I think the mayor has put some messaging out as as well as we have about, you know, if you can stagger schedules or if you, you know, your employer can allow some work from home, it will be helpful for everybody because you're reducing those peak impacts in the morning and the afternoon.

>> Yeah.

>> The transportation cabinet expects slightly heavier traffic tomorrow.

Getting deeper into the work week.

Engineers say the complete closure will expedite repairs on three overpasses.

You can learn more about the project, including maps showing detour routes online at I-65 central corridor.com.

Summer is just around the corner, but Kentucky's winter weather is still making headlines.

That's because President Donald Trump and FEMA have approved Governor Andy Beshear request for public assistance.

The assistance was approved for these 18 counties that were hit hard by January's winter storm.

There in yellow, as you see on that map.

That means FEMA can reimburse cities and counties for related costs.

The winter weather dumped up to nine inches of snow in some areas of the state, and created significant ice totals for others.

You all remember that?

Well, governor Andy Beshear was in South Carolina this weekend.

He was one of the guest speakers at an annual fish fry hosted by U.S.

Representative Jim Clyburn.

The Palmetto State has been key for recent Democratic presidential primaries and is a frequent stop for aspiring presidential candidates.

Governor Beshear was asked about his future plans on NBC's Meet the Press just yesterday and said running for president isn't something he's discussed with his family yet.

>> You have not ruled it out.

Where are you in your decision making process, governor?

Are you leaning toward a run?

>> I'm the same place that that I've been fully focused on 2026 because as the head of the Democratic Governors Association, we're going to elect Democratic governors where people aren't expecting it, and we're going to change the map for 28 when we flip Iowa.

Iowa is in play in 28.

When we flip Ohio, it's in play.

In 28, I was just down with Doug Jones in Alabama.

The primary turnout there for Democrats doubled from four years ago.

Keisha Lance bottoms won a primary going away and is an incredibly strong candidate.

>> Governor, you sounded a lot like a candidate.

You sounded a lot like a candidate in South Carolina.

Is it fair to say you're thinking about it seriously?

>> Well, I haven't ruled it out, but I haven't sat down and had that conversation with my family.

I'm trying to fire up Democrats to be a voice of reason in the chaos.

It is so important that we win right now.

And let me just say, as a Southern Democratic governor, to be able to give voice to Southern Democrats being left out, left behind, sometimes looked down on.

But scrapping our way back to a seat at the table.

Three southern Democratic governors, two Southern Democratic senators and another one on the way in in Roy Cooper.

So whether I'm in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, like I am right now, I just want to make sure the South has an important place in the Democratic Party.

>> Some important places on that travel schedule.

A new poll shows Beshear's popularity as a presidential candidate continues to rise among Democratic primary voters.

The polling by Emerson College shows 9% of the national electorate favors him as their first choice for the Democratic presidential nominee.

That's up from 5% in February, though it puts Beshear in last place when compared with five other potential candidates.

Meanwhile, Beshear is endorsing Charles Booker for the U.S.

Senate.

Booker won Kentucky's Democratic primary by more than ten points last month.

Prior to running, the former state lawmaker served in the Beshear administration as head of the governor's Office of faith based Initiatives and community involvement.

In his endorsement, Beshear said, quote, Charles Booker understands Kentucky because he's lived the same struggles facing too many families across our Commonwealth.

He knows what it means to fight for all working people, safer communities, better health care, good paying jobs, and a government that puts people first.

End quote.

Booker is running to replace U.S.

Senator Mitch McConnell and will face Republican U.S.

Representative Andy Barr in November's general election.

A second arrest warrant for former Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin has been dropped.

Bevin was ordered to be in person at a court hearing last week regarding financial support for his estranged son, Jonah.

Instead, as the Kentucky Lantern reports, he appeared by Zoom telling the Jefferson Family Court judge he was at his home in Maine because it was hit by, quote, a large boulder.

An arrest warrant was issued, but was later dropped after Bevin paid a $250 fine, according to Wavy-tv.

The same judge found Bevin in contempt of court back in March for failing to provide all financial records related to his divorce.

She's given him a new deadline of June 5th to turn over the information, or face the possibility of 60 days in jail.

Kentucky's attorney general is pushing to streamline death penalty cases.

Attorney General Russell Coleman is joining 16 other states in supporting a proposal by the U.S.

Department of Justice that could speed up federal reviews of state capital murder convictions.

The average time an inmate spends on death row in the U.S.

is more than 20 years.

Kentucky hasn't carried out an execution since 2008, and only three since 1976.

There's currently a case before a Franklin Circuit Court judge that could clear the way for executions to resume in Kentucky.

