List of University of Arizona people

The following is a list of encyclopedic people associated with the University of Arizona. Notable alumni include a former U.S. Secretary of the Interior, the former U.S. Surgeon General, the creator of the television series "Sesame Street" and founder of Sesame Workshop, the owner of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Major League Baseball team, and several NASA astronauts.

Notable alumni and former students

Law, politics, and government

• Carole Hillard – former Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota
• Gilbert Baker – Arkansas State Senator and Republican primary candidate for the United States Senate in 2010
• Richard Carmona – former U.S. Surgeon General
• Raul Hector Castro – (JD 1949) former Governor of Arizona and ambassador to Argentina under US President Jimmy Carter
• Richard Harvey Chambers, chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 1959–1976.
• Dennis DeConcini – former US Senator from Arizona (1977–1995)
• David Dewhurst – Lieutenant Governor of Texas
• Bob Dole – former US Senator
• Paul Fannin – former Governor of Arizona (1955–1965) and US Senator from Arizona (1965–1977)
• Samuel Pearson Goddard, Jr. – (JD 1949) former Governor of Arizona (1965–1967)
• Barry Goldwater – former US Senator
• Howard Hart - Central Intelligence Agency officer
• Tom Hughes – (MA 1967) former mayor of Hillsboro, Oregon
• Jon Kyl (BA 1964, JD 1966) – US Senator from 1995–present, former United States Representative from Arizona (1987–1995)
• Steve Soboroff – President, Playa Vista; former Los Angeles Parks Commissioner; candidate for mayor of Los Angeles (2001)
• Nora Sun - Granddaughter of Sun Yatsen and former American Diplomat.
• Morris K. Udall (JD 1949) – former US Congressman, professional basketball player
• Stewart Udall (JD 1948) – former US Congressman, former Secretary of the Interior

Religion

• Spencer W. Kimball – former president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)
• Frederick Wedge, - Presbyterian pastor, evangelist and educator, who had boxed professionally as "Kid" Wedge

Academia

• C. Lee Giles (PhD 1981) – David Reese Professor of Information Sciences and Technology, Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, Professor of Supply Chain and Information Systems, Pennsylvania State University
• William Rathje (1967) – archaeologist & garbologist. A retired faculty member

Arts & media

• Cisco Adler – Singer and Guitarist of Shwayze, did not graduate
• Denise Austin - Exercise Consultant, Television Host
• Samaire Armstrong – actress
• Michael Biehn - actor Aliens (film), Terminator
• Lynn Borden - actress and Miss Arizona (1957)
• Jerry Bruckheimer – film and television producer
• Tom Chilton - Lead Game Developer, Popular online game World of Warcraft.
• Taylor Cole – Cast member of Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County
• Joan Ganz Cooney – Creator of Sesame Street, founder of Sesame Workshop
• Ted DeGrazia – American impressionist painter, sculptor, and lithographer
• Louis Delsarte – artist
• George Gray (game show host)

   John Hughes Film writer and director

• Rob Hyland – actor
• J.A. Jance – mystery writer
• Nicole Randall Johnson – actress & comedian
• Kourtney Kardashian – television personality
• Barbara Kingsolver – author, local resident and activist, married to a UA faculty member
• Greg Kinnear (1985) – actor
• Kitty Kelley – author
• Aline Kominsky-Crumb (BFA) – underground comic book creator
• Don Knotts – actor
• Jerry Livingston – famous songwriter
• Linda McCartney – photographer
• Labina Mitevska – Macedonian actress
• Peter Murrieta – 2-time Emmy Award winning producer and writer, Wizards of Waverly Place
• Craig T. Nelson – actor
• Earl Hindman - actor, Wilson W. Wilson, Home Improvement
• Brian Ralston – Film score composer
• Nicole Richie – Actress
• Caroline Rhea – actress & comedian
• Linda Ronstadt – 11-time Grammy award winning singer
• Geraldo Rivera (1965) – talk show host, television journalist
• Richard Russo – Pulitzer Prize winner for his novel Empire Falls
• Rico Saccani – Conductor
• Fritz Scholder – late Native American artist
• Garry Shandling – actor & comedian
• Ron Shelton – film screenwriter & director
• Richard Siken – (MFA poetry 1994) won the 2004 Yale Series of Younger Poets competition, the oldest annual literary award in the US.
• David Ray Stephens - Independent musician, singer, songwriter and record producer
• Barret Swatek – actress
• Vicki Lewis Thompson – author
• David Foster Wallace – author
• Kate Walsh – actress
• Kristen Wiig – actress & comedienne – Saturday Night Live cast member
• Christine Woods – actress

