Alumni Distinguished Service Award
From left to right: Kevin Connell, Hannah Myers, Shane Carlin, and Susan Mustian
Click here to see past recipients
The UK Alumni Association Distinguished Service Awards are presented annually to honor and recognize those who have provided extraordinary service to the university and the association. The 2013 recipients were honored on June 14 during the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors Summer Workshop in Lexington.
The 2013 recipients are:
Shane T. Carlin ’95 AG is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association and has served on its board of directors since 2006. He is active in the Diversity and Group Development Committee where he provides insights into students, Young Alumni and alumni of diverse backgrounds. He has also donated his time to speaking at the association’s Multicultural Student Thanksgiving Dinner event. His involvement with the UK Alumni Association dates back to his time as a UK student ambassador when he regularly spoke to alumni clubs. Carlin is a UK Fellow, Wildcat Society member and Life Member of the Ag & HES Alumni Association. He makes a positive impact on UK students by reaching out to current Asian-American students by volunteering himself as a resource to them as a fellow Asian American, professional and UK graduate. Carlin is currently the assistant vice chancellor for student affairs advancement at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He frequently mentors students across the world and fosters an international worldview in students by promoting and taking part in travel to Asia. He is on the Midwest Asian American Student Union Board of Advisors, the Korean Cultural Center board and was notably the first Asian American to be on the Kentucky 4-H Foundation board. He also has a master’s degree in college student personnel from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He resides in Savoy, Ill., with his wife, Annie.
Kevin A. Connell ’74 AS is the current president of the Greater Louisville UK Alumni Club, a position he also held in 1990. He has chaired the club’s annual Football Kickoff Luncheon and UK Night at the Louisville Bats. He has also served on the club’s Scholarship Committee. He has been a member of the UK Alumni Association for more than 25 years and has held numerous leadership positions, including raising funds for the W.T. Young Library and helping to develop leadership training sessions for the Summer Workshop. He has also served two terms on the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors. Connell is extensively involved in work with the greater UK community. He is a UK Fellow and UK Advocacy Network member. He is involved with student recruitment through active participation in the UK Book Awards program, presenting at high schools and writing personal letters to graduating high school seniors about the positive aspects of UK. He is an annual contributor to the UK College of Arts & Sciences and a donor to the K Fund. He served as president of the Sigma Chi House Corp. from 1999 to 2007. One of many fraternity awards he has received is the Outstanding Greek Alumnus award in 2003. Connell serves on numerous boards in the Louisville community. Some of these include the Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, Metro United Way and the Center for Labor-Management Commission. He is also active in the St. Margaret Mary Church as a Cub Scout leader. In his spare time he enjoys participating in athletics. He and his wife, UK alumna Gail Griffith Connell, have two children Shannon and Drew, both UK alumni.
Susan Van Buren Mustian ’84 BE is currently on the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors. She has served on the Membership Committee, the Executive Committee and is currently on the Club Development Committee. Her involvement with the association goes back to her time as a UK student when she worked with former Executive Director Bob Whitaker. After her graduation, she immersed herself in working with the Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati UK Alumni Club and was president-elect of the club. However, due to her husband’s career, her family was transferred to Hong Kong, China, before she was able to assume the position. She has also helped to develop alumni clubs in South Bend, Ind., and Hong Kong. As a student at the University of Kentucky, she was the Student Activities Board and Homecoming director and was co-founder of the UK chapter of Alpha Omicron Pi. She is currently involved with the UK Advocacy Network and has aided in student recruitment by working at numerous college fairs, delivering book awards and staffing the annual Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati UK Alumni Club Student Send-off. Mustian serves on the board of directors of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation where she provides leadership in major gifts, the annual gala and the Walk to Cure. She resides in Hebron with her husband and fellow UK graduate, Scott and three children, Sam, Sarah and Nathan.
Hannah Miner Myers ’93 ED is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association and is an active member of the Hopkins County UK Alumni Club. She served as president of the club from 1999 to 2000 and assists in organizing and securing sponsors for the club’s annual 5K run. She has also donated funds to endow the Hopkins County UK Alumni Club Scholarship Fund. She currently serves on the UK Alumni Association Board of Directors. She is chairwoman of the Scholarship/Great Teacher Committee and serves on the Executive Committee. She has been actively involved in the Scholarship/Great Teacher Committee and the Executive Committee. She is also a former recipient of the Joseph T. Burch Young Alumni Award. Myers’ UK activism is multifaceted. She is part of the Women and Philanthropy Network and a UK Advocacy Network member, a UK Fellow and K Fund donor. She is also a proud Delta Delta Delta alumna and donor to the Tri Delta House Renovation Fund. Myers is active in her local community of Madisonville. She is currently a Madisonville City Council member serving on the Public Safety Committee and Property and Risk Management, Annexation and Zoning, Parks and Recreation and Economic Development and Electric Committees. She serves on the board of the Hopkins County-Madisonville Public Library and is a faculty member at the Madisonville campus of Murray State University. She resides in Madisonville with her husband, Brad.
About The Award
The UK Alumni Association's Distinguished Service Awards are presented annually to honor and recognize up to four recipients, of which one can be a non-alum friend of the University of Kentucky, who have provided extraordinary service to the University of Kentucky and the Association. Nominees for this prestigious award should have:
- Demonstrated a history of diligent work for the UK Alumni Association and/or a local alumni club.
- Contributed to the accomplishments of the UK Alumni Association and/or a local alumni club.
- Provided leadership and dedication to University and Association programs.
- Provided meaningful service to alumni and friends of the University, community and profession.
- Alumni shall have at least 12 credit hours.