Gator Greats

Melba Beals 

Civil rights activist 

One of the "Little Rock Nine" who integrated an all-white high school in Arkansas in 1957, this journalism grad, pictured left, is now chair of Dominican University's Communications Department. Her awards include the Congressional Gold Medal and the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award for Excellence in Writing. 

Randy Hayes

Environmental pioneer 

His masters thesis in environmental planning, a 16 mm film about the desert, won Best Student Film from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and led to Hayes founding the Rainforest Action Network. 

Norma Hotaling

Crusader for survivors of abuse, prostitution and trauma 

She died in 2008 but her legacy lives on through Standing Against Global Exploitation, an organization she founded as part of her health education coursework at SFSU. 

Cleve Jones

AIDS activist 

The founder of the AIDS Memorial Quilt was an SFSU student when he stitched the first panel of what would become the world's largest, ongoing community arts project. 

Wilma Mankiller

American Indian activist 

Long before her selection as first woman chief of the Cherokee Nation in 1985, she was an SF State student who participated in the Native American occupation of Alcatraz Island. 

Joseph Marshall 

Youth advocate 

This MacArthur "genius grant" recipient has been called the "Repo Man" for his remarkable ability to turn around the lives of teens in trouble with drugs and gangs. 

Jerry Nims 

Religious activist 

Jerry Falwell's successor as head of the Moral Majority turned toward conservatism after reading Marx and Lenin as an SFSU student in the '60s. 

Mario Savio

Free speech activist 

Though most closely associated with the Free Speech Movement at UC Berkeley, his alma mater is SFSU, from which he graduated with highest honors in 1984. 

Mu Sochua 

Member of Cambodian Parliament, human rights advocate 

Her efforts against sex trafficking won her a Nobel Peace Prize nomination and a Human Rights Global Leadership Award from Vital Voices Global Partnership in 2005. 

Alex Anderson

Quilter/teacher/author 

The host of HGTV's "Simply Quilts" for more than a decade, she discovered her passion at SFSU, when she completed a quilt as part of her work toward a degree in art. Today her award-winning quilts are displayed across the country. 

Judy Dater

Photographer 

One of contemporary art's leading photographers, this Guggenheim-winning artist was part of the Visual Dialogue Foundation, the SFSU-based school that grew out of the ferment of the 1960s. 

Roy De Forest

Artist 

Known for their rich, colorful palette, this art major's paintings hang in major museums worldwide. His "Country Dog Gentlemen" is a popular work at the San Francisco MOMA. 

Rupert Garcia

Artist 

He first gained notice for his political posters dealing with race, politics and the Vietnam War. Since then, his silkscreen posters, etchings and paintings have been featured in hundreds of exhibitions. 

Carmen Lomas Garza

Painter 

Her paintings, shown at the Hirshhorn, Whitney and elsewhere, depict a Chicana's memories of small-town life in Texas. 

Lyle Gomes 

Photographer 

A Fulbright Scholar and artist, his 16-year photographic project, "Imagining Eden: Connecting Landscapes," took him to countless locations in the U.S. and Europe. When finished, he thanked former faculty members Don Worth, Jack Welpott and Neal White in the acknowledgments. 

Lynn Hershman Leeson 

Artist 

Her interactive and Internet-based media art projects include a four-year private performance as a simulated person, Roberta Breitmore, who had her own apartment, handwriting, gestures, moods, and friends who became part of her fiction. 

Kristin Oppenheim

Conceptual artist 

She experimented with audio-visual art as an undergraduate in the 1980s before going on to show it at such prestigious venues as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. 

Wes Wilson

Poster artist 

A pioneer of the psychedelic rock poster, this philosophy major's posters for the Fillmore and Avalon concert halls are noted for their experimental, freehand lettering.

Joel Bartlett 

Former TV meteorologist 

During his career as an Emmy-winning weathercaster, he quipped that the fog at SF State does not come "on little cat feet" but on "heavy panther paws." 

Stan Bunger 

News anchor 

The retired anchor for San Francisco's KCBS Radio says that his professors, the late Harb Morgan and Benjamin Draper, Spencer Michels and Ron Compesi, helped him start a successful broadcasting career. 

Tim Cahill 

Adventure writer 

The adventure writer, author of "Jaquars Ripped My Flesh" and "Hold the Enlightenment: More Travel, Less Bliss," once told an interviewer he has the "best job in journalism." 

Steve Centanni 

Television correspondent 

This national correspondent for the FOX News Channel has reported on numerous global news stories and events. His first on-air gig was at KBRG Radio, "giant 88 at San Francisco State." 

Elaine Corral Kendall 

News anchor/actress 

This Emmy-winning alumna brought us the news for nearly 20 years on KTVU but gave it all up for her first love, acting. She has appeared in nine films. 

Lisa Davis 

Investigative reporter 

This winner of the prestigious George Polk Award has never forgotten the advice she got from one of her journalism professors: "If your mother says she loves you, check it out." 

