The UCONN School of Law is located in Hartford, Connecticut. It has some of the top ranked programs available in law, including for Immigration Law. The UConn Law Review publishes scholarly articles on all aspects of legal study and is rigorously peer-reviewed. Each year, over 95% of graduates are employed within 10 months of graduation.
Who are some notable alumni from the University of Connecticut? Many famous people have walked the halls of UConn! Read more to learn about some famous alumni…
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University Of Connecticut Notable Alumni
Connecticut College alumni have excelled in fields from medicine to the media.
Below is a representative sampling of those whose achievements are especially notable:
Academic administrators
- Stanley F. Battle – 12th Chancellor: North Carolina A&T State University; 4th President: Coppin State University
- Scott S. Cowen – 14th President: Tulane University
- Thomas C. Duffy – former Deputy Dean: Yale School of Music
- Martha Piper – 14th President: University of British Columbia
- Joseph W. Polisi – President: The Juilliard School
- Gregory S. Woodward – 6th President: University of Hartford
Scholars and critics of literature, art and ethics
- Deborah Dancy, professor of painting
- Bobbie Ann Mason – literary critic and novelist
- Michael North – literary critic
- Tim Page – Pulitzer Prize-winning music critic
- Elaine Scarry – Harvard literature professor
Scholars of the social sciences
- Kathleen Musante DeWalt – anthropologist
- Ramani Durvasula, PhD – clinical psychologist, media expert, and author
- Samih Farsoun – sociologist and Arab-Americanactivist
Connecticut College alumni have excelled in fields from medicine to the media.
Below is a representative sampling of those whose achievements are especially notable:
Government and politics
- Debo Adegbile ’91: WilmerHale, partner, and Commissioner for United States Civil Rights Commission. Served as senior counsel for the Senate Judiciary, spent more than a decade working for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.
- Nina Elgo ’84: Connecticut’s first Asian-Pacific American Superior Court judge appointed to the Connecticut Superior Court
- Dorcas Hardy ’68: Appointed by President Ronald Reagan as the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration in 1986 and served until 1989
- Bruce Hoffman ’76: Specialist in the study of terrorism and counterterrorism, insurgency and counter-insurgency. Director of the Center for Security Studies, Director of the Security Studies Program, and a tenured professor at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Washington, D.C.
- Jordan Kaplan ’00: Finance director for Obama for America
- Drew Ketterer ’71: Attorney general, Maine, 1995-2001. While in office, he made civil rights enforcement a priority of his office as well as fighting fraud and elder abuse.
- Harvey Moseley ’72: Senior astrophysicist, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
- Suzi Oppenheimer ’56: Retired New York state senator
- Susan Thomases ’65: Attorney, served as personal counsel and an informal adviser to Hillary Clinton during the presidency of Bill Clinton.
- Patricia Wald ’48: Federal Judge, retired; 2013 recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one of the most respected appellate judges of her generation, first woman appointed to the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, and served as Chief Judge from 1986-1991. She later served on the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague.
Writing and Journalism
- Michael Collier ’76: Poet, director of the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference at Middlebury College, former poet laureate of Maryland
- Sloane Crosley ’00: Author of the New York Times bestsellers “I Was Told There’d Be Cake” (a Thurber Prize finalist) and “How Did You Get This Number.” “The Clasp” is her first novel. A frequent contributor to The New York Times.
- David Grann ’89: Author, “The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon,” staff writer at The New Yorker
- Joshua Green ’94: Senior national correspondent for Bloomberg Businessweek; weekly columnist for The Boston Globe
- Amy Gross ’63: Former editor in chief, O, The Oprah Magazine
- Jay Lauf ’86 Co-president and publisher, Quartz, a global business news brand (qz.com) from Atlantic Media; former publisher of Wired magazine
- Christof Putzel ’01: Award-winning journalist, director and producer, co-created VANGUARD, an investigative documentary series on Current TV; his work has appeared on ABC’s Nightline, Good Morning America, FOX News, CNN, CBC and the Sundance Channel.
