This page lists notable alumni and students of the University of California, Santa Barbara . Notable faculty members are in the article List of University of California, Santa Barbara faculty .
Awards, honors, and prize winners[ edit ]
The MacArthur Fellows Program is also known as the "MacArthur Fellowship" or "Genius Grant."
R.J.Q. Adams , Ph.D. 1972 –American historian and Patricia & Bookman Peters Professor of History at Texas A&M University
Reza Aslan , Ph.D. 2009 – Iranian-American author, commentator and religious scholar; professor of creative writing at University of California, Riverside
Wendy Berry Mendes , Ph.D. 2003 – social psychologist and former Miss California
Rory A. Cooper , Ph.D. 1989 – professor and founder of Human Engineering Research Laboratories
Denis Dutton , B.A. 1966, Ph.D. 1975 – professor, philosopher, and founder of Arts & Letters Daily
Carol Folt , B.A. 1976, M.A. 1978 – President of the University of Southern California
Nancy Guerra , M.A. 1977 – psychologist and dean of the School of Social Ecology at the University of California, Irvine
James Kilgore , 1969 - Former Symbionese Liberation Army and professor at University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Jakob Lothe , M.A. 1976 – literary scholar and professor at the University of Oslo
Neda Maghbouleh , M.A. 2008, Ph.D. 2012 – American-born Canadian sociologist, scholar, writer, author, and educator; the Canada Research Chair in Migration, Race, and Identity and associate professor of Sociology at the University of Toronto Mississauga .[ 5] [ 6]
Heather McKillop , Ph.D. 1987 – Mayanist archaeologist and professor at Louisiana State University
John D. Petersen , Ph.D. 1975 – former president of the University of Tennessee system
Saba Soomekh , Ph.D. 2008 – religious author and visiting faculty at various universities
Ronald Vale , B.A. 1980 - Professor, University of California, San Francisco , Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, Executive Director, Janelia Research Campus , member of the National Academy of Sciences
Hans J. Van Miegroet , Ph.D. 1988 – professor at Duke University
Tim Vivian , Ph.D. 1985 – scholar of Early Christianity and Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at California State University, Bakersfield
Jon Whitmore , Ph.D. 1974 – current CEO of ACT, Inc. , former president of San Jose State University and Texas Tech University
Jay Alan Yim , B.A. 1980 – composer and associate professor at Northwestern University
Arts, entertainment, and literature[ edit ]
Steve Aoki , B.A. 2000 – electro house musician, record producer, and founder of Dim Mak Records
Gregg Araki , B.A. 1982 – film director, producer, and screenwriter; winner of a Cannes Film Festival award
Tobin Armbrust , B.A. – film producer, president of Worldwide Productions and Acquisitions for Exclusive Media
Brandon Baker – actor, Johnny Tsunami
Jack Bannon – actor, Art Donovan on Lou Grant .
Roko Belic , attended – film director and producer; winner of Sundance Film Festival award
Lo Bosworth , attended – reality television participant on Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County and The Hills
Benjamin Bratt , B.F.A. 1986 – actor, Law & Order , Private Practice , Miss Congeniality
Lisa Bruce , B.A. 1983 – film producer, The Theory of Everything
Yau-Man Chan , M.S. 1977 – reality television participant on Survivor: Fiji and Survivor: Micronesia
Kayte Christensen , B.A. 2002 – sports commentator and WNBA player
Claudia Cowan , attended – television journalist for Fox News Channel
Steve Czaban , B.S. 1990 – sports radio talk show host on Yahoo! Sports Radio and ESPN 980
Beth Rudin DeWoody , B.A. – arts patron, collector, curator, philanthropist
Mark di Suvero , attended – sculptor and National Medal of Arts recipient
Crystal Egger , B.A. 2000 – meteorologist for NBC4 Los Angeles and The Weather Channel
Josh Elliott , B.A. 1993 – television journalist, NBC Sports , Today , Good Morning America
Macduff Everton , B.A. 1981, M.F.A. 1984 – photographer and author
Harris Faulkner , B.A. 1987 – newscaster and television host for Fox News Channel
Scott Frank , B.A. 1982 – screenwriter, Minority Report , Marley & Me , The Wolverine
Morgan J. Freeman , B.A. 1992 – producer and director, Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County and Teen Mom
