Past DAA Recipients

Distinguished Alumni Award: 1986–Present

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

  • Walt Bogdanich, Port Washington, New York, Investigative Editor, New York Times
  • Peter and Susan Straub, New York City; Peter: Acclaimed Horror Novelist; Susan: Director of The Read to Me Project
  • Peter Weil, Los Angeles, Managing Partner, Glaser Weil Fink Jacobs Howard & Shapiro
  • Jean Wilkowski, Naples, Florida, Former U.S. Ambassador, Held Key Positions in the State Department

2008

2007

2006

2005

  • Florence Chenoweth, New York City, Executive Director of Food & Agriculture Organization, United Nations
  • Paul Collins, London, England, Retired Vice Chair, Citigroup
  • Elliot Lehman, Wilmette, Illinois Co-Chair Emeritus, Fel-Pro Inc.
  • John and Tashia Morgridge, Portola Valley, California, Philanthropists; John: Chair Emeritus, Cisco Systems; Tashia: Teacher of Disabled Children
  • Distinguished Young Alumni Award: Anthony Shadid, Washington, D.C., Islamic Affairs Correspondent, Washington Post

2004

  • Jane Kaczmarek, Los Angeles, Actress
  • Gaylord Nelson, Washington, D.C., Founder of Earth Day and Former Governor of Wisconsin
  • Tadashi Okamura, Tokyo, Japan, Chair, President and CEO, Toshiba Corporation
  • Joan Spero, New York City, President, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
  • Mark Saxenmeyer, Chicago, TV Reporter for Chicago’s Fox Affiliate

2003

  • Bernard Easterday, Madison, Founding Dean of UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine
  • Thomas Hefty, Elm Grove, Illinois, CEO of Cobalt Corporation
  • John Rowe, Chicago, Chair, Exelon Corporation
  • Nancy Sennett, Fox Point, Wisconsin, Managing Partner, Foley & Lardner
  • Tommy Thompson, Washington, D.C., Secretary of U.S. Department of Health & Human Services and Former Governor of Wisconsin
  • Distinguished Young Alumni Award: Tricia Hamrin, Minneapolis, President and CEO, UpFront Productions, Inc.

2002

  • James Burgess, Madison, Publisher, Wisconsin State Journal
  • Kenneth Ciriacks, Chicago, Former Vice President of Technology, Amoco Corporation
  • Lawrence Eagleburger, Charlottesville, Virginia, Former U.S. Secretary of State, Charlottesville, VA
  • Joy Picus, Woodland Hills, California, Member of Los Angeles City Council; UW and Community Service
  • Distinguished Young Alumni Award: Winslow Sargeant, Silver Spring, Maryland, Engineer and Program Director with National Science Foundation

2001

  • Andre De Shields, New York, Actor and Director
  • Conchita Poncini-Jimenez, Geneva, Switzerland, President of United Nations NGO Committee on the Status of Women
  • Richard Schoofs, Moraga, California, President, Schoofs, Inc.
  • William H. Young, Madison, Economics Professor and Founder of Center to Train International Students, UW-Madison

2000

  • Doris Meissner, Washington, D.C., Commissioner of U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service
  • Pongsak Payakvichien, Bangkok, Thailand, Newspaper and Magazine Publisher
  • Thomas Pyle, Jr., Madison, Chair and President, The Pyle Group
  • Peter Tong, Vancouver, Washington, President, Mandarin Management Partners Inc.

1999

  • Marla Ahlgrimm, Madison, Founder and Chair, Women’s Health America
  • Charlene Barshefsky, Washington, D.C., U.S. Trade Representative
  • Oscar Boldt, Appleton, Wisconsin, Owner and Chair, The Boldt Group
  • Erik Bye, Norway, Norwegian Television Journalist, Poet and Author
  • C.K. Chow, London, chair of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing
  • Carlton Highsmith, Hamden, Connecticut, President, Specialized Packaging Group Inc.
  • Yoshiyuki Kasai, Japan, President, Central Japan Railway Company
  • Tai Sik Lee, Korea, Professor of Civil Engineering, Hanyang University
  • Ibrahim Saad, Malaysia, Deputy Minister of Transport
  • Chai-Anan Samudavanija, Thailand, Political Activist, Political Science Professor, and Author
  • M. Aman Wirakartakusumah, Indonesia, Rector of Bogor Agricultural University
  • Tsong-Shien Wu, Taiwan, Agricultural Professor Emeritus, National Taiwan University