- Luanne Rice ’77: New York Times bestselling author of 32 novels translated into 24 languages; new novel “The Secret Language of Sisters,” is her first young-adult book, out from Scholastic.
- A.B. Stoddard ’89: Associate editor and columnist for The Hill newspaper, appears regularly on Fox’s Special Report with Bret Baeier, as well as MSNBC, CNN and BBC for her expertise as a political commentator.
Sports
- Anita DeFrantz ’74: Olympic medalist, rowing; elected to her second term as the International Olympic Committee vice president
- David Gross ’88: Commissioner of Major League Lacrosse
- Jeff Idelson ’86: Co-founder, Grassroots Baseball; Former President, Baseball Hall of Fame
- Adam Rogowin ’03: Vice President of Communications for the Chicago Blackhawks
- Tim Young ’92: Olympic medalist, sculling
Medicine and Health
- Lynne Cooley ’76: Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, C.N.H. Long Professor of Genetics and Professor of Cell Biology and of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale School of Medicine
- Susan Froshauer ’74: President and CEO, Connecticut United for Research Excellence, co-founder, former president and CEO of Rib-X Pharmaceuticals
- Mary Lake Polan ’65: Clinical Professor in Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, Yale Fertility Center; served as chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Stanford University School of Medicine
- Ellen R. Vitetta ’64: Director of the Cancer Immunobiology Center, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Business and Industry
- Tim Armstrong ’93: Brandfolder, Board of Directors; Former CEO, Oath and AOL
- Robert Hale ’88: Granite Communications, president
- Susan Kronick ’73: Operating Partner, Marvin Traub Associates
- Peter Som ’93: Fashion designer
- Sally Susman ’84: Pfizer Inc., executive vice president, corporate affairs
Arts and Entertainment
- Ted Chapin ’72: President and executive director, Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization
- Charles Chun ’90: Television and film actor
- Karen Church ’90: Vice President, Talent and Casting, CBS Television
- David Dorfman ’81: Dancer, professor of dance at Connecticut College, artistic director of David Dorfman Dance
- Lee Eisenberg ’99: Producer and writer, known for Bad Teacher (2011), The Office (2005) and Year One (2009)
- Sean Fine ’96: Oscar, Emmy and Peabody award winning filmmaker (War/Dance, Inocente)
- Chris Gifford ’81: Executive producer at Nickelodeon, co-creator of the Peabody Award-winning children’s series “Dora the Explorer”
- Vance Gilbert ’79: Folk singer and songwriter
- Judy Irving ’68: Sundance-and-Emmy-Award-winning filmmaker
- Andre Lee ’93: Filmmaker and producer
- Leland Orser ’82: Actor and director known for Taken (2008), Taken 2 (2012) and Se7en (1995)
- Estelle Parsons ’49: Academy Award-winning actor
- Jessie Vogelson ’96: Film and television producer (No End in Sight)
- Kevin Wade ’76, P’19 Executive producer for CBS drama Blue Bloods, screenwriter (Working Girl, Meet Joe Black)
Scholarship and Education
- Edward Berger ’85: President of Southwestern University and an award-winning math professor
- David Foster ’77: Ecologist and director of the Harvard Forest
- Agnes Gund ’60: Philanthropist, art patron and collector, president emerita of the Museum of Modern Art
- David Haussler ’75: University of California – Santa Cruz, director of the Center for Biomolecular Science and Engineering, collaborator on the international Human Genome Project
- Linda Lear ’62: Author, environmentalist
- Laurie Norton Moffat ’78: Director/CEO, Norman Rockwell Museum
Non-Profit and Advocacy
- Beatrice Biira ’08: Community Engagement Coordinator at Heifer International; subject of Beatrice’s Goat, a well-known children’s book
- LaShawn R. Jefferson ’88: Program Officer, Gender, Racial and Ethnic Justice, Ford Foundation; former executive director of Women’s Rights Division of Human Rights Watch
- Marion Rockefeller Weber ’60: Philanthropist and initiator of the Flow Fund Circle
university of connecticut school of law notable alumni
The global UConn Law alumni network spans all 50 states and the District of Columbia, plus more than 50 nations around the world. Graduates serve with distinction in every field of the law, in law firms large and small, corporations, small businesses, government, education and the nonprofit sector. The law school and the University of Connecticut Law School Alumni Association offer graduates many ways to stay connected to the law school and to each other, as well as many opportunities for involvement in campus life.
