Samantha Valentino
Reporter
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Samantha Valentino joined the WKYT team in April 2022.
She grew up in Connecticut where she fell in love with journalism at a young age. Samantha moved to Lexington in 2018 to study broadcast journalism and criminology at the University of Kentucky.
While at UK, she helped create the University of Kentucky's podcast "Bowman's Friends," hosted WRFL 88.1 F.M.'s news program "Campus Voices," and worked as an anchor, reporter, and producer for the UK Student News Network.
Samantha came to WKYT part-time just before graduating from UK and switched to full-time the day after crossing the graduation stage.
Updated: Sep. 27, 2023 at 11:12 AM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
The White House says women and children who count on WIC could be some of the first to feel the effects of a government shutdown. That includes more than 100-thousand Kentuckians.
Updated: Sep. 24, 2023 at 12:34 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Accidental overdose becomes leading cause of death in Kentuckians under 40
Updated: Sep. 13, 2023 at 3:22 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Kentucky is facing a shortage of school counselors. More than 100 schools in the Commonwealth are without even a single counselor.
Updated: Aug. 23, 2023 at 3:27 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
While your recovery time from COVID-19 may not have been longer than a week or so, experts say you could feel the lasting effects of the disease for up to two years.
Updated: Aug. 22, 2023 at 3:42 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Kentuckians are now one step closer to being able to place bets on sporting events in Kentucky.
Updated: Aug. 21, 2023 at 2:45 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
The Kentucky Board of Education is starting the process to search for a new education commissioner.
Updated: Aug. 9, 2023 at 3:26 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
On Monday, Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s campaign shared a letter from UK HealthCare addressed to Republican Representative James Tipton.
Updated: Jul. 30, 2023 at 2:12 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Tyler Childers’ new music video has taken the world by storm, garnering more than 2 million views on Youtube in just a few days.
Updated: Jul. 10, 2023 at 1:18 PM CDT
|By WKYT News Staff, Chandler Wilcox and Samantha Valentino
Governor Andy Beshear, lawmakers and the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission joined together in making the announcement on Monday.
Updated: Jun. 27, 2023 at 3:04 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
People in Richmond are still working to clean up the mess this weekend’s severe storms left behind.
Updated: Jun. 23, 2023 at 3:57 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Former employees at a Lexington sexual violence resource center say 70% of the staff was let go on Thursday.
Updated: Jun. 13, 2023 at 3:15 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
After an investigation by the Justice Department, the Madison County School District will be making changes to stop racial harassment in schools.
Updated: Jun. 12, 2023 at 3:47 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Officials in Montgomery County are investigating after people reported finding concerning flyers in their front yards.
Updated: Jun. 5, 2023 at 2:39 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Unemployment in Kentucky has hit a historic low, but some industries are still struggling to fill open positions.
Updated: May. 29, 2023 at 11:07 AM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Kentucky officials honored those who have died in the line of duty by adding five names to the Kentucky National Guard Memorial in Frankfort during a Memorial Day ceremony.
Updated: May. 22, 2023 at 3:54 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
As one woman tells us, she and her children were seconds away from being hit by that wrong-way driver.
Updated: May. 19, 2023 at 3:48 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
They say children as young as four should learn hands-only CPR.
Updated: May. 8, 2023 at 3:27 PM CDT
|By WKYT News Staff, Samantha Valentino and Andrew McMunn
Officials said the classmate was injured in the shoulder.
Updated: Apr. 20, 2023 at 9:13 PM CDT
|By Chad Hedrick and Samantha Valentino
For the first time since 2018, drug overdose rates in Kentucky are down from the year before.
Updated: Apr. 6, 2023 at 3:13 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
The University of Kentucky is taking part in a national COVID vaccine study.
Updated: Mar. 31, 2023 at 3:18 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino and Dave Baker
Governor Beshear signed the sports betting bill into law on Friday. It will take effect in June, but it could be longer before sports betting actually begins in the Commonwealth.
Updated: Mar. 28, 2023 at 2:35 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
A new study at the University of Kentucky is looking at how the COVID-19 pandemic played a role in a significant spike in overdose deaths in Kentucky.
Updated: Mar. 24, 2023 at 3:06 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
A fake GoFundMe claiming to support the family of Eli Hill has opened up questions about the legal ramifications of fraudulent GoFundMes.
