Kevin Akers and Dr. Mark Newman have been named the 2022 Distinguished Alumni award recipients by the Daviess County Public Schools Board of Education.
A reception will be held in their honor from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Friday in the Daviess County High School media center. Former classmates, teachers, administrators, friends and family are invited to attend. Immediately following the reception, Akers and Newman will be recognized prior to kickoff at the Apollo vs. Daviess County football game at DCHS Reid Stadium.
“On behalf of the Board of Education, we are excited to have two of our outstanding alumni returning to DCPS for this recognition,” said Dale Stewart, DCPS Board of Education Chair. “This recognition has been three years in the making, as we have had to delay celebrations over the past few years. We are glad to be resuming the tradition of recognizing our Distinguished Alumni in this way.”
Akers, Apollo High School Class of 1981, was named President and Chief Executive Officer of Atmos Energy in October 2019. Akers served as executive vice president from November 2018 to October 2019. Akers has also previously held numerous high-ranking positions across several divisions within Atmos. Akers joined the company in 1991 as an engineer in Owensboro for Atmos Energy’s Kentucky Division. Akers is a graduate of the University of Alabama with a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering.
Newman, Daviess County High School Class of 1977, joined the University of Kentucky in 2017 as the Executive Vice President for Health Affairs. He is responsible for the university’s health system, UK HealthCare, comprising four hospitals and over 14,000 employees. He also oversees the UK College of Medicine in conjunction with the Provost. Newman graduated from Western Kentucky University in 1981. He received an Air Force scholarship to support his medical education at the University of Louisville, and completed residency training in the Air Force and a fellowship in cardiothoracic anesthesiology and transesophageal echocardiography at Duke University Medical Center. He is board certified in anesthesiology and transesophageal echocardiography and has published more than 200 peer reviewed articles, seven books and awarded numerous patents.