Nguyen Qui Duc 

Radio host/producer 

Former host of Pacific Time on KQED public radio, he remembers his Radio and TV professors as serious, not stuffy — especially Rick Houlberg, "a fun professor with an easy attitude but tremendous knowledge of the industry." 

Dina Ruiz Eastwood 

News anchor/TV host/stay-at-home mom 

Best known as a news anchor for KSBW in Salinas, this radio and television grad acted in the movies "True Crime" and "Blood Work" and hosted "Candid Camera" before she starred in the E! reality TV show "Mrs. Eastwood & Company." 

Ben Fong-Torres 

Rock journalist 

One of rock's premiere journalists, he edited the Daily Gaterduring the Summer of Love era, when the campus was alive with political protest and psychedelic sounds of groups like the Jefferson Airplane. 

Mike Galanos 

News anchor 

As news anchor of CNN's Headline News Now, this BECA grad brings national and world news reports into living rooms across the country. 

Ted Griggs 

Television executive 

The winner of several Northern California Emmys, he was a sophomore at SF State when he landed a job as a sports producer at KRON. Today he is the President of Comcast SportsNet Bay Area.  

Kimberly Hunt 

News anchor 

A former researcher for Peter Jennings and associate producer for ABC's Monday Night Football, Hunt is an Emmy-winning news anchor at San Diego's KGTV. 

Sterling James 

Disc jockey 

The sultry-sounding Bay Area disc jockey, known for sassy one-liners and interviews with some of the biggest names in music, cut her broadcast teeth during a weekly on-air slot at campus station KSFS. 

Cheryl Jennings 

News anchor 

This KGO news anchor has won the prestigious Gracie Allen Award and four Northern California Emmys. 

Adair Lara 

Author/teacher 

An award-winning San Francisco Chronicle columnist for 12 years, now a writing instructor, she marks her students' strongest sentences in highlighter so that "everybody has some lemon-striped passage to feel proud of." She got the idea from former Professor Leonard Wolf. 

Al Martinez 

Newspaper columnist 

This Golden Gater editor had to leave SF State before graduating to fight in the Korean War, but it hasn't seemed to hurt his career any. He has earned three Pulitzer Prizes as well as the moniker, "The Bard of LA." 

Dave McElhatton 

News anchor 

He got his first job in broadcasting two weeks out of SF State and went on to become one of the Bay Area's best-loved TV newsmen, anchoring the evening slot at KPIX for many years. 

Michael Moss 

Journalist/author 

This reporter at The New York Times earned the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting for his investigation of the dangers of contaminated meat. 

Eric Newton 

Senior adviser to the president, Knight Foundation 

This journalism grad was managing editor of the Oakland Tribune when the newspaper won a Pulitzer Prize. He went on to create and coordinate the content for the Newseum, the nation's first museum of news. 

Malou Nubla 

TV host 

This energetic Bay Area TV personality broke into the broadcast business after telling an interviewer, "If I don't get this job, my dad's going to kill me." The two-time Emmy Award winner hosts "The Malou Show" on KTVU. 

Carter B. Smith 

Radio personality 

When DJ Carter Smith was studying radio and television broadcasting in the late 50's, TV was so new SF State didn't even own one yet. That didn't hold him back. He appeared on every television station in the Bay Area during his 50-year career. 

Frank Somerville 

News anchor 

This broadcasting major shocked a television audience by proposing to his girlfriend live on Oakland's KTVU, where he has worked for more than a decade and currently co-anchors the evening newscasts. 

De Tran 

Newspaper publisher/editor 

In 1975 he left Vietnam for the U.S., where his first job was selling the San Francisco Examiner on a street corner. After graduating from the journalism department he established Viet Mercury, the first Vietnamese newspaper published by a U.S. media company. He is currently the publisher and editor of VTimes. 

Jose Antonio Vargas 

Journalist 

This political science graduate was just four years out of college when he won a 2008 Pulitzer Prize as part of a team of reporters at The Washington Post that covered the 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech. 

Gregory Vistica 

Journalist/author 

The reporter who broke the Tailhook sexual abuse scandal and exposed ex-Sen. Bob Kerrey's role in a Vietnam war massacre got his start in journalism editing the Golden Gater. 

Jan Wahl 

Film critic 

Vancouver Magazine called this radio/TV grad "San Francisco's sharp-witted solo answer to Siskel and Ebert." On KRON she sports a new hat each week as she serves up show-biz scoops and film critiques. The two-time Emmy winner first worked at the station as an undergrad. 

Annie Wells 

News photographer 

Her photography professor, Ken Kobre, advised her to arrive early, stay late, run fast and jump high. His advice paid off. In 1997, she won a Pulitzer Prize for spot news photography. 