Business

• Karl Eller – Arizona business leader, namesake of the Eller College of Management
• Rande Gerber, owner of Midnight Oil Bars and other nightlife businesses
• William M. Grace (MBA 1959), real developer and casino owner
• Robert Wood Johnson IV – Owner of the New York Jets football club and great-grandson of the founder of Johnson & Johnson
• Terry Lundgren – CEO of Federated Department Stores, namesake of The Terry Lundgren Center for Retailing at the University
• Arturo Moreno – Owner of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Major League Baseball team, outdoor advertising entrepreneur
• Robert Sarver – Managing partner and majority owner of the Phoenix Suns basketball team, director of SkyWest Airlines.

Science & Technology

• Andreas Gerasimos Michalitsianos – NASA astronomer and astrophysicist, Chief of Solar Physics Division at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, earned his bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Arizona in 1968. He was a member of the team that worked on and built the International Ultraviolet Explorer and the Hubble Space Telescope.
• Don Pettit – NASA astronaut
• Richard Scobee (1965) – late astronaut
• Brian Schmidt (1989) winner of 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics
• Cliff Stoll (Ph.D., 1980) – astronomer & Klein bottle manufacturer
• Paul Wehrle – physician who helped develop of methods to prevent and treat polio and smallpox
• Steve Maguire - renowned software engineer and author of software engineering topics

Athletics

• Derrick Williams (basketball) - NBA player Minnesota Timberwolves
• Hassan Adams – NBA player (Toronto Raptors)
• Brian N. Anderson – MLB center fielder for the Kansas City Royals.
• Gilbert Arenas – NBA All-Star with the Orlando Magic
• Marisa Baena- LPGA golfer
• Bob Baffert – 3-time Eclipse Award winner as outstanding Thoroughbred trainer
• Adia Barnes- Former WNBA player
• Ricky Barnes – PGA Tour Golfer and 2002 US Amateur Champion
• Jason Bates – former Major League Baseball infielder
• Michael Bates – 5-time Pro Bowl kick returner and Bronze medal winner in the 200 meters during the 1992 Summer Olympics
• Mike Bell – NFL running back for the New Orleans Saints.
• Lance Briggs – NFL Pro Bowl linebacker for the Chicago Bears.
• Tedy Bruschi – Former NFL player, three-time Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots; now an NFL analyst for ESPN
• Mike Bibby – NBA point guard for the Miami Heat.
• Monica Bisordi – The University of Arizona's all-time leading scorer (Women's Gymnastics).
• Kurt Busch – NASCAR driver for Penske Racing (attended but did not graduate).
• Antoine Cason – CB for the San Diego Chargers. 2007 Jim Thorpe Award winner.
• George DiCarlo – Arizona's first Olympic Gold Medal winner, 400 Meter Freestyle and Silver Medal 1500 Meter Freestyle.
• Sean Elliott – World Champion NBA player with the San Antonio Spurs. Graduated from Cholla High School in Tucson, AZ.
• Scott Erickson – former Major League Baseball pitcher for Minnesota Twins and Baltimore Orioles. Arizona Wildcat Hall of Fame.
• Jennie Finch – Olympic Gold Medal winning professional women's softball pitcher
• Abdihakem Abdirahman- American long-distance runner and US 2008 Olympic Trials 10,000 meter champion
• Nick Folk – former kicker for the Dallas Cowboys, currently kicker for the New York Jets
• Terry Francona – manager of the 2004 World Series Champions Boston Red Sox
• Brenda Frese – Head women's basketball coach at Maryland (2006 national champs)
• Channing Frye – NBA player (Phoenix Suns)
• Jim Furyk – PGA Tour golfer and 2003 US Open Winner
• Robert Gamez – PGA Tour golfer
• Rob Gronkowski – NFL tight end for the New England Patriots.
• Natalie Gulbis – LPGA golfer
• Chip Hale – former Major League Baseball player & present coach with the Arizona Diamondbacks
• Keith Hartwig - Former NFL player
• Ron Hassey – former Major League Baseball player of 14 years and present coach for the Seattle Mariners
• Chris Henry – running back for the Tennessee Titans
• Alicia Hollowell – former University of Arizona national champion softball pitcher
• Trevor Hoffman – 7-time All-Star MLB pitcher. All-time Major League save record holder
• Jack Howell – retired Major League Baseball player of 11 years
• Nick Hundley – catcher for the San Diego Padres
• Andre Iguodala – NBA player (Philadelphia 76ers)
• Richard Jefferson – NBA player (San Antonio Spurs) Member of the 2001 Final Four Team
• Jay John – Former Arizona men's basketball assistant coach; former Oregon State men's basketball head coach
• Keshon Johnson - Former NFL player
• Vance Johnson – NFL player (Denver Broncos)
• Steve Kerr – five-time NBA champion (Chicago Bulls – 3, San Antonio Spurs – 2)
• Spencer Larsen – NFL Linebacker for the Denver Broncos
• Kenny Lofton – former Major League Baseball player. He also played for the Wildcats basketball team.
• Stan Mataele - Former NFL player
• Chris McAlister – NFL Super Bowl Champion cornerback with the Baltimore Ravens
• Jonathan Meloan – Major League Baseball player Cleveland Indians
• Josh Miller – NFL punter for the New England Patriots.
• Ryk Neethling – Nine-time NCAA National Champion in men's swimming, PAC-10 Athlete of the Year for four consecutive years, University of Arizona Athlete of the Century, 2004 Summer Olympics Gold Medalist in the 4 x 100m freestyle relay with a world record performance
• Dennis Northcutt – NFL wide receiver for the Detroit Lions
• Lorena Ochoa – LPGA golfer Ranked # 1 actually
• Josh Pastner – Head Coach University of Memphis basketball program, 1997 National Championship team member
• Antonio Pierce – NFL Linebacker for the New York Giants
• Todd Pletcher (1989) – Leading Thoroughbred trainer; three-time Eclipse Award winner
• DaShon Polk – NFL linebacker for the Houston Texans
• Dan Pohl – Former PGA golfer
• Don Pooley – Former PGA golfer
• Sean Rooks – former NBA player
• Rory Sabbatini – PGA Tour golfer
• J.T. Snow – Former MLB player and 6-time Rawlings Golden Glove Award winner
• Annika Sörenstam – LPGA golfer
• Mike Springer – PGA golfer
• Damon Stoudamire – NBA player (Memphis Grizzlies)
• Salim Stoudamire (2005) – NBA player (Atlanta Hawks)
• Jason Terry – NBA player (Dallas Mavericks)
• Ron Theobald - former Major League Baseball player
• Tom Tolbert – former NBA player and current NBA broadcast analyst
• Amy Van Dyken – Gold Medalist swimmer in the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games
• Bobby Wade – NFL wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs
• Luke Walton – NBA player (Los Angeles Lakers), son of former NBA great Bill Walton, Member of the 2001 Final Four team
• Joe Young, former professional football player