Updated: Mar. 17, 2023 at 3:34 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Ky. lawmakers who broke from party lines on an "anti-LGBTQ" bill explain why they made that decision.
Updated: Feb. 24, 2023 at 2:57 PM CST
|By Samantha Valentino
House Bill 288 would make several changes to the way this misconduct is handled.
Updated: Feb. 22, 2023 at 8:17 PM CST
|By Samantha Valentino
A new bill to make Juneteenth a state holiday was filed in the General Assembly Wednesday.
Updated: Feb. 13, 2023 at 7:59 PM CST
|By Samantha Valentino and Andrew McMunn
Valentine’s Day, a holiday for celebrating love, is especially significant for one Kentucky couple.
Updated: Jan. 15, 2023 at 12:45 PM CST
|By Samantha Valentino
After a failed campaign for the US Senate against Senator Rand Paul, former State Representative Charles Booker said that his work isn’t over.
Updated: Jan. 6, 2023 at 3:30 PM CST
|By WKYT News Staff, Samantha Valentino and Chad Hedrick
The election filing deadline is now closed.
Updated: Dec. 24, 2022 at 12:57 PM CST
|By Samantha Valentino
Governor Beshear says the National Guard, Kentucky State Police, and local first responders have assisted road crews in trying to clear the interstate and conducting wellness checks on those stuck on I-71.
Updated: Nov. 14, 2022 at 7:45 AM CST
|By WKYT News Staff and Samantha Valentino
The bus crashed Monday morning on Route 40 east of Salyersville.
Updated: Nov. 13, 2022 at 2:09 PM CST
|By Samantha Valentino
30% of Kentucky Children’s Hospital beds are occupied by RSV patients
Updated: Nov. 7, 2022 at 10:54 AM CST
|By WKYT News Staff and Samantha Valentino
We’re learning new details about the arrest of a University of Kentucky student accused of assaulting another student and calling her racial slurs.
Updated: Nov. 6, 2022 at 10:26 AM CST
|By WKYT News Staff and Samantha Valentino
A student at the University of Kentucky has been arrested in connection to a physical and verbal assault against another UK student.
Updated: Oct. 30, 2022 at 5:12 AM CDT
|By WKYT News Staff and Samantha Valentino
As a result of the collision, Officer Medlock suffered life-threatening injuries and was pronounced dead on the scene by the Laurel County Coroner.
Updated: Oct. 16, 2022 at 8:31 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
So far this year, the state has lost more than triple the number of clerks lost during the pandemic.
Updated: Oct. 7, 2022 at 10:43 AM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
The Fall Meet runs through October 29, with races on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
Updated: Oct. 2, 2022 at 11:06 AM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Hundreds of Kentucky Basketball fans camped out for tickets to Big Blue Madness.
Updated: Sep. 24, 2022 at 5:20 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
The 2022 ‘September Sale’ was the highest grossing auction in Keeneland’s history.
Updated: Sep. 2, 2022 at 2:48 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
UK police are making sure they’re prepared to keep everyone safe.
Updated: Aug. 13, 2022 at 6:53 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Lane Howard is selling lemonade to help a family that lost everything in the floods.
Updated: Aug. 4, 2022 at 9:29 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino and Jordan Gartner
A woman in Kentucky is sharing her harrowing story of how she escaped rising floodwaters last week with her grandmother.
Updated: Jul. 23, 2022 at 6:05 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
Protect Kentucky Access is working to defend Constitutional Amendment 2
Updated: Jul. 17, 2022 at 3:54 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
A Kentucky county Republican Party deleted its Facebook page after an ‘antisemitic’ post was shared
Updated: Jun. 22, 2022 at 11:33 AM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
As we enter the early days of summer and the temperatures begin rise, we’re seeing an increased number of people on motorcycles out on the roads.
Updated: May. 9, 2022 at 3:57 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
There is an ongoing shortage of baby formula, across the country. Some stores are putting limits on how much parents can buy, creating an added strain for families.
Updated: Apr. 22, 2022 at 3:28 PM CDT
|By Samantha Valentino
People in Madison and Woodford counties are grieving this week following two separate crashes, killing a teen and child student.