List of University of Colorado Boulder alumni
The following is a list of notable people who attended or graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Nobel laureates[]
- Sidney Altman, Nobel laureate in Chemistry in 1989
- Thomas R. Cech, Nobel laureate in Chemistry in 1989
- Stanley Cohen, Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine in 1986
- Eric Allin Cornell, Nobel laureate in Physics in 2001
- John L. Hall, Nobel laureate in Physics in 2005
- Herbert Kroemer, Nobel laureate in Physics in 2000
- Craig Mello, Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine in 2006
- Norman Ramsey, Nobel laureate in Physics in 1989
- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011
- Carl Wieman, Nobel laureate in Physics in 2001
- David J. Wineland, Nobel laureate in Physics in 2012
- Jennifer Doudna, Nobel laureate in Chemistry in 2020
- Muhammad Yunus, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006
Notable faculty and staff[]
- Waleed Abdalati, scientist, Chief Scientist of NASA
- Patricia A. Adler, professor emerita of sociology
- Bernard Amadei, civil engineer, founder of Engineers Without Borders
- Mark Amerika, artist and author
- Fred Anderson, historian, author of The Crucible of War
- Albert Allen Bartlett, physicist, popular writer on exponential growth in populations and energy resources
- Petr Beckmann, physicist, engineer
- Stan Brakhage, filmmaker
- Sara Branham Matthews, microbiologist
- Storm Bull, Professor Emeritus at the College of Music and Head of the Division of Piano
- Adolf Busemann, pioneering aerospace engineer
- Sarvadaman Chowla, mathematician
- Ward Churchill, former ethnic studies professor noted for inflammatory statements dealing with 9/11, dismissed from CU-Boulder 2007
- Robert T. Craig, communication theorist and author of Communication Theory as a Field
- William Duane, physicist
- Max Mapes Ellis, explorer and physiologist
- Larry Esposito, discoverer of Saturn's fourth ring
- Charbel Farhat, Chairman of the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics Stanford University
- George Gamow, physicist and cosmologist
- Alice F. Healy, psychologist
- Clayton Heathcock, Professor of Chemistry and Dean of the College of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley
- Robert Hill, harpsichordist and fortepianist
- Linda Hogan, Native American poet, storyteller, academic, playwright, novelist, environmentalist and writer of short stories
- Janet L. Jacobs, gender and religion sociologist
- Deborah S. Jin, physicist
- Daniel Kellogg, composer
- Patricia Nelson Limerick, historian and occasional New York Times columnist
- Morris Massey, Professor of Marketing, marketing innovator, and Fortune 500 consultant
- Margaret Murnane, physicist, pioneer of femto-second laser research; MacArthur fellow
- Carter Pann, composer
- Steven Pollock, physicist, U.S. Professor of the Year
- Hobart Muir Smith, most published herpetologist of all time; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- Joseph R. Tanner, former astronaut
- John Taylor, physicist
- Stanislaw Ulam, mathematician
- James F. Williams, Dean of Libraries
- Muriel Sibell Wolle, artist and author
- James Voss, former astronaut
- Betty Woodman, ceramic artist
- George Woodman, ceramicist, painter, and photographer
- Melanie Yazzie, sculptor, painter, and printmaker
Notable alumni[]
Academia, science and technology[]
- Len Ackland, professor at the University of Colorado and co-director of the Center for Environmental Journalism
- Elaine Anderson, paleontologist
- George J. Armelagos, Goodrich C. White Professor of Anthropology at Emory University
- John Christian Bailar, statistician, Professor Emeritus at the University of Chicago
- Janet Bonnema, civil engineer
- Kathryn Bullock, electrochemist
- Steve Chappell, aerospace engineer and NASA scientist
- Erica Chenoweth, political scientist, expert on civil resistance movements and faculty member at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies[1]
- Robert Corruccini, biological anthropologist and author of numerous monographs and articles on the theory of malocclusion
