Southern Illinois University Carbondale has had a number of notable alumni since it was first founded in 1869.
Academics [ edit ]
Robert Coover , T.B. Stowell Adjunct Professor of Literary Arts at Brown University [1]
Algeania Freeman , academic administrator
Clara E. Hill , professor of psychology at University of Maryland College Park [2]
Gertrude Hull - history teacher for 40 years; tutor to Douglas MacArthur
Louise Huffman - teacher and educator on US Antarctic programs[3]
John L. Koprowski , Dean of the Haub School of Environment 7 Natural Resources University of Wyoming , conservation biologist, Aldo Leopold Memorial Award from The Wildlife Society (M.A. Zoology 1985)
Sir Curtis Price , KBE , current head of New College, Oxford , former President of the Royal Academy of Music [4] and former president of the Royal Musical Association[5]
L. Eudora Pettigrew , former president of SUNY Old Westbury , first African-American president in the SUNY system[6] [7]
Wilfred Reilly - Kentucky State University professor, author of "Hate Crime Hoax,"[8] and opponent of the alt-right movement
Artists [ edit ]
Business people [ edit ]
Entertainers [ edit ]
James Belushi , actor/comedian[14]
Hannibal Buress , stand-up comedian, actor, writer and producer
Don S. Davis , actor best known for role on Stargate SG-1 [15]
Bil Dwyer , actor, comedian[16]
Dennis Franz , actor best known for his work on NYPD Blue [11] [17]
Dick Gregory (attended), actor, author, comedian, activist[18]
Justin Hartley , actor, best known for role on This is Us
Steve James , documentary director and producer of Sundance award-winning Hoop Dreams and Stevie [19]
Jenny McCarthy (attended), actress and Playmate of the Year, was studying nursing at SIU when she submitted her photo to Playboy [20]
Melissa McCarthy , actress, famous for her role in Gilmore Girls and the motion picture Spy
Gary Miller , ESPN SportsCenter anchor[21]
Tom Minton , animation producer, writer, artist
Bob Odenkirk , actor/writer/comedian[22]
Tim O'Malley , actor/comedian, Godshow , Second City alum[23]
Randal Mario Poffo , also known as professional wrestler Macho Man Randy Savage; graduated 1971
Rick Rizzs , broadcaster for the Seattle Mariners [24]
Richard Roundtree , actor, Shaft [25]
Ken Swofford , film and television actor, best known for Thelma and Louise (1991 film), Murder She Wrote (1984 drama series)
Robert K. Weiss , producer of The Blues Brothers [11]
Walt Willey , actor best known for All My Children
Musicians [ edit ]
Hamiet Bluiett , jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer[26]
Shawn Colvin , musician, singer[27]
Lee England Jr. , violinist, vocalist, arranger, and composer
Open Mike Eagle , rapper[28]
Darryl Jones , bassist of The Rolling Stones
David Lee Murphy , musician, singer
Jason Ringenberg , musician, singer
Mathien , singer, producer
Politicians and government officials [ edit ]
Federal government [ edit ]
Roland Burris , former U.S. Senator from Illinois (2009–2010); previously served as Illinois Comptroller and Illinois Attorney General[11]
Jack Davis , U.S. Congressman from Illinois's 4th Congressional District who served from 1987 to 1989[29]
William Enyart , U.S. Congressman from Illinois's 12th Congressional District; served from 2013 to 2013; law degree from Southern Illinois University School of Law[30]
Julio M. Fuentes , circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit [31]
Tim Lee Hall , U.S. Congressman; represented Illinois's 15th Congressional District from 1975 to 1977[32]
Donald McHenry , United States ambassador to the United Nations (from 1979 to 1981)[11]
Brett James McMullen, Retired Brigadier General, United States Air Force Brett James McMullen
David D. Phelps , U.S. Congressman from Illinois's 19th congressional district who served from 1999 to 2003[33]
Glenn Poshard , former U.S. Congressman, gubernatorial candidate, president of SIU[11]
Larry O. Spencer, Vice Chief of Staff, United States Air Force Larry O. Spencer
Statewide officeholders [ edit ]
State legislators [ edit ]
Carl Bearden , member of the Missouri House of Representatives
Kenneth Buzbee , Democratic member of the Illinois Senate representing the 58th district (1972–1984)[36]
John Cavaletto , Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives representing the 107th district (2009–present)[37]
Jerry Costello II , Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives representing the 116th district (2011–present)[38]
William Davis , Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives representing the 30th district (2002–present)[39]
Chad Hays , Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives representing the 104th district (2010–present)[40]
Jeanette Mott Oxford , Democratic member of the Missouri House of Representatives
Mary Nichols , Democratic member of the Missouri House of Representatives representing the 72nd district (2010–present)[41]
Lena Taylor , Democratic member of the Wisconsin Senate for the 4th district (since 2005)[42]
Art Turner , Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives (2010–present)[43]
