This list of Grinnell College alumni includes graduates, non-graduate former students, and current students of Grinnell College, Iowa, US.
Academia and research Name Class year Notability ReferenceDale Furnish1962American legal scholar and rofessor Benjamin Barber 1960 Political theorist, author of Jihad vs. McWorld Oliver E. Buckley 1909 President and director of Bell Labs, namesake of the Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Prize Thomas R. Cech 1970 Co-winner of 1989 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, president of the Howard Hughes Medical InstituteMay-lee Chai1989Author, professor and American Book Award winner Mary Sue Coleman 1965 President of the University of Iowa (1995–2002) and the first female president of the University of Michigan (2002–2014) Ioannis D. Evrigenis 1993 Professor of Political Science and Chair of the Department of Classics at Tufts University Amanda L. Golbeck 1974 Lead editor of Leadership and Women in Statistics, winner of 2016 Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies Elizabeth L. Scott Award Roy Richard Grinker 1983 Anthropologist, editor of Anthropological Quarterly Frances Harshbarger 1923 One of the first female American mathematicians to receive a doctorate Biography on pp. 244 of the Supplementary Material at AMSFrank Irving Herriott 1890 (BS)
1893 (MS)Acting professor of political science (1895–1898) Sally Hughes-Schrader 1917 Professor of Zoology at Duke University, fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Roger Koenker 1969 Professor of Economics at University College LondonJennifer ManloveSociological research scientist at Child Trends David Maxwell 1966 President of Drake University Thomas W. Merrill 1971 Charles Evans Hughes Professor of Law at Columbia Law School Carol Myers-Scotton 1955 Linguist William A. Noyes 1879 Analytical and organic chemist; determined atomic weights Clair Patterson 1943 Geochemist, first person to accurately date the age of the Earth, responsible for the removal of lead from gasoline Paul G. Risser 1961 President of Miami University and Oregon State University
Arts Name Class year Notability Reference Kevin Cannon 2002 Comics writer and artist Zander Cannon 1995 Comics writer and artistCornelia Clarke1909Nature photographerMartha Cooper1963Icon of the street art movement and author of Subway Art Herbie Hancock 1960 Jazz musician and composer Pat Irwin1977 Composer, musician, and guitarist Jesse Macy 1870 Political scientist and historian The last correspondence to Macy in the Jesse Macy Papers at the Grinnell College Library was sent to him in Grinnell (December 1919, one month after his death). Philip Manuel 1913 Pianist, harpsichordist, teacherThomas Meglioranza1992 Operatic baritoneDavid Mura 1974Writer, memoirist and poetEdwina Florence Wills1937Artist and composer
Business and finance Name Class year Notability Reference Nordahl Brue 1967 Founder of Bruegger's Bagels John B. Chambers 1977 Chairman of the Sovereign Debt Committee at Standard and Poor's Paul McCulley 1979 Economist, managing director at PIMCO Cindy Pritzker Businesswoman, philanthropist, member of the Pritzker family Joseph Rosenfield 1925 Businessman, made initial contribution to Intel and donated it to Grinnell College; called the "Patriarch of Iowa Business" by Des Moines Register Ham Serunjogi 2016 Co-founder (with Maijid Moujaled '14) of Chipper Cash, one of the most successful fintech companies in Africa Waid Vanderpoel 1943 Economist and former chief investment officer of First National Bank of Chicago
Entertainment Name Class year Notability Reference Emily Bergl 1997 Actress, best known for Men in Trees Gary Cooper 1926 (did not graduate) Actor, best known for High Noon, received five Oscar nominations for Best Actor Peter Coyote 1964 Actor, author, narrated the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics and Oscar telecasts Walter Koenig 1958 (transferred) Actor, best known as Chekov in Star Trek Kumail Nanjiani 2001 Stand-up comedian, Academy Award-nominated writer, actor and comedian, best known for role on TV series Silicon Valley and co-authorship and performance in film The Big Sick Edward L. Rissien 1949 Film producer Ian Roberts 1987 Actor, founder of Upright Citizens Brigade Win Rosenfeld 2000 Screenwriter and producer, president of Monkeypaw ProductionsWin Rosenfeld Biography
