List of Pennsylvania State University people

This is a list of famous individuals associated with the Pennsylvania State University, including graduates, former students, and professors.

Alumni

Architecture and design

• Louis Astorino, architect, PNC Park, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
• Stanley Cole (1948), architect, designer of Citizens Bank Park

Art and literature

• Agha Shahid Ali, poet, Urdu translator of Faiz Ahmed Faiz; namesake of University of Utah's Agha Shahid Ali Poetry Prize
• Steve Alten, author, MEG series, Domain series, and The Loch
• John Balaban, author, poet, Words for My Daughter and Locusts at the Edge of Summer
• Dale Brown, bestselling author, Act of War, Battle Born, and Plan of Attack
• Jeanne Clemson, theater director, stage actress, and teacher; preserved the Fulton Opera House
• Geffrey Davis, poet
• Richard Diehl (MA 1965, PhD 1969), Mesoamerican archaeologist and academic, expert on the Olmec civilization
• Ted Eisenberg, plastic surgeon
• Alan Furst, novelist
• Jean Craighead George, Newbery Medal-winning children's author
• Chip Kidd, renowned book-jacket designer
• Norris J. Lacy, expert on the Arthurian legend
• Paul Levine, novelist, Jake Lassiter crime fiction series, screenwriter, JAG and First Monday
• Steve McCurry, world-renowned photojournalist; most famous for the photograph of the "Afghan Girl" in National Geographic Magazine
• Susan Miller, playwright, My Left Breast, two-time Obie winner, Eugene O'Neill Contest winner, Emmy nominee
• David Morrell, novelist, First Blood
• James Morrow, author
• Robert Neffson, artist
• John Pielmeier, playwright, Agnes of God
• Davis Schneiderman, writer and professor at Lake Forest College
• Oliver Smith, ten-time Tony Award-winning scenic designer
• Robert Yarber, artist
• Caroline Bowman, Broadway actress

Business and industry

• Martin Craighead, CEO of Baker Hughes
• Louis D'Ambrosio, CEO of Sears Holdings Corporation
• Robert E. Eberly, Chairman of Eberly Natural Gas Co.; Penn State benefactor
• Herman Fisher, co-founder of Fisher-Price toy company
• Kenneth Frazier, chairman and CEO, Merck & Co., Inc.
• Lloyd Huck, chairman emeritus of Merck & Co., Inc. and former CEO of Nova Pharmaceutical Corp.
• Richard T. James, inventor of the Slinky
• Albert Lord, former CEO of Sallie Mae
• Mike McBath, co-founder, part-owner of the Orlando Predators
• Christopher McKown, Executive Chairman of Iora Health, LLC; husband of Fidelity Investments CEO Abigail Johnson
• Eugene O'Kelly, former CEO of KPMG
• Mark Parker, CEO of Nike, Inc.
• Hugh Ellsworth Rodham, textile wholesaler; father of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
• William Schreyer, chairman emeritus and former CEO of Merrill Lynch; namesake of Schreyer Honors College
• Frank Smeal, partner, Goldman Sachs; namesake of Smeal College of Business
• William H. Spence, CEO of PPL Corp.
• John P. Surma, CEO of US Steel
• Richard Trumka, AFL-CIO President
• Ken Wahlster, CEO of BikeBandit
• Abdul Farid Alias, CEO of Maybank
• Patricia A. Woertz, CEO of Archer Daniel Midland; on Fortune magazine's "Most Powerful Women in Business" list
• John Dowd (CEO), CEO of Sundance Vacations

Technology

• Matt Brezina, co-founder of Xobni
• David Rusenko, co-founder of Weebly
• Harry Shoemaker, prominent pioneer radio engineer.
• Ross William Ulbricht, founder of the Silk Road, as "Dread Pirate Roberts"