1998

  • Robert Burris, Madison, Biochemistry Professor Emeritus, UW-Madison
  • Ted Kellner, Mequon, Wisconsin, Executive Chairman, Fiduciary Management Inc.
  • Harvey Meyerhoff, Baltimore, Maryland, Philanthropist
  • Carol Skornicka, Milwaukee, Vice President, Midwest Airlines Inc.

1997

  • Stephen Ambrose, Helena, Montana, Noted Historical Author
  • David Beckwith, Milwaukee, Partner and Attorney, Foley & Lardner
  • Donald Procknow, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Emeritus Vice Chair of the Board, AT&T Technologies
  • Linda Wilson, Cambridge, Massachusetts, President of Radcliffe College

1996

  • Russell Christesen, Destin, Florida, Former President and COO, Ebasco Services, Inc.
  • Leon Epstein, Madison, Emeritus Political Science Professor, UW-Madison
  • Elzie Higginbottom, Chicago, CEO, East Lake Management and Development Corporation
  • Judith Sweet, La Jolla, California, First Woman President of NCAA

1995

  • Alma Baron, Madison, Emerita Professor of Management, UW-Extension
  • Jean Manchester Biddink, Madison, Chair, Neesvigs, Inc.
  • E. David Cronon, Madison, Longtime Dean of the College of Letters & Science and History Professor, UW-Madison
  • Philip Kaiser, Washington, D.C., U.S. Ambassador who Served under Four Presidents
  • Charles Thomas, Glencoe, Illinois, Former Superintendent of Schools, North Chicago

1994

  • Shirley Abrahamson, Madison, Chief Justice, Wisconsin Supreme Court
  • Jeff Greenfield, New York, TV Journalist and Columnist
  • I-Shuan Sun, Taipei, Taiwan, Chairman, Banking Institute, Republic of China
  • Sidney Williams, Kalamazoo, Michigan, Executive Director of Domestic Patents, Upjohn

1993

  • Carol Bartz, Sausalito, California, CEO, Autodesk
  • Pam Johnson, Ithaca, New York, Publisher of Ithaca Journal
  • Albert Nicholas, Milwaukee, CEO, Nicholas Company, Inc.
  • Tawat Wichaidit, Bangkok, Secretary to Prime Minister of Thailand

1992

  • Nelvia Brady, Chicago, Chancellor, City Colleges of Chicago
  • Kathryn Clarenbach, Madison, Co-Founder and First Chair, National Organization for Women
  • Carleton Holstrom, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Retired CFO, Bear Stearns & Co
  • Arthur Hove, Madison, Longtime Assistant to UW-Madison Chancellor, Unofficial Campus Historian

1991

  • Barbara Crabb, Madison, Chief Federal Judge, Western District, U.S. District Court
  • Susan Davis, Washington, D.C., Chair and CEO of Susan Davis Companies
  • Wade Fetzer III, Chicago, Partner, Goldman Sachs & Company
  • Robert Teague, Monmouth, New Jersey, TV Newscaster, WNBC New York

1990

  • James Cleary, Northridge, California, President, California State University-Northridge
  • Louis Holland, Glen Ellen, Illinois, Financial Advisor and Co-Founder of Hahn, Holland & Grossman
  • Arlie Mucks, Jr., Madison, Longtime Executive Director of the Wisconsin Alumni Association
  • Artha-Jean Towell, Madison, UW, Civic and Community Service

1989

  • Jack Kellner, Grafton, Wisconsin, President, Western Industries Inc
  • W. Robert Koch, Madison, CEO, American Family Life Insurance Co.
  • Walter Mirisch, Los Angeles, President and Motion Picture Producer, Mirisch Corporation
  • Robert Rennebohm, Madison, Longtime President of UW Foundation

