Monday Governor Herbert appointed basketball star Thurl Bailey as the first ambassador to the Utah refugee community.

Thurl Bailey knows a lot about a lot of things. He played for the Utah Jazz in the 1980s and 1990s, is an actor, a singer/songwriter, and a public speaker.

"I’m not just an athlete. I’m a community advocate, I love people, I love their stories, their journeys, they inspire me," Bailey said.

Over the years, the Selfhelp Home in Chicago has brought together more than 1,000 refugees and Holocaust survivors under one roof. A new documentary film, "Refuge:  Stories of the Selfhelp Home", features the stories of the eventual residents of Selfhelp, who spent the war years surviving by any means necessary – fleeing to the Jewish ghetto of Shanghai, hiding in the French countryside, taken in by English families as part of the Kindertransport, or as prisoners in Auschwitz and other concentration camps.

Southern Utah University is readying itself to take flight starting in the fall of 2013.

The Utah State Board of Regents approved a new associate of applied science degree in aerospace/aviation technology at SUU.

More than 200 protestors gathered on Saturday to denounce Utah’s so-called “Ag-Gag” law. The law, which was signed by Governor Herbert in 2012, prohibits unauthorized filming or photography at agricultural facilities. This weekend’s protest was organized after charges were filed – and then dropped –  against a woman who filmed activities at a slaughterhouse in Draper.

The Moab uranium cleanup is expected to be completed in 2025, and then suddenly, the town will be 450 acres bigger. UPR’s Jon Kovash reports:

Wednesday evening about two dozen Moab residents gave their opinions on what can eventually be done with the uranium tailings and mill site, which is currently owned by the Department of Energy. Russ Von Koch chairs a local oversight committee for the cleanup.

One of the best ways to ensure that your cool season lawn gets through the hot summer is using the best watering practices and having a healthy lawn.  This includes watering deeply and less often, and mowing high. But there are also other types of cool season grasses that can also help your lawn be more drought tolerant. These include tall and fine fescues. Today on The Zesty Garden, we’ll look at the latest in these and other “best practices” with USU Water Conservation and Turfgrass Specialist, Kelly Kopp. But first on the program, we’ll talk with a dutch bulb expert whose family has been selling bulbs for almost 400 years. 

One of the biggest museum collections of Russian art in the United States is found right here in Utah, and its curator will soon become a recipient of one of Russia’s most prestigious fine art awards.

Vern Swanson is a leading expert on Soviet-era impressionist paintings. He’s visited Russia 36 times, written several books and articles on the topic and was director of the Springville Museum of Art in Utah County for 32 years.