The St. Louis Park Distinguished Alumni Awards represent Park students who have attended Park schools for at least ten years but not necessarily graduates of Park High. The award is presented at Park High graduation. Nominees are accepted all year. The committee is especially interested in getting nominations from distinguished Park alumni in the math and science fields.
AWARDEES:
Thomas Friedman, journalist at the New York Times (Class of 1971)
Sharon Isbin, Grammy-winning musician and head of the guitar department at Julliard (Class of 1974)
Dr. Gregory Hedberg, curator, professor, and art historian (Class of 1964)
Robert, Joe and James Hautman, internationally known wildlife artists – Awarded 2009
Senator Al Franken, who attended St. Louis Park public schools from Kindergarten to tenth grade before finishing at Blake Academy. (Awarded 2010)
Dr. Clayton Swenson, nuclear physicist (Class of 1940) – Awarded 2011
Grammy winning songwriter and singer Dan Wilson (Class of 1979) – Awarded 2012.
World renowned journalist Susan Linnee (Class of 1960) – Awarded 2013
Dr. Richard Howard (Class of 1958) – Awarded 2015. Dr. Howard was a medical doctor in Florida who specialized in donor transplants.
Elise Hernandez (Class of 1987) – Awarded 2016. Read about Elise’s business accomplishments in the StarTribune.
For more information on the Distinguished Alumni Awards, contact committee chair Nancy Lapakko.