1988

  • Robert Froehlke, Minneapolis, CEO, IDS Mutual Fund Group
  • Marie Gadsden, Washington, D.C., Deputy Director, National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education
  • Eric Hagerup, Milwaukee, Former Vice President, First Wisconsin Trust Company; UW and Community Service Leader
  • Herman Smith, Atlanta, Professor of Higher Education and Consultant to the President, University of Georgia-Athens

1987

  • Joseph Barnett, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, Partner, Foley and Lardner
  • Hector De Luca, Deerfield, Wisconsin, Biochemistry Professor, UW-Madison, Vitamin D Pioneer
  • Alfred DeSimone, Kenosha, Wisconsin, Agent, Equitable Financial Services
  • Frank Remington, Madison, Law Professor, UW-Madison

1986

  • Mildred Becker, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, UW and Community Service
  • Dr. Henry Lardy, Madison, Biochemistry Professor, UW-Madison
  • Margaret Nielsen, West Bend, Wisconsin, Nurse and Public Service Leader
  • Jonathan Pellegrin, Milwaukee, Chairman of the Board, Johnson Hill Press Inc.
  • Daniel J. Travanti, Pacific Palisades, California, Actor

Distinguished Service Award: 1963–1985

1985

  • Harvey Clements, Chicago, Senior Vice President, Foote Cone and Belding
  • Lucille Kimball, Madison, Pianist
  • Frederick Rehm, Milwaukee, Environmental Engineer
  • Brenton Rupple, Milwaukee, Chair of the Board, Robert W. Baird and Co., Inc.

1984

  • Joyce Erdman, Madison, Director, Marshall Erdman and Associates
  • James McManus, Westport, Connecticut, Chair and President, Marketing Corporation of America
  • Clare Rice, San Diego, California, President, Rockwell International
  • F. Frederick Stender, Madison, President, Madison National Life Insurance

1983

  • Thomas Fitzpatrick, Boston, Harvard Dermatology Professor and Department Chair
  • Bernhard Mautz, Sr., Madison, Chairman of the Board, Mautz Paint and Glass Co.
  • Jerry McNeely, Beverly Hills, California, Executive Producer, 20th-Century Fox-TV
  • Arthur Nielsen, Jr., Chicago, Chair of the Board and CEO, AC Nielsen Company

1982

  • William Draves, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Managing Editor, Fond du Lac Reporter
  • Clara Penniman, Madison, Professor, Political Science, UW-Madison
  • Harold Scales, Madison, Chief Executive Officer, Madison’s Anchor Savings and Loan
  • H. Douglas Weaver, Jupiter, Florida, Attorney

1981

  • Ira and Ineva Baldwin, Madison; Ira: Emeritus UW Vice President and Bacteriology Professor, UW-Madison; Ineva, Botanist and Civic Leader
  • P. Goff Beach, Madison, Chairman and CEO, Oscar Mayer Corp.
  • Diane Johnson, Madison, Assistant to Director of Athletics, UW-Madison
  • Max Karl, Milwaukee, Founder, Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corp.
  • Glenn Pound, La Jolla, California, Former Dean, College of Agriculture, UW-Madison

1980

  • George Affeldt, Milwaukee, Attorney and National “W” Club President
  • Willard Aschenbrener, Scottsdale, Arizona, President of American Bank & Trust Company of Racine
  • Earl Jordan, Chicago, General Agent, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance
  • Oscar Mayer, Madison, Former Chairman of the Board, Oscar Mayer Corp.
  • Edwin and Phyllis Young, Madison. Edwin: UW-Madison Chancellor and Economics Professor; Phyllis: UW’s “First Lady”

1979

  • Robert Draper, Ridgeway, Colorado, President, Western Community Planners, Inc.
  • Olaf Hougen, Madison, Emeritus Professor and Chair of Chemical Engineering Department, UW-Madison
  • Harlan Nicholls, Madison, Executive Vice President, First Wisconsin Bank of Madison
  • Fannie Taylor, Madison, Professor and Former Union Theater Director, UW-Madison
  • Jane Werner Watson, Santa Barbara, California, Children’s Book Author
  • Robert Wilson, Madison, Senior Vice President, Valley Bank

