The Blue Key Service Award is presented to distinguished individuals who have made a major contribution to the University, the state and nation. Past recipients are shown here along with their titles at the time of their selection.
Past Recipients
| Recipient | Affiliation | Year Awarded |
|---|---|---|
| Herman E. Talmadge | U.S. Senator from Georgia | 1964 |
| Richard B. Russell | U.S. Senator from Georgia | 1965 |
| Philip Weltner | Former Chancellor, University System of Georgia | 1965 |
| Carl E. Sanders | Former Governor of Georgia | 1966 |
| S. Ernest Vandiver | Former Governor of Georgia | 1966 |
| Phil Campbell | Under-secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture | 1967 |
| Jasper Dorsey | Vice President, Southern Bell Telephone Company | 1967 |
| George L. Smith II | Speaker, Georgia House of Representatives | 1967 |
| Jack B. Ray | Former Georgia State Treasurer | 1968 |
| Phil M. Landrum | U.S. Representative, District 9 of Georgia | 1968 |
| Robert G. Stephens, Jr. | U.S. Representative, District 10 of Georgia | 1969 |
| John A. Sibley | Former Board Chairman, Trust Company Bank of Georgia | 1969 |
| Eugene R. Black | Former President of the World Bank | 1969 |
| William Tate | Dean of Men Emeritus, University of Georgia | 1970 |
| Chappelle Matthews | Representative, State of Georgia, District 16 | 1970 |
| Carl Vinson | Former U.S. Representative, Districts 10 and 6 of Georgia | 1971 |
| John J. Flynt, Jr. | U.S. Representative, District 6 of Georgia | 1971 |
| Thomas E. Strickland | State Public Relations Manager, Southern Bell Telephone Company | 1972 |
| Robert L. Sikes | U.S. Representative, District 1 of Florida | 1972 |
| Fred C. Davison | President, University of Georgia | 1972 |
| John W. Davis | U.S. Representative, District 7 of Georgia | 1973 |
| Philip H. Alston, Jr. | Senior Partner, Law Firm of Alston, Miller & Gaines | 1973 |
| E. Merton Coulter | Regents’ Professor of History Emeritus, University of Georgia | 1974 |
| Harry S. Baxter | Partner, Law Firm of Kilpatrick, Cody, Rogers, McClatchey and Regenstein | 1974 |
| Augustus H. Sterne | President and Board Chairman, Trust Company Bank | 1975 |
| Dean Rusk | Former U.S. Secretary of State | 1975 |
| J. W. Fanning | Vice President for Services, University of Georgia | 1976 |
| George D. Busbee | Governor of Georgia | 1976 |
| Sam Nunn | U.S. Senator from Georgia | 1977 |
| D. W. Brooks | Chairman of the Board, Gold Kist, Inc. | 1977 |
| Eugene P. Odum | Alumni Foundation Distinguished Professor of Ecology, University of Georgia | 1977 |
| Glenn W. Burton | Alumni Foundation Distinguished Professor of Agronomy, University of Georgia | 1978 |
| Thomas B. Murphy | Speaker, Georgia House of Representatives | 1979 |
| Joel Eaves | Former Director of Athletics, University of Georgia | 1979 |
| Max Cleland | U.S. Veterans Affairs Administrator | 1979 |
| Griffin Bell | Former U.S. Attorney General | 1980 |
| Roy V. Harris | Former Member, Board of Regents, University System of Georgia | 1980 |
| Ellis Arnall | Former Governor of Georgia | 1980 |
| Robert Jordan | Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Georgia | 1981 |
| Albert B. Saye | Richard B. Russell Professor of Political Science Emeritus, University of Georgia | 1981 |
| Vincent J. Dooley | Athletic Director and Head Football Coach, University of Georgia | 1982 |
| W. Tapley Bennett, Jr. | U.S. Ambassador to NATO | 1982 |
| Robert H. Scarborough | Former Vice Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard | 1982 |
| Daniel H. Magill | Assistant Athletic Director for Public Relations and Tennis Coach, University of Georgia | 1983 |
