The university is the first in the state of Kentucky to have achieved this award, which is one of the highest offered by the Special Olympics.

The partnership will result in the Senior Workforce Program, which will serve adults aged 55 and over as they pursue new skills and workforce training.

The anonymous donation totals $2 million and has brought the total amount raised for the project to $9.25 million, which is $750,000 short of the goal.

Irene and Don Dizney donated funding to establish the Donald R. and Irene S. Dizney Dean of the College of Health and Human Services, the first endowed deanship in the university’s history.

The Advancing Kentucky Together Network, a University of Kentucky initiative, has found its first partner in Transylvania University.

Goodwill Industries is the first statewide employer to participate in the college’s Education First Employer program.

The college has received $25,000 from Domtar, formerly Paper Excellence Group, to support three key initiatives.

The college received a 2025 Bellwether Award for Workforce Development for its "From Coal to Careers – The Lisman Workforce Complex” initiative.

The partnership will result in a job placement pathway via the RJet Cadet program.

The provisional grant award will run for three years and is expected to provide around $4.5 million in funding. The final funding notifications are currently pending.