1978

  • Gerald and Joyce Bartell, Madison. Gerald: Founder of Bartell Media Corporation; Joyce: UW and Community Service
  • Newman Halvorson, Cleveland, Former Partner, Ernst & Ernst
  • Ed Rosten, Madison, Managing Director, WARF
  • Truman Torgerson, Manitowoc, Wisconsin, General Manager, Lake to Lake Dairy Cooperative
  • James Vaughan, Chicago, Vice President, Square D Company
  • Audrey Walsh, Madison, UW and Community Service

1977

  • Henry Ahlgren, Madison, U.S. Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture
  • William Beers, Chicago, Chair and CEO of Kraft, Inc.
  • Carl Krieger, Philadelphia, Vice President, Campbell Soup Company
  • Betty Vaughn, Madison, Community Service Leader
  • John and Ruberta Weaver, Madison. John: President, UW System; Ruberta, UW’s “First Lady”

1976

  • Norman Becker, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Surgeon
  • Lawrence Fitzpatrick, Madison, President, Chase Fitzpatrick, Ltd.
  • Frederick Haberman, Madison, Professor and Chair, Speech Department, UW-Madison
  • Charles Newlin, Chicago, Vice President, Continental Bank
  • Joy Teschner, Milwaukee, First Woman President, Milwaukee County Park Commission

1975

  • Robert Beyer, Philadelphia, Former Managing Partner, Touche Ross and Company
  • Porter Butts, Madison, Inaugural Wisconsin Union Director and Student Union Pioneer
  • Glen Eye, Madison, UW Emeritus Professor and Chair of the Education Department
  • Mrs. William Lamont, Aberdeen, South Dakota, Former South Dakota State Senator and South Dakota Mother of the Year
  • William Nathenson, Chicago, Senior Partner, Nathenson & Gussin

1974

  • Sam Ogle, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, First Executive Secretary, Wisconsin Retail Merchants Association
  • Walter Renk, Madison, CEO and President, Renk Enterprises
  • Margaret Russell, Madison, UW and Community Service
  • Whitney Seymour, New York, Past President, American Bar Association
  • John Walsh, Madison, Attorney and Former UW Head Boxing Coach
  • James Watrous, Madison, UW Art History Professor Who Helped Establish Elvehjem Museum

1973

  • Martin Below, Chicago, Senior Vice President, Kieffer-Nolde Engineering Co.
  • Lester Clemons, Milwaukee, Attorney and UW Foundation President
  • Lowell Frautschi, Madison, UW and Community Service Leader
  • Mark Ingraham, Madison, UW Mathematics Professor and Former Dean of College of Letters & Science
  • Larry Luberg, Madison, UW System Dean for Public Service
  • Herbert Prochnow, Chicago, Director and Former President, First National Bank of Chicago

1972

  • Margaret H’Doubler, Madison, UW Dance Professor and Founder of Modern Dance in Higher Education
  • Raymond Dvorak, Madison, Longtime UW Band Director, Composer and Author
  • Evan Helfaer, Milwaukee, Philanthropist
  • Samuel Lenher, Hockessin, Delaware, Former Vice President, DuPont Company
  • Robert Spitzer, Burlington, Wisconsin, President and General Manager, Murphy Products Co., Inc.
  • Lewis Weeks, Westport, Connecticut, Geologist, Philanthropist, Former Standard Oil Executive

1971

  • Alan Ameche, Philadelphia, NFL Football Player, Entrepreneur
  • Anthony DeLorenzo, Detroit, Vice President, Public Relations, General Motors
  • Philip Falk, Madison, Superintendent, Madison Schools
  • Elizabeth McCoy, Madison, UW Bacteriology Professor and Researcher
  • Carl Steiger, Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Director and Vice President, UW Foundation
  • Kurt Wendt, Madison, Dean, UW College of Engineering

