Alumni Awards 2026 Recipients

Dan Erickson  ('07)

Screenwriter/Producer,
Creator of Severance, Emmy-winning screenwriter, and storyteller shaping modern television.

As the creator, show-runner and executive producer of the television show “Severance,” Dan Erickson, ’07, is the brain behind the psychological sci-fi thriller and its darkly hilarious and often poignant take on identity, grief and work-life balance. Erickson’s accolades include Writers Guild of America awards for best drama series and best new series, as well as Emmy Award nominations for outstanding drama series and outstanding writing. Perhaps just as rewarding, his twisty plots have also launched a thousand fan theories.

Long before “Severance” was one of the marquee offerings on AppleTV+, Erickson was a creative writing student at WWU. At Western, Erickson was mentored by playwright and former faculty member Bryan Willis, who taught him to believe in his own vision, no matter how unconventional. “You have to believe that what you’re doing, on some level, is special, and what you’re doing is working,” Erickson says Willis taught him. “Don’t become so deferential that you’re just trying to follow the rules.” 

As a student Erickson wrote a play that took these words to heart.  Featuring office workers with mysterious lapses in memory, “Convention,” includes bits of the early DNA of “Severance.” Buzz surrounding the new script caught the attention of Western’s STP (Student Theatre Productions), which went on to produce “Convention” in the Old Main Theatre. “I sort of wrote it and thought, ‘Only at Western could I get this thing put up,’” Erickson said. After directing “Convention” for STP along with Abe Manion, ’07, Erickson submitted the script in his application to New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, where he went on to earn an MFA in dramatic writing. 

These days, Erickson continues to create stories that defy expectations. He’s preparing the third season of “Severance,” set to begin filming this year, and his unproduced “horror-comedy” script “Hellywood” was recently featured in a live reading in Los Angeles. He still relies on lessons learned at Western, including time with the Dead Parrots Society where he learned that improv is a powerful writing skill. “I’ll sit there in my house, and I’ll improv both sides of the scene,” he says. “It frees me up a little bit, creatively. It’s all about not thinking too much and just going with your gut.”

David Swanson ('72)

Professor Emeritus, UC Riverside
An internationally recognized demographer, prolific researcher, and higher education advocate.

David A. Swanson,’72, has spent his career helping communities make sense of the numbers that define them.

An internationally recognized demographer, Swanson is known for advancing the methods used to estimate and forecast populations at the local level. His work helps inform decisions about schools, infrastructure, and public resources, giving communities the data they need to plan and adapt. Through both his research and public service, he has helped shape how population information is used across the United States and around the world.

Swanson began his academic journey at Western Washington University, then Western Washington State College, where he became the first graduate to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in sociology, in 1972. He went on to earn graduate degrees from the University of Hawai‘i and the University of Stockholm, launching a distinguished career spanning universities, research institutes, and government agencies.

He later served as an Edward A. Dickson Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Riverside, where he is now Distinguished Professor Emeritus. His public service includes six years on the U.S. Census Bureau’s Scientific Advisory Committee, including two as chair, along with testimony before Congress and state legislatures and service as State Demographer for both Alaska and Arkansas.

A prolific scholar, Swanson has authored or co-authored more than 130 peer-reviewed articles and nine books. His work has been supported by more than $2.7 million in grants and recognized with numerous honors, including two Fulbright awards and the Southern Demographic Association’s E. Walter Terrie Award.

Through his scholarship, teaching, and service, Swanson has helped communities better understand who they are and how they are changing. His work continues to shape the way population data is used to inform decisions, strengthen institutions, and plan for the future, which directly impacts Washington through his on-going work as an active member of the Washington Academy of Sciences in support of its mission to serve the state.

Lee Whittaker (’68)

Educator, innovator and Methow Valley land donor  

Lee Whittaker is an educator, entrepreneur, and lifelong advocate for innovation, sustainability, and community. A former physics and math teacher and the founder of Nytec, an award-winning product development firm that helps global companies bring new technologies to life, he has built a career grounded in curiosity, problem-solving, and a commitment to helping others learn and grow.

