About the UWAA

GGDAA

In 2016, the UW Alumni Association hosted the first Golden Graduates Brunch, honoring Huskies who graduated 50 or more years ago. That same year, they also created the Golden Graduate Distinguished Alumnus Award (GGDAA), given to an alumnus who has demonstrated sustained, long-term and meaningful engagement with the UW. We are pleased to recognize these esteemed graduates who embody the best of the Husky spirit.

Patti Warashina, ’62, ’64
2024 Golden Graduate Distinguished Alumni

The UW Alumni Association is pleased to honor ceramic artist Patti Warashina, ’62, ’64 with the 2024 Golden Graduate Distinguished Alumna Award. Highly regarded for her artistry, as well as her interest in challenging gender barriers, Warashina’s work is often humorous, offering clay figures placed in imagined environments that reflect her subversive thinking. In 1970 she joined the University of Washington faculty and, together with fellow ceramic artists Robert Sperry, Howard Kottler, and later, Jamie Walker and Akio Takamori, was instrumental in helping to build one of the strongest ceramic and sculpture departments on the West Coast — a legacy that lives on today.

Read more about Warashina’s career in this UW Magazine appreciation.

Past Golden Graduate Distinguished Alumni