Peter Rinearson enrolled at the UW in 1972 and graduated in 2004, returning after thirty years to take the final two credits for his communication degree. According to his nominator, “Rinearson has modeled reinvention throughout his career, repeatedly taking on new and different challenges … This kind of career success, and Rinearson’s willingness to change direction and take chances that sometimes fail, should inspire students.” His career path has spanned multiple sectors and industries. He wrote for The Seattle Times for a decade, covering topics such as Boeing, the Pacific Rim, legislature, and the Seattle City Hall. He founded and ran two successful software companies, a modestly successful digital design studio, and a failed social network. He wrote a No. 1 NYT bestseller with Bill Gates (“The Road Ahead”), helped shape Microsoft Word from its earliest stages, sold Microsoft its first toolbar for Mac Word, and wrote the leading books of the era on how to use Microsoft Word. Later, he was a vice president of Microsoft and a senior vice president of Oxygen Media. Today he is a historian focused on Seattle and its technology and entrepreneurialism. Rinearson’s national awards include the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing, the ASNE Distinguished Writing Award for business writing, the Lowell Thomas Prize from the American Society of Travel Writers, the John Hancock Award for Excellence in Business and Financial Journalism, and the Special Paul Myher Award in the Penney-Missouri Journalism Awards from the University of Missouri School of Journalism (now known as the Missouri Lifestyle Journalism Awards). In his remarks, Rinearson shared, “My career was non-linear, so it didn’t lead me anywhere specific. I loved taking on a challenge, succeeding or failing at it, and then trying something new. I was unafraid to become a beginner again. This was wonderfully rewarding much of the time, but it’s essential to remember that this approach can lead to failures — and I had some. The School of Communications, as it was then known, was formative for me. Being recognized by the organization is gratifying. Many people are deserving of recognition and I feel lucky to have been selected.”