That same spirit has guided his work beyond the classroom and the business world. Inspired by a vision he shared with his late wife Marilyn, Whittaker set out to create a place where people could live affordably and intentionally, and where students could immerse themselves in the life-changing experience of living and learning in the Methow and Okanogan Valleys.

This vision led to his transformational gift of more than 170 acres in Washington’s Methow Valley, creating a permanent “living laboratory” for sustainability. Through this gift, Whittaker is helping ensure that Western students can engage directly with the land, turning classroom learning into real-world experience and preparing them to lead in ecological stewardship and climate solutions.

Whittaker’s commitment reflects a lifelong dedication to education, innovation, and community building, and his belief in the power of hands-on learning to shape a better future.

Alison Lührs ('12)

Narrative Director, Bungie

Alison Lührs, ’11, is a storyteller and world builder whose creative work has reached millions of people around the globe. As narrative director at Bungie, writing for blockbuster video game titles such as Destiny 2, she leads the team responsible for shaping the characters, dialogue, and evolving storylines of a virtual universe that has been experienced by more than 90 million players worldwide. In that role, Lührs guides the writers’ room and collaborates with designers, artists, and voice actors to create immersive narratives that keep one of the world’s most popular games constantly evolving.

A native of Pasco, Lührs came to Western Washington University as a theatre major. Although she did not originally envision a career in gaming, the collaborative storytelling and world-building skills she developed on stage at Western proved to be the perfect foundation for a future in interactive entertainment. Her theatre training, particularly the practice of improv and devising original works through collaboration, helped shape the creative process she would later bring to large-scale storytelling projects.

After graduation, Lührs began building her career in Seattle’s creative community and eventually joined Wizards of the Coast, the publisher behind beloved fantasy franchises like Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons. What began as a social media role quickly evolved into a creative career as she began writing stories set in those worlds. She later collaborated with Larian Studios on the highly anticipated role-playing game Baldur’s Gate 3, ensuring the project captured the spirit and storytelling tradition of the Dungeons & Dragons universe.

Throughout her journey, Lührs has remained deeply connected to the values that shaped her at Western. A Pell Grant recipient, she often reflects on how access to scholarships and a supportive campus community helped make her education and her career possible. She credits her Western mentors and classmates with giving her the confidence to take creative risks and “make decisive choices,” a philosophy that continues to guide her work today as she helps craft stories for audiences numbering in the tens of millions around the world.

Nancy Hoff  ('66) and family

For Nancy Hoff, ‘66, and her family, Western Washington University is more than a place. It is part of a legacy that has shaped generations of educators and the communities they have served for more than a century.

That legacy began in the early 1900s, when Nancy’s grandmother, Ada Esther Richards Carter, attended Bellingham Normal School before returning to her hometown to teach. More than 60 years later, Nancy followed in her footsteps, graduating from Western Washington College of Education in 1966 and beginning a teaching career that would take her around the world.

After several years teaching in Washington state, Nancy joined the Department of Defense Dependents Schools system, where she spent 34 years teaching young children on American military bases across the globe. From Germany to Japan, Cuba to the Azores, she helped create stable, supportive classrooms for students growing up far from home, while also mentoring fellow educators and advancing early childhood education.

Education and service have remained central to the Hoff family. Nancy’s sister, Sandra Long ’75, built a decades-long career in early childhood education in Washington state. Nancy’s son, Carter Hoff ’02, ’03, continued the family tradition at Western before beginning his own career with Department of Defense schools, where he now teaches middle school students in Italy.

That legacy continues to grow. During a recent visit to campus, Nancy and Carter walked Western with Carter’s daughters, sharing stories and reflecting on their time as students. 

For the Hoff family, Western is not just where their story began. It is a place that continues to inspire new chapters. Through their dedication to teaching, their service to communities near and far, and their enduring connection to Western, the Hoff family exemplifies the lasting impact of education across generations.