Linda Yee 

Reporter 

This journalism graduate and reporter at CBS station KPIX 5 has earned six Emmys for news, including a National Emmy for her coverage of the 2009 Oscar Grant protests and riots in Oakland. 

Kim Yonenaka 

TV host 

This on-air reporter and former co-host of "49ers Total Access" is no stranger to athletic competition. She holds the sixth-place record for career points for Gator women's swimming. 

Dean Biersch 

Brewery executive 

This Gordon Biersch Brewing Company co-founder has taken his love of beer to wine country with his latest venture, Hopmonk Tavern. 

Barry Braverman 

Theme park designer 

Life after SFSU has been an excellent adventure for this teaching-credential recipient. He was the lead designer for Disney’s California Adventure. 

Gregory Fischbach

Video game executive 

Video games were a slam-dunk for this one-time president of RCA Records International. He went on to start Acclaim Entertainment, Inc., the company responsible for bringing the top-selling "NBA Jam" to market. 

Stephen Gillett

Technology and business leader 

This former Starbucks CIO put his MBA to use as executive vice president and COO of Symantec. 

Andreas Glocker

Tech executive 

After graduating with a degree in computer science, he founded Bay Area ISP Sirius Connections, top-rated for three years running before he sold it and founded Fastmetrics.  

Mohan Gyani

Telecommunications executive 

He set out to become a petroleum engineer but found his true calling in the business world. He played a key role in the IPO of AT&T Wireless and went on to serve as president and CEO of the company's Wireless Mobility Group. 

Charles Hall

Inventor 

When his master's project idea for a Jell-O chair flopped, he came up with the idea for a water-filled vinyl mattress. Still popular today, the waterbed is an indelible icon of the '70s. 

Kishore Kripalani

Restaurateur 

His new MBA in hand, he opened the Bay Area's first Gaylord India Restaurant on Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. The top-rated restaurant now has locations worldwide. 

Chris Larsen 

Chairman and CEO 

In 1993 this E-Loan co-founder was instrumental in passing California's strong consumer financial privacy law. Today he is CEO of another online lender, Prosper.com, and online payment protocol innovator Ripple Labs. 

Paula LeDuc 

Business and community leader 

After earning a master's degree in special education, she taught cooking classes at the Living Skills Center for the Visually Impaired before launching a second career, as head of Paula LeDuc Fine Catering. 

Tom Lehner

Automaker executive 

This political science grad, once chief of staff for a U.S. senator, says diverse backgrounds and competing interests at SF State prepared him for politics and public service. Today he's vice president of public policy at the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association. 

Yvonne Lembi-Detert

Hotel owner 

This owner of Personality Hotels on Union Square shocked her marketing professor in the 1970s by inviting a major developer mentioned in her textbook to speak to her class. 

Stephen Lincoln

Bakery owner/fitness instructor/actor 

The high-protein/low-carb cookies and brownies produced at his New York-based Protein Bakery are healthful as well as tasty, say fans including Oprah Winfrey. 

Gilman Louie

Partner, Alsop Louie Partners 

He was still finishing his bachelor's degree when he founded a successful computer-game company responsible for some of the biggest games on the market. Today, as a technology venture capitalist, he is helping other promising entrepreneurs develop their ideas. 

Andrew Ly 

CEO 

The head of the thriving Sugar Bowl Bakery sharpened his business acumen at SF State, where he got a great education and met his future wife, Cindy, when the two were assigned to work together on a class project. 

Kermit Lynch 

Wine merchant 

Saveur magazine named this English major among its 100 favorite food-related people in the United States. His popular Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant is located in Berkeley. 

George Marcus

Real estate broker 

The founder of the Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Brokerage Company has remained closely connected to his alma mater. 

Manny Mashouf

Clothing retailer 

He founded bebe Inc. clothing line, the worldwide brand associated with chic, avant garde, sophisticated women including some of the biggest names in Hollywood. 

Susan RoAne

Best-selling author, keynote speaker 

She learned from forward-thinking faculty like Dr. George Hallowitz before writing books such as "How to Work a Room," which has sold more than a million copies. 

Jeff Sand

Industrial designer 

In 1994, this industrial design major co-founded Switch Snowboard Bindings, the first company to sell step-in binding for snowboards. His work has since led to more than 12 utility and design patents. 

Stephen M. Wolf

Airline executive 

Businessweek credited this SF State grad with helping pull U.S. Airways out of a nosedive after he came on board as CEO in 1996. He went on to become chairman of R. R. Donnelley & Sons, a commercial printing company. 

Robert Deegan 

President 

The ninth superintendent and president of Palomar College in San Marcos, he earned his bachelor's degree in psychology and his master's in counseling from SF State. 

Bill Honig

Former superintendent 

Long before his 1982 election as state superintendent of public instruction, he was a master's student at SF State who spent mornings teaching children in inner-city schools. 

David Mertes

Chancellor 

As chancellor of the California Community Colleges from 1988-96, this biology major helped institute important reforms at this educational system. 

