List of University of Pennsylvania people
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This is a working list of notable faculty, alumni and scholars of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, United States.
Faculty[edit]
- Benjamin Abella: professor of emergency medicine
- Herman Vandenburg Ames: professor of constitutional history
- Francesca Russello Ammon (August 7, 1865 – February 7, 1935): urban historian, assistant professor in the City and Regional Planning and Historic Preservation Departments
- Rev. John Andrews, D.D. (April 4, 1746 to March 29, 1813) Academy and College of Philadelphia, A.B., with distinguished honors, Class of 1765, and M.A. Class of 1767). Professor of moral philosophy and logic (1789 - 1813) (where his courses included a course on United States Constitution); 4th Provost (1810–1813), 3rd Vice Provost (1789–1810)[1]
- Edmund Bacon: adjunct professor of architecture
- E. Digby Baltzell: emeritus professor of history and sociology; scholar and author; creator of the acronym "WASP"
- Aaron T. Beck: emeritus professor of psychiatry; considered the father of both cognitive therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy[2][3]
- Richard Beeman: John Walsh Centennial Professor of History; Fulbright Scholar
- Janice R. Bellace: deputy provost and director of the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business
- Charles Bernstein: Donald T. Regan Professor of English, prominent language poet
- Mary Frances Berry: Geraldine Segal Professor of Social Thought; former chair US Civil Rights Commission
- Ray Birdwhistell: professor, Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania
- Joe Biden: Benjamin Franklin Professor of Practice; 46th President of the United States
- Matt Blaze: associate professor of computer science
- John Bowker: theologian
- Eric Bradlow: K.P. Chao Professor, professor of marketing, statistics, education and economics
- Ralph L. Brinster: Richard King Mellon Professor of Reproductive Physiology, creator of the transgenic mouse; National Medal of Science recipient
- Lawton Burns: chairperson of the Health Care Management Department of The Wharton School; James Joo-Jin Kim Professor
- Eugenio Calabi: Thomas A. Scott Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, known for his development of the Calabi–Yau manifold
- Arthur Caplan: Emanuel and Robert Hart Professor of Bioethics
- Britton Chance: National Medal of Science recipient; professor of biophysics
- Roger Chartier: professor of history; chair of history at the Collège de France; leading cultural historian
- Pei-yuan Chia: senior fellow of the CSI Center for Advanced Studies in Management at the Wharton School; former vice chairman of Citicorp and Citibank, current member of AIG's Board of Directors
- Thomas Childers: Sheldon and Lucy Hackney Professor of History; author of numerous history publications and recipient of teaching awards
- Wallace H. Clark Jr.: pathologist, cancer researcher
- Mildred Cohn: National Medal of Science recipient; professor of biophysics and physical biochemistry
- George Crumb: Pulitzer Prize in Music for "Echoes of Time and the River" in 1968 and received a Grammy Award for Best Classical Contemporary Composition for "Star-Child" in 2001; Walter H. Annenberg Professor in the Humanities and Professor in Music Department at Penn (1965 through 1997)[4]
- Raymond Davis Jr.: National Medal of Science recipient; Nobel laureate; research professor of physics and astronomy
- Emile B. De Sauzé: language educator known for developing the conversational method of learning a language
- Frederick Dickinson: professor of Japanese history and co-director of the Lauder Institute of Management and International Studies
- John DiIulio: Frederic Fox Leadership Professor of Politics, Religion, and Civil Society
- W. E. B. Du Bois: African-American literary figure, visiting scholar, 1896–1897
- Gideon Dreyfuss: Isaac Norris Professor Biochemistry and Biophysics
- Loren Eiseley (September 3, 1907 – July 9, 1977) University of Pennsylvania School of Arts and Sciences Class of 1937, MA and Ph.D., Benjamin Franklin Professor of Anthropology and History and Sociology of Science at the University of Pennsylvania, anthropologist, philosopher, and natural science writer (such that Publishers Weekly referred to him as "the modern Thoreau" for broad scope of his writing reflected upon such topics as the mind of Sir Francis Bacon, the prehistoric origins of man, and the contributions of Charles Darwin)[5][6][7][8][9]
- Frederick Erickson: educational anthropologist[10]
- Warren Ewens: professor of biology; creator of Ewens's sampling formula
- Peter Fader: Napster trial expert witness; Frances and Pei-Yuan Chia Professor of Marketing
- Ann Farnsworth-Alvear: associate professor of History
- Stubbins Ffirth: investigated yellow fever
- Peter J. Freyd: professor of mathematics
- Michael Fitts: American legal scholar, former dean of the University of Pennsylvania Law School for 14 years and is the current president of Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, and the Judge Rene H. Himel Professor of Law at the Tulane School of Law.[11]
- Stewart D. Friedman: practice professor of management at the Wharton School; founding director of the Wharton School's Leadership Program
- Paul Fussell: emeritus professor of literature; National Book Award winner; cultural and literary historian
- Celso-Ramón García: former William Shippen, Jr. Professor of Human Reproduction; helped to develop the combined oral contraceptive pill
- George Gerbner: professor and dean, Annenberg School for Communication; founder of cultivation theory
- Jacob Gershon-Cohen: professor of radiology; developer of mammography for detecting breast cancer
- Murray Gerstenhaber: professor of mathematics and lawyer; discoverer of Gerstenhaber algebra
- Erving Goffman: professor of sociology; author of The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, Asylums
- Claudia Goldin (Professor of Economics 1979 to 1990): Nobel Prize in Economics[12]
- Paul Gyorgy: National Medal of Science recipient; professor of pediatrics, School of Medicine
- Steven Hahn: Pulitzer Prize winner; Roy F. and Jeannette P. Nichols Professor of History
- David Harbater: Cole Prize recipient, known for solving the Abhyankar conjecture
- Lothar Haselberger: professor of architectural history
- De'Broski Herbert: professor of immunology
- Robin M. Hochstrasser: professor of chemistry
- Daniel Hoffman: poet, Felix E. Schelling professor of English, consultant in poetry to the Library of Congress
- Kathleen Hall Jamieson: professor of communications, Annenberg School for Communications; author; media analyst
- Daniel H. Janzen: professor of biology
- A.T. Charlie Johnson: Rebecca W. Bushnell Professor of Physics and Astronomy
- Vaughan Jones: Fields Medal winner, professor of Mathematics
- Aravind Joshi: Henry Salvatori Professor of Computer and Cognitive science
- Louis Kahn: architect; works include the Jatiyo Sangsad Bhaban in Bangladesh and Jonas Salk Institute in California; professor of architecture
- Elihu Katz: Distinguished Trustee Professor of Communications
- E. Otis Kendall: professor of mathematics, 1855–1894
- Junhyong Kim: Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Term Endowed Professor of Biology
- Alan Kors: National Humanities Medal recipient, free speech advocate; George Walker Professor of History
- Bruce Kuklick: Roy F. and Jeannette P. Nichols Professor of American History
- William Labov: professor of linguistics; founder of quantitative sociolinguistics
- L. Scott Levin, MD, FACS: The Paul B. Magnuson Professor of Bone and Joint Surgery and Professor of Plastic Surgery at University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and chair of Penn Medicine Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and its Director of Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation Program; Head of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Pediatric Hand Transplantation Program who performed the world’s first bilateral hand transplant for a child in 2015; chair of the board of regents of the American College of Surgeons[13]