Notable alumni
- Bethany J. Alvord, 1982, Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
- Elizabeth B. Amato, 1982, Senior Vice President at United Technologies Corporation
- Bessye Anita Warren Bennett, 1973, the first African American woman to practice law in Connecticut
- Francisco L. Borges, 1978, former Connecticut State Treasurer and managing partner of Landmark Partners
- Leonard C. Boyle, 1983, Deputy Chief State’s Attorney (Operations) for the State of Connecticut; Chief, Criminal Division at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut (1999-2004); Commissioner of the State of Connecticut Department of Public Safety (2004-2007); Director of the FBI‘s Terrorist Screening Center (2007-2009)
- Vanessa Lynne Bryant, 1978, U.S. District Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
- Justin Clark, 2004, Deputy Assistant to the President and White House Director of Public Liaison.
- Eric D. Coleman, 1977, Deputy President pro tempore in the Connecticut Senate.
- Joe Courtney, 1978, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s Second District
- Alfred V. Covello, 1960, Senior U.S. District Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
- Bill Curry, 1977, political analyst and journalist; two-time Democratic nominee for Governor of Connecticut; White House advisor in the administration of Bill Clinton
- Emilio Q. Daddario, 1942, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s First Congressional District (1959-1971)
- John A. Danaher III, 1980, Judge of the Connecticut Superior Court; Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Public Safety (2007-2010); U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut (2001-2002)
- Gregory D’Auria, 1988, Associate Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court (2017–present); Solicitor General and Associate Attorney General of the State of Connecticut (2011-2017)
- Robert M. DeCrescenzo, 1988, Shareholder at Updike, Kelly & Spellacy, P.C.; Mayor of East Hartford, Connecticut (1993-1997)
- Alexandra Davis DiPentima, 1979, Chief Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
- Kari A. Dooley, 1988, Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
- Christopher F. Droney, 1979, U.S. Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- Dennis G. Eveleigh, 1972, Associate Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court
- J. Michael Farren, 1982, Deputy White House Counsel to President George W. Bush
- C. Frank Figliuzzi, 1987, Assistant Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Counterintelligence Division (2011-2012)
- Robert Giaimo, 1943, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s Third Congressional District (1959-1981)
- Mary Glassman, 1986, First Selectman of Simsbury, Connecticut
- Bernard F. Grabowski, 1952, U.S. Representative from Connecticut (1963-1967)
- Eunice Groark, 1965, Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut (1991-1995)
- F. Herbert Gruendel, 1984, Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
- Lubbie Harper Jr., 1975, Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court
- Francis X. Hennessy, 1961, Deputy Chief Court Administrator and Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
- Wesley W. Horton, 1970, appellate attorney who argued Kelo v. New London on behalf of the New London before the U.S. Supreme Court and partner at Horton, Shields & Knox, P.C.
- Denise R. Johnson, 1974, First woman appointed to the Vermont Supreme Court
- Joette Katz, 1972, Associate Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court (1992-2011)
- Christine E. Keller, 1977, Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
- Edward Kennedy, Jr., 1997, Member of the Connecticut Senate representing the 12th Senate District; Member at Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.
