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Overview

The University of Kentucky Lewis Honors College provides an enhanced course of instruction for outstanding, highly motivated students from all programs of study. Honors education is, at its heart, a liberal arts education that coupled with the resources available at the major research land-grant University of Kentucky make Lewis Honors College a unique experience. Regardless of major, the fundamental goal of Honors education is to provide all students with a broad, critical intellectual base from which they can then engage more deeply and thoughtfully in their chosen fields.

The mission of the Lewis Honors College is to better the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the world by helping students to explore their purpose, develop intellectually, and lead with integrity.

Honors students are diverse, innovative, intellectually engaged, and interested in creative thought. They are expected to be citizens of their University and their world, and to possess an inquisitive attitude toward a wide range of ideas and intellectual concepts.

News and Events

UK’s Phi Beta Kappa chapter inducts 22 new members

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 25, 2024) — The University of Kentucky chapter of Phi Beta Kappa recently inducted 22 new members into the prestigious academic honor society. This year’s induction ceremony was held Wednesday, April 17, at the Lewis Honors College (LHC) Scholars Lounge and featured a keynote address from John Thelin, professor emeritus in the College of Education.

UK senior shares keys to research success: Find a mentor, ask questions, take risks

Undergraduate students at the University of Kentucky have several chances to invest in themselves and their futures. One way they can build success, gain skills and be prepared for life after graduation is through undergraduate research.

2024 Sullivan Award winners lead with compassion, service to others

Two University of Kentucky students (including Lewis Honors College senior Kotomi Yokokura) and one local citizen have received UK’s highest honor for humanitarian efforts — the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award.

Honors Medal Ceremony

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Gatton Student Center Ballroom

160 Ave of Champions

Blue Outline Checkerboard

T.W. Lewis

Thomas W. Lewis is a seventh-generation Kentuckian who grew up in Lexington. He graduated from Bryan Station High School in 1967 and the University of Kentucky in 1971 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He received his Master’s in Business Administration in 1973 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Tom began his career in real estate development. After 18 years with four different companies and building upon those experiences, he started his own home building business in 1991 in Phoenix, Arizona. T. W. Lewis Company built approximately 250 homes per year from 1991 through 2011 and received many awards during this period, including America’s Best Builder in 1998 and the National Housing Quality Gold Award in 2009. 

In 2001, Tom and his wife, Jan, formed T.W. Lewis Foundation to support higher education, children and families in need, youth education and a variety of community nonprofit organizations. In 2015, in order to give back to the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Tom and Jan made a generous gift to the University of Kentucky to establish the Lewis Honors College. 

Mr. Lewis’ vision for the Lewis Honors College is to provide a world-class honors experience that is known for the success of its students, the quality of its faculty and curriculum, the respect of its peers and the economic and social progress of the Commonwealth of Kentucky

Tom Lewis