2022 Recipient: Michelle Gamboa
Alumna Michelle Gamboa, who graduated from the University of Washington Bothell in 2005 with a degree in Computer Science & Software Engineering, said that she was a tomboy growing up. “I loved science fiction, Star Wars and leading adventures,” she said. “But what I loved even more, was video games.”
Little did Gamboa know that the time she spent playing on those machines would serve her just as much as the time she spent in the classroom, leading to her being named by UW Bothell as the 2022 distinguished alumna for her work in the video game industry. “It’s rare that childhood dreams work out, but I am certainly grateful that mine did,” she said.
Read more about Michelle Gamboa.
2021 Recipient: Mary Howisey
As a founding member of the University of Washington Bothell Alumni Council, Mary Howisey has presented prior recipients with the Distinguished Alumni award but never imagined that one day she would receive it, too.
Mary Howisey has devoted many years to UW Bothell as a student, employee, donor and volunteer. Now, with the Distinguished Alumni Award, Mary Howisey is being recognized as one of the University’s outstanding alumni who have exhibited distinguished community service or professional achievements since graduation.
Howisey graduated in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in Society, Ethics & Human Behavior and a minor in Human Rights.
Read more about Mary Howisey.
2021 Recipient: Curtis Takahashi
When Curtis Takahashi first went to college, he did it because he thought it was what he was supposed to do. He had just finished high school and didn’t know what he wanted to do the next day, let alone the rest of his life. But without a sense of direction, he decided to forge his own path, left college and entered the workforce.
“At first, coming to UW Bothell was just about finishing my degree and counting down credits,” Takahashi said. “It turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life.”
He graduated in 2004 with a degree in Culture, Literature & the Arts from the School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences.
2019 Recipient: Neil Low
Neil Low knows that going back to college when you’re working and raising a family can be difficult. It took him eight years to graduate from the University of Washington Bothell. Low retired from the Seattle Police Department in 2018 — 50 years after he became a police cadet.
Stick with the struggle, advises Low, recipient of UW Bothell’s 2019 Distinguished Alumnus Award. “I am so glad I went back to get that education,” he said.
Read more about Neil Low.