- Ian Lustick: Bess W. Heyman Professor of Political Science; author of Trapped in the War on Terror
- Robert Litzenberger: professor emeritus at Wharton
- Jerre Mangione: novelist and scholar of the Italian-American experience
- Mihailo Marković: professor of philosophy
- E. Ann Matter: associate dean for Arts & Letters, R. Jean Brownlee Professor of Religious Studies
- Walter A. McDougall: Pulitzer Prize winner; Alloy-Ansin Professor of History and International Relations
- Olivia S. Mitchell: International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans Professor of Insurance and Risk Management; executive director of the Pension Research Council and Boettner Center for Pensions and Retirement Research
- Irv Mondschein: track coach
- Roy F. Nichols: Pulitzer Prize winner; professor of history
- James J. O'Donnell: former vice provost for information systems and computing
- Brendan O'Leary: Lauder Professor of Political Science and Director of the Solomon Asch Center for the Study of Ethnopolitical Conflict
- Burt Ovrut: professor of physics; pioneer of the heterotic string theory
- Robert Patterson (educator) (May 20, 1743 – July 22, 1824) from 1779 to 1814 was professor of mathematics at, and from 1810 to 1813 also served as vice provost of University of Pennsylvania and in 1805, President Thomas Jefferson appointed him director of the United States Mint.[14]
- Bob Perelman: professor of English; language poet
- Samuel H. Preston: Fredrick J. Warren Professor of Demography; known for his development of the Preston curve
- Amir Pnueli: Associate Professor at the Moore School of Engineering 1976-1978; Turing Award winner
- Hans Rademacher: Scott Chair, professor of mathematics; known for his theory of the reciprocity law for Dedekind sums
- Jagmohan Raju: Joseph J. Aresty Professor of Marketing; known for his research on pricing
- Robert A. Rescorla: Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor in Psychology; co-creator of the Rescorla–Wagner model
- Russell Burton Reynolds: US Army major general; assistant professor of military science and tactics
- David Rittenhouse: professor of astronomy; vice provost; trustee
- Rafael Robb: professor of economics
- George Rochberg: Annenberg Professor of the Humanities and professor of Music
- C. Brian Rose: James B. Pritchard Professor of Archaeology; president of the Archaeological Institute of America; known for co-directing the modern excavations at Troy
- Philip Roth: Pulitzer Prize winner; professor of comparative literature & literary theory
- Brian M. Salzberg: neuroscientist, biophysicist and professor
- Florence B. Seibert: professor of biochemistry; winner of the Garvan–Olin Medal and member of the National Women's Hall of Fame
- Martin E. P. Seligman: Robert A. Fox Leadership Professor of Psychology
- Jeremy Siegel: Russell E. Palmer Professor of Finance; financial news commentator
- Rangita de Silva de Alwis: member-elect to the UN Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women; senior adjunct professor of global leadership
- Rogers Smith: Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of Political Science
- Lee Stetson: Dean of Undergraduate Admissions, 29 years
- Peter Sterling: neuroscientist and co-founder of the concept of allostasis
- Thomas J. Sugrue: Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Term Professor of History and Sociology
- Babu Suthar: Gujarati Lecturer in South Asia Studies
- Iosif Vitebskiy: Soviet/Ukrainian Olympic medalist and world champion épée fencer
- Michael Vitez: Pulitzer Prize winner; professor of creative writing
- Donald Voet: associate professor of chemistry and co-author of several biochemistry textbooks
- Susan M. Wachter: Albert Sussman Professor of Real Estate; co-director of Penn Institute for Urban Research (Penn IUR)
- Thomas A. Wadden: Albert J. Stunkard Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry
- Arthur Waldron: Lauder Professor of International Relations in the Department of History; Scholar of Asian and Chinese history, especially in respect to war and nationalism
- Richard Wernick: Pulitzer Prize winner; composer; professor of Humanities
- Howard Winklevoss: professor of actuarial science
- Lightner Witmer: professor of psychology; inventor of the term clinical psychology
- Tukufu Zuberi: Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations; professor of sociology
Academia[edit]
Penn alumni are the (a) founders of a number of colleges, as well as eight medical schools including New York University Medical School and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and (b) current or past presidents of over one hundred (100) universities and colleges including Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, Cornell University, University of California system, University of Texas system, Carnegie Mellon University, Northwestern University, Tulane University,Bowdoin College and Williams College.
Arts, media, and entertainment[edit]
- Julian Abele (April 30, 1881 – April 23, 1950), class of 1902: architectural designer; co-designed such works as the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Central Branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia, Widener Memorial Library at Harvard University, and designed much of the campus of Duke University, including Duke Chapel[15]
- Charles Addams (January 7, 1912 – September 29, 1988) College Class of 1933, attended 1 year but did not graduate: creator of The Addams Family; said to have modeled the Addams Family mansion in part after Penn's College Hall
- Kabir Akhtar (born January 11, 1975) College Class of 1996[16] American television director and editor, who won an Emmy Award in 2016 and whose credits include work for Arrested Development, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Never Have I Ever, Behind the Music, and the Academy Awards[17]
- Elizabeth Alexander: poet who recited at the 2009 inauguration of President Barack Obama
- Hoodie Allen, born Steven Markowitz: independent hip-hop artist, rapper, singer and songwriter
- Maryanne Amacher: composer
- Howard Arenstein: CBS News national correspondent
- Alex Aster: author
- Ti-Grace Atkinson: author, feminist
- Hannah August: press secretary for First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama
- Jon Avnet: film and television director, producer and writer
- Evelyn Margaret Ay: Miss America 1954
- Benjamin Franklin Bache, class of 1787: grandson of Benjamin Franklin and an early champion of the First Amendment
- William J. Bain: architect, co-founder of global architecture firm NBBJ
- Lucien Ballard: Academy Award-nominated cinematographer
- Elizabeth Banks: Film director and Emmy Award-nominated actress, known for starring in the film The Hunger Games (2012); lead actress in Invincible; played Laura Bush in W.; Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year in 2020
- Leslie Esdaile Banks nee Peterson: (December 11, 1959 – August 2, 2011), Wharton School of Finance class of 1981, BS in Economics; wrote under the pen names of Leslie Esdaile, Leslie E. Banks, Leslie Banks, Leslie Esdaile Banks and L. A. Banks in various genres, including African-American literature, romance, women's fiction, crime suspense, dark fantasy/horror and non-fiction; won several literary awards, including the 2008 Essence Literary Awards Storyteller of the Year[18][19]
- Ralph Barbieri (October 28, 1945 – August 3, 2020) Wharton MBA Class of 1970:[20][21] radio personality
- Albert C. Barnes (January 2, 1872 – July 24, 1951) Penn Med Class of 1892:[22][23] inventor of Argyrol; founder of the Barnes Foundation, one of the most valuable art collections in the world
- Peter Barnes: senior Washington, D.C., correspondent for the Fox Business Network
- Jack Barry: television game show producer and host, 1950s–1984
- Vanessa Bayer: actress, comedian, Saturday Night Live cast member, 2010–2017
- Eric Bazilian: singer, songwriter, guitarist, member of The Hooters
- Willow Bay: former CNN and ABC anchorwoman, and fashion model
- Bruce Beattie: nationally syndicated political cartoonist and past president of the National Cartoonists Society
- David Bell: past chairman of the Financial Times