Today is the first day of National Gun Violence Awareness Month.

The Lexington-Fayette County Health Department is giving away free gun locks as part of its new initiative called Let's Lock It Locks.

Lexington's health commissioner says summer is an important time to ensure firearms in the home are stored safely.

>> Lex Lockett is the initiative that has grown out of our Lexington Community Health Improvement Partnership meetings, where we bring community partners together to discuss areas of concern, things they're seeing in the community.

And so this this initiative was grown out of our crime and violence group that that meets and discusses what can we do.

And so here we are.

We're providing free, free gun locks while supplies last at the health department.

You can just walk in, no questions asked.

Just grab them.

They're sitting right here in the front.

They're free to anyone.

We want to get as many gun locks in the hands of families as possible to keep children and families safe.

Gun locks are an easy, inexpensive way to keep your firearms stored properly and keep them away from kiddos.

And kids that don't understand may be interested.

And so it's it's a very important issue.

And so we want to be behind removing any barriers.

So providing free gun locks obviously is something we want to do for as long as we can.

We have lots of community partners that are behind us with this initiative.

And so these were donated to us through community partners.

And then as we as we need more, we're looking for more funding to secure that.

We we actually started this in March and weren't really sure about the, about the interest in the public, but we have given away about 450 to date.

And today is our really our first launch date for this.

So the community interest has been wonderful in public health.

We're all about prevention.

So this would be, you know, prevention for death, unintentional harm.

We know that many suicides are an impulsive decision.

And so creating barriers for things like that.

The other thing that is it's summertime and kids are going to be at home more.

They're going to be away from their parents.

More parents might be working and at home.

And so we want to make sure that we're educating families on how to keep their, their guns properly stored, also how to have conversations.

And so we're going to have a variety of resources that are currently on our website, and we'll share them throughout a variety of avenues.

But to educate families on how to have conversations around firearms, how to properly store those, how to have conversations with other adults about having play dates with your kids.

And so there's a variety of resources that we are putting out there for people to utilize.

>> Setbacks, challenges, and resilience are just as necessary in taking a leader from good to great as successes.

That's according to a higher education leader in Kentucky who's penned a new book about leadership, whether it's handling criticism, emotional intelligence, and navigating politics inside and outside the workplace, Doctor Anton Reese, the president of West Kentucky Community and Technical College, draws on 30 years of leadership experience in penning his advice.

We pick up part two of our conversation from Friday in this book segment that we call Turning the Page.

Thank you, doctor Anton Reese.

You know, we had such a good conversation.

We wanted to continue that.

And I'm real curious about when you think about the good leaders and you write about what makes steady, solid leadership.

There are so some examples of some bad leadership out there.

Where is it that you see and not naming names, but that some leaders just don't get it right repetitively?

>> So there's a temptation to assume, because you're popular, that you're effective as a leader.

They're also charismatic leaders who are popular but not necessarily effective.

Why?

There's a distinction between are we making headlines or are we making headway?

We need more workhorses and less show horses.

And so oftentimes people get the allure of power and position.

The trouble the problem becomes, though, when you get in, you can't really hide, right?

There's a lot of skill sets to effectively lead and manage people who are very, very, very complex.

So I think at first blush it is we see visible leaders and come to a really quick conclusions that they're really effective at what they do.

But upon closer inspection, that is not the case.

And ultimately to motivation, you know, some people are motivated to be in positions with a specific agenda that may not necessarily be in alignment with meeting the needs or where the people are.

So the old adage, the leaders seem to be doing very well, but the followers are really struggling and suffering, and that goes across disciplines, cultures, etc.

>> You are the president of West Kentucky Community and Technical College, so you help mold the minds of young people.

Is this a book for them at their depending on where they are?

Many of them are nontraditional age, but wherever they are in their educational journey, what can they get from this book?

>> Chapter five.

Tell them to start their.

Chapter five.

I actually panned almost as a letter.

Dear college students, I've had the opportunity to work at Eastern Kentucky University, a four year regional University of Tennessee, Knoxville, a research Warren and West Kentucky Community Technical College.

Now on two tours.

I would tell you without fail, that I see students who don't understand the purpose of college don't come in prepared to engage to maximize that opportunity.

And what do you mean by that?

I do a two year level.

I see sophomores at the four year level.

I see seniors, and I go, all right, graduation is a month away.

What's the plan?

They've never done an internship.

They've never done a practicum.

How in the world is that possible?

