Six Hawkeyes Recognized at Distinguished Alumni Awards Ceremony
PHOTO: John Emigh
Thomas Schnack, Marilynne Robinson, N. William Hines, Barrett Anderson, Jimmy Reyes, and Lisa Hindson (not pictured) accepted UI Distinguished Alumni Awards during homecoming week.
With more than 300,000 University of Iowa alumni, it’s no small feat for the Distinguished Alumni Award committee to determine which exceptional Hawkeyes to honor each year.
The 2026 Distinguished Alumni Awards recipients—recognized in a ceremony Oct. 29 at the Levitt Center for University Advancement—have experience in the Olympic games and the White House. They’ve published Pulitzer Prize-winning novels and led Iowa Law to a top 10-ranked public school designation. They exemplify the Hawkeye values of community engagement, leadership, and service.
Barrett Anderson (08BA, 08BS)
2026 Recent Graduate Award
Anderson’s legal career started at Iowa where he earned degrees in economics and political science. He interned for Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, then President Barack Obama, before attending Yale Law School.
After graduating, Anderson worked on Capitol Hill before moving to San Diego. There, his robust pro bono practice focused on advocating for LGBTQ+ community members.
Lisa Hindson (89MA, 89MBA, 90PhD)
2026 Achievement Award
Hindson’s ambition to serve on the International Olympic Committee brought her to Iowa from Australia to study sports management. She graduated in three years with two master’s degrees and a doctorate. Six years later, she was hired by the Atlanta Olympic Games Organizing Committee.
After the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Hindson was awarded the Golden Rings, and then hired as head of IOC Games Operations.
N. William Hines
2026 Friend Award
Hines’ tenure at Iowa Law started in 1962. In that time, he educated more than 10,000 students, as dean established the college as a top 10-ranked public law school, and served in multiple positions for the Association of American Law Schools.
Major developments in Iowa law, specifically around real property law, estate planning, and environmental law, have been influenced by Hines’ scholarship.
Jimmy A. Reyes (04BSN, 07MSN, 10DNP)
2026 Service Award
Reyes has been instrumental in advancing cross-sector collaboration to address chronic disease and social determinants of health in Iowa and around the globe.
Reyes founded MyHealthIowa to reach immigrant, refugee, migrant, rural, and underserved communities throughout the state. His leadership, grounded in partnership, has changed the lives of countless people by expanding access to care.
Marilynne Robinson (17LHD)
2026 Faculty Award
In her 25-year tenure as the F. Wendell Miller Professor of English and Creative Writing at Iowa, Robinson helped shape generations of writers.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of five novels has received recognition in the literary world and beyond—in 2013, President Barack Obama awarded Robinson the National Humanities Medal and described her novels as life-changing.
Thomas Schnack (72BBA, 75MA)
2026 Hickerson Award
Schnack became involved with UI REACH—a transition program for students with intellectual, cognitive, or learning disabilities—when his son became a member of the first class.
Schnack led scholarship fundraising for UI REACH and now serves as chair of the UI REACH board. As executive vice president of Ecolab in St. Paul, Minnesota, he helped create several certification opportunities for REACH students with his company.