Each year, the Milgard School of Business at the University of Washington Tacoma recognizes the best and the brightest in the South Sound.

Recipients of the Milgard Leadership Awards are selected based on exemplary service in their organization and community, as well as the business school’s five core competencies: integrated business knowledge, strategic thinking, communication, teamwork and professionalism.

This year, two new awards were added to the mix—Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Community Leadership and Women’s Leadership.

Congratulations to this year’s honorees:

• Lifetime Achievement: Randy Rushforth, Retired President, Rushforth Construction
• Business Leader of the Year: Maya Mendoza-Exstrom, Chief Operating Officer, Seattle Sounders
• Non-profit Leader of the Year: Constance Trufant, Executive Director, Trufant Family Foundation
• Sustainable Business of the Year: Douglas Reed, President, Green Diamond Resource Company
• DEI Community Leadership Award: Victoria Woodards, Mayor, City of Tacoma
• Women’s Leadership Award: Miriam Barnett, Retired CEO, YWCA Pierce County

Award recipients will be honored during a May 5 ceremony on the UW Tacoma campus.