I also say to students that college is one of those rare opportunities in life where you get incubated a little bit from society within that incubation, at a minimum, take a course in finance, money matters, and the lack of knowledge of money are really creates problems for a lot of students, both coming out depending on their situation and maybe student loans, right?

We get grandiose ideas about how much money we'll make, etc.

Right.

And there's a shock to the system.

Also, if the opportunity provides itself, learn another language.

A student who is bilingual has a competitive advantage.

And I believe that college is one of these unique spaces where you can really fulfill basically what they say.

The sky's the limit.

On my desk.

I have a personal mission statement.

It says, I have found my voice.

Literally.

My task is to help students to find their voice and achieve their academic and career dreams, but they've got to do the heavy lifting.

You've got to meet me halfway.

So our mantra is, we never underestimate you, but you've got to come in prepared, engaged and ready to work.

And we believe that is an essential quality for students who come to Wkctc you come in and maximize the opportunity.

>> One of the I think it's maybe conventional assumptions, not saying it's true that older folks have about younger folks says they want to run the joint as soon as they get on the payroll.

>> Yes, indeed.

>> How can your book help address the anxious or eager CEO who's not quite ready to be CEO?

>> Some.

Some would tell me that they are quick studies.

You know, today is Friday.

They want to be CEOs on Monday.

Right?

Right, right.

The challenge becomes, again, you get into the position.

There's a whole lot that is involved in managing people.

So I say to them, you know, keep that goal in mind.

Yes.

But then you've got to put in the work.

And unfortunately, if you try to fast forward the skill sets that are needed as you elevate to positions of leadership, it will be it will be short lived.

So so it's really, you know, patience is a challenge for most of us.

Challenge, discipline, focus, intentionality.

And to me that this circles back again to mentorship.

I think a good mentor helps, you know, those that are eager to guide them, how to channel that energy, to be prepared to be successful.

You know, Whitney Young says it is better to be prepared and not get the opportunity than it is to get the opportunity and not be prepared.

And I've seen that story many times where a lot of young talent comes in raring and ready to go, but they're not prepared until they get tested.

>> Yeah.

Good advice.

More advice can be read about in Secret Recipe for Success by Doctor Anton Reese, who is also the president of West Kentucky Community and Technical College.

Good to see you again, sir.

Thank you for your time.

>> Thank you, thank you.

>> Now to Western Kentucky's Hopkins County and the city of Madisonville.

It's historically a coal mining town that has shifted to manufacturing and other economic development sectors, along with revitalization efforts around its downtown square.

We tag along with Laura Rogers as she takes us there for this week's installment of Mondays on Main.

[MUSIC] >> Everybody has a story.

>> And so does every town, especially this one where that story is still unfolding.

>> Madisonville itself is really that city that has infinite possibilities.

>> Madisonville has a bustling downtown community celebrating history and looking ahead to future growth and progress.

>> It's growing.

I think it's got a lot of potential.

>> If you can think of it, you can do it right here.

So that's what I love about Madisonville.

>> Mayor Kevin Cotton shares that message through one of his favorite books, The Flour Man.

>> It talks about how one individual can make an impact in the entire community just by going the extra mile.

>> Something demonstrated by many in the community, including the late Doctor Merle and Mama, who gifted their former cattle farm and home to the city in 2009.

>> They wanted people to understand what it was like to just sit back and enjoy the land, and it's just an absolute masterpiece in our community.

>> It's really been a joy to see it come to life.

It's really just a gem.

It's beautiful.

>> Mark Park officially opened as a park and arboretum ten years ago, and offers 265 acres of recreation, green space and wildlife habitat.

>> We have lots of visitors throughout the year.

Last year in 2025, we had 635,000 people come through.

>> There's a nature play space, there's lakes, there's ponds for you to be able to fish in.

There's paved walking trails, there's a botanical garden.

There's event spaces.

>> Home to more than 300 native plants.

It's a level two arboretum, a nature escape, just a hop, skip and jump from Main Street.

>> It kind of feels like you're in a big city, but you've got the small town, all the benefits of small town as well.

So that's kind of been an evolutionary change that we've noticed over the last few years.

>> State representative Wade Williams is president of the Madisonville Hopkins County Economic Development Corporation.

Their building housed in the historic train depot.

>> We've got a lot of things going for us, and we're making that rebound.

I think that Madisonville and Hopkins County didn't just sit by and say, we need the coal industry back.

While we would love to have it, and we hope that it will make a resurgence, we've kind of reinvented ourselves.

>> In his role, Williams helps recruit industry and foster job growth.

>> When a company decides they're going to move or they're going to expand, they want to do it quickly.

>> He says.

They currently have 5 or 6 sites ready to go for industry to move in.