- Hilda Counts, electrical engineer
- Patrick Curran, professor of quantitative psychology at the University of North Carolina and Director of the L. L. Thurstone Psychometric Laboratory
- Ward Darley, president, University of Colorado
- William E. Davis, former university president and United States Senate candidate
- Vine Deloria, Jr., academic and political author on Native American subjects
- W. Edwards Deming, manufacturing quality expert
- Patricia Louise Dudley, zoologist specializing in copepods
- Elsie Eaves, civil engineer
- Steve H. Hanke, professor of economics at Johns Hopkins University, adviser to presidents, currency reformer and commodity and currency trader
- David Haussler, professor, University of California, Santa Cruz
- Gretchen Hofmann, professor of ecological physiology of marine organisms at the University of California, Santa Barbara
- Tom Hornbein, developed the standard breathing mask after climbing Mt. Everest in 1963
- Charles Hoskinson, Mathematician, founder of Cardano and co-founder of Ethereum
- Moriba Jah, astrodynamicist; associate professor of aerospace engineering and engineering mechanics at the University of Texas at Austin; Core Faculty of the Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences; former spacecraft navigator for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory[2]
- Alan Kay, computer scientist, Turing Award winner
- Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Swiss-born psychiatrist and the author of the groundbreaking book On Death and Dying
- Ron Larson, professor of mathematics at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
- Emory Lindquist, Rhodes scholar, Swedish American historian, President of Bethany College and Wichita State University
- Christopher McKay, planetary scientist at NASA Ames Research Center
- Theodore Harold Maiman, demonstrated the first laser
- Tom Maniatis, Edelma Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons
- Lou Alta Melton, civil engineer and bridge engineer
- Kenneth Miller, biologist at Brown University
- Ralph Prator, first president of California State University, Northridge
- Philip Radovic, podiatric surgeon
- Kay Schallenkamp, President of Emporia State University, and later Black Hills State University
- Leon Silver, geologist at California Institute of Technology, past president of Geological Society of America, trained Apollo astronauts in field geology
- Gary Stormo, geneticist and pioneer of bioinformatics and genomics
- Michael T. Voorhees, entrepreneur, engineer, designer, geographer, and aeronaut
Arts and film[]
- 3OH!3, electronic music group
- Josephine Antoine, coloratura soprano with the Metropolitan Opera
- Brandon Barnes, drummer for the band Rise Against and Pinhead Circus
- Rodney Carswell, painter
- Chairlift, electronic-pop group
- Derek Cianfrance, screenwriter and film director
- Lydia Cornell, actress, author
- Eli Craig, screenwriter and film director
- Eric Darnell, director
- Joey Diaz, comedian
- Brian Dietzen, actor
- Lisa Donovan, actress and writer
- Patricia Elliott, actress
- Joe Flanigan, actor
- Tanner Foust, television host, stunt driver, professional racing driver
- Nicole Fox, model, winner of America's Next Top Model, Cycle 13
- Drew Goddard, film and television screenwriter, director and producer
- Dave Grusin, composer, winner of three Academy and three Grammy awards
- Heather Hach, wrote the screenplay for the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday and the book of the Broadway musical Legally Blonde
- Erinn Hayes, actress
- Jonah Hill, actor
- David "GrandPooBear" Hunt, speedrunner and streamer well-known for retro Super Mario games
- Angus T. Jones, actor
- Shawn King, drummer, percussionist, trumpeter, accordionist, organist for the band DeVotchKa
- R. J. Kern, artist and photographer
- Chaney Kley, actor
- Land of the Loops, electronica musician
- William Lewis, opera tenor and academic
- Larry Linville, actor (M*A*S*H)
- Low vs Diamond, rock band
- Erin Macdonald, science consultant for Star Trek
- Ross Marquand, actor