- W. Kamau Bell (born January 26, 1973), American stand-up comic who has hosted the CNN series United Shades of America since 2016, and hosted FXX television series Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell from 2012 to 2013
- James Berardinelli: film critic
- Candice Bergen: Emmy Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated actress, star of the sitcom Murphy Brown
- Jed Bernstein: Tony Award-winning theater producer and current president of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
- Alfred Bester: recipient of the first Hugo Award for a science-fiction novel, The Demolished Man (1953); Science Fiction Grand Master (1988); author of The Stars My Destination (1956)
- Natvar Bhavsar: Indian-American abstract expressionist and color field artist
- Nate Bihldorff: Nintendo localization manager; known for Paper Mario and Animal Crossing
- Jeffrey Birnbaum: journalist and digital managing editor of the Washington Times
- H. G. Bissinger: author of Friday Night Lights; Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist
- Mark Blum actor (died 2021)[24]
- Max Blumenthal: journalist
- Frank L. Bodine: architect
- Beverly Bower: operatic soprano
- Jim Braude: Emmy Award-winning news journalist
- Denise Scott Brown: architect; principal in Venturi, Scott Brown & Associates; wife of architect Robert Venturi
- Stanley Burnside: cartoonist and painter
- Tory Burch: fashion designer and socialite
- Alfred Butts: inventor of the board game Scrabble
- Nkechi Okoro Carroll: television producer and writer
- Lorene Cary: author, educator and social activist
- Guymon Casady: Emmy Award-winning television producer for the HBO series Game of Thrones
- Eduardo Catalano: architect
- Rick Chertoff: music producer
- Jean Chatzky: award-winning journalist, financial expert, best-selling author and motivational speaker on NBC's Today Show
- Ryan Choi: composer, musician
- Claudia Cohen: former "Page Six" gossip columnist for the New York Post
- Nancy Cordes: CBS News chief White House correspondent
- Jaime Correa, architect and University of Miami professor
- Maureen Corrigan: author, journalist, and critic
- Adrian Cronauer: radio personality and subject of biopic Good Morning, Vietnam
- Mark Cronin: television producer and writer
- Whitney Cummings: comedian and co-creator of the television series 2 Broke Girls
- Frank Miles Day: architect who made major additions to the campuses of the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State University, Princeton University and Wellesley College, among others; national president of the American Institute of Architects, 1906–07; a founding editor of House & Garden
- Pamela Day: businesswoman and contestant of NBC reality show The Apprentice 2
- Joseph Deitch: Tony Award-winning Broadway producer
- Lisa DePaulo: Award-winning journalist for national magazines (George (magazine), Elle, New York Magazine, Vanity Fair (magazine), among others)
- James DePreist: permanent conductor of the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra; director of conducting and orchestral studies at the Juilliard School; laureate music director of the Oregon Symphony
- Bruce Dern: two-time Academy Award-nominated actor
- John S. Detlie: Academy Award-nominated art director and set designer
- Julie Diana: ballet dancer, ballet master, writer and arts administrator
- Guitarist Jon Gutwillig and ex-drummer Sam Altman of the trance-fusion band the Disco Biscuits; bassist Marc Brownstein and keyboardist Aron Magner attended the university, but never graduated
- Gail Dolgin: Academy Award-nominated documentary filmmaker, Daughter from Da Nang
- John Doman: actor, star of HBO crime drama series The Wire
- Yochi Dreazen: journalist, The Wall Street Journal and National Journal
- John Drimmer: Emmy Award-winning television producer
- Dayton Duncan: Emmy Award-winning non-fiction writer
- Jennifer Egan: Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist; National Book Award finalist
- Thomas Harlan Ellett: architect who designed the Cosmopolitan Club in NYC and the United States Post Office-Bronx Central Annex
- Sabrina Erdely: reporter known for the discredited Rolling Stone article "A Rape on Campus"[25]
- Joseph Esherick: Bay Area architect; professor at University of California, Berkeley
- Nicole Eustace: American historian who won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for History
- Ray Evans: Academy Award-winning songwriter
- Jonathan Leo Fairbanks: founding curator of the American decorative arts and sculpture department at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
- Robert Fan: Chinese architect who designed the Shanghai Concert Hall
- Jessie Fauset: author and contributor to the Harlem Renaissance
- Wendy Finerman: Academy Award-winning movie producer for the film Forrest Gump in 1994
- Stanley Fish: The New York Times op-ed columnist
- Melissa Fitzgerald: actress, known for her role on the television series The West Wing as Carol Fitzpatrick
- Frank Ford: Long-time Philly radio talk show host, and co-founder of the Valley Forge Music Fair and the Westbury Music Fair
- Stephen J. Friedman: movie producer
- Zenos Frudakis: American sculptor whose works are featured at institutions around the world
- Laura Gao: cartoonist, author of Messy Roots[26]
- Richard Garfield: inventor of the trading card game Magic: The Gathering
- Robert Gant: actor, known as Ben on Queer as Folk
- Adam Garfinkle: editor of The American Interest, a public policy quarterly magazine
- Nikki Giovanni: poet and author; attended Penn but did not earn a degree
- Stephen Glass: former reporter for The New Republic, author of The Fabulist
- Benjamin Glazer (Penn Law Class of 1905), Academy Award-winning screenwriter and producer who in 1927 won the first Academy Award for Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) for 7th Heaven and founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences[27]
- Jeffrey Goldberg: journalist, Atlantic and The New Yorker
- Leonard Goldberg: former chairman of 20th Century Fox, television and movie producer
- Osvaldo Golijov: Grammy Award-winning composer of classical music
- John M. Goshko: B.A. in English; journalist, The Washington Post[28]
- Bruce Graham: architect who designed the Sears Tower, the John Hancock Center, and the Inland Steel Building in Chicago, as well as the U.S. Bank Center in Milwaukee (currently the tallest building in Wisconsin)
- Archie Green: American folklorist and musicologist
- Zane Grey:University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine one of the twentieth century's most popular authors of Western novels and sport fishing
- Shelly Gross: Broadway producer and co-founder of the Valley Forge Music Fair and the Westbury Music Fair
- Charles Gwathmey: FAIA, architect who studied at Penn, and later at Yale
- Joseph Hallman: Philadelphia classical and pop music composer, writer
- George Harold Waldo Haag, class of 1934: FAIA, school architect
- Mark Haines: CNBC business news anchor
- Stephen Hartke: Winner of the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition in 2013
- William Stanley Haseltine: 19th-century painter; his works are included in the collections of museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
- George Hedges: celebrity lawyer, and archeologist who discovered the ancient city of Ubar
- Henry C. Hibbs: architect who designed much of the campus of Vanderbilt University, as well as buildings for many other schools and universities
- Jennifer Higdon: Grammy Award-winning flutist and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer of classical music
- Evelyn Hockstein: photographer and photojournalist
- John Hoke III: Chief Design Officer, Nike, Inc.
- Leicester Bodine Holland: architect and archaeologist
- Doc Holliday: gunman and gambler in the western United States in the 1870s and 1880s; colleague of the Earp brothers; participated in the O.K. Corral gunfight; graduated from Philadelphia College of Dentistry (1872), which merged into Penn in 1909
- Donelson Hoopes, class of 1960: art historian
- Ariel Horn: novelist
- Kristin Hunter: novelist
- Abby Huntsman: host and producer at HuffPost Live; political commentator on MSNBC, CNN and ABC News; daughter of 2012 presidential candidate Jon Huntsman Jr.