Education

• Rituparna Basu, analyst at the Ayn Rand Institute
• M. Christopher Brown II, President of Alcorn State University
• Roland Fryer, Robert M. Beren Professor of Economics at Harvard University, a MacArthur fellow, and recipient of the John Bates Clark Medal.
• James T. Harris III, president of Widener University
• John W. Heston, president of Washington State University, South Dakota State University and Dakota State University
• David C. Hodge, President of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio
• Richard Hoover, former president of Hastings College
• Alex Johnson, President of Cuyahoga Community College
• Eoin McKiernan, early scholar in Irish Studies
• James J. Whalen, former president of Ithaca College
• Robert E. Witt, president of University of Alabama

Entertainment and media

• Tareq Al-Suwaidan, Muslim scholar, reformer, TV personality and management guru
• John Aniston, actor, Days of Our Lives; father of actress Jennifer Aniston
• Brian Baker, former Sprint spokesman
• Alan Beckwith, actor, The China Syndrome, UFOria
• Donald P. Bellisario, television producer
• Charles Bierbauer, television journalist
• Lindsey Broad, actress, The Office, Benders
• Benjy Bronk, comedian and writer, The Howard Stern Show
• Ryan Buell, founder of the Paranormal Research Society on A&E
• Ty Burrell, actor, star of ABC sitcom Modern Family
• Margaret Carlson, journalist, pundit. First female columnist for TIME
• Leon Carr, songwriter and composer
• Bob Clendenin, character actor, Scrubs, My Name Is Earl, Charmed, Ugly Betty, That '70s Show, Desperate Housewives
• Nathan Cook, actor, The White Shadow, Hotel
• Jill Cordes, TV personality, HGTV's My First Place and The Best Of
• John A. Dalles, hymn writer and clergyman
• Bruce Davison, actor; received an Oscar nomination for his role in Longtime Companion
• John "Johnny Bananas" Devenanzio, 5-time winner of MTV's The Challenge
• Ashley Dvorkin, Fox News entertainment producer and reporter
• Steven E. de Souza, screenwriter; Judge Dredd, Beverly Hills Cop III, 48 Hrs., Die Hard
• Julius J. Epstein, screenwriter of Casablanca
• Carmen Finestra, Emmy Award-winning television writer and producer; The Cosby Show, Home Improvement
• Jonathan Frakes, actor and director (Star Trek: The Next Generation series)
• Erica Grow, meteorologist and television reporter
• Immortal Technique, political activist, rapper
• Kim Jones, clubhouse reporter for the New York Yankees and the YES Network
• John "Johnny Mac" McGuire, contestant on the 17th season of CBS's reality competition show, Big Brother.
• Keegan-Michael Key, actor, comedian; MADtv, host of Animal Planet’s The Planet's Funniest Animals
• Stan Lathan, television producer and director, co-creator of Def Comedy Jam
• Paul Levine, lawyer, novelist, screenwriter, author of the "Jake Lassiter" and "Solomon vs. Lord" series
• Rick Lyon, actor/creator of Broadway show Avenue Q
• Adam McKay, film director and screenwriter; writer and director of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, and The Landlord
• Amy Wynn Pastor, TV personality, TLC's Trading Spaces
• Peaches Christ, drag performer, emcee, filmmaker, and actor
• Mike Reid, Grammy Award-winning songwriter
• Ian Rosenberger, 3rd place in Survivor: Palau on CBS; former President of Penn State's USG
• Michael S. Rosenfeld, talent agent and co-founder of Creative Artists Agency
• Lisa Salters, ESPN reporter and former Nittany Lady Lion Basketball Star
• David Schelzel, lead singer of The Ocean Blue
• Dave Silverman, activist, president of American Atheists, inventor, holds over 70 patents
• Lara Spencer, co-anchor of Good Morning America
• Joonas Suotamo, Chewbacca actor in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, former Penn State Basketball forward/center
• Don Taylor, film actor of the 1940s and 1950s
• Tom Verducci, senior writer for Sports Illustrated
• Andrew Kevin Walker, screenwriter of Seven
• Fred Waring, bandleader
• Rake Yohn, CKY crew; Jackass crew member; synthetic metal chemist

