Distinguished alumni

CAPT Robin (Van Oosterhout ’92) Lewis Distinguished Service to Humankind

Robin was commissioned in the U.S. Navy in 1999 and served as a naval officer in California, Guam, Texas and at the U.S. Naval Academy. After taking a commission with the U.S. Public Health Service in 2009, she served as a commissioned officer with the Navy in Virginia, South Carolina and aboard the USNS Comfort. Since 2020, Robin has served as public health captain in the U.S. Coast Guard, where she helps guide a worldwide behavioral health program with direct oversight of the Coast Guard’s District 7, an area spanning Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and the Caribbean. Robin holds a doctorate in psychology and additional advanced degrees in counseling and psychopharmacology. She is the recipient of more than 40 military awards and was named 2011 Force Protection Military Medical Hero. Robin and her husband, Jeff, have twin sons, Jacob and Joshua, who are seniors at Northwestern studying biochemistry.

Award year: 2025