- Christopher Meloni, actor
- Glenn Miller, composer, big band leader
- Nathaniel Motte, singer, songwriter, producer, performer, film composer, instrumentalist, and playwright
- Thomas Noel, historian
- Peter O'Fallon, director, producer and writer
- Trey Parker, co-creator of South Park
- Robert Redford, actor (did not graduate), Oscar winner, founder of the Sundance Film Festival
- Dean Reed, actor, singer and songwriter, director, and social activist
- Joe Safdie, poet
- Aaron Simpson, Emmy-nominated animation producer
- Susan Arnout Smith, award-winning playwright and novelist
- Paul Soldner, artist
- Matt Stone, co-creator of South Park
- Eric Stough, producer and the director of animation on South Park
- Steve Taylor, singer/songwriter and film director
- Dalton Trumbo, writer, Academy Award winner
- Joan Van Ark, actress
- Townes Van Zandt, country-folk singer-songwriter, withdrew in his sophomore year
- Malia White, Below Deck Med cast member
- Linda Williams, professor of film studies at the University of California, Berkeley
- Chris Wood, electronic musician
- Pamela Z, composer, performer, and media artist
- Dean Zanuck, motion picture executive and producer
Astronauts[]
- Loren Acton, NASA astronaut
- Patrick Baudry, CNES astronaut
- Vance D. Brand, NASA astronaut
- Scott Carpenter, NASA astronaut in second orbital flight (fourth crewed) of Project Mercury
- Kalpana Chawla, NASA astronaut, died on Columbia
- Takao Doi, NASA astronaut
- Samuel T. Durrance, NASA astronaut
- John Herrington, NASA astronaut
- Richard Hieb, NASA astronaut
- Marsha Ivins, NASA astronaut
- John M. Lounge, NASA astronaut
- George Nelson, NASA astronaut
- Ellison Onizuka, NASA astronaut, died on Challenger in January 1986
- Stuart Roosa, NASA astronaut, flew on Apollo 14
- Ronald M. Sega, NASA astronaut
- Steven Swanson, NASA astronaut
- Jack Swigert, NASA astronaut, flew on Apollo 13
- James Voss, NASA astronaut
Athletics[]
- Bobby Anderson, former NFL running back for the Denver Broncos
- Dick Anderson, former NFL safety for the Miami Dolphins
- Tom Ashworth, former NFL offensive tackle for the Seattle Seahawks
- Sal Aunese, Big Eight Newcomer of the Year
- Chidobe Awuzie, NFL cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys
- David Bakhtiari, NFL offensive tackle for the Green Bay Packers
- Justin Bannan, former NFL defensive tackle for the Denver Broncos
- Dede Barry, cyclist, won silver in the 2004 Summer Olympics in the women's time trial
- Mitch Berger, former NFL punter
- Greg Biekert, former NFL linebacker for the Oakland Raiders and Minnesota Vikings
- Eric Bieniemy, former NFL running back and offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs
- Chauncey Billups, Detroit Pistons of the NBA, 2004 NBA Finals MVP
- Abhinav Bindra, shooter, won gold for India in the 2008 Summer Olympics in the 10 metre air rifle
- Joan Birkland, Colorado state women's amateur golf and tennis champion
- Jeremy Bloom, Olympic Skier (played football for Colorado), drafted by Philadelphia Eagles
- Cliff Branch, former wide receiver with the Oakland Raiders
- Tyler Brayton, NFL defensive end, plays for the Carolina Panthers
- Carlon Brown, basketball player, 2013-14 top scorer in the Israel Basketball Premier League
- Chris Brown, former NFL running back for the Houston Texans
- Heidi Browning, NHL chief marketing officer
- Rae Carruth, former wide receiver for the Carolina Panthers
- Franklin Clarke, former All-Pro wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys
- Emma Coburn, mid-distance runner, Olympian 2016 Bronze Medalist Steeplechase, 2017 World Champion
- Mark Cooney, former NFL linebacker for the Green Bay Packers
- Joe Cooper, former NBA center
- Mason Crosby, NFL kicker for the Green Bay Packers
- Alan Culpepper, runner, Olympian, 2000 and 2004
- Koy Detmer, former NFL quarterback
- Boyd Dowler, former NFL wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers
- Jon Embree, former head football coach for the Colorado Buffaloes
- Christian Fauria, NFL tight end for the Carolina Panthers