Kathleen Vinehout , Democratic member of the Wisconsin Senate representing the 31st district (since 2007)[44]
Grant Wehrli , Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives representing the 41st district (2015–present)
Whitney Westerfield , politician
Local officeholders [ edit ]
International figures [ edit ]
Sports figures [ edit ]
Baseball [ edit ]
Sam Coonrod , MLB pitcher
Jim Dwyer , former Major League Baseball outfielder[49]
Steve Finley , former Major League Baseball center fielder, 5-time Gold Glove winner, 2-time All-Star[49]
Jason Frasor , Major League Baseball pitcher[49]
Joe Hall , former Major League Baseball pitcher[49]
Jerry Hairston Jr. , Major League Baseball second baseman[49]
Dan Hartleb , college baseball coach at Illinois
Duane Kuiper , former Major League Baseball second baseman, announcer, commentator for EA Sports baseball video games[49]
Al Levine , Major League Baseball pitcher[49]
Skip Pitlock , former Major League pitcher
Derek Shelton , Major League Baseball manager, Pittsburgh Pirates
Bill Stein , former Major League Baseball infielder[49]
Dave Stieb , former Major League Baseball pitcher, 7-time All Star[49]
Taira Uematsu (born 1983), Japanese coach for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball
Basketball [ edit ]
Lionel Antoine , former NFL offensive tackle
Houston Antwine , former NFL defensive lineman
Tom Baugh , former NFL player
Amos Bullocks , former NFL running back
Jeremy Chinn , current NFL safety for the Carolina Panthers
Madre Harper , current NFL cornerback for the Carolina Panthers
Jim Hart , former NFL quarterback, 4-time Pro Bowl selection
Kevin House , former NFL player[52]
Brandon Jacobs , NFL running back[53]
Craig James , current NFL cornerback for the Philadelphia Eagles
Yonel Jourdain , NFL running back for the Buffalo Bills
Deji Karim , NFL running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars [54]
Carl Mauck , former NFL player and NFL coach
Ryan Neal , current NFL safety for the Seattle Seahawks
MyCole Pruitt , NFL tight end[55]
Marion Rushing , former NFL linebacker
Bart Scott , NFL linebacker[56]
Sam Silas , former NFL lineman
Russ Smith , former NFL guard
Sebron Spivey , former NFL wide receiver
Terry Taylor , former NFL cornerback
Ernie Wheelwright , former NFL running back
Adrian White , former NFL safety
Jan Quarless , former football player and head coach at the SIU Carbondale
Writers and journalists [ edit ]
Jim Bittermann , CNN European correspondent based in Paris [57]
Chris Bury , ABC news anchor[11]
Bill Christine , sports writer and author[58]
Joan Lovett (Lovelace), CBS four-time Emmy award winner
Adrian Matejka , poet, finalist for the Pulitzer Prize [59] and National Book Award [60] in poetry
Michael Meyerhofer , poet and fantasy author
P.S. Mueller , cartoonist for The New Yorker [17]
Jason Pargin , fantasy author
Jared Yates Sexton , author, political commentator, and creative writing professor
Chad Simpson , Micro Award-winning short and flash fiction author
Jackie Spinner , writer at the Washington Post and author of Tell Them I Didn't Cry: A Young Journalist's Story of Joy, Loss, and Survival in Iraq [61]
Matthew F. Hale (Law School , 1998), white supremacist who solicited the murder of federal judge Joan Lefkow [62]
Joan E. Higginbotham , astronaut[11]
Rodney P. Kelly , retired Major General, U.S. Air Force
Thomas McClelland , retired Captain, U.S. Navy
Johnny R. Miller , Assistant Adjutant General of the Illinois Army National Guard
Joseph Nechvatal , digital artist and art theoretician
Michael Swango , physician and serial murderer[63]
Mallica Vajrathon , United Nations senior staff member
References [ edit ]
^ "Literary Arts Program: faculty" . Archived from the original on 2008-03-03. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Hill, Clara" . University of Maryland Department of Psychology . Retrieved February 16, 2024 .
^ "Empowering Educators at the School of Ice" . antarcticsun.usap.gov . Antarctic Sun. 2015. Retrieved 2016-08-21 .
^ "Senior Staff: Principal" . Archived from the original on 2008-01-19. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Council Members & Officers" . Archived from the original on 2007-06-19. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Luella Pettigrew Obituary (2021) - Legacy Remembers" . Legacy.com . Retrieved January 28, 2023 .
^ Frohlich, Dustin (September 2016). "L. Eudora Pettigrew papers | Manuscript and Archival Collection Finding Aids" . University of Delaware Libraries . Gift of Peter W. Woodard, May 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2023 .
^ Reilly, Wilfred (February 22, 2019). "Hate crime hoaxes, like Jussie Smollett's alleged attack, are more common than you think" . USA Today.
^ "Artist in Residence: Artist Bio" . N'namdi Center for Contemporary Art. Retrieved 2020-07-26 .
^ "Mary Manning: Artist in Residence" . Mahler & LeWitt Studios . Retrieved September 13, 2023 .
^ a b c d e f g h i "Distinguished Alumni Wall" . Archived from the original on 2008-03-01. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Troutt-Wittmann Academic and Training Center" . Retrieved 2007-08-14 .
