UK College of Design honors 2025 Lyman T. Johnson awardees
The University of Kentucky College of Design honored its 2025 Lyman T. Johnson awardees during the 34th annual Lyman T. Johnson Awards Luncheon on Friday, Oct. 17.
Hosted by the UK Alumni Association’s Lyman T. Johnson Alumni Constituency Group during UK Homecoming, the annual event honors alumni and students who embody the spirit and accomplishments of Lyman T. Johnson, recognizing those who have positively impacted the lives of others and their communities.
Each academic college selects an alumnus to receive the Lyman T. Johnson Torch of Excellence Awards for outstanding achievement and a student to receive the Torch Bearer Awards for academic excellence and service to others.
The UK College of Design’s 2025 Lyman T. Johnson awardees are:
Torch of Excellence — Montréale Jones
Montréale L. Jones, a native of Hopkinsville, Kentucky, draws inspiration from the duality of his rural roots and the urban places he has traveled and lived in.
He earned an associate degree from Hopkinsville Community College in 2017, a Bachelor of Architecture in 2020 and a Master of Urban and Environmental Design in 2022 from the University of Kentucky’s College of Design.
While at UK he was a member of the 2020 class of Gaines Fellows and as an engaged student leader with MANRRS and within the College of Design, where he championed student success and fostered campus collaboration.
He is a Master of Architecture candidate at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design.
With over a decade of design experience, including two years with internationally renowned Danish architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group in New York City, Jones has contributed to global projects as both designer and business development coordinator. Among these, the National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth, Texas stands out as the dream project of his career.
Torch Bearer — Eniola Olaleye
Eniola Olaleye is a junior at the University of Kentucky, pursuing a bachelor's degree in architecture and maintaining a 4.0 GPA.
She serves in leadership roles with the American Institute of Architecture Students and the National Organization of Minority Architecture Students where she advocates for design excellence and community engagement.
She is the executive director of the Beaux Arts Ball Foundation, a nonprofit that raises funds for institutions supporting the arts. She is committed to advancing innovative and sustainable approaches within the field of architecture.
She recently completed a fellowship with the National Organization of Minority Architects’ Future Faces program, interning with a Los Angeles-based architecture firm over the summer, where she expanded her professional experience and deepened her passion for design that serves communities.
She aspires to continue her journey in architecture, blending creativity, sustainability and community impact to shape spaces that inspire and endure.
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For the purposes of this website, this story has been modified to feature only the LTJ awardees related to the UK College of Design. This story originally featured the names of all 2025 winners and can be found here. Award winner bios were pulled from the Alumni Association's website here.