Bill and Mary Witt have been named the 2020 recipients of the William E. Lyons Award. co-sponsored by the University of Kentucky’s Martin School of Public Policy and Administration and the Department of Political Science. This award, co-sponsored by the University of Kentucky’s Martin School of Public Policy and the Department of Political Science, is given yearly to an individual (or couple, in this case) who are associated with the university and who has given outstanding service to UK, the community or the Commonwealth of Kentucky. 

 The award is named in honor of William (Bill) E. Lyons, former professor of political science and public administrator, who during his tenure at UK, also served as director of the Martin School and chair of the Department of Political Science. Lyons, who died in 1994, is credited with crafting the charter which created a merged government for Lexington and Fayette County in the early 1970's. 

Bill is a retired professor of the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences.  He started his career at UK as the Weeds Extension Specialist for the Western Region of Kentucky and was based in Princeton.  He stayed at UKREC for 5 years and then switched to a research/teaching appointment in Lexington. During his years at UK Bill trained 23 Masters and 21 PhD students and contributed to many research efforts including mare reproductive loss syndrome.  

Mary was the first woman hired as a Cooperative Extension Specialist in the College of Agriculture in Horticulture. She initiated the Kentucky Master Gardener Program, which continues strong today.  After retiring in 1997, Mary served as the interim Director of the Arboretum – a position she held for two years. Bill and Mary remain very active with the Arboretum and are generous supporters of many of its efforts. 

Both Bill and Mary continue to serve a variety of agricultural-related entities and our community today. They are generous supporters of the annual Graduate Student Symposium for Integrated Plant and Soil Science Students.