Written by Lili Derkach
The University of Washington’s Awards of Excellence celebrates exceptional alumni, faculty, staff, students and retirees who embody the public mission at the heart of the University.
On June 11, Meany Hall welcomed colleagues, friends and family members to honor this year’s recipients at the 56th annual ceremony. President Robert J. Jones hosted the ceremony for the first time, presenting the recipients with their medals and sharing celebratory remarks alongside UW Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Tricia Serio.
Read about the extraordinary 2026 recipients below and take a look at some photos from the event.
2026 Awards of Excellence Recipients
Distinguished Staff Award for Career Achievement
Danielle Woodward, Assistant Director, Social Development Research Group, School of Social Work
Since beginning her UW career in 1994 as a data collector, Danielle co-founded the Survey Research Division and built a nationally respected data enterprise. She now leads a 35‑person team that generates about $2 million annually, with longitudinal study retention exceeding 85%. Known as a compassionate and visionary leader, her mentorship, collaboration and commitment to excellence underpin the group’s lasting success.
Distinguished Staff Award for Collaboration
Traci Townsend, Program Operations Specialist III, Wireless Design and Architecture, UW Information Technology
As a program operations specialist, Traci oversees the complex Wi‑Fi infrastructure across all UW campuses and medical centers, ensuring reliable connectivity for thousands of users. Known as “Traci Wi‑Fi” for her expertise, she collaborates with vendors, finance teams and partners throughout the University, leading complex deployments and sharing solutions across the UW-IT system.
Distinguished Staff Award for Impact
Lisa Norton, Director of Licensing, Physical Sciences & Engineering, CoMotion
Through her more than 20 years of service, Lisa has guided UW research teams through technology commercialization that delivers societal, economic and health impacts. She helped expand CoMotion’s work and negotiated a landmark licensing agreement benefiting the UW, innovators, investors and patients. Known as an exceptional technology licensor, Lisa’s work has improved lives across Washington state and the world.
Distinguished Staff Award for Inclusion and Belonging
Angela Ott, Fiscal Specialist, Payee, Mental Health and Addiction Services, Harborview Medical Center
Angela embodies the values of inclusion and belonging through her compassion and respect for every client and colleague at Harborview Mental Health and Addiction Services. She consistently supports unhoused and vulnerable populations with patience and humility, while fostering a clinic culture rooted in empathy, human connection, trust and teamwork in keeping with Harborview’s mission.
Distinguished Staff Award for Innovation
Undergraduate Advising Centralization Leadership Team, Office of Student Academic Success, UW Bothell
Claire Grant, Assistant Director of Advising
Garick Sherburn, Assistant Director of Advising
Nhi Phuong Tran, Assistant Director of Advising
Jessica Trenkamp, Assistant Director of Advising
Suzanne Yates, Assistant Dean
This team reimagined student success by leading a bold, campus-wide transformation to centralize undergraduate advising. In one year, they united 26 staff into a single collaborative unit, cross-trained advisers, established shared policies, launched an online system to connect students and advisers, and created a new professional adviser career ladder. Their work has improved equity, retention and students’ experience.
David B. Thorud Leadership Award
Suzanne Allen, Vice Dean, Academic, Rural and Regional Affairs, School of Medicine
As the nation’s largest and most geographically complex medical education program, WWAMI serves five states and hundreds of partners. With her collaborative, equity-centered leadership, Suzanne has built innovative regional partnerships, strengthened rural health education, safeguarded state funding and guided curriculum and strategic planning to shape regional medical education.
David B. Thorud Leadership Award
Santhi Perumal, Vice Chancellor, Planning & Administration, UW Bothell, recognized for her work at the UW College of Education on the Seattle campus
Santhi is a visionary, people-centered leader whose work blends strategic insight, operational excellence, and a deep commitment to equity, transparency and care. At the UW College of Education, Santhi led transformative innovations that were adopted across the University of Washington in Seattle, expanded community-engaged doctoral education, strengthened facilities planning, elevated fiscal transparency, and fostered a culture of trust, mentorship and shared leadership.
Distinguished Librarian Award
John Vallier, Curator, Ethnomusicology Archives, Special Collections, University Libraries
John has transformed access to and preservation of the UW Ethnomusicology Archives, one of North America’s largest collections of its kind. He secured nearly $1 million to digitize and protect fragile, at‑risk recordings — which created more interdisciplinary access. He also led UW Libraries’ largest repatriation effort, returning more than 30,000 items through ethical, community-centered collaboration and stewardship.
UW Alumni Association Distinguished Service Award
Gregg Blodgett, ’76, Michael G. Foster School of Business and College of Arts & Sciences; President, UW Alumni Association (ret.)
Since graduating from the UW in 1976, Gregg has been a longtime Alumni Association volunteer and leader who served as UWAA president during a pivotal period of institutional growth and closer integration with the University. A trusted mentor to successive UWAA board leaders, Gregg’s guidance has strengthened alumni engagement and governance for nearly two decades.