Caitlin Schwarzman

Educator 

As part of her graduate thesis, this teacher with a love of sailing mapped out a challenging "school at sea" for female high school students. Her Tall Ship Semester for Girls program helps students shape up when they ship out. 

Linda Shore

Science educator 

This director of the Exploratorium's Teaching Institute got starry-eyed about astronomy after taking a class because a friend said it would be "easy." 

Caroline Vaughan

United Nations official 

She headed the United Nations Language and Communications Programme at U.N. Headquarters in New York City before assuming the role of chief of the Central Review Bodies in its Office of Human Resources Management. 

Alice Fong Yu

Bilingual education pioneer 

The first Chinese American public school teacher in San Francisco, she graduated in 1926 only to be told that Chinese Americans were not being hired. She persisted until she found a principal willing to employ a bilingual teacher. Today San Francisco's Alice Fong Yu Chinese immersion elementary school honors her memory. 

Jack Angel 

Director, actor, costume designer 

This veteran voice artist has done the talking for dozens of animated characters in feature films, including Teddy in "A.I.," Astrotrain in "Transformers" and various voices in the "Toy Story" franchise. 

Annette Bening 

Actor 

Long before she conquered Tinseltown and Warren Beatty's heart, this "American Beauty" and four-time Oscar nominee was a standout in the drama department, starring in Chekhov's "Three Sisters" and other productions. 

Alex Borstein 

Comedian, actress 

One risqué song may have brought an end to her regular comedy gigs at Mary Ward Hall, but it didn't hurt her career. After five seasons on “MADtv,” she went on to win Emmy Awards for her work on “Family Guy” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” 

Christopher Boyes 

Sound engineer/recording engineer 

As an undergrad he was asked to make a film using sound only; It came out barely audible. Now a four-time Oscar winner ("Titanic," "Pearl Harbor," "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" and "King Kong"), he's known as one of the best in the business. 

David Carradine 

Actor 

While studying acting at SF State under the legendary Jules Irving and Herbert Blau, the late star of Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill" films and TV's "Kung Fu" supported himself working the graveyard shift cleaning tanks at a beer brewery. 

Dana Carvey 

Actor/comedian 

The comic genius who gave us the Church Lady and Wayne's sidekick, Garth, brought along his SF State classmates to fill seats when he started playing comedy clubs in the '70s. 

Peter Casey 

TV producer 

The executive producer of TV's "Frasier" couldn't attend the broadcast department's 50th birthday party but made up for it by taping a congratulatory message with Kelsey Grammar and David Hyde Pierce. 

Michael Paul Chan 

Actor 

Continuing to enjoy a prolific career in film and TV, Chan stars as Lt. Mike Tao on the hit series The Closer. His feature film credits include "Spy Game", "The Insider", "The Joy Luck Club", "Falling Down", and "The Goonies". Chan's brother and wife are also SF State alums. 

Glen Charles 

TV writer/producer 

He and his brother, Les, were the co-creators and executive producers of "Cheers" for its 11-year run on NBC. Fellow alumnus Peter Casey has Glen to thank for creating the pompous yet endearing psychiatrist named Frasier Crane. 

Lisa Cholodenko 

Screenwriter/director 

This Oscar-nominee, whose credits include "The Kids Are All Right," says her time at SF State taught her how to be a better storyteller. 

Curtis Choy 

Filmmaker 

The S.F. International Asian American Film Festival bestowed its 2003 Spotlight honor on this director of "The Fall of the I-Hotel," which chronicles the brutal evictions of elderly Filipinos from a San Francisco residence hotel. 

Peter Coyote 

Actor/activist 

This New Jersey-born film star and left-leaning political activist moved West to study creative writing at SF State. His chronicle of life in the radical '60s is called "Sleeping Where I Fall." 

Roger Dobkowitz 

Producer 

His thesis on scandals on television game shows caught the attention of network execs who asked him to "come on down" and work on "The Price is Right." He has been a producer on the show for more than two decades. 

Arthur Dong 

Filmmaker 

Just for fun, he submitted his SF State senior thesis, a documentary called "Sewing Woman," for Oscar consideration in the short subject category in 1982. It won a nomination. 

Sam Ewing 

TV producer/executive 

This 1965 grad launched his career at KGO before moving on to become NBC's director of children's programs. Later he worked for such creators of kids' TV as Hanna-Barbera and the Jim Henson Company, collecting three Emmys along the way. 

Danny Glover 

Actor/activist 

The "Lethal Weapon" star and champion of progressive political causes cut his activist teeth marching in demonstrations during the 1968-69 campus strike at SF State. 

Michael L. Grace 

Writer/producer 

He wrote/produced the internationally performed award-winning musical "Snoopy," the play "Kennedy," movies for TV, was a staff writer on "Love Boat" and "Knots Landing" and developed screenplays for Kevin Costner and John Travolta. 

