The University of Kentucky closed the book on its 2015 spring semester last week, and it received quite a pleasant surprise to begin its summer on Tuesday morning.

Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart, who has held the position since 2002, was named one of four Under Armour Athletics Director of the Year Award winners this week by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NADCA).

Barnhart and fellow 2015 award winners Chris Del Conte (TCU), Warde Manuel (UConn) and Ian McCaw (Baylor) will receive their awards on June 17 at a NADCA luncheon in Orlando.

“I’m thankful for the presidents I’ve worked for, Dr. (Eli) Capilouto and Dr. (Lee) Todd at Kentucky and Dr. (Paul) Risser at Oregon State, and for Coach Dickey (former Tennessee athletics director Doug Dickey), who was an important mentor to me,” Barnhart said in a UK Athletics media release. “It is a great honor to be recognized by your peers. Success is driven by a wonderful staff, dynamic coaches and talented young people.”

To be considered for the award, one must have served as Athletics Director at his or her current school for a minimum of five years. A candidate must also demonstrate a “commitment to higher education and student-athletes, continuous teamwork, loyalty and excellence, and the ability to inspire individuals or groups to high levels of accomplishments,” according to the release.

Barnhart was hired by Kentucky in 2002, and in that time he’s hired three head football coaches (Rich Brooks, Joker Phillips and Mark Stoops) as well as two men’s basketball coaches (Billy Gillispie and some guy named John Calipari). He’s also overseen a rifle team national championship and the current renovations to Commonwealth Stadium and the team’s on-campus football facilities.

In 2008 he began to promote his 15 by 15 by 15 plan, a three-fold plan aiming to elevate Kentucky’s athletics department in SEC competition and on the academic side of the student-athlete equation. Since that time, Kentucky has won 15 SEC championships between its 22 varsity programs; it cracked the top 15 of the NADCA Directors’ Cup standings with an 11th place finish this year, and UK has now boasted a department-wide grade-point average of at least 3.0 for five consecutive semesters.

“Under the steady and successful leadership of Mitch Barnhart, the University of Kentucky athletics program is reaching extraordinary levels of success across its 22 varsity programs,” UK President Eli Capilouto said in the media release. “For 13 years, his integrity and talent have empowered our staff, coaches and student-athletes to succeed on the field, in the classroom and across the communities they serve. Having recently reached his ambitious set of goals for the department, Mitch continues to inspire our program to reach even higher, while supporting in creative and impactful ways the academic mission of the University.”