< PreviousN ow in his 23rd year as Director of Athletics at the University of Kentucky, Mitch Barnhart continues to expand his impact on national and regional levels, all while leading his Wildcats to consistent achievement in the arenas of competition, in the class- room and in the community. Having the second-longest term of service among current ADs at schools in the Power 4 conferences, Barnhart’s experience, knowledge and synthe- sis of athletic and academic success have made him a highly respected and sought-after presence across the scope of collegiate sports. Barnhart has a long history of na- tional service, highlighted by a five- year term on the NCAA Men’s Basket- ball Tournament Committee that included a historic year as Chair of the first COVID-era event. He also served a stint on the College Football Playoff committee and is one of only four people who have served on the football playoff committee and as chair of the men’s basketball tournament. Dedicated to the advancement of those whom he guides, Barnhart’s national influ- ence has grown through his “AD tree” – ad- ministrators and coaches who have worked for him and become Division I athletics di- rectors – which now numbers seven. At Kentucky, the Wildcat athletic pro- gram placed in the top 20 of the NACDA Directors’ Cup national all-sports stand- ings from 2017-23 (no standings in 2020 because of the pandemic), one of only 10 schools that earned that distinction. The Directors’ Cup was established in 1993-94 and the best nine finishes in school histo- ry have been under Barnhart, all of which have come in the last 11 years that had final standings. UK Athletics hit a peak in the Directors’ Cup in the 2021-22 school year. Sparked by a national championship in rifle, an NCAA Tournament runner-up slot by men’s tennis, and third-place national finishes by wom- en’s indoor and outdoor track and field, UK ascended to a school-record ninth place among Division I schools, which now totals 362 members. Barnhart’s legacy at Kentucky includes success in a wide array of sports. All count- ed, UK has earned six NCAA champion- ship rings during Barnhart’s term, including men’s basketball in 2012, volleyball in ’20 and rifle in 2011, ’18, ’21 and ‘22. UK also has totaled 58 regular-season and tourna- ment conference championships under his leadership, including first-time titles in baseball, women’s tennis, men’s golf and women’s swimming and diving. Since 2020, five Wildcats have been named National Athlete of the Year in their sport. In addition, Asia Seidt of swimming and diving was chosen for the highly pres- tigious NCAA Woman of the Year award, covering all female athletes in all divisions, for her combination of athletic success, academic excellence and dedication to community service. Numerous additional Wildcats have won national awards for their performances on the field, in the classroom and in the community. On the conference level, during Barn- hart’s term, Wildcats have been named the SEC Male and Female Athlete of the Year, the SEC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and the SEC Male and Female Community Service Leader of the Year. A school-record total of 20 Wildcat ath- letes and coaches participated in the Tokyo Olympics, bringing home a school-record 10 medals, including seven gold. With qualifying in progress while this was writ- ten, UK will have another strong contingent in the 2024 Paris Olympiad. The competitive success has been fol- lowed by personal recognition. In 2022, he was inducted into the (state of) Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame and he received the John L. Toner Award for excellence in ath- letics administration from the National Foot- ball Foundation and College Hall of Fame. Those honors added to a grow- ing list of accolades for Barnhart, who was selected the 2019 Division I AD of the Year by the SportsBusi- ness Journal. The accomplishments are a result of Barnhart’s work since his arrival in the summer of 2002. He has steadi- ly invested in the growth of all UK teams while maintaining a singular commitment to the holistic devel- opment of Wildcat student-athletes. At the heart of everything are the core values Barnhart has instilled in the department he leads: character, integrity, knowledge, stewardship and competitiveness. A department-wide 3.0 grade- point average among student-ath- letes and increased community service have been long-standing goals for Barn- hart. The GPA benchmark was first met in the spring semester of 2010 and has now reached a streak of 24 consecutive semes- ters. In spring 2020, UK achieved a cu- mulative GPA of 3.534, the best in school history. Community service has reached as much as 4,000 hours annually and includes out- reach to the Lexington area, the Common- wealth of Kentucky and as far away as Ethi- opia, the Dominican Republic and Panama. In December of 2021 and August 2022, when natural disasters devastated western and eastern Kentucky, a pair of telethons sponsored by UK Athletics raised more than $8 million and numerous student-athletes and staff took part in other fundraising proj- ects, supply assistance, cleanup and the re- building process. In addition to the extraordinary achieve- ments of his work world, reaching new heights is also a theme of his personal life. An avid mountain climber, Barnhart has scaled Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, along with two of the most challenging peaks in the United States, Mount Rainier in Washington and the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. He also has performed two tandem parachute jumps with the Army Golden Knights. Impactful in community service, Barnhart has taken part in mission trips and is on the national advisory board of K-Love Radio. Barnhart is a native of Kansas City, Kan- sas. He and his wife, Connie, have three children and six grandchildren. 72 @KentuckyMBB Mitch Barnhart n Director of Athletics n University of KentuckyKentucky Firm with World-Class Clients Surveying Due Diligence / Site Selection CIVIL DESIGN & PERMITTING GEOTECHNICAL EVALUATION STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING ARCHITECTURE Construction Management Services Special Inspections / Materials Testing GO CATS! THOROUGHBREDFIRM.COMNext >