^ Ramsland, Katherine. "Educated Serial Killers: Which serial killers actually earned college or graduate degrees?" . Psychology Today . Sussex Publishers. Retrieved 23 April 2018 .
^ "According to Jim Bios" . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Don S. Davis Bio - Don S. Davis Biography - Don S. Davis Stories" . Archived from the original on 2008-07-03. Retrieved 2008-02-11 .
^ "Last Comic Standing: Bill Dwyer" . Archived from the original on 2007-06-30. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ a b Utterback, Wayne (April 19, 2007). "Emprace the 'Dark': Author, SIUC alumnus reprints book about Strip". Daily Egyptian . p. 7.
^ "Dick Gregory: Global Watch-Biography" . Archived from the original on 2007-06-17. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Steve James Biography-Yahoo!Movies" . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Jenny McCarthy Picture, Profile, Gossip, and News at CelebrityWonder.com" . Archived from the original on 2007-05-14. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Jenny Gary Miller Class of 1974" . Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Biography for Bob Odenkirk" . IMDb . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ https://aol.imdb.com/name/nm0641795/resum [permanent dead link ]
^ "Team: Broadcasters" . Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "The Working Actor: Richard Roundtree" . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Hamiet Bluiett" . mapleshaderecords.com. Archived from the original on 2010-08-31. Retrieved 2010-09-18 .
^ "Artist Description for Shawn Colvin" . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "BA #064:'Open' Mike Eagle" . Box Angeles podcast .
^ "Bioguide Search" .
^ "Archived copy" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-02-03. Retrieved 2016-02-03 .{{cite web }}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link )
^ "Federal Circuit Judge to Visit Law School" . SIU News. Retrieved 23 July 2022 .
^ "Bioguide Search" .
^ "Bioguide Search" .
^ "SIUC launches 1st Capital Campaign" . Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Washington Governor Albert E. Mead" . National Governors Association. Retrieved October 10, 2012 .
^ "Former state senator, broadcaster Kenneth Buzbee to give talk in Herrin | Local News | thesouthern.com" .
^ "Illinois General Assembly - Representative Biography" . Ilga.gov. Retrieved 2021-11-19 .
^ "Illinois General Assembly - Representative Biography" . Ilga.gov. 1969-02-13. Retrieved 2021-11-19 .
^ "Illinois General Assembly - Representative Biography" . Ilga.gov. 1968-07-02. Retrieved 2021-11-19 .
^ "Illinois General Assembly - Representative Biography" . Ilga.gov. Retrieved 2021-11-19 .
^ "Missouri House of Representatives" . Archived from the original on 2016-02-03. Retrieved 2016-02-03 .
^ "4th Senate District – Lena Taylor" (PDF) . Wisconsin Blue Book (2015-2016) . Wisconsin State Assembly : 26. 2015-01-15. Retrieved 2016-02-03 .
^ "Illinois General Assembly - Representative Biography" . Ilga.gov. 1982-07-17. Retrieved 2021-11-19 .
^ "31st Senate District – Kathleen Vinehout" (PDF) . Wisconsin Blue Book (2015-2016) . Wisconsin State Assembly : 80. 2015-01-15. Retrieved 2016-02-03 .
^ "About Your Alderman Howard B Brookins Jr" . Archived from the original on 2016-03-28. Retrieved 2016-02-03 .
^ "Mayor David Coss" . Archived from the original on 2007-07-24. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Meet Alderman Ervin - Alderman Jason C. Ervin" . Aldermanervin.com. Retrieved 2021-11-19 .
^ "Late journalist-diplomat Joe Hung remembered as man of erudition and veracity" . Eye on Taiwan Media . 2018-03-06. Archived from the original on 2018-03-14. Retrieved 2018-03-14 .
^ a b c d e f g h i "Southern Illinois University Baseball Players Who Made it to the Major Leagues" . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ a b c d "Players who Played for Southern Illinois University" . Archived from the original on October 1, 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Kevin House" . Pro-Football-Reference.com . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Player-Brandon Jacobs" . Archived from the original on 2007-06-30. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Deji Karim" . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2013 .
^ "MyCole Pruitt Stats, News and Video - TE" . NFL.com . Retrieved 2021-11-19 .
^ "Bart Scott" . NFL.com . Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "Radio-Television Goes Golden" (PDF) . Daily Egyptian . October 5, 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 24, 2012.
^ Gauen, Pat (May 3, 2018). "Author seeks to link three Belleville murders" . St. Louis Post-Gazette . p. A6. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
^ "The Pulitzer Prizes" .
^ "National Book Awards 2013 - National Book Foundation" .
^ "Spring 2005 Commencement Speaker, Jackie Spinner" . Archived from the original on 2008-02-13. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "The case of Matthew F. Hale: Implications for First Amendment rights, social mores and the direction of bar examiners in an era of intolerance of hatred" . The Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics . 2000. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
^ "In Depth: Michael Swango" . Archived from the original on 2007-07-08. Retrieved 2007-06-23 .
External links [ edit ]