The Mercer Island School District will present its new Pathfinder Award to four graduates of Mercer Island High School whose achievements, strength of character and citizenship inspire and challenge today’s youth.

The recipients are: Warren Brown, Ed. D., 1988, president of North Seattle College; Earle Canfield, 1965, physician assistant, founder and executive director of American-Nepali Students’ and Women’s Educational Relief (ANSWER); Dariush Mozaffarian, M.D., Dr.P.H., 1987, dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science; and Michelle Flowers Taylor, Ed.D., 1988, director of the Institute of Engineering Community and Cultural Competence (IEC3) at USC’s Viterbi School of Engineering.

“Growing up on an island with exceptional schools and residents who strongly support public education, these four individuals used their formative years to embrace the larger world around them and to push the boundaries of their potential,” said Superintendent Dr. Gary Plano. “These award winners exemplify the amazing impact our high school graduates can have in our local and global communities. Each of them is a pathfinder aspiring to improve our way of life and to make this world a better place.”

Winners will be honored at the Mercer Island Schools Foundation’s Breakfast of Champions on April 26. To attend, visit mercerislandschoolsfoundation.com.

A permanent Pathfinder Award display will be created at Mercer Island High School alongside previously recognized distinguished graduates.

This year’s Pathfinders were selected from nominations submitted by the community at large and chosen by a 13-member Selection Committee comprised of a high school teacher, a high school student, former MISD board member, a retired teacher, a city council member, business leaders, alumni, and officials from the district and the Mercer Island Schools Foundation.

For full bios of the recipients, see www.mercerislandschools.org.