- Bill Frank, Canadian Football Hall of Fame offensive lineman for the Toronto Argonauts and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
- Tom Garfinkel, President and CEO of the Miami Dolphins
- David Gibbs, former NFL head coach
- Taylor Gold (born 1993), snowboarder; Olympic bronze medalist
- Adam Goucher, professional runner with Nike, Olympian 2000
- Kara Goucher, runner, Olympian 2008, 2012
- Daniel Graham, former NFL tight end for the Denver Broncos
- Alex Gurney, professional auto racing driver
- Andre Gurode, former All-Pro center for the Dallas Cowboys
- D.J. Hackett, former NFL wide receiver for the Carolina Panthers
- Tyler Hamilton, cyclist with many impressive finishes at the Tour de France, Summer Olympics
- David Harrison, former NBA center
- Don Hasselbeck, former NFL tight end
- Steven J. Hatchell, president and CEO of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, Inc.
- Jimmie Heuga, alpine skiing, 1964 Olympic bronze medalist in slalom
- Katie Hnida, football place kicker (graduated from the University of New Mexico)
- Jay Howell, retired Major League Baseball pitcher of 15 years
- Jay Humphries, former NBA guard
- Hale Irwin, golfer, three-time U.S. Open champion
- Brian Iwuh, former NFL linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars
- Jonathan Kaye (born 1970), professional golfer on PGA Tour
- Billy Kidd, alpine skiing, 1964 Olympic silver medalist in slalom, 1970 World Champion (combined)
- Joe Klopfenstein, former NFL tight end for the Buffalo Bills
- Stuart Krohn (born 1962), professional rugby union player
- Matt Lepsis, former NFL offensive tackle for the Denver Broncos
- Michael Lewis, former All-Pro safety for the San Francisco 49ers
- Phillip Lindsay, NFL running back for the Denver Broncos
- Dave Logan, former NFL receiver, broadcaster
- Eliot Marshall, retired mixed martial arts fighter[3]
- Nikki Marshall, NWSL defender for the Portland Thorns FC
- Scotty McKnight, Former NFL WR for the New York Jets
- Matt Miller, former NFL offensive tackle for the Cleveland Browns
- William Nelson, professional runner, Olympian 2008; Assistant Coach and Recruiting Coordinator for the CU XC/Track & Field Teams
- Isaiah Oliver, NFL cornerback for the Atlanta Falcons
- Tyler Polumbus, former NFL offensive tackle for the Washington Redskins
- Vince Rafferty, former NFL center and guard for the Green Bay Packers
- Marcus Relphorde (born 1988). basketball player in the Israeli National League
- Paul Richardson (American football), former NFL wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks
- Dathan Ritzenhein, professional runner with Nike, Olympian 2004, 2008, and 2012
- Paul Robinson, professional rock climber
- Bill Roe, former NFL and USFL linebacker
- Spider Sabich, alpine skiing, 1968 Olympian (5th in slalom), and pro champion, 1971 and 1972
- Rashaan Salaam, former NFL running back, 1994 Heisman Trophy winner
- Brendan Schaub, former NFL candidate; retired mixed martial artist for the Ultimate Fighting Championship;stand-up comedian
- Laviska Shenault, NFL wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars
- Jenny Simpson, 1500 meter runner, Olympian 2008, 2012, 2016 Bronze Medalist
- Jimmy Smith (cornerback), NFL cornerback for the Baltimore Ravens
- Nate Solder, NFL offensive tackle for the New York Giants
- John Stearns, former catcher for Philadelphia Phillies and NY Mets
- Alexandra Stevenson, women's tennis player
- Kordell Stewart, former NFL quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers
- Bill Symons, former CFL All-Star for the Toronto Argonauts
- Debi Thomas, Olympic figure skater in 1988
- Tedric Thompson, NFL safety for the Kansas City Chiefs
- Bill Toomey, Olympic gold medalist in the 1968 decathlon
- Rachel Wacholder - model and beach volleyball player
- Ward Walsh, former NFL running back
- Scott Wedman, former NBA forward
- Michael Westbrook, former NFL wide receiver
- Terrence Wheatley, former NFL cornerback for the New England Patriots, first-team All-Big 12
- Damen Wheeler, former NFL and XFL cornerback
- Alfred Williams, former NFL linebacker, 1990 Butkus Award winner