David Gropman 

Production designer 

This creative arts grad received an Oscar nomination for his art direction in "The Cider House Rules." His wide-ranging production design credits include "Hairspray," "Doubt" and "Life of Pi." 

Barbara Hammer 

Avant-garde visual artist 

For decades, Hammer (who earned both an M.A. in English literature and an M.A. in film at SF State) directed experimental films and videos that explore once-taboo subjects such as menstruation, female orgasm and lesbian sexuality. Her pioneering, award-winning works were screened at festivals and galleries around the world. 

Bill Johnson 

Film Producer 

He served as executive producer on both the Disney feature film “Secretariat” and the DreamWorks Pictures comedy “I Love You, Man.” 

Pete Liebengood 

Reporter and producer 

During his decades-long career, this television veteran helped create one of the first news magazine shows, worked at various TV stations (including KGO and KRON) in a variety of roles and provided play-by-play coverage for national networks. 

Delroy Lindo 

Actor 

Delroy Lindo was 50 years old and already famous when he enrolled in the cinema program at SF State under a pseudonym he won't reveal. He's appeared in more than 40 films, including "Cider House Rules," "Get Shorty" and Spike Lee's "Malcolm X." 

Shawn Murphy 

Sound mixer/recording engineer 

He has worked behind the scenes of more than 300 films and TV programs including stints as sound supervisor for the annual Academy Awards show. A three-time Oscar nominee himself, he took home a gold statuette for Best Sound ("Jurassic Park") in 1993. 

Steven Okazaki 

Filmmaker 

In 1991, this film major won an Oscar for his short-subject documentary, "Days of Waiting." In 2006, he was nominated for another Oscar in the same category for "The Mushroom Club," a film that deals with the effects of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 

Marcy Page 

Animated film producer 

She's worked at the National Film Board of Canada since 1990 as a director and producer of animated films, including the Academy Award-nominated "My Grandmother Ironed the King's Shirts," and "Ryan," the recipient of the 2005 Oscar for Best Animated Short Film. 

David Pollock 

TV writer/producer 

His numerous credits include co-writing the final episode of "M*A*S*H" in 1983. Watched by fans in 50 million homes the night it aired, the episode remains the most-watched program in television history. 

Jonas Rivera 

Producer 

This cinema graduate has worked on nearly every Pixar film made, from an internship behind the scenes of "Toy Story" to his work as producer of the Oscar-winning "Up" and recently released “Inside Out." 

Jay Rosenblatt 

Filmmaker 

Found footage of Adolph Hitler calmly eating a piece of bread gave him the idea for "Human Remains," his haunting documentary which illustrates the banality of evil by creating intimate portraits of reviled dictators. It received a jury award at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. 

David Sacks 

Television executive 

In just three years this radio/tv and film grad rose from an entry-level position in the Universal Studios mailroom to become an associate vice president. Now he's a senior vice president at Warner Bros. Television. 

Ronnie Schell 

Actor/comedian 

While a student at SF State, this "Gomer Pyle USA" star was getting yuks opening for Phyllis Diller and the Kingston Trio at North Beach's Purple Onion. 

Ben Shedd 

Filmmaker 

Jacqueline Phillips Shedd

Producer/lawyer 

 After switching from acting to directing at SF State, Ben teamed with Jacqueline on their first independent film, "The Flight of the Gossamer Condor." The film received the 1978 Oscar for Documentary Short Subject. 

Corey Sienega 

Producer 

This former teaching assistant was so captivated by a class screening of Orson Welles' "A Touch of Evil," she neglected to prep the final reel in time for the changeover. Clearly she learned from the mistake. She's since produced films including "Martian Child," "Miss Potter," "Secondhand Lions" and "Frailty." 

Lisanne Skyler 

Writer/director 

Receiving both support and criticism from Professors Pat Ferrero, Karen Holmes and Bob Lewis helped this cinema student hone her skills. Her first feature film, "Getting to Know You," played in the 1999 Sundance Film Festival Dramatic Competition and received rave reviews. 

Steve Zaillian 

Screenwriter 

As a kid he ushered at a movie theater watching the films of producers and directors he'd one day work alongside. His screenplay for "Schindler's List" won an Oscar in 1993. 

Kim Addonizio 

Poet/novelist 

A self-described "late-bloomer," she discovered poetry in her late 20s as a liberal studies undergrad. She went on to earn an M.A. in creative writing — and critical acclaim. "Tell Me," her third collection of poetry, was a finalist for a 2000 National Book Award. 

Rae Armantrout 

Poet 

For "Versed," her ninth volume of poetry, she received both a National Book Critics Circle Award and a Pulitzer Prize. 

Po Bronson 

Novelist 

He gave up a lucrative career as a bond trader to study creative writing at SF State, where his best-selling novel "Bombardiers" began life as a writing assignment for a class. 

