Highline College is seeking nominations for its 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award, honoring former students who have made notable contributions to their professions, communities or society.
Nominations are open now and will be accepted through Friday, April 24. The recipient will be recognized during the college’s Commencement ceremony on June 18, 2026.
The annual award highlights former Highline students who have demonstrated significant achievements through community service, professional accomplishments or recognized leadership.
Eligible nominees must have attended Highline College at least five years ago, prior to the 2021 to 2022 academic year.
Last year’s award recipient was Jenessa Pettit, a nursing instructor and entrepreneur recognized for her impact on health care, education and her community.
Previous honorees include Rahma Rashid, founder of the Seattle nonprofit Muslimahs Against Abuse Center, and 1990 winner Mayor Norm Rice, the award’s first recipient and former mayor of Seattle. Rice attended Highline in 1968–69.
Other past recipients include Michele Pedicone, a respiratory care therapist and allied health professor in New York, Angela Sheffey Bogan, a principal at a local elementary school, accountant and veteran Ed Ramos, and internationally recognized crime author Ann Rule.
According to the college, nominations may be submitted by faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of Highline. Nominees will be asked to provide a resume and complete a personal profile questionnaire for review by a campus selection committee.
The selected recipient will be announced this spring and honored during the college’s commencement ceremony.
An online nomination form is available through the Alumni Relations website.
The deadline to nominate is Friday, April 24, 2026.
Nominations may also be emailed to Tanisha Williams at twilliam@highline.edu or mailed to:
Highline College Alumni Relations
PO Box 98000 MS CV-3
Des Moines, WA 98198
