Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis recognized five alumni for their achievements, service and commitment to the liberal arts during its Distinguished Alumni Awards dinner, held March 30 at the Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis.
Feng Sheng Hu, dean of Arts & Sciences, awarded the Early Career Achievement Award to Morgan DeBaun, AB ’12, founder and CEO of Blavity Inc., a venture-backed company that builds product solutions and media for Black consumers and the enterprises who want to reach them. The award goes to a graduate of Arts & Sciences who is 45 or younger and who has made momentous strides in their professional field.
The Dean’s Medal, awarded to an individual who has, through dedication, support, leadership, advice and inspiration, kept Arts & Sciences at the forefront of one of the world’s premier educational institutions, was presented to Georgie Lewis, AB ’47, and Carolyn Werner Losos, AB ’54.
Lewis established the Georgie W. Lewis Career Development Professorships at WashU to support emerging faculty scholars. Her philanthropic endeavors include education, the arts and youth services. Losos has devoted her life to serving the St. Louis community, including co-chairing the Missouri Governor’s Conference on Education, whose work led to Missouri establishing Parents as Teachers, an innovative program that provides support for in-home, early childhood education.
The other distinguished alumni honored are:
- Thomas W. Gilligan, PhD ’84, an economist who served as the Tad and Dianne Taube Director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University from 2015 to 2020 and is on the board of directors of KB Home and Southwest Airlines Co.
- Kathy Garber Kartalis, AB ’82, senior vice president of global product at Skechers since 2010, where she is responsible for the design, product development and sourcing of Skechers’ footwear and apparel, and oversees a staff of more than 580 employees in the U.S. and Asia.
View videos of the award recipients on the Arts & Sciences website.
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