Kelly Corrigan 

Writer 

This author of the bestselling memoir, "The Middle Place," recalls SF State as a great school where she was humbled by 1,000 page-a-week reading assignments and privileged to have professors like Michael Krasny and Bruce Avery. 

Ernest J. Gaines 

Novelist  

The late MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant recipient and author of the bestselling "A Lesson Before Dying" said the biggest thrill of his career was the day that an SF State literary journal published his story "The Turtles" in the '50s.  

Gerald Haslam 

Writer 

After earning a B.A. and M.A. in English at SF State, he achieved critical acclaim for his fiction focused on rural California, including the Western Literature Association's Distinguished Achievement Award. 

Devorah Major  

Poet/novelist 

This San Francisco Poet Laureate's father was the first director of the Educational Opportunity Program at SF State. She arrived on campus right after the student strikes and found her home in the Black Studies department where she devoured the curriculum. 

Frances Mayes 

Author 

This alumna returned to SF State to teach literature but after the success of "Under the Tuscan Sun" and "Bella Tuscany," she said arrivederci so she could write full time. 

Peter Albin

Guitarist

This founding member of Big Brother and the Holding Company helped organize campus folk festivals that brought acts like the Chamber Brothers and Dick and Mimi Farina to campus.

Vernon Alley

Bass player

This jazz legend studied music at SF State in 1940 but he got his real education on the road playing bass for Lionel Hampton, Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald.

Sam Andrew

Guitarist

Before he met fellow SF Stater Peter Albin and formed Big Brother and the Holding Company, he was a literature major who aspired to teach university-level linguistics. Photo © John Byrne Cooke.

George Duke

Jazz musician

At age four he watched Duke Ellington perform and "went a little crazy," running around and shouting to his mother, "Get me a piano!" He grew up, earned his master's degree in composition and became a critically acclaimed keyboardist, vocalist and Grammy-nominated producer.

James Edward

Vatican organist

In 1961 Professor Alfred F. Alberico arranged for him to play for Fernando Germani, a famous virtuoso organist visiting from Rome. Goettsche was invited to complete his studies in Italy, where he now performs for millions as the pope's official organist.

Vincent Guaraldi

Jazz pianist

He died in 1976 after recording the soundtrack for "It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown," the 15th and last Peanuts TV special to boast his original jazz riffs — sounds that still bring smiles of recognition. He honed his talents in the beatnik club scene while studying music at SF State.

John Handy

Saxophonist

In the 1950s, he blew his horn from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. at an Oakland jazz joint called Bop City then hustled over to SF State for an 8 a.m. biology class.

Dan Hicks

Band leader

He was finishing his senior year when he signed up with the Charlatans, pioneers of the San Francisco Sound. He left the group to form his own "folk jazz" band, Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks.

Ella Jenkins

Musician/recording artist

The "First Lady of Children's Music" majored in social work in the late 40s and early 50s and continues to use techniques for group work learned at SF State in the music she produces with children. She won a Lifetime Achievement Grammy in 2004.

Kitty Margolis

Jazz singer

Renowned sax player and former SF State instructor Hal Stein asked this student to take over his long-standing gig at Peta's, a North Beach institution.

Johnny Mathis

Singer

This 1957 "Chances Are" crooner was a star high jumper at SF State but he rose to even greater heights as one of America's favorite troubadours. 

Kent Nagano

Conductor

On top of his duties as the music director of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal and the Bavarian State Opera, he guest conducts many of the world's leading orchestras.

Dan Nakamura

Hip hop producer

The Los Angeles Timescalled this design and industry major "dance music's greatest alchemist of the moment." Under the moniker "Dan the Automator," he followed up his Grammy-nominated "Gorillaz" with "Lovage," an eccentric concept album.

Jacqui Naylor

Singer

She came to SF State to study marketing, but after hearing the album "Sarah Vaughan Sings George Gershwin" in a music appreciation class, became seriously interested in vocal jazz. Today she performs to sold-out audiences.

Pauline Oliveros

Composer/performer/humanitarian

While pursuing her bachelor's degree in music composition in the 1950s, she was one of just two women in Dr. Wendell Otey's Composer's Workshop. She has since influenced American music profoundly. Many credit her with being the founder of present day meditative music.

Cal Tjader

Drummer/vibraphonist

Hailed as the greatest anglo performer in Latin music, he studied music and education at SF State before signing on as the drummer for Brubeck's trio. His album "La Onda Va Bien" won a Grammy in 1980.

Larry Vuckovich

Jazz pianist/band leader/recording artist

At SF State, he divided his time between his coursework and his gigs at local clubs where he quickly made a name for himself as a leading jazz musician. In his early career he played intermissions on the same bill as Duke Ellington, subbed for Vince Guaraldi and jammed with John Handy.

Wesla Whitfield

Singer

The late cabaret singer paid her way through SF State as a singing waitress. Later, she served up torch favorites at New York's Algonquin Hotel and San Francisco's Plush Room.