| Tyus Butler | Director Emeritus of Alumni Relations and Professor of Journalism, University of Georgia | 1983 |
| George S. Parthemos | Alumni Foundation Distinguished Teaching Professor of Political Science, University of Georgia | 1984 |
| Lamar Dodd | Regents’ Professor of Art Emeritus and Chairman Emeritus of the Fine Arts Division, University of Georgia | 1984 |
| Doug Bernard, Jr. | U.S. Representative, District 10 of Georgia | 1985 |
| Sidney O. Smith, Jr. | Member, Board of Regents, University System of Georgia | 1985 |
| James, A. Dunlap | Senior Partner, Law Firm of Whelchel, Dunlap & Gignilliat and Former Member, Board of Regents, University System of Georgia | 1986 |
| Albert B. Jones | Former Assistant to the President and Associate Professor in the Institute of Government, University of Georgia | 1986 |
| S. Truett Cathy | Founder and President of Chick-fil-A, Inc. | 1987 |
| J. Ralph Beaird | Former Dean, School of Law, University of Georgia | 1987 |
| Henry King Stanford | Former President, University of Georgia | 1987 |
| George “Buddy” Darden | U.S. Representative, District 7 of Georgia | 1988 |
| M. Louise McBee | Former Vice President for Academic Affairs, University of Georgia | 1988 |
| Lothar L. Tresp | Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program, University of Georgia | 1989 |
| Earl T. Leonard, Jr. | Senior Vice President for Public Relations, The Coca-Cola Company | 1989 |
| Henrietta M. Singletary | Former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development | 1990 |
| Louis S. Sohn, Jr. | Senior Vice President, Schapiro and Sons, Inc. | 1990 |
| Irvin M. Wofford | Trustee Emeritus, UGA Foundation and Former President, Georgia Alumni Society | 1991 |
| Abit Massey | Executive Director, Georgia Poultry Federation | 1991 |
| Pierre Howard | Lieutenant Governor, State of Georgia | 1991 |
| William C. Hartman, Jr. | Former President, Georgia Alumni Society and Former UGA Football Coach | 1992 |
| Robert Benham | Justice, Supreme Court of Georgia | 1992 |
| Charlayne Hunter-Gault | National Correspondent for the MacNeill/Lehrer NewsHour | 1993 |
| Charles E. Harman, Jr. | President, Georgia Chamber of Commerce | 1993 |
| Hamilton E. Holmes | Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs, Grady Memorial Hospital | 1993 |
| Charles B. Knapp | President, University of Georgia | 1996 |
| C. Richard Yarbrough | Managing Director of Communications for the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games | 1996 |
| Zell Miller | Governor of Georgia | 1996 |
| Sonny Perdue | Senator, State of Georgia, District 18 | 1997 |
| Paul Broun | Senator, State of Georgia, District 46 | 1997 |
| Jack Kingston | U.S. Representative, District 1 of Georgia | 1997 |
| Larry Walker | Representative, State of Georgia, District 141 | 1998 |
| Johnny Isakson | Chairman of the State Board of Education | 1998 |
| Anne Seawell | Retired Director, Career Planning and Placement Office, University of Georgia | 1999 |
| C. L. Morehead | Founder and Owner, Flowers, Inc. | 1999 |
| Saxby Chambliss | U.S. Representative, District 8 of Georgia | 1999 |
| Jack Bauerle | Head Swimming and Diving Coach, University of Georgia | 2000 |
| Joe Frank Harris | Former Governor of Georgia | 2000 |
| Otis A. Brumby, Jr. | Chairman of the State Board of Education | 2000 |
| Sylvia Hutchinson | Aderhold Professor of Reading Education, University of Georgia | 2001 |
| Deen Day Smith | Civic Leader and Philanthropist | 2001 |
| DuBose Porter | Representative, State of Georgia, District 119 | 2001 |
| Gordhan Patel | Vice President for Research, University of Georgia | 2002 |
| Mary Virginia Terry | Civic Leader and Philanthropist | 2002 |