- Ahkello Witherspoon, NFL cornerback for the San Francisco 49ers
- John Wooten, All-American; played for the Cleveland Browns; former vice president/director for the Philadelphia Eagles; assistant director for the Baltimore Ravens
Business and economy[]
- Mohamed Al-Mady, President of SABIC
- Jake Burton Carpenter, founder of Burton Snowboards
- John Dendahl, retired business executive and member of the 1960 US Olympic ski team
- Steve Ells, founder, Chairman, and CEO of Chipotle Mexican Grill
- Thorleif Enger, former boss of Yara International; indicted in 2012 in relation to the company's business practices in Libya[4]
- Richard S. Fuld, former Lehman Brothers, Chairman and CEO
- Tim Gill, founder and former Chairman of Quark, Inc.
- Ron Gordon, former president of Atari
- Brent Handler, entrepreneur and pioneer of the destination club industry
- Michael Karlan, founder of the nation's largest social and networking group, Professionals in the City
- David Kennedy, co-founder of Wieden + Kennedy advertising agency, known for its 1980s "Just Do It" campaign for Nike
- Matt Larson, founder and CEO of Confio Software
- Sanford McDonnell, President of McDonnell Aircraft Corporation
- Chris Myers, former Vice President of Business Development at Lockheed Martin and former Mayor of Medford, New Jersey
- Scott Oki, former senior vice-president of sales and marketing for Microsoft who conceived and built Microsoft's international operations
- Lucy Sanders, CEO and co-founder of the National Center for Women & Information Technology[5]
Journalism[]
- John Branch, sports writer for The New York Times and recipient of the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing
- Dave Briggs, co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend, Fox News Channel
- Benedict Carey, medical and science writer for The New York Times
- Dan Carlin, television/radio journalist and podcaster
- Linda Chavez, political analyst and Fox News commentator
- Kevin Corke, White House correspondent, Fox News
- Tom Costello, NBC News, Washington-based correspondent
- Chris Fowler, ESPN
- Jim Gray, sports reporter
- Tom Keene, editor-at-large for Bloomberg News
- Herb Keinon, columnist and journalist for The Jerusalem Post
- Joe Kernen, CNBC anchor
- Zachery Kouwe, former financial journalist
- Robert Palmer, Emmy Award winner, news editor and executive editor
- Carl Quintanilla, CNBC News anchor
- Lara Jo Regan, documentary and fine art photographer, photojournalist, author, winner of World Press Photo of the Year
- Rick Reilly, ESPN commentator and former Sports Illustrated writer, ten-time National Sportswriter of the Year
- Jonathan Weil, columnist for Bloomberg News and former writer for the Wall Street Journal
Law[]
- Christine Arguello (born 1955), federal court judge, Denver, CO
- Roger S. Burdick, Chief Justice of the Idaho Supreme Court
- Howard Jenkins Jr., labor lawyer and civil servant
- Louis O. Kelso, inventor of the employee stock ownership plan
- William Lee Knous, former associate justice of the Colorado Supreme Court
- Ashby Pate, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Palau
- Wiley Rutledge, former Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
- John Suthers, former Attorney General of Colorado
- Bethuel M. Webster, lawyer and founder of Webster & Sheffield
- Byron White, former associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
Literature[]
- Molly Bloom, author
- Ed Dorn, poet
- John Fante, author of Ask the Dust
- Mark Leyner, author
- Jean Stafford, Pulitzer prize winner
- Luís Alberto Urrea, Mexican American poet, novelist, and essayist
- Carrie Vaughn, author
- Jack Williamson PhD, science fiction author and educator
Military[]
- Ben Connable, retired Marine Major, professor at the Frederick S. Pardee RAND Graduate School
- Roger A. Lalich, U.S. National Guard general
- Harold R. Vague, Air Force major general and Judge Advocate General of the United States Air Force
- David D. Barrett, Army Colonel, representative of the Dixie Mission in China, and professor at the University of Colorado.