Gary Austin

Actor/theatre instructor

The creator and original director of famed Los Angeles theatre company The Groundlings, he helped launched the careers of such well-known comedians as Will Ferrell, Phil Hartman and Julia Sweeney.

Martin Benson

Theatre founder/director

He was trying to break into the movies as an actor when he and fellow alumnus David Emmes started a small theatre company in an old dime store. Today South Coast Repertory remains a major force in American theatre.

Bernard Bragg

Deaf theatre artist

The co-founder of the National Theatre of the Deaf, he is the recipient of a Special Tony Award, an honorary doctorate from Gallaudet University and a special Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Federation of the Deaf.
 

Ed Bullins

Playwright/author

A distinguished artist-in-residence at Northeastern University, this living legend has written more than 50 plays and earned the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, the Vernon Rice Drama Desk Award, and the Obie, among others.

Yuriko Doi

Theatre founder

After earning a master's degree in drama at SF State, she went on to study with esteemed masters of Kyogen and Noh. In 1978 she brought these traditional Japanese aesthetics to American audiences when she founded the Theatre of Yugen in San Francisco.

David Emmes

Theatre founder/director

He was teaching theatre at Long Beach City College when he reunited with fellow alumnus Martin Benson to form what would become the South Coast Repertory, today one of the country's most successful regional theatres.

Paul Gemignani

Broadway music director

Stephen Sondheim's music director of choice, he's wielded the baton for "Sweeney Todd" "Into the Woods" and many more. In 2001, he won a Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre.

Susan Harloe

Actor

She was a librarian and full-time actor and founded the critically acclaimed Word for Word Performing Arts Company with alumna JoAnne Winter in 1993. Susan says that attending SF State "opened up the whole world to me."

Timothy Near

Theatre Director

The artistic director of San Jose Repertory Theatre for more than two decades, Near won an Obie Award during her earlier acting career. Today she continues her national freelance career directing theatre and opera.

JoAnne Winter

Actor

She assembled the core group of actors for Word for Word, a literature-based theatre company described by Tobias Wolff as "a new art form, and a deeply affecting experience."

BD Wong

Actor

He made his Broadway debut in "M. Butterfly," which earned him the Outer Critics Circle Award, Theatre World Award, Drama Desk Award, Clarence Derwent Award and Tony Award. No other actor has earned all five for a single production.

Robert Woodruff

Theatre director

When he became artistic director at Harvard University's American Repertory Theatre, this alumnus was described by his predecessor as "one of the most imaginative and visionary directors in the world." He is now on the faculty at the Yale School of Drama.

Paul Butler

Astronomer

As a young SF State astronomy student, he and astronomer Geoff Marcy helped start a new space race by becoming the first to discover planets outside our solar system. In 2003 he was named "Space Scientist of the Year" by Discover Magazine.

Yvonne Cagle

Astronaut

SF State was the launch pad for this biochemistry major, now a medical doctor and NASA astronaut assigned to the Johnson Space Center's Space and Life Sciences Directorate.

Debra Fischer

Planet hunter/professor

Part of a planet-searching team formed at SF State in 1983, she has helped locate the majority of the 130-plus known planets beyond our solar system, including three she found as a student studying under Professor Geoff Marcy.

Kenneth Fong

Scientist

He chopped vegetables to pay his way through SF State and stayed on the cutting edge as the founder of Clontech Laboratories Inc., which makes tools for gene mapping and genetic engineering.

Eric Kelly

Technology CEO

The CEO of San Diego-based Overland Storage, he was named one of the 50 Most Important African Americans in Technology by Black Money and U.S. Black Engineer magazines.

Stan Mazor

Microprocessor inventor

Then working at a little company called Intel, this mathematics major and three colleagues set off the computer revolution in 1971 when they invented the first microprocessor.

Bob Pasker

High-tech developer

As a history major, he studied the past, but he had his eyes on the future as the chief architect of the market-dominant WebLogic Application Server, now part of BEA Systems.

Jayshree Ullal

Tech executive

President and CEO of Arista Networks, this electrical engineering grad was named one of the "Top Ten Executives" at 2011's VMWorld, the global conference for virtualization and cloud computing.

Jody Vandergriff

CEO

Though she started in biomedical research, her experience designing software for scientists sparked a new passion: product development. She went on to co-found and build WebDAM, a leading cloud-based digital asset management platform for enterprise marketing teams. In March 2014, WebDAM was acquired by Shutterstock.

David Walden

Internet pioneer

Part of a team that developed ARPANET, the precursor of the Internet, this math major spent much of his time at SF State playing bridge and hanging out at the computer center.

Lisa White

Geoscientist/SF State professor

Lisa White thought she was going be a photographer when she enrolled at SF State as an undergraduate. Then she took her first geology class. Now this paleontologist supports her hobby by taking pictures in the field.