Government, law, and public policy Name Class year Notability Reference Henry Carter Adams 1874 Economist, promoter of the American Economic Association, led movement to regulate "natural monopolies" in economic life Kenneth Adelman 1967 Deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Director of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, National Editor of Washingtonian magazine Florin Cîțu 1996 Prime minister of Romania (2020–2021) Tom Cole 1971 Representative from Oklahoma, Chairman of the National Republican Congressional CommitteeFrank W. Cyr1923 (transferred)Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University, "father of the yellow school bus"Richard Edwards University administrator and professor of economics Hallie Flanagan 1911 Director of the Federal Theater Project; first woman to win a Guggenheim John Garang 1969 Vice president of Sudan, leader of the rebel Sudan People's Liberation ArmyDaniel Grossberg2006Kentucky state representativeChris Hall 2007Iowa state representative Harry Hopkins 1912 WPA administrator and architect of the New Deal Sen Katayama 1892 Co-founder of the Japan Communist Party William Squire Kenyon 1890 Senator from Iowa and judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit George Moose 1966 Assistant secretary of state for African affairs, ambassador to Benin and Senegal Tom Railsback 1954 Representative from Illinois Charles A. Rawson Senator from Iowa Ezra P. Savage Twelfth governor of Nebraska and tenth lieutenant governor of NebraskaChase Strangio2004Deputy director for Transgender Justice at the American Civil Liberties Union, included in 2020's Time 100 most influential people in the worldGreg Thielmann1972Intelligence analyst for the United States Department of State and critic of the 2003 invasion of Iraq Otha Wearin 1924 Representative from Iowa Joseph Welch 1914 Head attorney for the United States Army during the Army-McCarthy Hearings Alan Wheat 1972 Representative from Missouri George A. Wilson 1904 Senator from Iowa, governor of Iowa Henry Wingate 1969 Chief judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi K. C. Wu 1923 Governor of Taiwan Province, mayor of Shanghai
Journalists and media personalities Name Class year Notability Reference Gary Giddins 1970 Jazz columnist for The Village VoiceSoleil Ho 2009Food writer and restaurant critic for the San Francisco ChronicleBen Jacobs 2006 Political reporter for The Guardian Walter Jacobson 1959 Chicago news personality Frederick Wilhelm Kaltenbach c1918 (did not graduate) English-language Nazi propagandist during World War II Adam Kempenaar 1997 Host of podcast and public radio show FilmspottingSarah Mirk 2008Bitch Media, Portland Mercury Armando Montaño 2012 Associated Press Albert Shaw 1879 Co-owner of the Grinnell Herald, journalist, and editor of the American edition of The Review of ReviewsGue, Benjamin F. (1899). "Albert Shaw." The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, Volume IX. New York: James T. White & Company. p. 470. Roberta Smith 1969 Art critic for The New York Times
Literature, writing, and translation Name Class year Notability Reference Amy Clampitt 1941 Poet and author David Feldman 1971 Author of the Imponderables series of books James Norman Hall 1910 Author, best known for Mutiny on the Bounty Edward Hirsch 1972 Poet, president of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Sterling Lord 1942 Literary agent, founder of Sterling Lord LiteristicSequoia Nagamatsu2004Author of How High We Go in the Dark Marshall Poe 1984 Historian, author, founder of MemoryArchive H. N. Swanson 1922 First editor of College Humor, well-known Hollywood literary agent"Swanson, Youthful Editor, Portrayal of Incarnate Collegian," The Palm Beach Post, 24 January 1930.Sam Tanenhaus1977Historian, journalist and biographer of Whittaker Chambers Ali Benjamin 1992 Author and finalist for the 2015 National Book Award Alexi Zentner 1995Canadian short story writer and novelist, winner of O. Henry Prize
Medicine Name Class year Notability Reference Eric E. Whitaker 1987 Executive vice president, Strategic Affiliations; associate dean, Community-Based Research, University of Chicago; internal medicine physician
Military Name Class year Notability Reference Norman F. Bates 1865 Medal of Honor recipient Russell A. Berg 1940 U.S. Air Force brigadier general
Social reform Name Class year Notability Reference Dana W. Bartlett 1882 Congregationalist minister, author Bruce Friedrich 1996 Senior policy director for Farm SanctuaryBernice King 1985Minister, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. (transferred to Spelman College) Louise Noun 1929 Feminist activist, civil libertarian, author George Edward White 1882American Congregationalist missionary, president of Anatolia College, witness to the Armenian genocide Shelley White-Means 1977 Health economist who works to reduce health disparities in Memphis, Tennessee
Sports Name Class year Notability Reference Harris Coggeshall 1929 Tennis player, runner-up in doubles in the 1930 National Clay Court Championships and the 1929 National Indoor Championship, runner-up in the 1928 Cincinnati Masters Hap Moran 1926 All-Pro football halfback for the New York GiantsIan Shoemaker1996College football coach Morgan Taylor 1926 Track and field hurdler, gold medalist for the U.S. in the 1924 Summer Olympics Christine Thorburn 1992 Cyclist, two-time Olympian for the U.S.
Technology Name Class year Notability Reference Nathaniel Borenstein 1980 Designer of the MIME protocol for sending multimedia e-mail Robert Noyce 1949 Co-founder of Intel, co-inventor of integrated circuit, recipient of National Medal of Science Dana Ulery 1959 Chief scientist for the Army Research Laboratory computing sciences
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