Politics, government and military

• William P. Atkinson, former member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
• Kelly Ayotte, United States Senator (R-NH)
• Donald Burdick, United States Army Major General and Director of the Army National Guard
• Christopher F. Burne, Brigadier General, United States Air Force
• Caroline Casagrande, member of the New Jersey General Assembly
• Kathleen L. Casey, commissioner of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
• Frank A. Cipolla, Brigadier General, United States Army Reserve
• Jake Corman, member of the Pennsylvania State Senate (R-PA 34)
• Charlie Dent, United States Congressman (R-PA 15)
• Michael F. Doyle, United States Congressman (D-PA 14)
• Howard Fargo, former member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
• Tom Feeney, former United States Congressman (R-FL 24) and former Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
• Jon D. Fox, former United States Congressman (R-PA 13) and former member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (R-PA 153)
• Barbara Hackman Franklin, former United States Secretary of Commerce
• Harold Gehman, former commander-in-chief of the U.S. Joint Forces Command and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic
• Jeffrey D. Gordon, former Pentagon spokesman, columnist, national television commentator
• Priscilla Guthrie, former Associate Director of National Intelligence and Chief Information Officer
• B. Frank Heintzleman, former Governor of Alaska Territory
• Caroline C. Hunter, member of the Federal Election Commission (FEC)
• Alan Isaacman, attorney, argued the case Hustler Magazine v. Falwell before U.S. Supreme Court
• Robert Jubelirer, former President Pro Tempore of the Pennsylvania State Senate, former Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania
• C. Robert Kehler, commander of Air Force Space Command
• Maria Leavey, political strategist
• Jill Morgenthaler, retired Colonel United States Army and Illinois politician
• Michael P. Murphy, United States Navy SEAL and Medal of Honor recipient
• Thomas Murt, member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (R-PA 152)
• Bonnie Newman, member of the Reagan and George H.W. Bush administrations, chief of staff to Judd Gregg
• Bernie O'Neill, member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (R-PA 29)
• Scott Perry, United States Congressman (R-PA 4)
• William Perry, former United States Secretary of Defense
• Valerie Plame, former CIA officer
• Russell Redding, Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture
• Hugh Edwin Rodham, politician; brother of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
• James Patrick Rossiter, Mayor of Erie, Pennsylvania
• Russell Ruderman, member of the Hawaii State Senate
• Rick Santorum, former United States Senator (R-PA) and United States Congressman (R-PA 18)
• Richard Schweiker, former United States Senator (R-PA) and Secretary of Health and Human Services
• Samuel H. Smith, member and Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (R-PA 66)
• Donald William Snyder, member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 1981–2000; Majority Whip
• Stanley Sporkin, former judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia
• Lyonpo Jigme Thinley, Prime Minister of Bhutan
• Glenn Thompson, United States Congressman (R-PA 5)
• George J. Trautman, III, Lieutenant General, United States Marine Corps
• Slobodan Uzelac, Deputy Prime Minister of the Croatian government
• William E. Ward, General, United States Army
• R. Seth Williams, District Attorney of Philadelphia
• Frank Wolf, former United States Congressman (R-VA 10)