1970

  • Emily Baldwin, Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, Director, Consolidated Papers, Inc.
  • Jenkin Jones, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Editor and Publisher, Tulsa Tribune
  • James Lovell, Jr., Seabrook, Texas, Astronaut, Apollo 13
  • Arthur Mansfield, Madison, UW Baseball Coach
  • Harold Rusch, Princeton, New Jersey, Director, UW McArdle Laboratory for Cancer Research
  • Gordon Walker, Racine, Wisconsin, President and Director, Walker Forge, Inc.; UW Regent

1969

  • Don Anderson, Madison, Publisher, Wisconsin State Journal
  • Helen Bunge, Madison, Dean, School of Nursing
  • Wilbur Cohen, Washington, D.C., Seventh U.S. Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare
  • Elroy Hirsch, Madison, UW Director of Athletics
  • Allen Slichter, Milwaukee, Chair of the Board, Pelton Steel Casting Co.

1968

  • Karl Beyer Jr., Philadelphia, Pharmacology Researcher
  • Catherine Cleary, Milwaukee, Executive Vice President and Director, First Wisconsin Trust Co.
  • Anthony Curreri, Madison, Director, Division of Clinical Oncology, UW Medical School
  • William Kellett, Neenah, Wisconsin, Former President, Kimberly Clark Co.
  • Fredric March, New York, Academy Award-Winning Actor
  • Haakon Romnes, New York, Chair of the Board, AT&T

1967

  • Kate Huber, Indianapolis, Social Worker and Indianapolis Alumni Chapter Leader
  • Lloyd Larson, Milwaukee, Sports Editor, Milwaukee Sentinel
  • William Murphy, Philadelphia, President of Campbell Soup Company
  • William Sarles, Madison, Professor and Chair of UW Bacteriology Department
  • John Van Vleck, Boston, Nobel Prize-Winning Physicist and Mathematician
  • Rudolph Zimmerman, Milwaukee, VP of Pabst Brewing Company and President of UW Foundation

1966

  • William Balderston, Philadelphia, Former Chairman, Philco Corporation
  • Timothy Brown, Madison, Former Chief Justice, Wisconsin State Supreme Court
  • Melvin Laird, Washington, D.C., Republican Congressman and U.S. Secretary of Defense
  • Irwin Maier, Milwaukee, Publisher, Milwaukee Journal
  • Malcolm Whyte, Milwaukee, Attorney, Civic Leader
  • Katharine Wright, Chicago, Vice President, Medical Staff, Fairview Hospital Chicago

1965

  • Frank Birch, Milwaukee, President and Treasurer, BirchKraft Inc.
  • Robin Buerki, Detroit, Former Executive Director, Henry Ford Hospital
  • Ralph E. Davis, Houston, Prominent Geologist and Petroleum Engineer
  • Raymond Rowland, St. Louis, CEO, Ralston Purina Co.
  • Helen C. White, Madison, UW-Madison English Professor and Department Chair; Author

1964

  • Joseph Cutler, Milwaukee, Chairman of the Board, Johnson Service Co.
  • Ralph Johnson, New York, Partner, Smith, Barney and Co.
  • LeRoy Peterson, New York, Chairman of the Board, Otis Elevator Co.
  • Mary Fowler Rennebohm, Madison, Civic Leader and Former Wisconsin First Lady
  • Harlan Rogers, Portage, Wisconsin, Attorney, Rogers and Owen Law firm

1963

  • Harry Bullis, Minneapolis, President, General Mills

Alumni of the Year Award: 1956–1962

1962

  • A. John Berge, Madison, Longtime Executive Director, Wisconsin Alumni Association

1961

  • Donald Slichter, Milwaukee, President, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

1960

  • Howard Potter, Chicago, Vice President, Insurance Broker, Marsh & McLennan

1959

  • Oscar Rennebohm, Madison, 32nd Governor of Wisconsin and President of the UW Foundation

1958

  • Constance Elvehjem, Madison, UW’s “First Lady,” University and Community Service

1957

  • Walter Frautschi, Madison, Chairman of the Board, Webcrafters Inc.

