2006 Honorees

Roger Shimomura, BA 1961, School of Art
Division of Arts

Distinguished Professor of Art Emeritus from the University of Kansas, Roger Shimomura has received every major award accorded there for teaching and research. His art addresses socio-political issues of Asian America - often inspired by diaries from his late immigrant grandmother. Roger has had over 100 solo exhibitions of paintings and prints, and has presented his experimental theater pieces at many significant venues, including the Smithsonian. He is the recipient of four National Endowment for the Arts Fellowships in painting and performance art among multiple other awards. In 1999, the Seattle Urban League designated a scholarship in his name that is awarded annually to a Seattle resident pursuing a career in art. Mr. Shimomura’s personal papers are being collected by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

The Honorable Tom Lantos, BA 1949 & MA 1950, Department of Economics
Division of Social Sciences

A member of the United States Congress since January 3, 1981, Congressman Lantos is currently serving his 13th term in the House of Representatives. Born in Budapest, Hungary, Lantos arrived in the U.S. on an academic scholarship in 1947. He received his BA and MA in Economics from the University of Washington and later earned a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. Founder of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, he continues to serve as Co-Chairman. For three decades prior to his service in Congress, Tom Lantos was a professor of economics, an international affairs analyst for public television, and a consultant to a number of businesses. He is the only holocaust survivor ever to serve in the U.S. Congress.

Kristina B. Katsaros, BS 1960 & PhD 1969, Department of Atmospheric Sciences
Division of Natural Sciences

Recently retired as the Director of NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological 
Laboratories in Miami, Dr. Katsaros was one of the first women to enter the field of atmospheric sciences as a PhD and professor. A native of Sweden, Kristina came to the University of Washington in 1957 and joined the faculty in 1969. She left Seattle to lead two National Laboratories, first in France and then in the U.S. She is a member of the prestigious National Academy of Engineering and has won numerous other scientific awards for her research, leadership and teaching. In 2003, she returned to the UW to continue as an Affiliate Professor.

Herbert Lindenberger, PhD 1955, Department of Comparative Literature (English)
Division of Humanities

 A specialist in English, German and French literature of the 19th and 20th centuries,
Herbert Lindenberger is Professor Emeritus from Stanford University. He moved to Stanford in 1969 to launch the comparative literature department, shaping what many consider to be the strongest literature faculty in the country. His colleagues have described him as an indelible figure on that campus for three decades who set the standard by which enthusiasm for teaching should be gauged. As President of the Modern Language Association, he headed the largest national professional organization for the humanities, with more than 31,000 members. Dr. Lindenberger continues to exercise his passion for opera as a tireless promoter, appearing as a featured speaker on its behalf around the world.