- Tetsugo Hyakutake: Japanese photographer
- Rob Hyman: singer, songwriter, keyboard player, member of The Hooters
- Alberto Ibarguen: President and CEO of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in Miami, Florida; former publisher of the Miami Herald
- Moe Jaffe: (October 23, 1901 – December 2, 1972) Wharton School (class of 1923) and the University of Pennsylvania Law School (class of 1926) alumnus who was a songwriter and bandleader who composed more than 250 songs including Collegiate (which was played by Chico Marx in the movie Horse Feathers), "The Gypsy in My Soul" (for the 50th anniversary of Mask and Wig show in 1937), "If I Had My Life to Live Over", "If You Are But a Dream", "Bell Bottom Trousers", and "I'm My Own Grandpa"
- George Clarke Jenkins: Academy Award-winning production designer and three-time Tony Award nominee
- John Jiller: playwright, novelist, and journalist
- Amandus Johnson: founding curator of the American Swedish Historical Museum
- Norton Juster: architect and writer for children, author of The Phantom Tollbooth
- Louis Kahn: architect, works include the Yale University Art Gallery and Jatiyo Sangsad Bhaban National Assembly Building, Dhaka, Bangladesh
- Aaron Karo: college humorist who details Penn life in books and on the CollegeHumor website
- Reem Kassis: author of The Palestinian Table; James Beard Award nominee and Guild of Food Writers winner
- Duncan Kenworthy: producer of Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill; BAFTA Award winner
- Florence Kirk: operatic soprano
- Joe Klein: columnist and political analyst for Time magazine
- Evan Kohlmann: NBC terrorism analyst
- Andrea Kremer: Multi-Emmy Award-winning American sports journalist
- Harry Kurnitz: screenwriter, playwright
- Sara Larkin: visual artist
- Erik Larson (author) (College Class of 1973) journalist and author of nonfiction books who has written a number of bestsellers, including The Devil in the White City, about the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago and a series of murders committed by H. H. Holmes around the time of the Exposition[29]
- Elliot Lawrence: Tony Award-winning jazz pianist, composer and bandleader
- William Harold Lee: architect
- Gwyneth Leech: artist
- John Legend (birth name John Stephens) College Class of 1999: rhythm and blues singer/songwriter; winner of Emmy, Grammy Award, Oscar, Tony Award (all four being an EGOT award[30][31]
- Stephanie Lemelin: Canadian actress
- Michael R. Levy: founder and publisher of Texas Monthly magazine
- William Link: television and film writer and producer who co-created and produced the shows Columbo, Mannix, Ellery Queen and Murder, She Wrote
- Caren Lissner: novelist, author of Carrie Pilby
- Betty Liu: anchorwoman for Bloomberg Television
- Alan W. Livingston: record producer who signed The Beatles to their first major US contract; created the character Bozo the Clown
- Jay Livingston: Academy Award-winning songwriter
- John D. MacDonald: author, known for his Travis McGee series
- Aron Magner: keyboardist, The Disco Biscuits
- Mary Ellen Mark: photographer; Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and art history (1962),[32] master's degree in photojournalism at Annenberg School for Communication (1964)
- Stanley Marsh 3: Texas businessman, philanthropist, and artist known for the Cadillac Ranch off historic Route 66; received bachelor's and master's degrees in economics and history, respectively, from Penn
- John Masius: Emmy Award-winning TV producer and writer, Touched by an Angel, St. Elsewhere
- Ryota Matsumoto: artist
- Megan McArdle: blogger and Washington Post Opinions columnist
- James McDaniel: Emmy Award-winning actor
- Milton Bennett Medary Jr.: architect who designed the Washington Memorial Chapel at Valley Forge National Park and the Bok Singing Tower; with fellow alumnus William Charles Hays, he designed Houston Hall, America's first student union
- Thor Halvorssen Mendoza: human rights advocate and film producer; founder, Human Rights Foundation
- Jonah Meyerson: film and television actor
- Sia Michel: Current Culture editor and past pop music editor of The New York Times
- Andrea Mitchell: NBC chief foreign affairs correspondent
- Ethan Mordden: novelist, theater historian
- Stephen Robert Morse: journalist, Emmy Award-nominated producer of Amanda Knox
- Barton Myers: architect
- Naledge, born Jabari Evans: rapper, member of hip-hop group Kidz in the Hall
- David Naughton: actor known for starring in the horror film An American Werewolf in London (1981)
- Amna Nawaz: Emmy Award-winning American broadcast journalist
- Morgan Neville: Academy Award and Grammy-Award-winning director and producer
- Becki Newton: (college class of 2000) actress, Amanda on Ugly Betty[33]
- Philip Francis Nowlan: American science fiction writer, best known as the creator of Buck Rogers
- Ken Olin: Golden Globe Award-winning actor, known for his lead role on thirtysomething and as director and executive producer of Alias
- Charles Ornstein: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for the Los Angeles Times
- Christina Park: Fox News Channel anchorwoman
- Ashley Parker: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for The Washington Post
- Kamau Amu Patton: multidisciplinary artist
- Maury Henry Biddle Paul: 20th century journalist who is credited with coining the term "Cafe′ Society"
- Rob Pearlstein: Academy Award-nominated writer and director
- Norman Pearlstine: past editor-in-chief of Time Inc.
- I. M. Pei: modernist architect; briefly attended in 1935 before transferring to MIT
- Jim Perry, born Jim Dooley: US and Canadian television host
- Gina Philips: actress (attended, never graduated)
- Noah Pink: screenwriter, television producer, director, and swimmer
- Elizabeth Pipko: author, model
- Marc Platt: film, television and theatre producer who won two Tony Awards for serving as a producer for the Broadway productions of (1) The Band's Visit and (2) Michael R. Jackson's Pulitzer Prize-winning musical A Strange Loop[34]
- Chaim Potok: author, The Chosen, The Promise, My Name Is Asher Lev, and The Gift of Asher Lev
- Ezra Pound: 20th-century Modernist poet; promoter of various writers and schools of literature; attended for two years before transferring to Hamilton College; returned to Penn and earned a master's degree in romance philology
- Maury Povich: talk show host; recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Emmy
- Lionel Pries: architect
- Harold Prince: winner of 21 Tony Awards as a Broadway producer for shows such as West Side Story and The Phantom of the Opera
- Paul Provenza: actor, comedian, and director of The Aristocrats
- Edmund R. Purves (Class of 1920, B.S. in Architecture): architect and executive director of American Institute of Architects[35] who earned the American Field Service Medal, the Croix de Guerre with a Silver Star, the Verdun Medal (aka Medaille de Verdun), and the Victory Medal with four battle clasps
- Alan Rachins: actor (L.A. Law and Dharma and Greg)
- David Raksin: Academy Award-nominated composer known as the "grandfather of film music"
- Liza Redfield: first woman to be the full-time conductor of a Broadway pit orchestra
- Beth Reinhard: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for The Washington Post
- Shabnam Rezaei: TV producer
- Alan Richman: journalist and food writer
- Tom Rinaldi: ESPN reporter and winner of 16 Sports Emmy Awards[36][37]
- Tyler Ritter: actor (The McCarthys)
- Melissa Rivers, born Melissa Rosenberg: actress and daughter of comedian Joan Rivers
- John P. Roberts: producer who bankrolled the Woodstock Festival
- Mark Rosenthal: screenwriter, Mona Lisa Smile, Planet of the Apes, Mighty Joe Young
- Anthony Russo: Emmy Award-winning film and television director-producer, Arrested Development, Community, Marvel Cinematic Universe films[38]
- Mary B. Schuenemann: 20th-century watercolorist
- Alan Schwarz: Pulitzer Prize-nominated reporter for The New York Times
- Teddy Schwarzman: film producer, The Imitation Game
- Lisa Scottoline: author of legal thrillers; New York Times best-selling author: Edgar Award recipient
- Matt Selman: long-time writer for animated series The Simpsons
- Peter Shelton: architect and interior designer
- Sylvan Shemitz: lighting designer known for his work on Grand Central Terminal in New York City and the Thomas Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.