Kevin Anderson

University director of athletics

Before he took charge of University of Maryland's Terps, he was the director of athletics at West Point, where he turned an operating deficit of more than $1 million into a surplus of $2.73 million.

Paul Cayard

Yachtsman

A seven-time world champion, six-time America's Cup veteran and two-time Olympian, this business major was elected to the Sailing World Hall of Fame in 2002 and named Rolex of the Year in 1998.

Bud Harrelson

Baseball player/coach

He played shortstop for the 1969 World Champion New York Mets then managed the team in 1990 and '91. Today, "Buddy" is part owner and first base coach of the Long Island Ducks.

Gilbert Haskell

Football coach

As the Ooffensive Coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks, he worked with his longtime friend, Seahawks Coach Mike Holmgren, who coached Gators football under the legendary Vic Rowen.

Tammy McGregor

Olympic athlete/coach

She won a gold medal with the U.S. Synchronized Swimming Team in the 1996 Olympics before coaching the 2008 team. Along the way, she's drawn from her studies in fashion, designing swimsuits for the team and lending her honed eye for trends to its choreography.

Floyd Peters

NFL player

This gators gridiron star was too light when he played for Baltimore but after bulking up gained notice as a defensive lineman for the Philadelphia Eagles, performing in three Pro Bowls.

George Powles

Former baseball and basketball coach

This late Oakland High school coach earned a teaching certificate in 1936 before he prepared players for Major League Baseball, including Frank Robinson. As a basketball coach he discovered Bill Russell.

Kim Probst

Olympic athlete

The 2008 U.S. Synchronized Swimming Team co-captain and "base," the swimmer responsible for hoisting her teammates' bodies above water, this diminutive but fiercely muscled athlete was described by her coach as "the engine" of the team that competed in Beijing.

Jessie Van Roechoudt

Professional skateboarder

This honors graduate, whose last name is pronounced "van rock out," placed second in her first skateboarding contest, Vancouver's Slam City Jam, and has consistently placed in the top five ever since.

Jim Sochor

Football coach

His 18 consecutive conference championships as head coach of the UC Davis Aggies earned this former Gator quarterback a coveted spot in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Bob Toledo

Football coach

As a quarterback for SF State's erstwhile football team, he helped the Gators take the Far Western Conference in 1967. From 1995-2002, he was head coach of the UCLA Bruins.

Gary Austin

Actor/theatre instructor

The creator and original director of famed Los Angeles theatre company The Groundlings, he helped launched the careers of such well-known comedians as Will Ferrell, Phil Hartman and Julia Sweeney.

Martin Benson

Theatre founder/director

He was trying to break into the movies as an actor when he and fellow alumnus David Emmes started a small theatre company in an old dime store. Today South Coast Repertory remains a major force in American theatre.

Bernard Bragg

Deaf theatre artist

The co-founder of the National Theatre of the Deaf, he is the recipient of a Special Tony Award, an honorary doctorate from Gallaudet University and a special Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Federation of the Deaf.

Ed Bullins

Playwright/author

A distinguished artist-in-residence at Northeastern University, this living legend has written more than 50 plays and earned the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, the Vernon Rice Drama Desk Award, and the Obie, among others.

Yuriko Doi

Theatre founder

After earning a master's degree in drama at SF State, she went on to study with esteemed masters of Kyogen and Noh. In 1978 she brought these traditional Japanese aesthetics to American audiences when she founded the Theatre of Yugen in San Francisco.

David Emmes

Theatre founder/director

He was teaching theatre at Long Beach City College when he reunited with fellow alumnus Martin Benson to form what would become the South Coast Repertory, today one of the country's most successful regional theatres.

Paul Gemignani

Broadway music director

Stephen Sondheim's music director of choice, he's wielded the baton for "Sweeney Todd" "Into the Woods" and many more. In 2001, he won a Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre.

Susan Harloe

Actor

She was a librarian and full-time actor and founded the critically acclaimed Word for Word Performing Arts Company with alumna JoAnne Winter in 1993. Susan says that attending SF State "opened up the whole world to me."

Timothy Near

Theatre Director

The artistic director of San Jose Repertory Theatre for more than two decades, Near won an Obie Award during her earlier acting career. Today she continues her national freelance career directing theatre and opera.

JoAnne Winter

Actor

She assembled the core group of actors for Word for Word, a literature-based theatre company described by Tobias Wolff as "a new art form, and a deeply affecting experience."

BD Wong

Actor

He made his Broadway debut in "M. Butterfly," which earned him the Outer Critics Circle Award, Theatre World Award, Drama Desk Award, Clarence Derwent Award and Tony Award. No other actor has earned all five for a single production.

Robert Woodruff

Theatre director

When he became artistic director at Harvard University's American Repertory Theatre, this alumnus was described by his predecessor as "one of the most imaginative and visionary directors in the world." He is now on the faculty at the Yale School of Drama.