Congrats to Newest Alumni Award Winners

Seattle University is excited to announce the 2026 Alumni Award winners, including the latest inductees into the Athletics Hall of Fame. These individuals represent the best of Seattle University with exceptional leadership, service to the university and community, a commitment to care, excellence, diversity and justice and an alignment with SU’s Jesuit values. This year’s recipients are:  

Alumnus of the Year: Dr. Norward Brooks, ’71 MBA 
Outstanding Recent Alumna: Katrina Phiri, ’17 MBA 
University Service: Anne Hotz Moran, ’87 
Professional Achievement: Madeline Haydon, ’05 MBA 
Community Service: Tina O’Brien, ’89, ’98 MNPL 
Jesuit Mission: Dr. Sonya Quitslund, ’58 
Athletics Hall of Fame: Pete Fewing, Andre Lang, ’95, ’04 JD and Blaise Wittenauer-Lee, ’17  

The university will celebrate these exceptional individuals at the 39^th Annual Alumni Awards ceremony Friday, February 27, 2026, at Pigott Atrium and Auditorium.

ALUMNUS OF THE YEAR 
Dr. Norward Brooks, ’71 MBA 
Albers School of Business and Economics 

For his dedication to service and impressive professional achievements, Dr. Norward Brooks, ’71 MBA, is honored as Alumnus of Year. 

In his 2024 memoir, A Man of Many Firsts, Brooks details his life growing up in Louisiana, becoming the first in his family to graduate college and launching into a groundbreaking career in public service. The book’s title refers to Brooks becoming the first African American to hold many leadership positions, including as Director of King County Records and Elections, Commissioner of the Washington State Employment Security Department, Comptroller for the City of Seattle, King County Assessor and Director of Administrative Data Processing for the University of Washington. 

Brooks and his wife of more than 70 years, Violet, ’66 MEd, both earned their master’s degrees at SU.

One of Brooks’ nominators said of him and Violet, “They embody the attributes of Dr. Martin Luther King's Thriving Beloved Community. They mentor others using their measured intellectual, physical capabilities and available resources to best raise others to their unseen potential. … They exemplify the St. Ignatius wisdom, ‘teach us to give and not to count the cost.’"

OUTSTANDING RECENT ALUMNA
Katrina Phiri, ’17 MBA 
Albers School of Business and Economics  

For her exemplary career at Amazon and leadership in the Albers community, Katrina Phiri is honored as Outstanding Recent Alumna. 

Phiri is a Senior Product Manager at Amazon Web Services (AWS), where she leads product and business development strategy for an enterprise application excellence team, delivering measurable ROI through automation, security and managed services.

A graduate of SU’s Master of Business Administration program, she is a key connector between Amazon and the university, establishing the SU at Amazon Alumni Group and serving as its program lead. Under her leadership, the program has created numerous engagement and mentorship opportunities by bringing together SU alumni and students, for campus tours at Amazon, panel discussions featuring alumni and hosting underrepresented high school students as part of the Summer Business Institute.  

Phiri has consistently given back to the SU community through her service on the Albers Marketing Advisory Board, as President of the SU International Student Alumni Board and as an Albers mentor for the past five years.  

One of her nominators said, “Katrina Phiri deserves the Outstanding Recent Alumni award because she embodies the core values of Seattle University—integrity, leadership, excellence and service.”

UNIVERSITY SERVICE 
Anne Hotz Moran, ’87 
College of Arts and Sciences 

For her exceptional, mission-driven leadership in her role as Chief of Staff at Seattle University, Anne Moran is honored with the University Service Award. 

As an alumna and longtime staff member since 2011, Moran’s integrity, humility and deep institutional knowledge are an invaluable presence at SU. As Chief of Staff to President Eduardo Peñalver, Moran is a trusted advisor and bridge between executive leadership, trustees, faculty, staff and students.

Moran is widely respected on campus for her diplomacy and ability to bring people together across the university, embodying SU’s value of cura personalis (“care of the whole person.”) Her nominators noted her influence in setting standards for executive searches, integrating new programs such as the Seattle University Museum of Art and Cornish College of the Arts partnerships and cultivating community engagements that strengthen the university’s Jesuit mission. 

One of Moran’s nominators said, “She embodies that loving spirit that drives her to bring people together in community around our shared purpose of educating students and giving them a transformational Jesuit educational experience.” 

PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENT 
Madeline Haydon, ’05 MBA 
Albers Schools of Business and Economics 

For her impressive entrepreneurial success and business excellence, Madeline Haydon is honored with the Professional Achievement Award. 

Haydon is the founder and former CEO of nutpods, a clean-label, dairy-free creamer that achieved national recognition for sustainable business practices and rapid growth. What started as a crowdfunded Kickstarter campaign became a nationally recognized brand and the number one dairy-free creamer on Amazon.

As the CEO of Green Grass Foods, the parent company of nutpods, Haydon led the company to rank 13th nationally on the Inc. 5,000 list in 2019 and earned Amazon’s Small Business of the Year that same year. Additionally, Haydon’s leadership has been recognized by Forbes (Female Leaders in Food), Inc. (Female Founders 200) and Ernst & Young (Entrepreneur of the Year).

Outside of her business, Haydon has served on the boards of Food Lifeline, Naturally Seattle and YPO-Pacific West, among others. She also regularly mentors students at SU and female founders in consumer-packaged goods, while speaking nationwide on entrepreneurship. In 2021, Seattle University partnered with Haydon to create the “Madeline Haydon Award for Entrepreneurship” for the Harriett Stevenson’s Business Plan Competition at the Albers School of Business and Economics.

