LEXINGTON, Ky. — University of Kentucky sport leadership students are gaining competitive professional experience through a unique research project examining how a landmark legal settlement is reshaping college athletics compensation.

Students in a course taught by UK Future of Sport Institute Director Kwame Agyemang, Ph.D., partnered with the institute to produce a research-based brief on revenue sharing in college sports following the House v. NCAA settlement. The federal court approved the landmark agreement in June 2025, fundamentally transforming how colleges compensate athletes.

Cameron Carnegie, a senior sport leadership major, said the hands-on research experience changed his perspective on the profession. "Prior to taking this class, I would have emphatically stated that research was not something I was interested in or saw fitting in my career," Carnegie said. "I found that not only can research be interesting but it's potentially something I look to pursue later in life."

Agyemang structured the course to give students tangible work they could showcase in job interviews. "I wanted the course to produce something tangible they could walk into interviews with and speak with credibility about what they've done and what they learned," he said.

Sophomore Sophie Bellovin, also a sport leadership major, said the project deepened her understanding of how athletes are affected by compensation changes. "The most valuable part of working on this project was interviewing sport leaders who gave us insightful details about their perspectives and what they do for college athletics," she said.

The experience provided students with professional skills directly applicable to the sports industry. Agyemang noted that applied learning helps graduates stand out in a competitive field by allowing them to point to finished products and explain their research processes. "In their future roles, they will be expected to justify decisions, not just have opinions," he said. "Data is everywhere in sport."

UK College of Education Dean Nick Pace called the project an example of how the university leverages Kentucky's sports traditions to prepare industry leaders. "There's no place in the country better situated to guide the next generation of leaders across the sports industry," Pace said.