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From linguist to landscape: Air Force veteran finds a new mission at the University of Kentucky
From linguist to landscape: Air Force veteran finds a new mission at the University of Kentucky
From linguist to landscape: Air Force veteran finds a new mission at the University of Kentucky
Ten years in the Air Force and now a second-year student in the landscape architecture program, the mission continues at UK for this military veteran.
By
Jordan Strickler
Published on
December 2, 2025
X / Twitter
Lexington, Ky.—
When Liz Feight raised her right hand in 2007 to take the Air Force oath of enlistment, she expected a 20-year military career. Ten years later — after learning Arabic and French, managing logistics in fast-paced operations and serving at posts from Monterey, California to Wiesbaden, Germany — she set her sights on a different kind of mission: reshaping areas where people live, work and gather.
Today, Feight is a second-year student in the University of Kentucky
Department of Landscape Architecture (UKLA)
, bringing the precision of a linguist and the practicality of a logistics planner to design solutions across the Commonwealth.
Feight’s Air Force path began at the Defense Language Institute, where she trained as an Arabic linguist before adding French as U.S. attention shifted toward North Africa. As her career progressed, she moved into financial logistics and administration — disciplines that required clear communication, careful scheduling and respect for constraints.
In 2017, after 10 years of service, Feight hung up her uniform and transitioned to civilian life.
“I thought I’d do 20 years so that I could earn my retirement,” Feight said. “After I reenlisted at year six, I realized even if I did make it that long, I’d only be 38 and would still want to work. I thought about the things that matter the most to me and knew that I wanted to start making a difference more immediately.”
That line of thought led her home to Ithaca, New York, to obtain her associate’s degree in environmental science, followed by a year at Cornell. The pandemic disrupted that plan, and Feight and her husband — also a veteran, now a city planner — moved to Lexington to be closer to family.
A pause for health and family needs became a reset. When Feight returned to school in the fall of 2024, the
Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment
offered a clear fit: Science she could apply, drawings that led to buildable solutions and clients with tangible needs.
“Policy is interesting, but I didn’t want to be a lawyer,” Feight said. “Full-time field research matters, but it wasn’t the right path to start at 35. Landscape architecture offers a tangible way to apply my science background to solve real-world problems.”
Putting landscape architecture and military skills to use
This semester, Feight’s second-year studio is working with the Kentucky Horse Park on water and drainage challenges near the older dressage grounds by the visitor center. The collaboration began with a department-wide, three-day visit in late September. Students walked the site, met with park staff, mapped constraints and presented early concepts. The solution is straightforward to describe and complex to execute — reduce water use for dust control and wash areas, capture rain where it falls and fix storm drainage within tight physical and budget limits.
“You can’t move arenas or relocate buildings,” Feight said. “The task is to find practical ways to capture and reuse water, improve drainage and respect how the site already works. It’s a good test of listening first and drawing second.”
Ask what skills transfer from the Air Force, and Liz offers a short list that reads like a designer’s toolkit.
First, a deliberate study. Intensive language training taught her how to learn in layers and retain information over time.
Second, clear briefings.
“What’s the goal, what’s the status, what’s next?” Feight said. “That pattern still works, whether you’re updating a commander or pinning up a site plan.”
Third, the designers need a working relationship with feedback from those who need assistance.
That mindset has shaped how Feight takes critiques, revises drawings and helps a team move from concepts to viable options.
All roads lead to Kentucky
At 36, Feight is a nontraditional student who balances studio deadlines with family commitments. She and her husband help care for family in need, and she stops by the
UK Veterans Resource Center
gatherings when schedules align.
“It helps to meet other students who are juggling more than classes and around your same age,” she said. “You see that your busy week is normal for a lot of people.”
Feight says the draw of the UKLA program is simple: Kentucky sites, Kentucky problems, Kentucky partners. She also points to the range of faculty experience, from public parks to private residential work to scholars who study the history of designed landscapes, as a strength.
“You can stand on a site, talk with the people who use it, and test assumptions,” Feight said. “That changes the solutions you propose. It’s not an abstract exercise. It’s useful to hear from people who’ve sat across the table from a parks department, a homeowner, or a community group. The questions are different, but the need for clear thinking is the same.”
To UKLA department lecturer Jordan
Phemister
, Feight’s background is a strong bonus.
“I was fortunate to have Liz in my Introduction to Landscape Architecture class during her first semester,” Phemister said. “She brought an invaluable perspective as a non-traditional student, with a positive presence and sense of leadership within our class. Liz possesses a wonderful combination of curiosity, intellect, passion and a strong work ethic that reminded me of how rewarding teaching can be and will serve her well in our program, as well as her future career.”
After graduation, Feight and her husband hope to open a small practice that blends urban planning and landscape architecture. Their focus is pragmatic: Water, streetscapes and public spaces where small design decisions make daily life better.
“Kentucky is home for us, and we want to both care for it and improve it,” she said. “We’re passionate about helping to translate (no pun intended) academic theory into solutions that address the environmental and social challenges facing all of us. It’s a really exciting time to a student, especially in landscape architecture.”
# # #
Writer: Jordan Strickler,
jstrickler@uky.edu
The Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment is an Equal Opportunity Organization with respect to education and employment and authorization to provide research, education information and other services to individuals and institutions that provide equal opportunities for qualified persons in all aspects of institutional operations and do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnic origin, religion, creed, age, physical or mental disability, veteran status, uniformed service, political belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, marital status, genetic information or social or economic status.
Part of UK’s Office for Student Success, the Veterans Resource Center supports and advocates for veteran and military-connected students through fostering community, assisting with college transitions and processing GI Bill certification.
Land-grant Engagement
Landscape Architecture
Students
Contact Information
Contact: Jordan Phemister,
Jordan.Phemister@uky.edu
Media Requests: C.E. Huffman,
ce.huffman@uky.edu
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