- Franklin L. Sheppard, class of 1872: Christian hymn composer who set "This is My Father's World" to music
- Robert B. Sinclair: film and theater director
- Trish Sie: Grammy Award-winning choreographer and director
- Grover Simcox: illustrator, naturalist and polymath
- Linda Simensky, 1985: producer of animated works[39]
- Michael Smerconish: radio host and political pundit
- Yakov Smirnoff: Class of 2006, Masters in Psychology, comedian and painter[40]
- David Branson Smith: screenwriter of Ingrid Goes West
- Jamil Smith (journalist): winner of 3 Sports Emmy Awards
- Martin Cruz Smith: author of Gorky Park
- Jerome Socolovsky: religion reporter for Voice of America
- Jordan Sonnenblick: author of Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
- Devo Springsteen, born Devon Harris: Grammy Award-winning music producer and songwriter
- Meredith Stiehm: Emmy Award-winning television producer and screenwriter
- Ty Stiklorius: Emmy Award-winning film and television producer, music executive, and philanthropist
- David Stone: Broadway producer, Wicked
- I.F. Stone: journalist and commentator from the 1940s through the 1960s
- Michael Tearson: voice of Philadelphia radio, DJ for WMMR, WXPN and WMGK
- Atha Tehon: art editor and book publisher
- Tammi Terrell: Grammy Award-nominated soul singer, known for her association with Motown and duets with Marvin Gaye[41]
- George C. Thomas Jr. (October 3, 1873 – February 23, 1932) Class of 1894: golf course architect who designed the original course at Whitemarsh Valley Country Club, and contributed to design of Pine Valley Country Club in Camden County, New Jersey, both outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and more than twenty courses in California, including Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades and Red Hill Country Club in Rancho Cucamonga[42]
- Brian Tierney: publisher of The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News
- Vivek Tiwary (born May 15, 1973) College and Wharton Class of 1996: Broadway producer and winner of a Grammy Award[43] and 25 Tony Awards[44][45]
- Lynn Toler: judge on the TV series Divorce Court
- William Tomicki: journalist and travel writer
- Bobby Troup: actor, songwriter known for writing the popular standard "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66", and for his role as Dr. Joe Early in the 1970s TV series Emergency!
- Ivanka Trump: fashion model; businesswoman; judge of NBC reality show The Apprentice 6; daughter of US president, real estate mogul, and Penn alumnus Donald Trump[46]
- Garner Tullis: artist whose works are included in the Cleveland Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art in New York, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and Philadelphia Museum of Art
- Marc Turtletaub: founder of Big Beach
- Josh Tyrangiel (College Class of 1994), an American journalist who was previously the deputy managing editor of TIME magazine and an editor at Bloomberg Businessweek[47][48]
- Cenk Uygur: former MSNBC talk show host; radio talk show host, The Young Turks, Air America Radio; columnist for Huffington Post
- M.G. Vassanji: Canadian novelist and member of the Order of Canada
- Tony Verna: sports and entertainment producer credited with inventing the "instant replay"; dropped out
- Samantha Vinograd: American journalist who serves as National Security Analyst at CNN
- David A. Vise: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist
- amina wadud: First Lady Imam in the modern era; activist for social justice; renown scholar of progressive Islam: one of the founding thinkers of Islamic feminism; author and academic
- C. Wellington Walker: American architect who completed extensive projects in Bridgeport, CT, including Warren Harding High School, Bridgeport Hospital, United States Post Office-Bridgeport Main, and many buildings on the University of Bridgeport campus, as well as co-designed Fairfield University's Bellarmine Hall; Fellow of the American Institute of Architects
- David A. Wallace: architect whose firm Wallace McHarg Roberts & Todd was largely responsible for the revitalization of Baltimore's Inner Harbor
- William Thompson Walters: American businessman and art collector, whose collection formed the basis of the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, MD
- Mark Waters: director, Mean Girls
- Ted Weems (originally Wemyes) bandleader honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame[49]
- Helen L. Weiss, College for Women class of 1941, composer who died at age 28 and for whom the Helen L. Weiss Music Award is given out annually since 1964 to a student in Penn Department of Music[50]
- Ai Weiwei: artist
- Ned Wertimer: actor who portrayed Ralph the doorman on the long-running sitcom The Jeffersons
- John Edgar Wideman: author, Rhodes Scholar
- C.K. Williams: Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning poet
- William Carlos Williams: poet; National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize winner
- Dick Wolf: Emmy Award-winning producer and creator of Law & Order series
- Georgina Pope Yeatman, architect
- Aaron Yoo: actor who starred in the 2007 films Disturbia and American Pastime
- Rick Yune: actor
- John Zacherle: horror-show host
- Harriet Zeitlin: artist
- Chip Zien: (b. March 20, 1947 Penn College Class of 1969) chairman of the Mask and Wig Club as student and now actor[51]
- Sidney Zion: writer, journalist
- David Zippel: Tony Award-winning theatre lyricist
Athletics[edit]
College football Hall of Famers[edit]
- Reds Bagnell: Maxwell Award football halfback at Penn, and member of the College Football Hall of Fame[52]
- Chuck Bednarik (1925–2015), nicknamed "Concrete Charlie", class of 1949: played for Penn Quakers football as offensive center and defensive linebacker, as well as occasional punter; three-time All-American who was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame; won the Maxwell Award that year.[53]
- George H. Brooke: member of the College Football Hall of Fame; played for Penn and Swarthmore College[54]
- Charlie Gelbert: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[55]
- John Heisman: namesake of the Heisman Trophy; president of the American Football Coaches Association; head football coach at Clemson University (1900–1903), Georgia Tech (1904–1919), the University of Pennsylvania (1920–1922), Washington & Jefferson College (1923), and Rice University (1924–1927)[56]
- Bill Hollenback, class of 1909, (1886–1968): football player and coach; playing at Penn, he was selected as an All-American fullback three consecutive years (1906-1908).
- Ed McGinley: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[57]
- Leroy Mercer: member of the College Football Hall of Fame and the 1910 College Football All-America Team[58]
- John Minds: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[59]
- Skip Minisi: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[60]
- Bob Odell: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[61]
- Winchester Osgood: former Penn football player and member of the College Football Hall of Fame[62]
- John H. Outland: Penn Med class of 1900; namesake of Outland Trophy in college football[63]
- George Savitsky: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[64]
- Hunter Scarlett: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[65]
- Vince Stevenson: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[66]
- Bob Torrey: member of the College Football Hall of Fame
- Charles Wharton: member of the College Football Hall of Fame[67]
Head coaches (of any sport)[edit]
- Jerome Allen: former NBA player, member of the Philadelphia Big 5 Hall of Fame and head coach of Penn's men's basketball team (2009–2015)[68]
- (Eugene Beauharnais) E. B. Beaumont, Jr.: first head coach in football at the University of Alabama[69]
- Marty Brill: head coach in football at La Salle University and Loyola Marymount University[70]
- Alfred E. Bull: head coach in football at the University of Iowa, Franklin & Marshall College, Georgetown University, Lafayette College, and Muhlenberg College[71]
- Byron W. Dickson: head coach in football at Lehigh University[72]
- Dexter Draper: head coach in football at the University of Texas (1909)[73]
- James Dwyer: head coach in football at Louisiana State University and the University of Toledo[74]
- Mike Elko, current head football coach at Duke University[75]
- George Flint: All-American basketball player at Penn and later became the head coach the University of Pittsburgh's Panthers men's basketball team for ten seasons from 1911–12 to 1920–21 where he compiled an overall record of 105–68 (.607)[76][77]
