Kenton County recognized one of the 2019 Pioneer Award honorees, Jim Claypool, who was presented a proclamation at a recent Fiscal Court meeting for his outstanding community service and involvement.
Claypool
Claypool is best known for starting the Northern Kentucky University (NKU) Athletic Program.
He serves in a leadership capacity in numerous initiatives, including the University Honors Committee at NKU, NKU Athletics Committee, Kentucky Historical Society and the Kentucky Historic Preservation Committee.
He hosted 163 half-hour interview programs, Northern Lights and Conversations, for NKU’s cable channel and five segments of Bywords for Kentucky Educational Television (KET), and was featured on KET’s hit show Where the River Bends (2008), a 2-hour documentary about Northern Kentucky. In 2001, he was featured as a commentator on ESPN Classic’s national and international broadcast of the career of jockey Steve Cauthen.
He has authored or coauthored several books, including The Tradition Continues: The Story of Old Latonia, and Turfway Racecourses (1998) and The Encyclopedia of Northern Kentucky (2009), to name a few. Two current projects include For the Love of the Game, a Steve Cauthen autobiography, and The History of Park Hills, Kentucky.
He is a member of the Park Hills Historic Preservation Committee and the Kenton County Ethics Committee, and is a script writer and presenter of the Kentucky Veterans Hall of Fame and manuscript editor for University Presses of Kentucky since 2008.
Claypool is a resident of Park Hills.
His undergraduate degree is from Centre College, and he went on to earn a Master’s and Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky. For over 38 years, Claypool taught and led in post-secondary education.
Established in 2017, the Kenton County Pioneer Award honors living residents of Kenton County who have a record of outstanding service to the community and exemplify the highest standards of personal integrity.
The Pioneer Award honors those who demonstrate servant leadership combined with awareness of the needs of fellow residents.
A committee, composed of the members of the Kenton County Ethics Commission, reviewed the nominations, identified deserving individuals, and forwarded their names to the Kenton County Fiscal Court for consideration and approval. The 2019 Pioneer Award recipients are Jim Claypool, John Salyers and Rick and Mary Hulefeld.
Kenton County Fiscal Court