Science

• Elliott Abrams, Accuweather meteorologist
• Paul Berg, recipient of 1980 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
• Guion Bluford, astronaut, first African-American in space
• David Bohm, quantum physicist known for the Aharanov-Bohm effect, Bohm diffusion and Bohm interpretation
• Roscoe Brady, neuroscientist and senior investigator at the National Institutes of Health
• John M. Carpenter (B.S. 1957), nuclear engineer, Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Robert Cenker, Space Shuttle astronaut, STS-61-C
• Jane C. Charlton, professor of astronomy and astrophysics
• Dennis S. Charney, current Dean of Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City
• John Call Cook, played a crucial role in establishing the field of ground-penetrating radar; received the first PhD in Geophysics at Penn State in 1951
• Muriel Davisson, neuroscientist
• Nina Fedoroff, geneticist
• Gregory S. Forbes, meteorologist, severe thunderstorm and tornado expert, The Weather Channel severe weather expert
• James T Harris III (D.Ed. 1988), educator and academic administrator; 2003 Alumni Fellow Award recipient
• Nina G. Jablonski, Evan Pugh Professor Anthropology, Fellow American Philosophical Society, Fellow American Academy of Arts and Sciences
• Paul Julian, meteorologist; with Roland A. Madden, discovered the atmospheric phenomena known as the Madden-Julian oscillation
• Paul Markowski, meteorologist; tornadogenesis expert
• Chad Mirkin, chemist focusing on nanotechnology; member of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, NAS, NAE, and IOM
• Erwin Wilhelm Müller, physicist; inventor of the field ion microscope; first person to "see" an atom
• Joel N. Myers, founder and CEO of AccuWeather
• James Pawelczyk, Space Shuttle astronaut, STS-90
• Jef Raskin, author and human-computer interface expert, known for starting the Macintosh project for Apple Computer
• David L. Reich, use of electronic medical records for large-scale retrospective investigations
• Robert Titzer, professor and infant researcher
• Ben Wang, industrial engineer and director of the Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute
• Paul J. Weitz, astronaut, Skylab 2, STS-6
• Rake Yohn, CKY Crew member

Sports

See also: List of Pennsylvania State University Olympians and List of Penn State Football Players

