Alumni Association presents 2010 awards

Success, many Whitman College alumni will tell you, can be measured in a number of ways, from professional and personal accomplishments to public and private volunteer service.

Each year the Whitman College Alumni Association faces the daunting task of deciding which successful alumni – among the myriad – to honor.

The 2010 recipients are:

Alumnus of Merit: Dr. Sigvard “Ted” Hansen Jr. ’57

Gordon Scribner Award for Distinguished Service: Paul ’51 and Nancy McKay Burton ’53 and Jerry Hillis ’61.

Pete Reid Award for Young Alumni: Derek “Jimmy” Maize ’02

Faculty Award for Service to be announced later this spring

The Alumnus of Merit award is the highest honor bestowed by the association. It acknowledges alumni who have achieved distinction in their field and served their communities and the college. Hansen — a practicing surgeon, professor, researcher, innovator and leader in traumatology — is director of the Sigvard T. Hansen Jr. M.D. Foot and Ankle Institute. The Whitman overseer emeritus received an honorary doctor of science degree from the college in 1997.

The Gordon Scribner Award for Distinguished Service recognizes a major contribution of volunteer time to Whitman over an extended period of time and the ability to inspire as exemplified by Gordon Scribner ’42, former dean of students and director of alumni relations.

Nancy McKay Burton ’53, a homemaker and senior facilities planner for the Seattle School District, has been active in planning, development and educational facility research in King County for many years. She has served Whitman as chair of the Board of Overseers and co-chair of the Alumni Fund.

Her husband, Paul Burton ’51, retired as president of electronics company Ratelco in 1996, but continues to serve on its board and as a consultant. Paul’s extensive public service includes serving as a Shoreline School Board member and a trustee of Shoreline Community College as well as taking on volunteer positions for the YMCA of the Greater Seattle area. For Whitman, he has been a member of the Alumni Association Board and Planned Giving Committee and president of the Seattle Whitman Alumni Club.

Jerry Hillis ’61, known for his legal expertise in land-use compliance, is a founding member of Seattle law firm Hillis, Clark, Martin and Peterson. His civic service ranges from coaching Little League to a gubernatorial appointment to the State Land Planning Commission. His Whitman service is equally broad: he is the only alumnus to have served as director of alumni relations and on all three of the college’s governing boards, including as chair of the trustees.

The Pete Reid Award for Young Alumni honors an alumnus of 15 years or fewer who demonstrates enthusiasm toward career, community or the college, as exemplified by Pete Reid ’49, who retired in 2009 after six decades of service to Whitman.

Jimmy Maize ’02, of New York City, created WhitNY (now The Bureau), a theatre company of Whitman alumni. In addition to acting, directing and producing, Maize is actively involved in training theater artists and educators, and served as the dramaturg for “The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later,” which premiered across the nation in fall of 2009. Maize has returned to the Whitman campus with the award-winning play “In One Room,” which he authored.