Golden Graduates Brunch

The Golden Graduates Distinguished Alumnus Award is given to an alumnus who has demonstrated sustained, long-term and meaningful engagement with the UW. Learn more about how the UWAA celebrates outstanding members of the UW community on our awards page.

Tom Hinckley has a BA in Biology from Carleton College and a Ph.D. in forest biology from the University of Washington. He has taught at the Universities of Missouri, Natural Resources & Life Sciences (Vienna, Austria), and Washington for a total of 51 years.

Hinckley has conducted research from spruce-hemlock forests of SE Alaska to chaparral in southern Turkey, from old-growth Douglas-fir to fast growing hybrid cottonwood trees, and from shrub species in the Vienna woods to giant rosette plants of the Paramo in Venezuela. Four and half months after he returned to the University of Washington, Mt. St. Helens erupted and he had his first research project. He has taught in Austria, Canada, China, Finland, and South Korea. He has had a wide range of administrative positions; the directorship of CUH was most impactful for him. His teaching has spanned from “Introduction to Environmental Studies” to “Plant Water Relations” to the “Role of Culture and Place in Natural Resource Stewardship: The Yakama Nation Experience.”

Polly Olsen ’94 — Director, DEAI & Decolonization, Burke Museum

As the Burke Muesum’s Tribal Liaison, Polly Olsen is responsible for overall coordination of the Burke’s relationships with Tribal and Indian Organizations. That includes establishing and strengthening ties and relationships with Tribal officials, elders, staff and urban Indian leadership. Polly staffs the Native American Advisory Board, whose members provide advice and direction within Indigenous efforts that focus on a number of important areas, including cultural practices (or experiences), exhibits, collections policy, outreach, repatriation and collaborative Tribal and museum research and programs.

Phil Rigdon ’96 — Superintendent, Yakama Nation Department of Natural Resources

Phil Rigdon is an enrolled member of the Yakama Nation and grew up on the Yakama Reservation in South-central Washington state. Phil has been the Superintendent of Yakama Nation’s Natural Resources Department since May 2005 and has worked for the Tribe since June 1989. He represents the Yakama Nation on the Intertribal Timber Council, Yakima Basin Integrated Plan Executive Committee, the Washington State’s Columbia River Policy Advisory Group, Tapash Sustainable Forest Collaborative, the University of Washington Ecolab and the Hanford Natural Resource Trustee Council. Phil also served as President of the Intertribal Timber Council for five years and is currently serving on the Yale School of Environment Alumni Board. Phil obtained a BS in Forest Management from the University of Washington in 1996 and a Masters of Forestry from Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies in 2002.

Steve Rigdon ’02 — General Manager, Yakama Forest Products

Steve Rigdon earned his B.S. degree in Forest and Wildland Conservation from the University of Washington in 2001. From 2009 to 2011, Steve participated in a graduate degree program in Bio-Energy – Forest Economics at the UW, but did not complete the requirements to graduate.

From 1996 to 2007, Steve was a Forester for The Yakama Nation, working on high mountain meadow restoration projects, timber sales, planning and forest engineering. He also served as an Administrative Forestry Supervisor. From 2007 through 2015 Steve served as Resource Manager at Yakama Power. In this capacity, he coordinated and directed Yakama Power’s renewable energy and fiber telecommunications departments. From 2015 through 2016, Steve trained to become Yakama Forest Products’ General Manager, and Steve has served as YFP’s GM from late 2016 to the present. In this capacity, Steve directs and coordinates activities at all YFP departments, including: Sawmill Manufacturing; Sales and Marketing of lumber, logs and bi-products; Finance and Accounting; Forestry and Timber; Information Technology, and Human Resources. Steve considers his greatest accomplishment to be securing good value from fire-damaged timber off of the 2015 Cougar Creek Fire. Steve was also proud of the role he played keeping employees safe while continuing to produce high value lumber products throughout COVID-19.

A professor of psychology and American Ethnic Studies, Ana Mari Cauce has been a member of the UW faculty since 1986. She became the UW’s 33rd president in 2015, having previously served in many leadership positions, including provost and Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences. Throughout her career, she has been a staunch advocate for women and underrepresented minorities in STEM and for ensuring access to affordable, excellent higher education. Cauce earned her B.A. in English and psychology from the University of Miami and a Ph.D. in psychology from Yale University. She has received numerous awards for her teaching, scholarship and advocacy, including the James M. Jones Lifetime Achievement Award of the American Psychological Association and the UW Distinguished Teaching Award.

Read more about Ana Mari Cauce.