LEXINGTON, Ky. — The University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences inducted four alumni and one emeritus faculty member into its Hall of Fame on Friday, April 17, recognizing individuals who exemplify the value of a liberal arts education and have made significant contributions to their professions and communities.

The five honorees — Janet M. Norton, William F. Schweri II, William Barry Lee, Hannah Haksgaard and Steven W. Yates — were recognized across three award categories: Distinguished Alumni Award, Bright Futures Leadership Award and Emeriti Faculty Award.

"Our Hall of Fame honorees reflect the very best of Arts and Sciences," said Ana Franco-Watkins, dean of the college. "They have built meaningful careers, led with purpose, and made a lasting difference in their professions and communities."

Norton, of Louisville, serves as chief legal and regulatory affairs officer and corporate secretary of Baptist Healthcare System Inc., the largest healthcare system in Kentucky. In her 30-year career, she has overseen legal services, cybersecurity, government relations, compliance and risk management for an organization operating nine hospitals and more than 400 locations with a workforce exceeding 26,000 employees. She earned her bachelor's degree with high distinction from UK and her law degree with distinction from the UK J. David Rosenberg College of Law.

Schweri spent 42 years at the university, including 37 years in research administration. As UK's first director of federal relations, he served as a registered lobbyist in Washington, D.C., and helped secure more than $200 million in direct federal appropriations for the institution. The Anthropology graduate also directed the Office of Sponsored Program Development and has earned numerous honors from the Society of Research Administrators International, including the Excellence Award.

Lee, a native of Elizabethtown, is an ophthalmologist partner at Eye Consultants of Atlanta and Piedmont Healthcare specializing in corneal transplantation and complex cataract surgery. He earned both his undergraduate and medical degrees from UK before completing a cornea fellowship at the University of California, Davis. As president of the Georgia Society of Ophthalmology and the Cornea Society — an international organization representing surgeons from more than 50 countries — Lee has trained more than 20 surgical fellows and performed advanced techniques worldwide.

Haksgaard, a 2009 graduate in political science, is a professor at the University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law, where she teaches property and family law. Her scholarship focuses on the rural lawyer shortage, with a forthcoming book titled "The Rural Lawyer: How to Incentivize Rural Law Practice and Help Small Communities Thrive." She earned her law degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and clerked for federal judges in the U.S. District Court and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Yates, a professor emeritus of chemistry, taught and conducted research at UK for nearly five decades beginning in 1975. A leading scholar in nuclear structure and spectroscopy, he authored or co-authored more than 300 publications and mentored generations of scientists. His pioneering experiments advanced understanding of inelastic neutron scattering and later expanded into neutrino and particle physics. He retired in 2023.