- Bob Folwell: head coach in football at Lafayette College, Washington & Jefferson College, the University of Pennsylvania, and the United States Naval Academy; first head coach of the New York Giants[78]
- Tom Gilmore: Head Coach in football at the College of the Holy Cross[79]
- Edward Green: head coach in football at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1908 and at North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, now North Carolina State University, 1909–1913[80]
- Dick Harter: head coach in men's basketball at the University of Oregon, Pennsylvania State University, and University of Pennsylvania[81]
- John Heisman: namesake of the Heisman Trophy; president of the American Football Coaches Association; head football coach at Oberlin College (1892, 1894), Buchtel College, now the University of Akron (1893–1894), Auburn University (1895–1899), Clemson University (1900–1903), Georgia Tech (1904–1919), the University of Pennsylvania (1920–1922), Washington & Jefferson College (1923), and Rice University (1924–1927)[56]
- Bill Hollenback: member of the College Football Hall of Fame and head coach in football at Penn State (1909, 1911–14)[82]
- Jack Hollenback: head coach in football at Franklin & Marshall College from 1908 to 1909, Pennsylvania State University in 1910, and Pennsylvania Military College, now Widener University in 1911[83]
- Danny Hutchinson: head coach in football at Wesleyan University[84]
- Roy Jackson: head coach in football at the University of Pittsburgh[citation needed]
- Taylor Jenkins (born September 12, 1984) class of 2007: head coach for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association
- Charles Keinath: head coach in basketball at Penn (1909–12)[85]
- A. R. Kennedy: head coach in football at Washburn University (1903, 1916–1917) and the University of Kansas (1904–1910)[86]
- Alden Knipe: head coach in football at the University of Iowa, 1898–1902[87]
- Otis Lamson: member of the 1905 College Football All-America Team, and 1907 head coach in football at the University of North Carolina[88]
- Matt Langel: head coach in men's basketball at Colgate University[89]
- Dan Leibovitz: head coach in men's basketball at the University of Hartford[90]
- George Levene: head coach in football at the University of Tennessee (1907–09)[91]
- Lou Little, born Luigi Piccolo: head coach in football at Columbia University from 1930 to 1956, he was responsible for Columbia's 1934 win over Stanford University in the Rose Bowl; served as president of the American Football Coaches Association[92]
- John Lyons: head coach in football at Dartmouth College (1992 - 2004)[93] and Assistant Coach University of New Hampshire (2011 - 2021)[94]
- Harry Arista Mackey: head coach in football at the University of Virginia[95]
- John Macklin: head coach in football, basketball, baseball and track and field at Michigan Agricultural College, now Michigan State University (and the winningest head football coach in that school's history)[96]
- Fran McCaffery: head coach in basketball at Lehigh University, University of North Carolina, Greensboro, Siena College and the University of Iowa[97]
- Jack McCloskey, (class of 1948): head coach in men's basketball at Penn from 1966 to 1971 and then Wake Forest University[98] and Portland Trail Blazers, later general manager of the Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves[99]
- Edward McNichol: Penn alumnus and head coach in men's basketball who led the Quakers to a national championship in his first season (1920–21), producing a 21–2 overall record
- Sol Metzger: head coach in football at the University of Pennsylvania, Oregon State University, West Virginia University, Washington and Jefferson College, and the University of South Carolina[100]
- David Micahnik: Penn alumnus and fencing coach and member of the USFA Hall of Fame[101]
- Allie Miller: head coach in football at Villanova University[102]
- George Munger: member of the College Football Hall of Fame (as coach)[103]
- B. Russell Murphy: first head coach in basketball at Johns Hopkins University[104]
- Samuel B. Newton: head coach in football at Pennsylvania State University (1896–1898), Lafayette College (1899–1901, 1911), Lehigh University (1902–1905), and Williams College (1907–09)[105]
- Harry Parker: head coach in varsity rowing at Harvard University[106]
- Simon F. Pauxtis: head coach in football at Dickinson College (1911–12), and the Pennsylvania Military Academy, now Widener University, 1916–29 and 1936–46[107]
- Frank Piekarski: head coach in football at Washington & Jefferson College, and member of the 1904 College Football All-America Team[108]
- Jack Ramsay: head coach, Portland Trail Blazers and member of the Basketball Hall of Fame[109]
- Charles Rogers: head coach in football at the University of Delaware[110]
- Seth Roland: head coach in men's soccer at Fairleigh Dickinson University[111]
- Michael Saxe: head coach in basketball at Villanova University from 1920 to 1926[112]
- Frank Sexton: Major League Baseball player, and head coach in baseball at Brown University, Harvard University and the University of Michigan[113]
- Kevin Stefanski: head coach for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League
- Andy Smith: Penn alumnus and head coach in football at the University of California, Berkeley from 1916 to 1925 (and until 2011, the winningest head football coach in that school's history); member of the College Football Hall of Fame (as coach)[114]
- Andrew Toole: head coach in basketball at Robert Morris University[115]
- Elwood Otto "Woody" Wagenhorst (June 3, 1863 – February 12, 1946) Penn Law Class of 1892: served as the head football coach at the (a) Penn from 1888 to 1891, compiling a record of 39–18, while a student at Penn Law[116] (b) University of Alabama in 1896, and (c) the University of Iowa in 1897[117]
- Garfield Weede: head coach in football at Washburn University and Pittsburg State University; member of the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame, and dentist[118]
- Doctor Weeks: first head coach in football at the University of Massachusetts Amherst[119]
- Carl Sheldon Williams: College football coach; won national championships for Penn in both 1904 and 1907[120]
- Henry L. Williams: member of the College Football Hall of Fame (as coach); he coached at the United States Military Academy and the University of Minnesota[121]
- George Washington Woodruff: member of the College Football Hall of Fame (as coach)[122]
- Wylie G. Woodruff: head coach in football at the University of Kansas[123]
NFL champions[edit]
- Chuck Bednarik (Class of 1949): Philadelphia Eagles linebacker and 1960 NFL champion; member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame; namesake of the Chuck Bednarik Award in college football; recipient of the 2010 Walter Camp Distinguished American Award
- George Washington Tuffy Conn (February 22, 1892 – August 2, 1973) Class of 1920: was a professional American football player who played in 1920 for the Cleveland Tigers and the Akron Pros of the American Professional Football Association (renamed the National Football League in 1922) and won the first AFPA-NFL title that season with the Pros[124]
- Jim Finn (Class of 1999):[125] NFL fullback and New York Giants Super Bowl XLII Champion[126]
- Ernest Alexander Tex Hamer (October 4, 1901 – May 9, 1981) Class of 1923: 1926 NFL Champion playing for Frankford Yellow Jackets
- Walter Irving Pard Pearce - October 23, 1896 – May 24, 1974 (Class of 1920); won 1921 NFL Championship playing for the Chicago Staleys (now the Chicago Bears)
- Carroll Rosenbloom (Class of 1928) a two-year letterman as a halfback on the Penn football team in 1927 and 1928 who was the owner of two National Football League franchises (1) the Baltimore Colts, and (2) the Los Angeles Rams;[127][128][129][130] where his franchises, amassed the best ownership winning percentage in NFL history (.660) (with a total regular season record of 226 wins, 116 losses, and 8 ties) and won 3 NFL championships (1958, 1959, 1968), and one Super Bowl (V)[131]
- Justin Watson (Class of 2018): NFL wide receiver and Tampa Bay Buccaneers Super Bowl LV and Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVII and Super Bowl LVIII Champion[132]
Olympic medalists[edit]
The university currently holds the record (21) for most medals won by its alumni at any single Olympic Games (1900 Summer Olympic Games), and at least 43 different alumni have earned Olympic medals as detailed below.