Tom Fruin , B.A. 1996 – sculptor
Marc Germain , B.A. 1989 – radio talk show host known as Mr. KFI or Mr. KABC
Dana E. Glauberman , 1990 – film editor, Juno , Up in the Air , and No Strings Attached
Toni Graphia , B.A. – television producer and writer
Noah Harpster , B.F.A. 1998 – writer, actor, producer, director A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood , Painkiller
Mary Heebner , B.A. 1973, M.F.A. 1977 – painter and artist
Paige Hemmis , B.A. 1994 – television host, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Don Hertzfeldt , B.A. 1998 – animator and producer, Rejected and Billy's Balloon
Peter Horton — actor, thirtysomething
Iration , attended or were attending USCB when founding band in 2004; multiple albums have topped Billboard Reggae charts
Wayne Isham , attended – award-winning music video director, Enter Sandman , Livin' on a Prayer , Bye Bye Bye
Jack Johnson , B.A. 1997 – four-time platinum singer-songwriter and musician, In Between Dreams and On and On
Moshe Kasher , B.A. – standup comedian and actor
Kazu Kibuishi , B.A. 2000 – graphic novelist, Flight and Copper
Aja Naomi King , B.F.A. 2007 – actress, How to Get Away with Murder
Ken Korach , B.A. 1975 – sports radio play-by-play announcer, Oakland Athletics
Robby Krieger , attended – guitarist and songwriter, original member of The Doors
John La Puma , B.A. 1978 – physician, chef, and New York Times bestselling author
Jenna Lee , B.A. 2002 – newscaster and television host of Happening Now on Fox News Channel
Christine Lehner , B.A. 1973 – author
Harvey Levin , B.A. 1972 – founder and managing editor of TMZ
Audra Lowe , B.A. 1993 – television host of The Broadway Channel and formerly The Better Show
Jordan Maron , attended – YouTuber and Twitch streamer
Enrique Martinez Celaya , M.F.A. 1994 – artist
Lon McEachern , B.A. 1980 – television broadcaster, ESPN 's World Series of Poker
Chanel Miller , B.A. 2014 – author of Know My Name: A Memoir and Emily Doe of People v. Turner
Joel A. Miller , B.A. 1998 – author of Memoir of a Roadie
Matthew Mishory , B.A. 2004 – film and commercial director
Mary Miss , B.A. 1966 – environmental artist
Richard Munson – author
Jeff Nathanson , attended – screenwriter, for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Catch Me If You Can
Nekrogoblikon – metal band formed as live act by UCSB students in 2006
Julie Nimoy – producer and director, Remembering Leonard Nimoy
Benito Pastoriza Iyodo , M.A. 1981 – author
Cathy Podewell – actress, portrayed Cally Harper Ewing on Dallas
Joshua L. Pomer , B.A. 1998 – filmmaker
Rebelution – reggae rock band formed in Isla Vista composed of four UCSB graduates
Philipp Richardsen , D.M.A. 2007 – Austrian classical pianist
Jim Rome , B.A. 1987 – sports talk show host, The Jim Rome Show and Jim Rome Is Burning
Barbara Rush , 1948 – Golden Globe-winning actress, Bigger Than Life , The Young Philadelphians , Robin and the 7 Hoods , Hombre , Peyton Place
Robin Sax – legal analyst and commentator
Andrew Schulz , B.A. 1995 – comedian, podcaster, television host (Schulz Saves America , The Brilliant Idiots , Guy Code )
Richard Serra , B.A. 1961 – minimalist sculptor
Brad Silberling , B.A. 1984 – film producer and director, Casper , Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
L. J. Smith , B.A. 1987 – New York Times bestselling author of The Vampire Diaries and The Secret Circle series
Mark Andrew Smith , B.A. 2002 – comic book writer and graphic novelist
Bahar Soomekh , B.A. 1997 – actress, Saw III
Andrew Spence , M.F.A. 1971 – painter
Andrea Sperling , B.A. 1990 – film producer
Wolfgang Stoerchle , M.F.A. 1968 – conceptual artist
Charissa Thompson , B.A. 2004 – television host, Fox Sports Live and Extra
Fred Toye , B.A. – television director
Jerry Trainor , B.F.A. – actor and comedian, iCarly
Katy Tur , B.A. 2005 – television journalist, NBC News
Leah Turner , attended – country music singer
Patrick Vlaskovits , B.A., M.A. – New York Times bestselling author and entrepreneur
Alie Ward , B.A. – writer, actress, and television and podcast host, Ologies
Dasha Zhukova , B.A. 2004 – model and domestic partner[ 7] to Roman Abramovich
Eric Avila – plays for FC Dallas of the MLS
Shane Bieber - Major League Baseball pitcher for the Cleveland Indians , Cy Young Award in 2020.