UW Alumni Association Distinguished Retiree Excellence in Community Service Award
Sandy Moy, Chief Operating Officer, University Computing Services (ret.)
After more than 20 years in computing and communications at the UW, Sandy retired in 2008 as the chief operating officer from what is now UW-IT. A founding volunteer and longtime leader of Northwest Neighbors Network, Sandy helped that organization grow from 20 to 400 members. As one of the network’s most dedicated volunteers, Sandy contributes about 3,000 hours each year supporting seniors and adults with disabilities.
Distinguished Teaching Award
Megan Callow, Teaching Professor, English, College of Arts & Sciences
Megan is the founding director of Writing@UW, a program that fosters a tri‑campus culture of writing and centralized support for faculty who teach writing. She models reflective, learner‑centered pedagogy that emphasizes metacognition, rhetorical agency and belonging, particularly in STEM contexts. Megan’s impact extends through faculty development, graduate instructor mentoring and nationally recognized scholarship on writing pedagogy.
Distinguished Teaching Award
Hannah Jordt, Associate Teaching Professor, Genome Sciences, School of Medicine
By following high‑intensity active learning and growth‑mindset practices, Hannah creates inclusive, evidence‑based learning environments in large STEM courses. She builds community through personalized outreach, peer‑facilitator programs, and mentorship of graduate students and faculty. Beyond her classroom, she advances equitable genetics education through discipline‑based education research and national service.
Distinguished Teaching Award
Wes King, Assistant Teaching Professor, Information School
Wes designs courses that invite students to critically examine social, ethical and cultural tensions around information, technology, identity and power. Through experiential assignments and inclusive pedagogy, Wes encourages active learning and courageous dialogue. In addition, Wes builds strong teaching communities by mentoring teaching assistants and modeling reflective, socially responsible teaching practices.
Distinguished Teaching Award
Jill Purdy, Professor; Director, Entrepreneurship Center; Milgard School of Business, UW Tacoma
As an award-winning educator with more than 30 years of experience, Jill is renowned for her reflective, student-centered teaching. She fosters inclusive, engaging classrooms; designs accessible materials; and leads community-engaged, real-world learning. Jill mentors faculty and builds cross-disciplinary connections that strengthen teaching culture and student success through campus-wide entrepreneurship initiatives and mentoring.
Distinguished Teaching Award
Georgia M. Roberts, Lecturer, American Ethnic Studies, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences, UW Bothell
To help students connect their coursework to lived experiences, Georgia creates transformative, inclusive learning environments that blend interdisciplinary scholarship, critical inquiry and reflective practice. Georgia is recognized across UW Bothell for exceptional mentorship and innovative impact achieved through inclusive, anti-racist teaching at the intersection of literature, hip-hop and ethnic studies.
Distinguished Teaching Award
Casey J. Self, Teaching Professor, Biology, College of Arts & Sciences
Casey’s evidence‑based, growth‑oriented teaching practices emphasize reflection and learning as an iterative process. She creates highly structured, learner‑driven classrooms focused on the “why” behind concepts and empowers student inquiry. Her impact extends beyond the classroom through extensive service, including chairing the Faculty Council on Teaching & Learning and advancing University‑wide teaching effectiveness.
Distinguished Teaching Team Award
Collier-Otten-Spiker Food Systems Teaching Team, School of Public Health
Sarah Collier, Assistant Professor, Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences
Jennifer Otten, Professor, Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences
Marie Spiker, Assistant Professor, Epidemiology
Through their collaboratively designed courses, this team has built and sustained an interdisciplinary teaching partnership that anchors the food systems, nutrition, and health major. Grounded in civic health principles, their teaching and mentorship helps their students reach the nuanced understanding of complex food system topics that will advance their leadership throughout their careers.
Distinguished Teaching Team Award
Community-Engaged Civil Engineering and Urban Design Capstone Team, UW Tacoma
Nara Almeida, Assistant Teaching Professor, Civil Engineering, School of Engineering & Technology
Bára Šafářová, Assistant Professor, Urban Design, School of Urban Studies
This team immerses students in real-life challenges that nurture not only technical competence but also civic responsibility. One example is their interdisciplinary capstone course in which civil engineering and urban design students work directly with University partners, city stakeholders and local firms to help create a new vision for UW Tacoma’s 2050 comprehensive plan.
Distinguished Teaching Legacy Award 
Edward D. Lazowska, Bill & Melinda Gates Chair Emeritus, Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering
With a teaching legacy that spans more than five decades, Ed has mentored generations of students, future faculty and technology leaders. Beyond the classroom, he powerfully communicated the value of the University and the Allen School to civic, business and political leaders. While leading transformative growth in computer science, he remained deeply committed to teaching and advising Ph.D. students whose global influence endures.