- Irving Baxter: (1876–1957) Penn Law class of 1901; competed in the 1900 Summer Olympic Games in Paris, where he won three silver and two gold medals; retired from competitive track and field without ever having lost a high jumping contest; admitted to the State Bar of New York, appointed special judge for City of Utica, New York, and U.S. Commissioner of the Northern District of New York[133]
- Greg Best: winner of two silver medals at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games
- Andrew Byrnes: Canadian rower and winner of a gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games and a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games
- Bill Carr: winner of two gold medals at the 1932 Summer Olympic Games; member of the National Track & Field Hall of Fame
- Nathaniel Cartmell: winner of four Olympic medals: two silver at the 1904 Summer Olympic Games, and a gold and a bronze at the 1908 Summer Olympic Games; first head coach in men's basketball at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Britton Chance, ForMemRS (1913–2010), Penn College class of 1935, B.A., M.A. 1936, and Ph.D. degree in physical chemistry (1940) at the University of Pennsylvania winner of a gold medal in sailing at the 1952 Summer Olympic Games retired as the Eldridge Reeves Johnson University Professor Emeritus of biochemistry and biophysics, as well as Professor Emeritus of Physical Chemistry and Radiological Physics at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine[134]
- Frank Chapot: winner of two silver medals in equestrian, one at the 1960 Summer Olympic Games and another at the 1972 Summer Olympic Games; member of the United States Show Jumping Hall of Fame
- Gene Clapp: winner of a silver medal at the 1972 Summer Olympic Games
- Meredith Colket (November 19, 1878 – June 7, 1947): (College Class of 1901 and Penn Law Class of 1904) winner of a silver medal in the Pole vault at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris and won the silver medal in the men's pole vault just behind his fellow Penn Law alumnus, Irving Baxter, who won the gold medal[135][136]
- Ellie Daniel, Class of 1974: winner of four Olympic medals: a gold, silver and bronze at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, and a bronze at the 1972 Summer Olympic Games; member of the International Swimming Hall of Fame
- Anita DeFrantz, Penn Law Class of 1976: won bronze medal at the 1976 Summer Olympic Games as part of women's eight-oared shell; was first woman and first African-American to represent the United States on the International Olympic Committee ("IOC" ) and was IOC's first female vice president, first woman on U.S. Olympic Committee; chair of the Commission on Women and Sports
- Michalis Dorizas: winner of a silver medal (for Greece) at the 1908 Summer Olympic Games
- Earl Eby: winner of a silver medal in track and field at the 1920 Summer Olympic Games
- Susan Francia: winner of two gold medals: one at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games and one at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in women's rowing; and two gold medals at the 2009 World Rowing Championships
- Sarah Garner: winner of a bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games and two gold medals at the World Rowing Championships (1997 and 1998)
- James Gentle: winner of a bronze medal at the 1932 Summer Olympic Games; member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame
- Samuel Gerson: winner of a silver medal in wrestling at the 1920 Summer Olympic Games
- Thomas Truxtun Hare: (Undergraduate Class of 1901 and Penn Law Class of 1903) who at (a) 1900 Summer Olympic Games won silver medal in hammer throw and (b) 1904 Summer Olympic Games won (1) bronze medal in the 'all-rounder' (now known as the decathlon) which consisted of 100 yard run, shot put, high jump, 880 yard walk, hammer throw, pole vault, 120 yard hurdles, weight throw, long jump and one mile run, and (2) gold medal as part of tug of war team (also a charter member of the College Football Hall of Fame)[137]
- L. Janusz Hooker: winner of a bronze medal (for Australia) at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games
- Sarah Hughes, Penn Law class of 2018, (born 1985) a former American competitive figure skater who is the 2002 Winter Olympics Gold Medalist Champion and the 2001 World bronze medalist in ladies' singles[138]
- Sid Jelinek: winner of a bronze medal at the 1924 Summer Olympic Games
- John B. Kelly Jr.: accomplished oarsman, four-time Olympian, and Olympic medallist at the 1956 Summer Olympic Games, president of the United States Olympic Committee and member of the United States Olympic Hall of Fame; brother of actress Grace Kelly; namesake of Kelly Drive in Philadelphia
- Alvin Kraenzlein: four-time gold medallist at the 1900 Summer Olympic Games
- Donald Lippincott: winner of a silver and a bronze medal at the 1912 Summer Olympic Games
- Oliver MacDonald: winner of a gold medal at the 1924 Summer Olympic Games
- Hugh Matheson: winner of a silver medal (for Great Britain) at the 1976 Summer Olympic Games
- Josiah McCracken: winner of a silver and a bronze medal at the 1900 Summer Olympic Games; later Chief Resident Physician at Pennsylvania Hospital, one of the first public hospitals in the U.S.
- Jack Medica: winner of a gold and two silver medals at the 1936 Summer Olympic Games; he was a graduate student at Penn, but did not earn a degree
- Ted Meredith: Olympic distance runner, won two gold medals at the 1912 Summer Olympic Games
- Leslie Milne: winner of a bronze medal in women's field hockey at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games
- Ted Nash: winner of a gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympic Games and a bronze medal at the 1964 Summer Olympic Games in rowing
- George Orton: winner of a gold and a bronze medal at the 1900 Summer Olympic Games; the debut Canadian to win an Olympic medal; member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame and Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame
- John Pescatore: winner of a bronze medal at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games; head coach in men's rowing at Yale University
- Lisa Rohde: winner of a silver medal in rowing at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games
- Charles Sheaffer: winner of a bronze medal at the 1932 Summer Olympic Games
- Brandon Slay: winner of a gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in freestyle wrestling
- Erinn Smart: winner of a silver medal in fencing at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games
- Walter Staley: winner of a bronze medal in men's equestrian at the 1952 Summer Olympic Games
- Julie Staver: winner of a bronze medal in women's field hockey at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games
- Phillip Stekl: winner of a silver medal in rowing at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games
- Michael Storm: winner of a silver medal in the Modern Pentathlon at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games
- John Baxter Taylor Jr.: debut African-American to win a gold medal at the 1908 Summer Olympic Games
- Walter Tewksbury: winner of five medals at the 1900 Summer Olympic Games: two gold, two silver and a bronze
- Alan Valentine: winner of a gold medal as part of the American rugby union team at the 1924 Summer Olympics
Professional basketball players[edit]
- Ernie Beck, class of 1953; selected by Philadelphia Warriors as the 2nd overall pick in the 1953 National Basketball Association draft (winning NBA championship in 1956),[139] played for the St. Louis Hawks (now Atlanta Hawks), and Syracuse Nationals (now known as Philadelphia 76ers)
- Corky Calhoun, Class of 1972, was selected by Phoenix Suns as the 4th overall pick in the 1972 NBA Draft, played for four teams in nine seasons and won NBA championship title with the Portland Trail Blazers in 1977[139][140][141]
- "Chink"[142] Francis Crossin (July 4, 1923 – January 10, 1981), Class of 1947, was selected by Philadelphia Warriors as the 6th overall pick in the 1947 Basketball Association of America (which a few years later merged into another professional league) Draft, played for the Warriors for three years and averaged a career-high 7.0 points per game in 1949–50,[139] named EBA Most Valuable Player in 1952[143]
- Matt Maloney, Class of 1995, was not selected in the 1995 NBA draft but signed with the Houston Rockets, played six NBA seasons with the Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, and Chicago Bulls and, in 1997, was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team[139]
- Bob Morse: class of 1972; played in Europe, named in 2008 as one of the 50 most influential personalities in European club basketball[144] played for Italian League club Pallacanestro Varese, also led the Italian League in scoring during six seasons[145]
- Tony Price, class of 1979; selected by the Detroit Pistons as the overall 29th pick in the second round of the 1979 NBA Draft, played five games for the San Diego Clippers[139]
- Zack Rosen: All-American basketball player, class of 2012; played professional basketball with Hapoel Holon,[146] Hapoel Jerusalem B.C., and Maccabi Ashdod B.C., each of which are part of the Israeli Basketball Super League,[147] and won the 3-point shootout in the Israeli Super League All Star Game in 2014 and 2015[148][149]
- Jerry Simon: basketball player, class of 1990, American-Israeli, who after being captain of Penn basketball team played professional basketball in Israel for three teams in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, and for the Israel men's national basketball team[150][151][152][153][154][155][156]