Joe Cannon – 2002 and 2004 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year , goalkeeper for Vancouver Whitecaps , former member of U.S. National Team
Cori Close - women's basketball head coach, UCLA
Chris Cope – professional mixed martial artist , formerly competing for Strikeforce and the Ultimate Fighting Championship [ 8]
Lynne Cox – long-distance open-water swimmer, writer and speaker.
Lucius Davis (born 1970) - basketball player
Noah Davis (nicknamed Diesel; born 1997), baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies in MLB
Larry Dierker – 1969 and 1971 Major League Baseball All-Star pitcher and 1998 NL Manager of the Year for Houston Astros
Eric Fonoimoana – 2000 Olympic Games gold medalist in beach volleyball
Rob Friend – soccer striker for Borussia Mönchengladbach of the German Bundesliga and the Canadian National Team
Tom Gamboa —baseball coach and manager
Scott Garson —college basketball coach
Bill Geivett – senior vice president, Major League Baseball Operations, assistant GM for Colorado Rockies
Max Heidegger (born 1997) - American-Israeli basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
Mario Hollands – pitcher for Philadelphia Phillies
Andy Iro – plays for Columbus Crew of the MLS
Carin Jennings – 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup and Golden Ball winner, 1996 Olympic Games gold medalist in soccer ; National Soccer Hall of Fame (personal) and United States Olympic Hall of Fame (as 1996 Women's Soccer team) inductee
Orlando Johnson , pro basketball player for Baskonia of Euroleague and NBA's Sacramento Kings , Indiana Pacers , Phoenix Suns
Neil Jones – has featured for New Zealand National Team , assistant coach for UCSB
Alan Keely – plays in Ireland for Shelbourne F.C. of FAI eircom League of Ireland First Division
Dan Kennedy – plays for Club Deportivo Chivas USA of MLS
Stuart Krohn (born 1962), professional rugby union player
Jason Lezak (born 1975) – four-time Olympic gold medalist and seven-time Olympic medalist swimmer in 2000 , 2004 , and 2008 Olympic Games
Tony Lochhead – soccer left back for Wellington Phoenix FC of Australian A-League and New Zealand National Team
Thiago Martins – soccer striker for FK Bodø/Glimt of the Norwegian Tippeligaen
Kevin McClatchy – co-owner of Major League Baseball's Pittsburgh Pirates franchise
David McGill – plays in Ireland for Shelbourne F.C. of the FAI eircom League of Ireland First Division
Tino Nuñez – plays for Real Salt Lake of MLS
James Nunnally (born 1990) - basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli Basketball Premier League and the Euroleague
Barbara Nwaba – 2015 American heptathlon champion
Chris Pontius – plays for D.C. United of MLS
Kyle Reynish – plays for Real Salt Lake of MLS
Todd Rogers – 2008 Olympic Games gold medalist in Beach Volleyball ; 1997 AVP Rookie of the Year, 2004-2007 AVP Best Defensive Player, 2006 AVP MVP, 2007 AVP Champion
Tyler Rosenlund – has featured for Canadian National Team
Skip Schumaker – former MLB second baseman for Cincinnati Reds
Brian Shaw – three-time (2000 , 2001 , 2002 ) NBA champion point guard for Los Angeles Lakers , former head coach of Denver Nuggets
Ryan Spilborghs – former MLB center fielder for Colorado Rockies
Bobby Webster – NBA general manager
Alan Williams – two-time NCAA rebounding leader and current player for the Phoenix Suns
Craig Wilson – U.S. Olympic water polo goalie silver medalist in 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games ; participant in 1992 Games
Michael Young – retired five-time (2004–2008) MLB All-Star shortstop for the Texas Rangers and 2006 MLB All Star Game MVP
Barry Zito – three-time (2002 , 2003 , 2006 ) MLB All-Star pitcher and 2002 American League Cy Young Award winner
Don Ford - former American basketball power forward in the NBA for the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers
Gabe Vincent - Basketball player in the NBA for the Miami Heat
Richard Schroeder - U.S. Olympic swimming double gold medalist 1984 and 1988
Business leaders and entrepreneurs [ edit ]
Robert D. Arnott , B.S. 1977 – investor and writer, founder and CEO of Research Affiliates, LLC
Dave Asprey , B.S. - Founder of Bulletproof 360
Josh Berman , B.A. 1991 – entrepreneur; co-founder and former Chief Operating Officer of Myspace.com
Grady Booch , M.S. 1979 – software engineer; co-creator of the Unified Modeling Language ; Fellow of ACM, IBM, and IEEE
Tom Bruggere , B.A. 1968 – entrepreneur and founder of Mentor Graphics , former chairman of the board of Stamps.com
Anders Dahlvig , M.A. 1982 – former CEO and President of IKEA
Robert Duggan – CEO of Pharmacyclics Inc.