- Robert M. Langer, 1973, head of Wiggin and Dana LLP’s Antitrust and Consumer Protection Practice Group
- Douglas S. Lavine, 1977, Judge of the Connecticut Appellate Court
- Richard Lehr, 1984, veteran journalist, author, and Professor of Journalism at Boston University
- Thomas Leonardi , 1954, former Connecticut’s Insurance Commissioner and insurance executive
- Martin Looney, 1985, Majority Leader, Connecticut Senate
- Konstantina Lukes, 1966, Mayor of Worcester, Massachusetts (2007-2010)
- Robert J. Lynn, 1975, Chief Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court
- Joan G. Margolis, 1978, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
- Donna F. Martinez, 1978, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
- Andrew J. McDonald, 1991, Associate Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court (2013–present); Member of the Connecticut Senate representing the 27th Senate District (2003-2011)
- Thomas Joseph Meskill, 1956, Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (1992-1993); Governor of Connecticut (1971-1975); U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s Sixth Congressional District (1967-1971)
- Chris Murphy, 2002, U.S. Senator from Connecticut
- Kathleen Murphy, 1987, President, Fidelity Personal Investing, a unit of Fidelity Investments; former Chief Executive Officer of ING U.S. Wealth Management; named to Fortune Magazine’s 50 Most Powerful Women in Business List
- John Garvan Murtha, 1968, Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont, Chief Judge (1995-2002)
- Kevin J. O’Connor, 1992, Associate Attorney General of the United States (2008-2009); U.S. Attorney for District of Connecticut (2002-2006)
- Richard N. Palmer, 1977, Associate Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court
- Michele Pearce, 1996, Acting General Counsel of the Department of the Army
- Randall Pinkston, 1980, CBS News Correspondent
- Juan Ramirez, Jr., 1975, Judge of the Florida District Court of Appeals, Third District
- Lewis Rome, 1957, Connecticut State Senate leader and chair of the UConn Board of Trustees
- Ronald A. Sarasin, 1963, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s Fifth Congressional District (1973-1979)
- Pedro Segarra, 1985, Mayor of Hartford, Connecticut (2010-2015)
- Mickey Sherman, 1971, criminal defense attorney who represented Michael Skakel
- William St. Onge, 1948, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s Second Congressional District (1963-1970)
- Kevin Sullivan, 1982, Connecticut’s 86th Lieutenant Governor, served as Senate President Pro Tempore from 1997 – 2004 in the Connecticut Senate
- Christine S. Vertefeuille, 1975, Senior Associate Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court
- Ariane D. Vuono, 1984, Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court
- Terence S. Ward, 1982, Federal Defender for the District of Connecticut
- William A. Webb, 1974, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina
university of connecticut ranking
University of Connecticut is ranked #63 in National Universities. Schools are ranked according to their performance across a set of widely accepted indicators of excellence.
- #63inNational Universities (tie)
- #33inBest Colleges for Veterans (tie)
- #138inBest Value Schools
- #242 in Top Performers on Social Mobility (tie)
- #23 in Top Public Schools (tie)
- #72 in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (tie)
harvard university notable alumni
Harvard lies at the heart of American education. Nearly 21,000 people studied at Harvard during the 2019-2020 school year.
But this number constitutes only a small fraction of notable Harvard alumni. The college has produced leaders in the arts, sciences, and politics. You deserve to know their names.
Who are some of Harvard’s finest comedy writers? Who has run for President or political office? Which Harvard graduate has helped with the COVID-19 pandemic?
Answer these questions and you can enrich your understanding of the world’s most important college. Here is your quick guide.
1. Conan O’Brien
Conan O’Brien graduated from Harvard in 1985. He concentrated in history and literature, and he graduated magna cum laude. He served as a writer for the Harvard Lampoon, eventually becoming its president.
After graduating from Harvard, O’Brien embarked on an incredibly successful entertainment career. He became a writer for Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons, then he hosted late-night talk shows for nearly 30 years.
2. Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman was a successful actress before she was admitted into Harvard. She pursued a degree in psychology while studying Hebrew literature and biology. While she was a student, she took roles in three Star Wars movies.
After graduating from college, Portman took a role in the movie Closer, for which she received an Oscar nomination. A few years later, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her work in Black Swan. She remains one of Hollywood’s most bankable actresses.
