R. Keith Lawton was born on June 4, 1919 in Americus, Kansas, the son of Henry B. and Edna Lowe Lawton. He graduated from high school in Kiowa, KS. He attended Emporia State University before entering the US Navy, where he served during WWII.

Following the war, Lawton was a 1947 graduate of the University of Kansas with a B.S. in Business Administration. He began his career with KU as the Director of Dormitories from 1948-1951. From 1952-1962, he was the Administrative Assistant to the Chancellor. He then became the Vice Chancellor of Operations and continued in that position until he became the Vice Chancellor for Campus Planning and Development. After his retirement in 1982, he remained as a Special Assistant to the Chancellor. He taught several courses in university campus planning in the Graduate School for many years.

Lawton was active in the creation of a campus master plan for KU. He believed in good "town and gown" relationships and instituted meetings with several local entitities affected by KU plans, including the city of Lawrence, Douglas County, Kansas City Power & Light, and the Kansas Highway Patrol. Before KU established a university counsel office, Lawton was the liaison with the Kansas Attorney General's office for all matters related to facilities, construction, and parking.

R. Keith Lawton passed away on August 17, 2012.