>> We're seeing, obviously, a lot of investment coming in state of Kentucky.

>> City leaders say as they welcome new investment, they aim to offer a lower cost of doing business with affordable energy rates and infrastructure upgrades.

>> City of Madisonville is under the largest infrastructure project in its history, which is just over $25 million.

Sewer upgrade project called the West Noel Interceptor.

That's going to set the city up for the next 50 years.

>> They're also a member of the Kentucky Municipal Energy Agency, which the mayor says is stabilized rates for the past nine years.

>> So as we're doing recruitment, manufacturing, retail, even families, we're able to talk about the lower cost of energy that we have here in the city of Madison.

>> Other big projects, and there are many include an athletic facility that's helped with tourism efforts.

>> We've been able to put in a new sports facility, sports factory for our youth.

That's a partnership that we have with our county judge, executive and magistrate.

>> There's also been strides in retail development, welcoming small businesses like this downtown floral and gift shop.

>> People laugh because it says the best town on earth, and if you want a small town environment, we really do have a great, wonderful town.

>> Retired teacher Christa Bug still writing her story as she helps her neighbors through their own personal chapters.

>> Starts with weddings and funerals.

We see people through all their stages of life.

>> Life they're happy to live here in Madisonville for Kentucky Edition, I'm Laura Rogers.

>> Thank you.

Laura and Mar Park Arboretum is certainly worth checking out.

It is gorgeous.

Mayor cotton says the city is also focused on more housing.

He'd like to see a 1000 homes built over the next five years.

So much so, we don't even need music.

The Commonwealth turns 234 years old.

Kentucky joined the Union on June 1st, 1792, becoming the 15th state.

The state had been a Virginia County prior to that, and Kentucky history is our topic tonight on Kentucky.

Tonight, join guest host Chip Polston from Kentucky Life and a panel of history experts as they talk about the Kentucky settlement and growth.

So join us as Kentucky celebrates America.

250.

That's coming your way at 8:00 eastern, 7:00 central, right here on KET.

More on today's birthday.

Kentucky's birthday, the great dissenter and hatchet granny is our Toby Gibbs looks back at this week in Kentucky history.

[MUSIC] >> He's often called the Paul Revere of the South.

On June 3rd, 1781, Captain John Jewett rode 40 miles to warn Virginia leaders, including Governor Thomas Jefferson, about approaching British troops.

He would move to Kentucky after the Revolutionary War and serve in the Kentucky House of Representatives.

Kentucky joined the Union on June 1st, 1792, the first state west of the Appalachian Mountains and the 15th state overall.

Isaac Shelby took the oath to become Kentucky's first governor on June 4th.

Happy birthday to John Marshall Harlan, born June 1st, 1833, in Boyle County.

He became a lawyer and Kentucky's attorney general as a U.S.

Supreme Court Justice from 1877 to 1911.

[MUSIC] He earned the nickname The Great Dissenter for frequently disagreeing with his fellow justices.

He often took Pro-civil rights positions in opposition to the rest of the court.

On June 5th, 1900, Anti-liquor Crusader and Garrard County native Carrie Nation claimed God appeared before her in a vision and told her to destroy saloons in Kansas.

She pelted a saloon with rocks two days later and continued attacking saloons with rocks and a hatchet.

She earned the nickname Hatchet Granny.

Kentucky dedicated its fourth Capitol building, the one still in use on June 2nd, 1910.

Governor Augustus Wilson presided over the ceremony.

The building cost $1.8 million and didn't have a parking lot.

[MUSIC] Because of the belief that cars were just a fad.

And that's a look back at this week in Kentucky history.

I'm Toby Gibbs.

>> Thank you Toby Gibbs.

We always learn something.

Getting a good night's sleep doesn't come easy for a significant number of people who live in Appalachia.

>> When we think about insomnia in particular, this is very much core to the problem that people say, I can't shut my brain off.

>> What researchers are blaming for the area's high number of insomniacs, and what they say is needed to help them get more rest.

That's coming up tomorrow on Kentucky edition, and we hope you have a good night's rest and then come back tomorrow at 630 eastern, 530 central for Kentucky Edition, where we inform, connect and inspire.

Connect with us all the ways you see on your screen.

Look for us on >> The KET dot ORG because you can stream content there.

Look for us on the PBS app that you can download on your mobile devices and smart TV.

Send us a story idea by email to Public affairs@ket.org.

And of course, we're on the social media channels, Facebook and Instagram.

Stay in the loop.

Thanks so much for watching.

I'm Renee Shaw.

Have a good night.

I will see you real soon.

Take good care.