UK Alumni Association honors Stanley and Karen Pigman with 2026 Founders Day Award
LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 24, 2026) — In honor of the University of Kentucky’s founding in 1865, the UK Alumni Association has named Stanley and Karen Pigman as the recipients of the 2026 UK Founders Day Award. The award recognizes individuals who personify goodwill, service and dedication to the people of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The Pigmans were recognized April 24 during a Founders Day ceremony at the Gatton Student Center on UK’s campus.
Stanley Pigman reflected on the honor and the couple’s continued connection to the university.
“Karen and I are deeply honored to receive this award and recognition,” Stanley Pigman said. “We truly value our partnership with the University of Kentucky and are grateful for the opportunity to continue guiding and supporting such inspiring students.”
“Stan and Karen’s impact is tightly woven into the fabric of this campus,” UK President Eli Capilouto said during the ceremony. “We see it in the College of Engineering that now bears their name and in the students who eagerly walk through the doors of Pigman Hall. Their legacy is honored through the countless graduates who carry forward an indelible gift — the confidence that someone believed in them.
“That is the true meaning of Founders Day,” Capilouto continued. “To celebrate those who founded this place, and to thank those who help our students find their place in it. It is an honor to show our deep appreciation for all the Pigmans have done for this state and her people. They remind us that the greatest measurement of success is what we make possible for others.”
Both first-generation college graduates, Stanley and Karen Pigman have built a legacy grounded in expanding access to education and supporting student success. Stanley, a native of Knott County, Kentucky, earned a scholarship to study mining engineering at UK, which would transform the course of his life. Karen, raised in High Point, North Carolina, was taught the value of giving back and has dedicated her life to supporting others.
Together, they have made a lasting impact at UK through philanthropy and leadership. Their support spans scholarships, research, academic programs and capital projects, with a focus on students with unmet financial need and those from Appalachia.
Their shared vision led to the creation of The Lighthouse Beacon Foundation, which advances opportunity and access to education. Through this work and their personal philanthropy, they have helped build a pipeline of support for students, including scholarships, graduate fellowships and research opportunities.
At UK, their legacy includes the Stanley and Karen Pigman Distinguished Chair in Power, the Stanley and Karen Pigman Scholarship Fund and the Stanley and Karen Pigman Heritage Science Chair, along with support for initiatives such as the SPARK Lab and PEIK program. They have also mentored and invested in the educational journeys of more than 380 students.
Stanley Pigman earned his bachelor’s degree in mining engineering from UK in 1981 and was later awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters. He is a member of the UK Pigman College of Engineering Dean’s Advisory Council and the Mining Engineering Foundation. He was inducted into the college’s Hall of Distinction in 2009 and the UK Alumni Association’s Hall of Distinguished Alumni in 2020.
Together, the Pigmans serve on the university’s President’s Capital Campaign Committee and the Pigman College of Engineering Capital Campaign Committee. Stanley is a Life Member of the UK Alumni Association, and both are Presidential Fellows. The Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering and Pigman Hall, home of the Engineering Living Learning Program, stand as lasting tributes to their impact on campus.
As part of the Founders Day Award, the Pigmans received a commemorative medallion, and a one-time monetary donation of $10,000 will be made in their name to a university philanthropic fund of their choice.
For more information about the Founders Day Award and past recipients, visit www.ukalumni.net/FoundersDayAward.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.