• David Aardsma, major league pitcher spent 1 semester before transferring to Rice University
• John Amaechi, former professional basketball player; BBC, ITV, and SKY television personality
• Adrian Amos, NFL player - Chicago Bears
• Richie Anderson, former NFL running back
• LaVar Arrington, All-Pro NFL linebacker; radio personality
• Horace Ashenfelter, 1952 Olympic gold medalist, track and field
• Charlie Atherton
• Mark Baldwin, former Major League baseball player
• Terry Bartlett, Olympic gymnast
• Alex Bentley, WNBA player - Connecticut Sun
• Todd Blackledge, retired NFL quarterback; television sports analyst
• Calvin Booth, NBA center
• NaVorro Bowman, NFL linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers
• Kyle Brady, NFL tight end
• Frank Brickowski, former professional basketball player
• Jim Britton
• Courtney Brown, NFL defensive end and No. 1 overall NFL draft pick
• Gary Brown, Cleveland Browns running backs coach; former NFL running back
• Nate Bump, professional baseball player
• John Cappelletti, Heisman Trophy winner and subject of book Something for Joey
• Ki-Jana Carter, NFL halfback and No. 1 overall NFL draft pick
• Ken Chertow, US Wrestling Team and Olympian, 1986–1993
• Mary Ellen Clark, 1992 and 1996 Olympic bronze medalist, diving
• Kerry Collins, Pro Bowl NFL quarterback and 4,000-yard passer (2002)
• Shane Conlan, former NFL linebacker
• Dan Connor, NFL linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys
• Frank Coonelly, President, Pittsburgh Pirates
• Bob Coulson, former Major League Baseball player
• Birdie Cree, former Major League Baseball player
• Joe Crispin, professional basketball player
• Patrick Cummins, 2004 NCAA runner-up wrestler; mixed martial arts fighter, currently competing in the UFC
• Helen Darling, WNBA guard for the San Antonio Silver Stars
• Phil Davis, current Bellator MMA Light Heavyweight (205 lb) contender
• D.J. Dozier
• Cal Emery
• Bobby Engram, NFL wide receiver with the Seattle Seahawks
• Jim Farr
• Kevin Foley, PGA Tour golfer
• Bill Ford
• Mitch Frerotte, former NFL guard with the Buffalo Bills
• Katie Futcher, LPGA Tour professional
• Sam Gash, former professional fullback, Baltimore Ravens, New England Patriots, Buffalo Bills; current Detroit Lions assistant coach
• Robert Gibson
• Garry Gilliam, NFL player
• John Gilmore, NFL tight end
• Robbie Gould, Professional Kicker for Chicago Bears
• Milt Graff
• Rosey Grier, former professional football player
• Hinkey Haines
• Tamba Hali, NFL defensive lineman
• Jack Ham, former professional football player
• Franco Harris, former NFL running back
• Jeff Hartings, All-Pro NFL offensive lineman
• Michael Haynes, NFL defensive end
• Cliff Heathcote, former Major League Baseball player
• Dan Heisman, chess master
• George Hesselbacher
• Jordan Hill, NFL player - Seattle Seahawks
• Mike Hull, NFL player
• Tom Irwin, former Major League Baseball player
• Larry Johnson, Pro Bowl NFL running back
• Joel Johnston
• John Jones
• Bhawoh Jue, NFL safety
• Joe Jurevicius, NFL wide receiver
• Jeremy Kapinos, NFL Pittsburgh Steelers punter
• Jimmy Kennedy, NFL defensive tackle
• Ed Klepfer, former Major League Baseball player
• Pip Koehler
• Ali Krieger, professional women's soccer player, United States Women's National Soccer Team, FFC Frankfurt, Washington Freedom
• Tom Lawless
• Sean Lee, NFL linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys
• Maggie Lucas, WNBA player - Indiana Fever
• David Macklin, NFL cornerback
• Michael Mauti, NFL player - New Orleans Saints
• Kelly Mazzante, professional basketball player
• Mike McBath, co-founder and part owner of the Orlando Predators
• Suzie McConnell-Serio, former professional basketball player, current coach
• Kerry McCoy, two-time United States Olympian in wrestling; current coach of Stanford University wrestling
• O. J. McDuffie, former NFL wide receiver
• Irish McIlveen
• Kareem McKenzie, NFL offensive lineman
• John McNulty, wide receivers coach, Arizona Cardinals
• Matt Millen, former professional football player former president of the Detroit Lions
• Lenny Moore, former NFL running back
• Bob Mrosko, NFL player
• Mike Munchak, Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive guard, former Tennessee Titans head coach, current Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line coach
• Danny Musser
• Jim O'Hora, former football player, football coach
• Phil Page
• Paul Pasqualoni, defensive line coach, Dallas Cowboys; former Syracuse head coach
• Terry Pegula, owner, Buffalo Sabres and Buffalo Bills
• Darren Perry, former professional football player; current safeties coach, Green Bay Packers
• Cumberland Posey, founded the Homestead Grays in 1912
• Paul Posluszny, NFL linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars
• Andrew Quarless, tight end on the Super Bowl XLV Champion Green Bay Packers
• Allen Robinson, NFL player - Jacksonville Jaguars
• Hatch Rosdahl, defensive lineman for the 1966 AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs
• Allen Rosenberg, rower and rowing coach
• Jon Sandusky, Director of Player Personnel, Cleveland Browns
• Mike Scioscia, former Major League Baseball catcher and current manager
• Chad Severs, professional soccer player
• Bud Sharpe, former Major League Baseball player
• Jack Sherry, captain of the 1954 Final Four Team
• Alan Strange, former Major League Baseball player
• Bill Stuart
• Kevin Tan, Olympic bronze medalist (gymnastics, team)
• Joe Tepsic
• Myles Thomas, former Major League Baseball player
• Wallace Triplett, former NFL running back; first African-American draftee to play in the NFL
• Kristal Uzelac, former U.S. Olympian
• Russ Van Atta, former Major League Baseball pitcher
• John Montgomery Ward, former Major League Baseball player, manager, and executive
• Tiffany Weimer, professional soccer player for the FC Gold Pride in the WPS
• Dele Young, former professional tennis player

