List of College of Charleston people

Notable people

This list contains people associated with the College of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina, including current and former college presidents, as well as notable alumni and faculty members.

Alumni

Main category: College of Charleston alumni

Actors

• Erick Avari – actor ( The Mummy, Daredevil, Mr. Deeds and Heroes)
• Matt Czuchry, class of 1999 – actor (Gilmore Girls and The Good Wife)
• Jennifer Ferrin - actor (nominated for a Daytime Emmy in 2005 and 2006 for As the World Turns; also known for work on Sex and the City 2, The Following, and Hell on Wheels)
• Thomas Gibson - actor (Far and Away, Dharma and Greg (for which he was twice nominated for a Golden Globe Award), Chicago Hope, and Criminal Minds)
• Orlando Jones - actor (MADtv, The Replacements, Magnolia, Evolution, and Sleepy Hollow)
• Allison Munn, class of 1997 - actor (What I Like About You, That '70s Show, and One Tree Hill)

Artists and architects

• Christopher Boffoli, class of 1993 – fine art photographer
• Ben Hollingsworth, class of 2004 - former professional soccer player, abstract artist and sculptor
• Samuel Lapham VI, class of 1913 – architect with the firm Simons & Lapham (1920–1972), which designed west wing of Randolph Hall/Chemistry Wing (1930), the Student Activities Building (1939), Craig Dormitory and Cafeteria (1962), Robert Smalls Library (1972) and Cougar Mall
• Francis D. Lee, class of 1846 - architect and inventor, several of his buildings are on the National Register for Historic Places
• Robert Mills (1781–1855) – studied at the College in the late 18th century; first American-born man to be professionally trained as an architect; designed the Washington Monument, Department of Treasury building, and U.S. Patent Office Building
• Brian Rutenberg, class of 1987 – abstract painter

Athletes

• Dontaye Draper - professional basketball player, named Europcup MVP in 2011
• Brett Gardner, class of 2005 – professional baseball player for the New York Yankees
• Andrew Goudelock – professional basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli Premier League and the Euroleague; drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers, 2014 Eurocup MVP
• Heath Hembree – professional baseball player; played for the San Francisco Giants and the Boston Red Sox
• Anthony Johnson, class of 1997 – professional basketball player; first player in College of Charleston history selected in the NBA Draft; spent 14 seasons (1997–2010) in the NBA and played for 7 teams
• Wes Knight – professional soccer player for the FC Edmonton
• Michael Kohn – professional baseball player for the Atlanta Braves
• Andrew Lawrence, class of 2013 - professional basketball player, played for Great Britain Olympic Team in 2012

Musicians

• Cary Ann Hearst, class of 2001 - vocals, guitar, drums, keyboard, and percussion with Shovels & Rope; her song "Hell's Bells" was featured on HBO's True Blood; at 2013 Americana Music Honors & Awards, Shovels & Rope received awards of Emerging Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for their song "Birmingham"
• Edwin McCain - singer-songwriter

Politicians and Public Servants

• Mendel Davis, class of 1966 – Democrat, United States House of Representatives representing the First Congressional District of South Carolina (1971–1981)
• James B. Edwards, class of 1950 – oral surgeon; former Governor of South Carolina; Secretary of Energy under President Ronald Reagan; president of the Medical University of South Carolina
• John Charles Frémont, class of 1836 – "the Great Pathfinder;" explored the West in the 1830s and 1840s;an outspoken opponent of slavery; in 1856 the first Republican nominee for president; major general for the Union during the Civil War; in 1861, issued a proclamation (overturned by President Lincoln) freeing slaves; later governor of Arizona
• John Geddes, class of 1795 - 22nd governor of South Carolina (1818-1820)
• Burnet R. Maybank, class of 1919 – Mayor of Charleston; later governor; served in the national legislature under Franklin D. Roosevelt; chaired the Senate Finance Committee; played a key role in the development of the New Deal; namesake of Maybank Hall, one of the main academic buildings on campus
• Glenn McConnell, class of 1969 – attorney; an influential force in South Carolina politics for more than two decades; elected to public office in 1981; president pro tempore of the South Carolina Senate from 2001 until he replaced the disgraced Ken Ard as the state's Lieutenant Governor; namesake of McConnell Residence Hall dormitory was named after him; president of the College of Charleston
• Arthur Ravenel, class of 1950 – real estate developer; member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, South Carolina senator (1980-1986); elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986; returned to the South Carolina Senate in 1996, serving until 2005; elected to the Charleston School Board in 2006, at age 79; namesake of the bridge connecting Charleston to Mt. Pleasant
• Joseph O. Rogers, Jr., transferred to The Citadel, Democratic member of the South Carolina House of Representatives (1955-1966); 1966 Republican nominee for governor of South Carolina; U.S. attorney 1969-1970; practicing attorney in Manning
• Nick Shalosky, class of 2010 – first openly gay elected official in South Carolina; serves downtown Charleston on the District 20 Constituent School Board
• Julius Waties Waring, class of 1900 - U.S. federal judge who played an important role in the early legal battles of the American Civil Rights Movement

Writers

• Paul Hamilton Hayne, class of 1852 - poet, critic and editor
• Ludwig Lewisohn, class of 1901 – novelist, translator and distinguished literary and drama critic; founding professor of Brandeis University
• John Marion Lofton, class of 1940 - journalist known for his defense of the press as a guardian of civil liberties
• Catherine Mann, class of 1985 - novelist, winner of the RITA Award
• Padgett Powell, class of 1974 – award-winning writer and novelist; published numerous novels, including Edisto, Mrs. Hollingsworth's Men, and The Interrogative Mood: A Novel?, written in the form of questions
• Louis D. Rubin, Jr. - noted American literary scholar and critic, writing teacher, publisher, and writer

Others

• Frank Blair (1915–1995), class of 1934 – early cast member of NBC’s The Today Show, newsman and anchor, 1953-1975
• Buist M. Fanning, class of 1970 – translator of the 1995 update to the New American Standard Bible
• Harriet McBryde Johnson, M.P.A., 1981 - author, attorney, and disability rights activist
• George B. Rabb, class of 1951 - American zoologist, president emeritus of the Chicago Zoological Society and former director of the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago
• Jackie Sumell, class of 1996 - artist and social activist for ending solitary confinement in the U.S. prison system
• Carol Hannah Whitfield, class of 2007 – fashion designer; finalist on the sixth season of Project Runway
• Nafees Bin Zafar class of 1998 - recipient of two Academy Awards for special effects (2007 and 2015), Principal Engineer at DreamWorks Animation (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Shrek Forever After, Kung Fu Panda 2)

Faculty

Current

• Alison Piepmeier, Professor of Women's and Gender Studies, known for her zine scholarship