Tracy Gray , BA – social-impact investor, founder of The 22 Fund
Logan Green , B.A. 2006 – co-founder and CEO of Lyft and Zimride
Jeffrey O. Henley , B.A. 1966 – current vice-chairman and former chairman of Oracle Corporation
Blair Hull , B.A. 1965 – businessman, investor, and founder of Ketchum Trading, former founder of Hull Trading Company
Ryan Kavanaugh , attended – film financier, founder and CEO of Relativity Media [ 9]
Ryland King , B.S. 2012 – entrepreneur, non-profit founder of Sprout Up, Surf Trip List
Karl F. Lopker , B.S. 1973 – current CEO of QAD Inc , co-founder of Deckers Outdoor Corporation
Pamela Lopker , B.A. 1977 – founder and President of QAD Inc
Richard Nanula , B.A. 1982 – former CFO of The Walt Disney Company and Amgen , former chairman of Colony Capital and Miramax
Priya Narasimhan , M.S. 1995, Ph.D. 1999 – founder and CEO of YinzCam , electrical & computer engineering professor at Carnegie Mellon University
Marc Nathanson , M.A. 1969 – entrepreneur and philanthropist, former founder and CEO of Falcon Cable TV
Doug Otto , B.A. 1973 – co-founder of Deckers Outdoor Corporation
Yngve Slyngstad , M.A. – CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management
Peter Sperling , B.A. – educator and businessman, Chairman of Apollo Group
Nick Swinmurn , B.A. 1995 – founder and former CEO of Zappos
Chade-Meng Tan , M.S. 2000 – software engineer, New York Times bestselling author, and employee number 107 for Google
Kazuhiro Tsuga , M.S. 1986 – current president of Panasonic
Brett White , B.A. 1984 – current chairman and chief executive officer of Cushman & Wakefield and former CEO of CBRE Group
Government, law, and public policy[ edit ]
Kwadwo Afari-Gyan , Ph.D. 1974 – Chairman of the Electoral Commission of Ghana
John Avalos , B.A. 1988 – member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
Paul Bardacke , B.A. 1966 – Attorney General of New Mexico
Sam Blakeslee , Ph.D. 1989 – member of the California State Senate and California State Assembly
Barbara Bodine , B.A. 1970 – U.S. ambassador to Yemen during the USS Cole bombing
Barry Brucker , B.A. – Mayor of Beverly Hills, California
Joan Buchanan , B.A. 1973 – member of the California State Assembly
Lois Capps , M.A. 1990 – member of the United States House of Representatives
Salud Carbajal , B.A. 1990 – member of the United States House of Representatives
Tony Cardenas , B.A. 1986 – member of the United States House of Representatives
Norris Cochran , B.A. 1993 – acting United States Secretary of Health and Human Services
Kevin de León , attended – member of the Los Angeles City Council and former member of the California State Legislature
Delaine Eastin , M.A. 1971 – California State Superintendent of Public Instruction and member of the California State Assembly
Valerie Baker Fairbank , B.A. 1971, M.A. 1972 – senior judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California
Raymond C. Fisher , B.A. 1961 – United States Associate Attorney General and senior judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Jean Fuller , Ph.D. 1989 – minority leader and member of the California State Senate
Ruth Ann Gaines , M.A. 1970 – member of the Iowa House of Representatives
Marc Grossman , B.A. 1973 – Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs and United States Ambassador to Turkey
Roger Hedgecock , 1968 – former mayor of San Diego and talk radio host
Jared Huffman , B.A. 1986 – member of the United States House of Representatives
Ken Khachigian , B.A. 1966 – political consultant and chief speechwriter for Ronald Reagan
Betty Koed , B.A. 1983, M.A. 1991, Ph.D. 1999 – Historian of the United States Senate
Robert J. Lagomarsino , B.A. 1950 – member of the United States House of Representatives
Brian Maienschein , B.A. 1991 – member of the California State Assembly
Edward L. Masry , attended – attorney of the Hinkley groundwater contamination case made famous by Erin Brockovich
Dionicio Morales , attended – Latino civil rights leader
Mariana Pfaelzer , B.A. 1949 – senior judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California
Richard W. Pollack , B.A. – associate justice of the Supreme Court of Hawaii
Milan St. Protić , M.A. 1982, Ph.D. 1987 – Serbian ambassador to Switzerland and Federal Republic of Yugoslavian ambassador to the United States
Austin Quinn-Davidson , B.A. 2001 – acting mayor of Anchorage, Alaska
Nick Salazar , attended – member of the New Mexico House of Representatives
Paul Seaton , attended – member of the Alaska House of Representatives