Politics[]
- Joe Neguse, U.S. Representative for Colorado
- Gordon L. Allott, former U.S. Senator from Colorado (1955–1973)
- Bob Beauprez, former U.S. Representative
- Donald G. Brotzman, former U.S. Representative for Colorado
- Hank Brown, U.S. Senator; U.S. Representative; former president of the University of Northern Colorado, and the University of Colorado system
- Kate Brown, 38th Governor of Oregon and former Secretary of State
- George Alfred Carlson, 20th Governor of Colorado
- Morgan Carroll, Colorado State Senate Majority Leader
- Mary Ann Casey, Ambassador to Algeria, Tunisia
- Mike Coffman, U.S. Representative for Colorado
- John J. Easton, Jr., Attorney General of Vermont
- Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, leader of non-violent revolution that brought democracy to Mongolia, President of Mongolia, Prime Minister of Mongolia
- Maria Handley, member-at-large of the Democratic National Committee
- Greg Harris, member of Illinois House of Representatives
- Vicki Huddleston, Ambassador to Madagascar, Mali, Chief of U.S. Interests Section Havana, Cuba
- Wayne Harold Johnson (Master of Public Administration), Republican member of both houses, consecutively, of the Wyoming State Legislature from Cheyenne, 1993 to 2017
- Karen Middleton, member, Colorado House of Representatives
- Ed Perlmutter, U.S. Representative for Colorado
- Bill Ritter (Colorado Law School), Denver District Attorney, Advisor to the U.S. Attorney General, Governor of Colorado (D)
- Roy Romer (Colorado Law School), former Colorado governor
- Kenneth Rutherford, activist in the International Campaign to Ban Landmines
- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of Liberia
- Richard A. Sossi, Maryland politician
- John Suthers, Mayor of Colorado Springs
- Llewellyn Thompson, Ambassador to USSR, consul to Moscow, received the Medal of Freedom
- Purnomo Yusgiantoro, Minister of Defense of Indonesia, former secretary general of OPEC
Other[]
- Lynne Cheney, wife of former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney; author of children's books
- Stanley Grenz, Christian theologian and ethicist in the Baptist tradition
- J. Edward Guinan, community activist, author of the first DC Statehood referendum, and founder of the Community for Creative Non-Violence
- Nancy Spungen, girlfriend of punk rock singer Sid Vicious
References[]
- ^ "Erica Chenoweth Faculty Page". du.edu/korbel. University of Denver. Archived from the original on 2012-10-04. Retrieved 20 Jan 2013.
- ^ "ESA Science & Technology - Mars Express".
- ^ "Eliot Marshall UFC Bio". Retrieved 1 January 2014.
- ^ Skygget unna Enger - DN.no
- ^ "Lucy Sanders". International Computer Science Institute. 2016.
Categories:
- Lists of people by educational affiliation in Colorado
- Lists of people by university or college in Colorado
- University of Colorado alumni
- University of Colorado Boulder people