She has been involved in numerous causes, including animal rights. She has traveled to Africa to support women-owned businesses and micro-lending programs.
3. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Neil deGrasse Tyson graduated from Harvard in 1980. He majored in physics, but he pursued a number of personal passions that included dance.
He then got his doctorate from Columbia University and embarked on a scientific career. He became director of the Hayden Planetarium and served on a presidential board for aerospace.
Tyson is also a highly active science educator. He has hosted PBS documentaries about space exploration, and he has advocated for increased funding for NASA.
4. Soledad O’Brien
Soledad O’Brien (no relation to Conan) first studied at Radcliffe College. She left before she graduated so she could take a job as a journalist. She then studied at Harvard, receiving a degree in English and American literature in 2000.
O’Brien has been a successful journalist for 30 years. She began as a medical reporter, but she has moved on to cover many different national news stories. In particular, she has anchored a number of television specials about race in America.
5. Jill Stein
Jill Stein graduated from Harvard in 1973. She was a multidisciplinary science student, examining psychology and sociology. She then went to Harvard Medical School and received a medical degree.
Dr. Stein went on to practice internal medicine at a number of Boston-area hospitals. But she is best known for her political activism. She has served on a number of boards, including Physicians for Social Responsibility.
In 2002, she ran for governor of Massachusetts on the Green-Rainbow ticket. She received more than 75,000 votes. She then became a Lexington Town Meeting member for five years.
In 2012, she ran for President on the Green Party ticket. She received nearly 500,000 votes, and she ran for President again in 2016. She amassed an incredible amount of mainstream media attention and finished the race with nearly 1.5 million votes.
6. Rahul Gandhi
Rahul Gandhi is one of the top Harvard alumni, though he did not graduate from Harvard. Gandhi is a member of the Nehru-Gandhi family that has produced several important politicians. He started his undergraduate education at a school in India before transferring.
He was on track to complete his degree, but his father Rajiv was murdered. Out of concern for his safety, he transferred to Rollins College.
He started a career in the private sector, but he followed his family’s calling into politics. He has served as a member of the Indian parliament for nearly 20 years, advocating for women’s rights.
7. Meg Whitman
Meg Whitman is one of the richest Harvard alumni. She got her Master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School in 1979.
She went on to work for a number of successful companies, including eBay and Hewlett-Packard. She has a net worth of several billion dollars, and she has made a run for governor of California.
8. Kenneth Chien
Dr. Kenneth Chien is one of the most important Harvard alumni. He graduated from Harvard in 1973 and embarked on a medical career.
He co-founded Moderna Therapeutics, one of the organizations responsible for COVID-19 vaccines. He has also worked for a number of biotechnology companies, including Pfizer. He is very active as an educator, returning to Harvard in the 2000s to teach biology.
9. Cornel West
Cornel West marched in civil rights demonstrations before he enrolled at Harvard. He majored in Near Eastern languages and civilization, but he studied a wide range of ideas. He spent a lot of his time volunteering in community initiatives like breakfast programs.
He went on to get a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Princeton. He is now an active philosopher, writer, and political activist. He focuses on racial inequality and socioeconomic injustice.
10. Antony Blinken
Antony Blinken started his studies at Harvard in 1980. He served as an editor for The Harvard Crimson, writing a number of articles on current events. He graduated in 1984 with a degree in social studies.
He continued his work as a writer and journalist before turning to politics. He has served in several administrations before he became Secretary of State in 2021.
The Most Notable Harvard Alumni
Notable Harvard alumni have affected every aspect of life. Conan O’Brien and Natalie Portman are two of Hollywood’s biggest stars. Neil deGrasse Tyson and Soledad O’Brien are crucial educators.
Jill Stein is a physician-turned-politician, serving on the local level and then running for President. Rahul Gandhi is a member of parliament in India.
Meg Whitman is a business pioneer, while Kenneth Chien has led major biotech organizations. Cornel West and Antony Blinken are critical figures in American politics.