Roslyn O. Silver , B.A. 1968 – senior judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona
Matthew Steen – co-founder of Weather Underground
Dave Uejio – Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
Knut Vollebaek – Norwegian diplomat and Ambassador to the US
Das Williams , MESM 2005 – member of the California State Assembly
Joseph C. Wilson – U.S. Ambassador to Gabon and São Tomé and Príncipe ; Distinguished Alumnus Award recipient; husband of Valerie Plame Wilson , classified CIA operative whose identity was leaked to the press in 2003
Robert Ballard , B.S. 1965 – discovered the Titanic
Other notable alumni [ edit ]
Robert Mardian
^ "The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009" . nobelprize.org . 2009. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "The 2001 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Editorial Writing" . pulitzer.org . 2001. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "The 2002 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Editorial Writing" . pulitzer.org . 2002. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "The 2023 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Drama" . pulitzer.org . 2023. Retrieved June 9, 2023 .
^ Taxin, Amy (February 13, 2019). "After The 1979 Revolution" . Newspapers.com . The Desert Sun. pp. A11, A14. Retrieved February 11, 2022 .
^ "The Limits of Whiteness: Iranian Americans and the Everyday Politics of Race" . Asian American / Asian Research Institute (AAARI) . Retrieved February 11, 2022 .
^ Miami Newsday: "Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich celebrates birth of his seventh child, his second with model Daria Zhukova" Archived 2013-09-16 at the Wayback Machine 14 April 2013
^ "Chris Cope UFC Bio" . Retrieved August 5, 2014 .
^ Bruck, Connie (October 1, 2012). "Cashier Du Cinema" . The New Yorker . Archived from the original on December 5, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2022 .
^ "Meet Robert Ballard" . Office of Ocean Exploration and Research . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Alexei V. Filippenko Professor of Astronomy" . astro.berkeley.edu . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Ben Halpern" . Bren School of Environmental Science & Management . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "John R. Kirtley" . kirtleyscientific.com . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Dr. Alison Murray" . Desert Research Institute . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Alumni PhD Recipients in Anthropology" . anth.ucsb.edu . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Christine Siddoway Ph.D, Professor of Geology" . sites.coloradocollege.edu . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Deborah Steinberg CSX Professor; Dept. Chair, Biological Sciences" . Virginia Institute of Marine Science . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Amy Wetherby Ph.D." med.fsu.edu . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Amy Wetherby" . orcid.org . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Go with the Flow" . alumni.ucsb.edu . Retrieved May 10, 2022 .
^ Perman, Stacy (April 2005). "Learning Curve" . Los Angeles . pp. 50–57. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Gaucho Alumni in Politics Visit UCSB" . thebottomline.as.ucsb.edu . October 18, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Q&A with Tracie D. Hall '91, ALA's New Executive Director" . library.ucsb.edu . July 29, 2020. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ Karas, Rachel (May 9, 2019). "The Earliest Evidence of Shakespeare in America" . Chapman University . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Endowed Scholarships" . Boundless Philanthropy . University of California, Santa Barbara . p. 60. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Madsen still in the spotlight" . ESPN . September 20, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ Sullivan, Patricia (July 21, 2006). "Robert Mardian; Attorney Caught Up in Watergate Scandal" . The Washington Post . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ Martin, Douglas (July 22, 2006). "Robert Mardian, 82, Nixon Campaign Lawyer, Dies" . The New York Times . Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ " 'J–B' Cast Announced" . El Gaucho . Vol. 48, no. 59. Santa Barbara, California . January 15, 1968. p. 5. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
^ "Olson back home in St. Paul" . St. Paul Pioneer Press . March 17, 2009. Retrieved May 9, 2022 .
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