Alumni Association Announces Award Winners

LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 5, 2024) — The University of Kentucky Alumni Association announced the recipients of the Distinguished Service Awards and the Joseph T. Burch Award on June 21. The awards are presented annually to honor and recognize those who have provided extraordinary service to the university, the association and the community.

Distinguished Service Award Recipients

The UK Alumni Association Distinguished Service Award recognises up to five recipients selected by the Board of Trustees’ Awards Committee. Candidates for this prestigious award must have:

Demonstrated a history of diligent work for the UK Alumni Association and/or a local alumni club.
Contributed to the achievements of the UK Alumni Association and/or a local alumni club.
Demonstrated leadership and dedication to university and community programs.
I have provided significant service to alumni and friends of the university, community, and profession.

The 2024 Distinguished Service Award recipients are Katy Bennett, Michael L. Hawks, DMD, Antoine Huffman, and Todd Lanham.

Katy BennettA native of Catlettsburg, Kentucky, she graduated from the UK College of Communication and Information in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in integrated strategic communications. After graduation, she worked with UK’s Robinson Scholars program for first-generation students from eastern Kentucky counties, then joined UK’s marketing branding team and is now the assistant director of marketing. She helps the university recruit students as the director of communications for enrollment management. Bennett joined the Fayette County UK Alumni Club board after graduation. Bennett has served as the young alumni president, secretary, club president, and basketball ticket distribution coordinator. She is the unofficial chief of staff to the club’s president (and her father), Charlie. Bennett graduated from Leadership Lexington in 2015 and served on the Leadership Lexington Youth steering committee. She also volunteers with the Delta Gamma fraternity, locally on the House Society Board of Directors and as a recruitment advisor and as the Chair of the Morehead State University Delta Omicron Chapter Advisory Team. She has two dogs, Gabe and Bruno, and enjoys attending UK sporting events or any Disney related events.

Dr. Michael L. Hawks, DMDA native of Fulton, Kentucky, Hawks received a bachelor’s degree in biology in 1981 and a degree in dentistry from the UK College of Dentistry in 1985. While studying at UK, Hawks was a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity. He opened Hawks Family Dentistry in 1988. Hawks is a member of the American Dental Association, the Academy of General Dentistry, the American Orthodontic Society, the Tennessee Dental Association, and the Kentucky Dental Association. Hawks invests his time in community organizations such as the Fulton Bank Advisory Board and organizes and coaches youth sports leagues. He is a three-time president of the Fulton County UK Alumni Club. During his tenure as past president, the Fulton County Alumni Club successfully provided scholarships to local students in UK. Hawks is a life member of the UK Alumni Association. He and his wife Melanie have two sons, Corbin (’13 AFE, ’17 DE) and Harrison, who graduated from Ole Miss in 2018.

Antoine Huffman He earned his bachelor’s degree in telecommunications from the UK College of Communication and Information in 2005 while playing three years on the Wildcats football team. During his senior year, Huffman was the first black student at the school to be crowned UK Homecoming King. Huffman has served on the UK Athletic Association’s board of directors and served as the chair of the UK Athletics Outreach Committee for two years. A finalist for the ARA Sportsmanship Award and the Wuerffel Trophy, an award given to a college football athlete who exemplifies community service and academic achievement, Huffman has supported his community through his involvement in organizations such as Habitat for Humanity. He is a four-time member of the SEC and NCAA Academic Honor Roll and has been named an NCAA Academic All-American. Huffman is a past president of the UK Alumni Association and lives in Texas with his wife Jessica (’04, ’06 ED) and sons Jayden and Adonis. He is a regional sales manager for a medical equipment supplier. He and his wife are both life members of the UK Alumni Association.

Todd Lanham Todd grew up in Springfield, Kentucky and earned his associate’s degree in business from Lexington Community College, then part of the University of Kentucky, in 1997. He earned his bachelor’s degree in insurance and risk management from Eastern Kentucky University. He is a partner at USI Insurance Services and holds the designations of Certified Insurance Advisor and Certified Risk Manager. Lanham is the past chairman of the board of directors for the Salvation Army Louisville Command, a graduate of Leadership Louisville, Bingham Fellows, Ignite Louisville, LEAD GLI and Leadership Kentucky. In 2009, Lanham was honored by Risk and Insurance magazine as a Power Broker and 40 under 40. Todd served for 10 years with the Greater Louisville UK Alumni Club, where he served as treasurer, secretary, vice president and president. During his term as president, from 2020 to 2022, he oversaw the club’s annual football and basketball lunches at UK during COVID. The club hosted both events virtually while bringing in record donations for UK’s scholarship fund. Lanham lives in Louisville with his wife Stephanie (’02 BE, ’04 PH) and their three children. Their oldest daughter, Makena, will be entering UK as a freshman this fall.

Joseph T. Burch Young Alumni Award

The Joseph T. Burch Young Alumni Award is named for a longtime UK administrator who has dedicated much of his life to serving UK students. The purpose of the award is to recognize a select number of young alumni who are active members of the University of Kentucky Alumni Association and who are currently working on behalf of young people through the university, the association, their club or the local community. This year’s inductee brings the total number of recipients to 25.

Nominees for this prestigious award must have:

To raise funds for scholarships and/or award bursaries to students to study in the UK
I have worked with local high school students who are interested in attending the UK, through club sponsored events and/or university sponsored preview parties.
I have worked to educate young people in the local community, whether through tutoring, coaching or other means to keep them interested in learning.
Contributed to efforts to support the alumni association through mentoring or other means

Michaela Taylor graduated from UK in 2019, where she earned her Bachelor of Health Science in Clinical Leadership and Management. During her undergraduate studies, she was active in the Wildcat Marching Band, Alpha Gamma Delta, UK Alumni Ambassadors, and served a single term as Vice President of the UKSGA. In 2023, she received her Master of Health Administration from the College of Public Health and the J. David Rosenberg College of Law at the University of Kentucky, where she earned her Juris Doctorate. She began her legal career as an associate at Bricker Graydon, LLP in the firm’s Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation practice group. She continues to be actively involved in the alumni association as a member of the LAC and serves on the Dragonfly Foundation Ambassador Board of Directors in Cincinnati. She got engaged to her fiancé Dillion Sheppard (EN ’21) in front of Memorial Hall last summer. They have two dogs, Woodford and Weller.