1956

  • Helen Browne Hobart, Winnetka, Illinois, Member of UW Board of Visitors and Conservation Activist
  • Joseph Jackson, Madison, WWI Colonel; Helped Establish UW Arboretum
  • Frank Weston, Madison, UW Professor of Medicine and Physician

Certificate of Appreciation: 1936–1955

1955

  • William Hoard, Jr., Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, President and Manager, Hoard’s Dairyman Farm
  • Phillip Reed, New York, Chairman, International General Electric Company

1954

  • Conrad Elvehjem, Madison, Biochemist and UW President
  • Warren Knowles, Milwaukee, 37th Governor of Wisconsin

1953

  • Charles Rogers, Chicago, County Judge and City Attorney
  • Gretchen Schoenleber, Milwaukee, President, Ambrosia Chocolate Co.

1952

  • Harry Adams, Beloit, Wisconsin, Director, Mutual Benefit Insurance Company and Mayor of Beloit
  • Edgar B. Gordon, Madison, UW Music Education Professor
  • Arthur Nielsen, Sr., Chicago, Founder, AC Nielsen Company and American Market Analyst

1951

  • Howard Potter, Chicago, Insurance Broker, Marsh and McLennen; UW Foundation President
  • Oscar Rennebohm, Madison, 32nd Governor of Wisconsin

1950

  • Alice King Meloche, Madison, Founder and Director, UW Student Employment Bureau
  • Halsten J. Thorkelson, Madison, UW Professor and Business Manager

1949

  • Stanley Allyn, Dayton, Ohio, Chairman, National Cash Register Company
  • Herman Ekern, Madison, Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin
  • Fayette Elwell, Madison, Dean, UW-Madison School of Commerce
  • Howard Greene, Genesee Depot, Wisconsin, Owner, Brook Hill Farms
  • William Kiekhofer, Madison, UW Economics Professor
  • Harry Steenbock, Madison, Inventor and UW Biochemistry Professor

1948

  • Thomas Brittingham, Jr., Wilmington, Delaware, Director, Brittingham Fund

1947

  • Charles Byron, Chicago, President, Wisconsin Alumni Association
  • Abner Heald, Milwaukee, President, Milwaukee Alumni Club

1946

  • William Hagenah, Chicago, National Expert on Public Utilities and Executive Director, UW Foundation
  • George Haight, Chicago, Attorney
  • Frank J. Sensenbrenner, Neenah, Wisconsin, President, UW Board of Regents

1945

  • Edwin Austin, Chicago, Attorney
  • Michael J. Cleary, Milwaukee, President, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

1944

  • William Haight, Chicago, Attorney
  • Oscar Hallam, St. Paul, Minnesota, Justice and Second District Court Judge, Minnesota Supreme Court

1943

  • Edessa Kunz Lines, Milwaukee, Chairman, Alumni Association’s Women’s Affairs Committee
  • Louis Lochner, Milwaukee, Correspondent, Associated Press and Pulitzer Prize Winner
  • Harold L. Russell, Madison, Dean, UW College of Agriculture

1942

  • Imogene Hand Carpenter, Madison, First Woman President, Wisconsin Alumni Association
  • Frank O. Holt, Madison, University Administrator, UW-Extension

1941

  • Lucy McGlachlin Johnson, Madison, Former President, UW Board of Visitors
  • Benjamin A. Kiekhofer, Madison, Secretary, State of Wisconsin Board of Public Affairs
  • William Kies, New York, Attorney and Banker, Co-Founder of WARF

1940

  • Henrietta Wood Kessenich, Hopkins, Minnesota, Alumnae Editor, The Wisconsin Alumnus
  • John Lord, Chicago, Chairman, Memorial Union Building Association and President, Wisconsin Alumni Association
  • Rose Schuster Taylor, Berkeley, California, Teacher

1939

  • Lucien M. Hanks, Madison, Secretary and Treasurer, Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

1938

  • Myron Harshaw, Chicago, President, Wisconsin Alumni Association

1937

  • Harry Bullis, Minneapolis, President, Wisconsin Alumni Association
  • F Fred H. Clausen, Horicon, Wisconsin, President, Van Brunt & Wilkins Manufacturing Co.

1936

  • Walter Alexander, Milwaukee, Entrepreneur

Please note: the titles listed here represent the positions the honorees held at the time they received their awards. Many later went on to fill other prestigious roles.