Fictional alumni

• Jake Lassiter, hero of the series of legal thrillers written by Paul Levine, played linebacker for Coach Joe Paterno before attending night law school, passing the Bar exam on his fourth try, and becoming a hard-nosed Miami trial lawyer.
• Mark Wiggum, mentioned in "The Italian Bob" episode of the television series The Simpsons, is the cousin of Chief Clancy Wiggum.
• Marvel Comics has two alumni from here: Bruce Banner, better known as "The Hulk," and Walter Langkowski, better known as "Sasquatch."
• Raj Comics also has an alumna from here. Super Commando Dhruva's sister Chandika did her student exchange and spent two semesters at Penn state.
• Dr. Abby Lockhart, in the television series E.R. is a graduate of Penn State with a minor in English.
• Joan Campbell, who heads the Domestic Protection Division (DPD) in the USA Network show Covert Affairs. The diploma can be seen on her wall.
• Philip Mercer, fictional hero in novels by Jack Du Brul, earned his bachelor's degree and PhD from Penn State.

Notable professors and coaches

• Gregory Ain, architect, Head of the Department of Architecture, 1963–67
• Richard Alley, glaciologist and climate scientist, IPCC lead author
• Paul Amato, sociologist
• George Andrews, mathematician
• Larry Catá Backer, Cuban-American legal and international relations scholar
• John Barth, novelist and short story author
• Samuel Preston Bayard, folklorist, expert on fife and fiddle tunes
• Christian M. M. Brady, targumist and Dean of Schreyer Honors College
• Velvet Brown, tuba soloist and recording artist; is associate professor of music
• O. Richard Bundy, Director of Athletic Bands, including the Penn State Blue Band
• Donald Byrne, coach of America's first varsity chess team
• John M. Carroll, human computer interaction
• Paul DeMaine, a founder of the Computer Science Department
• William K. George, fluid dynamicist
• Lee Giles, co-creator of CiteSeer
• Kathryn Gines, professor of philosophy
• Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22
• Vasant Honavar, professor, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and bioinformatics researcher and educator, former Program Director, National Science Foundation
• Ivan Illich, polymath: author, philosopher, and polemicist
• Mary Jane Irwin, National Academy of Science member
• Philip Jenkins, professor of religious studies and writer on modern religious controversies
• James Kasting, atmospheric chemist and astrobiologist, aka "Dr. Habitable Zone"
• Gary N. Knoppers, head of the Department of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies; wrote a lengthy and prominent two-volume commentary on I Chronicles
• Alan MacEachren, professor of geography, notable for his contributions to geographic visualization
• Mark D. Maughmer, developed first successful winglet designs for gliding competitions; aerodynamicist; author
• Webb Miller, one of the pioneers of computational biology; co-creator of BLAST, a research tool used by geneticists worldwide
• Erwin Wilhelm Müller, inventor of the field emission microscope, field ion microscope, and atom probe; first person to view atoms
• Robert Neffson, artist
• Masatoshi Nei, theoretical population geneticist and evolutionary biologist
• Jon Nese, lecturer in meteorology and former Weather Channel personality
• Joe Paterno, head football coach, 1966–2011
• Roger Penrose
• Rene Portland, head women's basketball coach, 1980–2007
• C. R. Rao, 2002 National Medal of Science-winning statistician
• Frank Ritter
• Theodore Roethke, 1954 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry recipient
• Mary Beth Rosson
• Richard Russo, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Empire Falls; his novel Straight Man was drawn from his experiences teaching at Penn State Altoona
• Jerry Sandusky, former assistant football coach 1969–1999
• Kenneth Bernard Schade, sexual offender; founder of the Singing Boys of Pennsylvania
• Lee Smolin, theoretical physicist
• William Tenn (pen name of Philip Klass), science fiction writer
• Alan Walker, paleoanthropologist
• James Z. Wang
• Frank C. Whitmore, pioneering organic chemist who described the mechanism of carbocation reactions
• Aleksander Wolszczan, discoverer of first extrasolar planets and pulsar planets
• Phillip Nash
• Kathy Mastrian
• Claudia Brown