| C. Herman Terry (Posthumous Award) | Civic Leader and Philanthropist | 2002 |
| Norman S. Fletcher | Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Georgia | 2002 |
| J. Don Edwards | J. M. Tull Professor of Accounting Emeritus and Former Interim Dean, Terry College of Business, University of Georgia | 2003 |
| Doris Ramsey | Civic Leader and Philanthropist | 2003 |
| Bernard B. Ramsey (Posthumous Award) | Retired Senior Vice President, Merrill Lynch & Co., and UGA Benefactor | 2003 |
| Eldridge W. McMillan | Member, Board of Regents, University System of Georgia and President Emeritus of the Southern Education Foundation | 2003 |
| R. Perry Sentell, Jr. | Marion and W. Colquitt Carter Professor Emeritus, University of Georgia | 2004 |
| Charles S. Sanford, Jr. | Retired Chairman and CEO, Bankers Trust Corporation and Bankers Trust Company | 2004 |
| Jane Seddon Willson | President, Sunnyland Farms, Inc. | 2004 |
| Roy E. Barnes | Former Governor of Georgia | 2004 |
| Peter Albersheim | Co-Director of the Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, University of Georgia | 2005 |
| Carolyn Warnell Bryan | Civic Leader and Philanthropist | 2005 |
| William S. (Bill) Stuckey, Jr. | Businessman and Former U.S. Representative, District 8 of Georgia | 2005 |
| Upshaw C. Bentley, Jr. | Partner, Fortson, Bentley and Griffin, PA | 2006 |
| Dr. Delmer D. Dunn | Vice President for Instruction and Associate Provost, University of Georgia | 2006 |
| Clarence Thomas | Associate Justice, U.S. Supreme Court | 2006 |
| Andrew G. Landers | Head Women’s Basketball Coach, University of Georgia | 2007 |
| M. Smith (Smitty) Griffith | Patron, Georgia Museum of Art | 2007 |
| Sanford H. Orkin | President, SHO Investment Management Company | 2007 |
| Eric Johnson | Senator, State of Georgia, District 1 | 2007 |
| Suzanne Yoculan | Head Women's Gymnastics Coach, University of Georgia | 2008 |
| C. V. (Jim) Nalley III | Businessman and Civic Leader | 2008 |
| Charles E. Campbell | Partner, Law Firm of McKenna, Long, & Aldridge LLP | 2008 |
| C. Ronald Ellington | Dean Emeritus, School of Law, University of Georgia | 2009 |
| Jerry R. Griffin | Executive Director, Association County Commissioners of Georgia | 2009 |
| Jerry L. Keen | Representative, State of Georgia, District 179 | 2009 |
| Betty Jean Craige | Director of the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts, University of Georgia | 2010 |
| John W. Rooker | Businessman and Civic Leader | 2010 |
| Jack Hill | Senator, State of Georgia, District 4 | 2010 |
| Charles S. Bullock III | Richard B. Russell Chair in Political Science, University of Georgia | 2011 |
| Donald A. Perry | Vice President for Public Relations, Chick-fil-A, Inc. | 2011 |
| David E. Ralston | Speaker, Georgia House of Representatives | 2011 |
| Michael F. Adams | President, University of Georgia | 2012 |
| Mary Ethridge Adams | Civic Leader and UGA Supporter | 2012 |
| Anne L. Sweaney | Professor and Head of the Department of Housing and Consumer Economics, University of Georgia | 2012 |
| Robert G. Edge | Attorney, Alston & Bird, Atlanta Office | 2012 |
| Thomas S. Landrum | Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations, University of Georgia | 2013 |
| William D. Young, Jr. | Vice President, General Wholesale Company | 2013 |
| Kessel D. Stelling, Jr. | Member, Board of Regents, University System of Georgia | 2013 |
| T. Rogers Wade | Member, Board of Regents, University System of Georgia | 2014 |
| John Phinizy Spalding | Vice President for Government Affairs and Chief Privacy Officer, Cox Communications | 2014 |