Notable former and current faculty and staff

• Gail Lee Bernstein – historian, one of the pioneers of Japanese women's studies.
• Nicolaas Bloembergen – Nobel Laureate in Physics, 1981.
• Bart Bok – astronomer
• Mike Candrea – softball coach, head coach for the 2004 gold medal U.S. Women's Olympic softball team
• David Chalmers – philosopher specializing in philosophy of mind
• Hsinchun Chen - McClelland Professor of Management Information Systems and founder of the Artificial Intelligence Lab.
• William G. Dever – biblical archaeologist.
• Cedric Dempsey -- executive director of the NCAA, 1993-2002
• Hermann Flaschka - mathematics professor, winner 1995 Norbert Wiener Prize in Applied Mathematics
• Rich Jorgensen – professor of plant sciences, editor of The Plant Cell
• Gerard P. Kuiper – astronomer, discovered various moons of Jovian planets and the Kuiper Belt
• Keith Lehrer – philosophy professor, member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
• Fang Lizhi – physicist, helped inspire China's 1989 Pro-Democracy Movement
• Willis Lamb – Nobel Laureate in Physics, 1955
• Andy Lopez – baseball coach
• Fulvio Melia – astrophysicist
• Charles Newman - mathematics professor, now at the Courant Institute
• Lute Olson - hall of fame basketball coach
• Feryal Özel - astrophysicist
• Peter M. Rhee - Medical School Professor and surgeon
• Vernon L. Smith – economics professor, Nobel Laureate in Economics, 2002.
• Daniel L. Stein - mathematics and physics professor, dean of science at New York University
• Andrew Weil – pioneer in Integrative Medicine
• Arthur Winfree – theoretical biologist, winner 2000 Norbert Wiener Prize in Applied Mathematics
• Ralph Walter Graystone Wyckoff - professor of microbiology and physics, did pioneering work in X-ray crystallography.
• Vladimir E. Zakharov - Regents' professor of mathematics, winner 2003 Dirac Prize