One of Haydon’s nominators said, “While many professionals achieve business success, Madeline stands apart for her ability to scale a high-growth, innovative company while remaining deeply committed to sustainability, social responsibility and mentorship.”

COMMUNITY SERVICE 
Tina O’Brien, ’89, ’98 MNPL 
College of Arts and Sciences 

For her lifelong commitment to service and work as CEO of the Kitsap Community Foundation, Tina O’Brien is honored with the Community Service Award. 

With more than three decades of nonprofit leadership, O’Brien has held roles at Catholic Community Services, the Society of Jesus–Oregon Province, St. Joseph Parish and Special Olympics of Washington.

As CEO of the Kitsap Community Foundation, she has transformed local philanthropy by helping individuals, families and organizations turn generosity into sustainable impact. O’Brien is known for bringing people together across communities and using her voice to promote inclusion, collaboration and education. 

A dedicated community volunteer who inspires others to find purpose in service, she serves as chair of the Jesuit Restorative Justice Initiative Northwest and on boards or committees for the Historic Seattle Council, SEEL Puget Sound and the Ignatian Spirituality Center.

One of O’Brien’s nominators said, “Tina embodies the Ignatian precept of faith in action and believes in the power of volunteerism to change the world.”

JESUIT MISSION AWARD
Dr. Sonya Quitslund, ’58 
College of Arts and Sciences 

For her exemplary leadership and decades of service, mentorship and philanthropy, Dr. Sonya Quitslund is honored with the Jesuit Mission Award. 

After graduating from SU, Quitslund pursued graduate studies at the Catholic University of America, becoming one of the first lay women to receive a PhD in religious studies. Quitslund challenged institutional norms and created space for women’s voices in theology throughout her 28-year tenure as a professor of Bible and religious thought at George Washington University.  

Her scholarly work includes the award-winning book, Beauduin: A Prophet Vindicated, which shaped theological thought and reflected her dedication to justice and gender equality in the church. She co-founded the Christian Feminists and served on the inaugural commission of the Women’s Ordination Conference.

Quitslund has also fostered 48 children and established the Leona and Phelps Quitslund Scholarship for Fostering Scholars at Seattle University, named in honor of her parents, to support foster youth with education, housing and holistic care.  

One of Quitslund’s nominators said, “Sonya’s life of service is expansive. Her many roles—Fulbright Scholar, professor, flotilla commander and sacristan, to name just a few—may seem varied, but a consistent thread of faith and purpose unites them.”

ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME 
Pete Fewing 
Head Coach, SU Men’s Soccer 

For his impressive career and leadership as Head Coach of Men’s Soccer (1998-2005, 2012-2022), Pete Fewing is one of this year’s inductees into the Athletics Hall of Fame. 

With a career record of 343 wins, 197 losses and 50 draws, Fewing ranks 11th nationally among active coaches at the time of his retirement. He led the soccer team to victory at the NAIA National Championships in 1997 and the NCAA Division II National Championships in 2004. Fewing also earned National Coach of the Year in 1997 and 2004 and gained recognition as Regional Coach of the Year six times, Great Northwest Athletic Conference Coach of the Year three times and Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year three times. 

Fewing led men’s soccer through many achievements, including eight WAC championships, five NCAA Tournament appearances and consistent Top 25 rankings in Division I play. He oversaw the transition of the program from NAIA to NCAA Division II then Division I and consistently produced teams with both athletic and academic excellence, including multiple National Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic awards. 

Andre Lang, ’95, ’04 JD 
Men’s Basketball 
College of Arts and Sciences & School of Law 

For his stellar career on the Seattle University basketball team, Andre Lang is one of the newest inductees into the Athletics Hall of Fame.

Lang played 118 games as a Redhawk from 1991 to 1995, earning recognition as a NAIA Pacific Northwest Region All-Star, Little All-Northwest Third Team and NAIA Honorable Mention All-American in both 1994 and 1995. He also earned Pre-Season NAIA All-American recognition in 1995. 

Across his four-year career, Lang averaged 13.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. He ranks in the top 10 all-time in multiple statistical categories at SU, including first in steals (229), fourth in steals average (1.9) and assists (528), seventh in scoring (1,642 points) and eighth in 3-pointers (150). 

After graduating, Lang played professionally in Germany for two years.

Blaise Wittenauer-Lee, ’17 
Women’s Swimming 
College of Arts and Sciences  

Blaise Wittenauer-Lee is one of the newest inductees into the Athletics Hall of Fame for her groundbreaking career on the women’s swim team. 

A five-time Western Athletic Conference (WAC) champion, Wittenauer-Lee holds five individual SU records, including the 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke, 200 IM and 400 IM and two relay records, including the 800 freestyle and the 400 medley. All told, she ranks in SU’s top-eight in 13 of 20 possible events.  

In 2016, Wittenauer-Lee became the second Redhawk swimmer to qualify for the Olympic trials. She was also recognized with an Academic All-WAC award and received an honorable mention as a College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America Scholar All-American. 

The following year Wittenauer-Lee was named WAC Female Swimmer of the Year, Seattle University Female Athlete of the Year and a nominee for NCAA Woman of the Year. She became the first Redhawk women’s swimmer to qualify for the NCAA Division I Championships and set a conference record for the 200 breaststroke at the WAC Championships.