| Loch K. Johnson | Regents' Professor of Public and International Affairs, University of Georgia | 2014 |
| Julie E. Carnes | Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit, Atlanta | 2014 |
| Peter J. Shedd | University Professor of Legal Studies Emeritus, University of Georgia | 2015 |
| Steve C. Jones | Judge, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia | 2015 |
| Terry L. England | Representative, State of Georgia, District 116 | 2015 |
| William S. Cowsert | Senator, State of Georgia, District 46 | 2015 |
| James C. Cobb | B. Phinizy Spalding Professor of History Emeritus, University of Georgia | 2016 |
| David J. Shafer | President Pro Tem, Georgia Senate | 2016 |
| Swann Seiler | Manager of Corporate Communications, Georgia Power’s Coastal Region - Savannah | 2016 |
| Jan L. Jones | Speaker Pro Tempore, Georgia House of Representatives | 2016 |
| Christopher M. Carr | Commissioner, Georgia Department of Economic Development | 2016 |
| David S. Williams | Associate Provost and Director of the Honors Program, University of Georgia | 2017 |
| Victor K. Wilson | Vice President for Student Affairs, University of Georgia | 2017 |
| Susan C. Waltman | Executive Vice President for Legal, Regulatory and Professional Affairs and General Counsel for the Greater New York Hospital Association | 2017 |
| C. Randall Nuckolls | Partner, Dentons US LLP, Washington, DC | 2017 |
| Alan G. Darvill | Regents Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Director of the Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, University of Georgia | 2018 |
| Neal J. Quirk | Partner, Law Office of Quirk & Quirk, LLC and Trustee, University of Georgia Foundation | 2018 |
| Joe and Ann Frierson | Longtime Volunteers and Supporters, University of Georgia and First Couple to Receive a Joint Blue Key Service Award | 2018 |
| Michelle G. Cook | Vice Provost for Diversity and Inclusion and Strategic University Initiatives, University of Georgia | 2018 |
| J. Griffin Doyle | Retired Vice President for Government Relations, University of Georgia | 2019 |
| Libby V. Morris | Zell B. Miller Distinguished Professor of Higher Education and Director of the Institute of Higher Education, University of Georgia | 2019 |
| Don L. Waters | Chair, Board of Regents, University System of Georgia and CEO of Waters Capital Partners, LLC | 2019 |
| Awards Not Given | 2020 | |
| Darrice L. Griffin | Deputy Director of Athletics, University of Georgia | 2021 |
| Robert L. Izlar | Retired Founding Director of the Harley Langdale, Jr. Center for Forest Business, University of Georgia | 2021 |
| Steve W. Wrigley | Retired Chancellor, University System of Georgia | 2021 |
| Audrey A. Haynes | Associate Professor of Political Science and a Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor (SPIA), University of Georgia | 2021 |
| D. Paul Chambers, Jr. | Retired AT&T North Georgia Regional Director of External Affairs | 2022 |
| Yvette K. Daniels | Deputy Director of Workforce Management, Georgia Department of Public Health and President of the UGA Alumni Association Board | 2022 |
| William M. Ray II | Judge, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia | 2022 |
| Jennifer L. Frum | Vice President for Public Service and Outreach, University of Georgia | 2022 |
| Allison C. Ausband | Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Experience Officer, Delta Air Lines | 2023 |
| Brian P. Kemp | Governor, State of Georgia | 2023 |
| Lisa Godbey Wood | Judge, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Georgia | 2023 |
| Gregory H. Robinson | UGA Foundation Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, University of Georgia | 2023 |