Excellence in Teaching Award
Rachael Herren, Doctoral Candidate, Theatre History and Performance Studies, School of Drama
Rachael’s theater classrooms are supportive spaces for rehearsing the complexity of adult life. She embraces practices such as “speaking in drafts” to encourage revision, risk-taking and confidence. She encourages undergraduate scholarship, and many of her students present their research at University and national conferences. Rachael also demonstrates exceptional teaching leadership across multiple instructional roles while mentoring new graduate instructors.
Excellence in Teaching Award
Jennifer Zheng, Doctoral Candidate, Communication, College of Arts & Sciences
Jennifer has served in a variety of teaching roles, including instructor of record and lead teaching assistant for large‑enrollment courses. She supports undergraduate research, in addition to developing curriculum and training instructors in community‑based public speaking and debate programs. Jennifer’s reflective, experiential pedagogy connects theory to real‑world contexts to empower students’ confidence, critical thinking and academic growth.
Distinguished Contributions to Lifelong Learning Award
Rebecca M. Price, Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences, UW Bothell
Grounded in mentoring, reflection and inclusive practice, Rebecca has created inclusive, evidence‑based learning environments for undergraduates, adult learners and future faculty across disciplines. As one nominator wrote, Rebecca’s “contributions demonstrate that lifelong learning is not an add-on to academic life, but a guiding principle that shapes teaching, mentoring, scholarship and service.”
University Faculty Lecture Award
Noah A. Smith, Professor, Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering; Charles and Lisa Simonyi Endowed Chair, Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies; Vice Provost, Artificial Intelligence
Recognized as an international leader in natural language processing and artificial intelligence, Noah has helped shape modern language modeling, machine learning methodology and computational social science. He is widely recognized for advancing responsible, sustainable “Green AI” through open research and replicability, and is an engaging public speaker who makes complex AI concepts accessible to broad audiences. Noah will present a lecture in 2027.
Excellence in Global Engagement Award
James Sherrell, Program Specialist, EthnoMed, Harborview Medical Center
Through community partnerships and teaching cross‑cultural care, James is strengthening communication and cultural competency across UW Medicine. When he redesigned EthnoMed, James centered the needs of immigrant and refugee communities — and, at the same time, expanded experiential learning for UW students, residents and clinicians. As one colleague wrote, James’ work reflects his belief that global engagement begins in one’s own backyard.
Marsha L. Landolt Distinguished Graduate Mentor Award
Anjum Hajat, Associate Professor, Epidemiology, School of Public Health
Over her career, Anjum has chaired 31 graduate committees — and served on 31 more. She has mentored more than 90 graduate students and postdoctoral scholars. Anjum exemplifies the highest standards of graduate mentorship through sustained, holistic support that centers students and their voices to encourage their academic, professional and personal development.
Outstanding Public Service Award
Scott Bingham, Executive Director, Computing and Productivity Platforms, UW Information Technology
Beyond his leadership role at the UW, Scott founded Housing Solutions for Hope to support families facing housing instability during their ch ildren’s medical care. He leads a volunteer‑run guild that has raised more than $1 million, helping over 250 families and building trusted community partnerships that address housing as a critical factor in positive health outcomes and lives.
Distinguished Alumni Veteran Award
Elizabeth Bridges, ’91, ’98, School of Nursing; Colonel, U.S. Air Force Nurse Corps (ret.)
A national leader in military and critical care nursing, Elizabeth transformed care for critically ill and injured service members, particularly in aeromedical evacuation. An inspiring mentor, she challenged nurses, officers and professionals to exceed their own expectations. Through leadership and example, she continues to develop future nurse leaders across military medicine and academic nursing communities.
President’s Medal
Julia Grace Lee, ’26, School of Nursing
Julia earned her degree in nursing and graduated with a perfect 4.0. As a Seattle native, she was drawn to the UW to stay connected to the communities that shaped her. She has studied Mandarin Chinese and Japanese to deepen her ability to connect with patients. And she has conducted honors research in music-based interventions for dementia patients. She will be starting as an intensive care unit nurse at Swedish Medical Center.
President’s Medal
Tom McAlister, ’26, School of Art + Art History + Design, College of Arts & Sciences
Tom transferred to the University of Washington from Tacoma Community College and has maintained a perfect academic record at the UW. He graduated as an art major and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society. He is also the recipient of the prestigious Bonderman Fellowship, which will allow him to travel the world and further explore the question of how humans and their relationship to art can change the world.
UW Alumni Association Alumna Summa Laude Dignata
Mary Brunkow, ’83, College of Arts & Sciences; Distinguished Investigator and Senior Program Manager, Institute for Systems Biology
An internationally recognized scientist, Mary was awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for co‑discovering the FOXP3 gene, a foundational breakthrough that has transformed understanding of regulatory T-cells and immune tolerance. Her work has advanced treatments for autoimmune disease, cancer and transplant rejection, reflecting extraordinary global impact and lifelong commitment to scientific service. She also served as the University’s 2026 commencement ceremony speaker.
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