People

December 1, 2015

Restaurateur Renee

She wants to serve the world’s best steak. That’s why chef Renee Erickson, ’95, is now in the ranch business.


An unprecedented president

She is the first woman, first Latina and the first in a long while to be promoted from within to lead the University of Washington.


Distinguished Alumni Veteran

Grethe Cammermeyer, ’76, ’91, challenged the ban on gays in the military and, eventually, she won.


Character: Elise Ray

She had a rough time at the Olympics, but she recovered to help young athletes succeed.


'Scarface' found

A team of scientists has identified a new species of “pre-mammal” based on fossils unearthed in Zambia’s Luangwa Basin in 2009. Its discoverers include Christian Sidor, UW professor of biology and curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Burke Museum.


Filthy friends

Geomorphologist David Montgomery finds the dirt is full of friendly germs.


Northwest at heart

Author Langdon Cook infuses his writing with a message of caring for the environment he calls home.


September 1, 2015

The CoMotion Commitment

While the UW is known for its groundbreaking research, it has not been perceived as spry or supportive in leveraging the expertise of its faculty. Vikram Jandhyala has set out to change that.


Fearless humanitarian

When disaster strikes, Mercy Corps co-founder Dan O'Neill, ’72, dives in to help.


True to self

As Terra Hoy and others in the UW community know, changing genders is fraught with challenges -- emotional, physical and societal.


Band life

Senior physics major Carlo Torrella joined the UW’s 240-member marching band in 2011. It has been one of the most demanding experiences of his life. But “I’m so glad I did it,” he says.


Relationships first

Genetic ethicist Wylie Burke keeps people in mind as she studies advances in medicine and public health.


June 1, 2015

Norm Dicks, retired?

His 36-year career as a Democratic Congressman for Washington’s 6th District may have ended in 2012, but he’s still on the case protecting wildlife and fighting to bolster the economy in his native region.


Ivan Doig, 1939-2015

Whenever I wander by Smith Hall, I reflect about the home of the UW’s esteemed History Department, as well as the place where, in 1969, a doctoral student wrote a memoir about losing his mother at age 6 and being raised by his father and grandma in hardscrabble Montana. Of course, I am referring to Ivan Doig’s first book.


Top teachers

They walk into a classroom that is filled with a sea of anxious faces. Expectations run high. They take a deep breath and off they go—the process of molding students into scholars is what teachers do everyday. With the greatest of ease? Hardly. Only some have the chops to rise above the rest. Introducing this year’s best of the best.


Give Me 5: Dan Kingma

Despite scholarship offers from other schools, Dan Kingma was certain that he was a Husky, even if that meant joining the program as a walk-on.


Jon Bridgman

In the 1950 film La Ronde, the narrator states: “I adore the past. It’s so much more restful than the present and so much more certain than the future.” History Professor Jon Bridgman said that this scene captured his perspective.


Character: Mary Larson

The Harborview nurse barters her portraits to help the homeless in Seattle.


Career in service

In 1961, when President John F. Kennedy famously said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,” Lloyd Hara took it to heart. It’s why he went to graduate school to study public affairs and spent the past 40 years in public service.


A startling find

Since she was a student in pharmacy school, Shelly Gray has felt a strong connection to the situation many elderly patients find themselves in: “I was struck by how many different medications older adults are taking, as well as their struggle with trying to keep those medications straight,” she recalls.


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