Congratulations to Seattle University's 2012 Alumni Award Winners!
Along with President Sundborg and Seattle University’s Alumni Board of Governors, the Office of Alumni Relations is pleased to announce the university’s 2012 Alumni Awards recipients, who were honored at the 27th Annual Alumni Awards Celebration, President’s Club and Legacy Society Dinner on April 17, 2012.
Check back soon for photos of this great event!
2012 Alumnus/Alumna of the Year Award: Martha Choe, ‘86
Presented for outstanding leadership and service to the community and to Seattle University
Martha Choe, Chief Administration Officer for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is a leader in economic and development affairs in Seattle and across the nation. She has long since been a champion for service to the community, and remains a strong supporter of the university, including having served as a Trustee and Regent. Martha previously held the role of Director of the Washington State Office and Trade Economic Development, providing leadership for sustainable job growth throughout Washington State. As CTED Director, she led trade missions to Asia, Mexico and Europe and led a multi-jurisdictional team to win the assembly of Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner over 47 states competing for this opportunity. Prior to that, Martha was elected to two four-year terms on the Seattle City Council and chaired the transportation and economic development and finance committees. She is recognized for work in promoting economic development across the state, in fulfillment of the governor's vision of "One Washington." She has long been active in civic and Asian American organizations and serves on several boards including as former chair of the White House Commission on Asian American and Pacific Islanders. In 1996 Newsweek named her as one of their 30 movers and shakers in Seattle, and the Seattle Chinese Post named her 1990 Woman of the Year.
2012 Professional Achievement Award: Paul Newman, PhD, ‘78
Presented for outstanding achievement in the professional arena
Dr. Paul A. Newman is a leader in the use of airplanes for atmospheric research, and is a senior scientist in the Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Branch of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD. He studies the earth's stratosphere, particularly the ozone layer. Paul currently serves as co-chair to the Scientific Assessment Panel to the Montreal Protocol, a landmark international treaty banning ozone-depleting substances to protect the earth's ozone layer. Newman directed the first flight of the NASA ER-2 over Russia, a civilian version of the U-2 reconnaissance plane that was converted to scientific research. Newman is a member of the American Meteorological Society, the American Geophysical Union, the International Ozone Commission (IOC), and other international scientific and technical committees. He has been part of the ten NASA Group Achievement awards and has twice been chosen by his Goddard colleagues for peer awards. His daughter Mary received her BA from Seattle University in 2002.
2012 Distinguished Teaching Award: Bill Weis, PhD
Presented to a Seattle University faculty member who has made a special contribution to students
Bill Weis is currently a faculty member in the Albers School of Business and Economics focused on teaching leadership and team development. Bill is also been a champion of service learning and served as program director of Albers’ MBA program from 1995 to 2009. He is co-founder of the Pacioli Society, creating the award-winning video documentary on the life and contributions of Luca Pacioli. Bill developed the MBA Leadership Skills and Team Development course, which has become a critical gateway course in SU’s MBA curriculum. Many students cite his courses as life-changing and a hallmark of their education at Seattle University. Before transitioning into teaching management, Bill was a CPA and Professor of Accounting at SU and chaired the accounting program for several years. He was recognized by the Washington Society of CPA’s as the State of Washington's Outstanding Accounting Educator in 1990-91, and given a special award for "Outstanding Contributions to Leadership Training" by the National Council of Beta Alpha Psi in 1992. In 1993, Beta Alpha Psi named him the Outstanding Faculty Advisor. In 2010, he was the recipient of the McGoldrick Fellowship from the university for his concern for Seattle University and its students, while exemplifying the ideals of Jesuit education. Bill was a catalyst to eliminate smoking from the workplace in the United States. During his years writing and speaking on workplace smoking issues, Bill presented seminars in over forty cities, appeared on national and international television and was often cited in commentaries on the subject of smoking control in the work environment.
2012 University Service Award: Julie Woodward, ‘93
Presented for outstanding service to Seattle University (alumni and non-alumni eligible)
Julie Woodward has been the head coach for the women's soccer team for 15 years, and gone on to lead them to 13 winning seasons. Julie is a former SU Soccer player, and is a member of the Seattle U Athletics Hall of Fame for her time as a player. Her coaching style helps shape determined young athletes and young scholars. Her players are often recognized for their academic excellence. In 2011, she added to her illustrious coaching resume by earning her 200th career victory. Since transitioning from a player to head coach, she has guided the program throughout their divisional transitions, most recently through the reclassification process back to the NCAA Division I level. In addition to coaching 13 10-win seasons, she has coached numerous Redhawks to conference, regional and national accolades. Woodward has been named the Far West Region Coach of the Year. She has coached five CoSIDA Capital One/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-Americans, 20 Academic All-District VIII selections and following the 2006-07 season, player Ana Gutierrez was an NCAA Woman of the Year finalist. Among active coaches, Woodward is also ranked in the NCAA Division I and II all-time coaching record books.
2012 Community Service Award:Tricia Trainer, '02
Presented for exceptional service to the community through volunteer or professional activities
Tricia Trainer, alumnus of Seattle University's School of Theology and Ministry, has been a longstanding volunteer and supporter of the Chief Seattle Club. The Chief Seattle Club is currently the only social service center in Seattle devoted exclusively to meeting the needs of urban American Indians, Alaska Natives, and First Nations People. They currently operate from a shared space, the Lazarus Day Center, during early morning hours, providing a hot meal and access to resources and services in as much of a Native community environment as possible, in the heart of urban Seattle. The Chief Seattle Club is currently at the concluding stage of a multi-million dollar capital campaign. In addition to countless hours of volunteer support Steve and Tricia Trainer donated a building, cash and professional services to the Chief Seattle Club as part of the campaign. Their support valued in the millions of dollars, was a cornerstone in allowing Chief Seattle Club to renovate a building in Pioneer Square which will be the Chief Seattle Club's new home, one of the largest, donations from one family to support an individual project of this nature in Indian Country. In addition to Tricia's work with the Chief Seattle Club, she actively engages with Seattle University both on committees regarding work with SU's School of Theology and Ministry as well as in other volunteer capacities throughout the years.
2012 Outstanding Recent Alumnus/Alumna Award: Rosa Singer, ‘02
Presented to an alum who graduated in last ten years, for outstanding leadership and service to the community and to Seattle University
Rosa Singer earned her B.A. in Sociology and Spanish from Seattle University in 2002. In 2007 Rosa was selected as a Rotary World Peace Fellow, a competitive award only given out to 70 winners worldwide. She earned her M.A. in International Relations from the Jesuit Universidad del Salvador in Buenos Aires in 2008. Rosa currently serves as Director for Strategic Partnerships and Alliances at CARE USA, a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty with programs in over 72 countries. Rosa has served with CARE since 2008 and was formerly with CARE Ethiopia as Program Design Team Leader. Rosa's expertise and vocational commitment is in building programs and alliances to eradicate poverty and empower women and girls. Rosa has also served as an Adjunct Faculty member at SU for the past two years. She has been an active Magis participant and served on two Magis alumni Making a Living, Making a Difference panels, sharing her vocational story with and inspiring current SU undergraduate students.
Please join us on April 17 as we celebrate the achievements of these outstanding Seattle University alumni. Our April 17th celebration will begin at 5:30 pm in the Campion Ballroom on campus.
Register. Please call (206) 296-5664 or email with any questions.
Recognizing President's Club and Legacy Society Members