- Matthew White: basketball player, class of 1979, selected by Portland Trail Blazers, played professionally in the Liga ACB for several teams[157][158][159]
Professional football players[edit]
- Chuck Bednarik (Class of 1949): Philadelphia Eagles linebacker and 1960 NFL champion; member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame; namesake of the Chuck Bednarik Award in college football; recipient of the 2010 Walter Camp Distinguished American Award
- Eddie Bell College Class of 1955: first black All-American in football, who then played for the (a) National Football League's Philadelphia Eagles from 1955 through 1958, (b) Canadian Football League's Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 1959 (where he was selected as an All-Star at linebacker), and (c) American Football League's New York Titans in 1960
- George Washington Tuffy Conn (February 22, 1892 – August 2, 1973) Class of 1920: was a professional American football player who played in 1920 for the Cleveland Tigers and the Akron Pros of the American Professional Football Association (renamed the National Football League in 1922) and won the first AFPA-NFL title that season with the Pros[124]
- Jim Finn (Class of 1999):[125] NFL fullback and New York Giants Super Bowl XLII Champion[126]
- Ernest Alexander Tex Hamer (October 4, 1901 – May 9, 1981) Class of 1923: 1926 NFL Champion playing for Frankford Yellow Jackets
- Jeff Hatch: (born September 28, 1979),[160] Class of 2002, selected during the third round of the 2002 NFL Draft as the 78th overall pick by New York Giants[161] where he played offensive tackle and started in four games in 2003[162] and played football at the University of Pennsylvania, where he was named a Division I-AA All-American in 2001[163]
- Florian Gerard Kempf (born May 25, 1956) Class of 1978: played four seasons in the National Football League[164] for the Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints[165][166]
- Mitch Marrow Class of 1999: was named All-Ivy League in '96 and '97 and drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the 3rd round of the 1998 draft but ultimately retired due to back injuries[167]
- Rob Milanese: Arena Football League wide receiver; school's all-time leading receiver
- Ben Noll Class of 2004: was signed as an undrafted free agent by the St. Louis Rams after the 2004 NFL Draft on June 18 and then played in NFL for the St. Louis Rams, Dallas Cowboys, and Detroit Lions[168][169]
- Ryan O'Malley Class of 2016: O'Malley was rated the 15th best tight end in the 2016 NFL Draft by NFLDraftScout.com,[citation needed] signed with the Oakland Raiders on May 10, 2016, after going undrafted in the 2016 NFL Draft[170][171]
- Pete Overfield Penn Law Class of 1900: All-American at Penn[172] and professional football player for Homestead Library team, which defeated Blondy Wallace's Philadelphia professionals 18 to 0 for the professional football championship of the United States (played at the Philadelphia park) as reported by The New York Times; federal judge in Alaska;rancher
- Walter Irving Pard Pearce - October 23, 1896 – May 24, 1974 (Class of 1920); won 1921 NFL Championship playing for the Chicago Staleys (now the Chicago Bears)
- Frank Reagan: former professional football player for the New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles, 1941–1951; led the NFL in interceptions in 1947
- John Schweder: football player who played offensive lineman for six seasons for the Baltimore Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers
- George Sullivan: Professional football player who played in (a) 22 games, starting twelve, for the Frankford Yellow Jackets of the National Football League from 1924 to 1925[173] and (b) 8 games, starting 6, for the Philadelphia Quakers of the American Football League during the 1926 season[173] The AFL folded after the 1926 season
- Joe Valerio: NFL pro who spent five seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs
- Blondy Wallace: College All-American, NFL pro, and bootlegger
- Justin Watson (Class of 2018): NFL wide receiver and Tampa Bay Buccaneers Super Bowl LV and Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVII Champion[132]
- Osbern Putnam "Diddy" Willson (January 17, 1911 – January 19, 1961) Penn College Class of 1933, was a guard who played three seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL)[173]
Professional baseball players[edit]
- Doc Bushong, DDS University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, class of 1882, was one of the first to matriculate, in 1878 in the brand-new Department of Dentistry, and was first University of Pennsylvania graduate from any school at Penn to play in Major League baseball[174] and since he played professional baseball during his time at Penn Dental he could not play for Penn[175][174]
- Tom Cahill (baseball) (1868–1894) Penn Med Class of 1893 but left in 1891 and did not graduate[176] played one season in Major League Baseball for the Louisville Colonels
- Mark DeRosa: San Francisco Giants infielder/outfielder; part of World Series-winning 2010 team
- Edward Stephen Doc Farrell (1901–1966) Penn class of 1924; had a 10-year Major League Baseball career with teams such as the New York Giants (now the San Francisco Giants), New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox
- Charlie Ferguson (April 17, 1863 – April 29, 1888) earned 728 strikeouts from 1884 to 1888 as a pitcher for the Philadelphia Quakers, now the Philadelphia Phillies; in 1931, he was rated as the fifth-best player to that point in baseball history[177]
- Doug Glanville: University of Pennsylvania Engineering Class of 1992, with major in systems engineering;[178] one of only five Penn alumni to play in Major League Baseball since 1951, and the first African-American Ivy League graduate to play in the majors;[179] received the Outstanding Pro Prospect award in 1990;[180] New York Times op-ed columnist
- William John Billy Goeckel (September 3, 1871 to November 1, 1922) Penn Law Class of 1895: played for Penn's varsity baseball team from 1893 through 1895 where he was "considered the finest collegiate first baseman of his day"[181] and played portion of one season (in 1899) for the Philadelphia Phillies; organizer and attorney for the Wilkes-Barre South Side Bank and Trust Company and chairman of Wilkes-Barre's Democratic City Committee; wrote "he Red and Blue," which has since become the Penn theme song and was leader of University of Pennsylvania Glee Club[181]
- Scott Graham: long-time Philadelphia Phillies sportscaster
- Jim Peterson: Major League Baseball player, 1931–1937; winner of the 1931 World Series playing for the Philadelphia Athletics (now the Oakland Athletics)
- Roy Thomas: Philadelphia Phillies player and National League leader in runs scored, base on balls, and on-base percentage
- Steve Yerkes: Wharton dropout, played Major League Baseball 1909–1916 with the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs; scored the Series-winning run in the tenth inning of Game Eight of the 1912 World Series for the Red Sox
- Elwood Otto "Woody" Wagenhorst (June 3, 1863 – February 12, 1946) Penn Law Class of 1892: played Major League Baseball as a third baseman for the Philadelphia Quakers in 1888 (in two career games, he had one hit in eight at-bats),[182] served as the head football coach at Penn from 1888 to 1891, compiling a record of 39–18, while a student at Penn Law,[116] and as head coach of (a) University of Alabama in 1896 and (b) University of Iowa in 1897[117]
Fencing[edit]
- Cliff Bayer: foil fencer, two-time Olympian, four-time U.S. champion, NCAA champion, Pan Am silver medalist
- Paul Friedberg: Olympic fencer, three-time NCAA champion, Maccabiah Games champion
- Shaul Gordon (born 1994) (College Class of 2016): Canadian-Israeli Olympic sabre fencer for Canada[183]
- Brooke Makler (1951–2010), Olympic fencer, NCAA champion, two-time Pan American Games champion
- Paul Makler Jr. (born 1946): Olympic fencer, NCAA champion
- Paul Makler Sr. (1920–2022): Penn Med class of 1964 and Penn undergraduate class of 1944: fenced for the University of Pennsylvania Quakers,[184][185] competed in the individual and team épée events at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki.,[184] won a silver medal in the team foil event at the 1955 Pan American Games,[186][184] won an Amateur Fencers League of America (AFLA) national team épée title in 1956,[184] and was President of the American Fencing Association in 1962[186]
- David Micahnik (born November 5, 1938) Penn College Class of 1960 and Penn Law Class of 1964, fenced for the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a first-team All-Ivy selection in epee as a senior, the 1960 U.S. National Champion[187] and competed in the individual and team épée events at the 1960, 1964 and 1968 Summer Olympics[188]
- Chris O'Loughlin (born 1967), Olympic fencer, NCAA champion, Maccabiah Games silver medalist, Pan American Games bronze medalist
Rowing/Crew[edit]
- Joe Burk (January 19, 1914 – January 13, 2008) Wharton Class of 1934 (and Penn crew coach from 1950 to 1969): was named the "world's greatest oarsman" in 1938[189] by winning the Diamond Challenge Sculls at the Henley Royal Regatta in 1938 (where he set a Henley course record, which was to stand for 27 years) and 1939, (beating Roger Verey in the final) such that at the end of the 1939 season, Burk was voted the James E. Sullivan Award as the country's outstanding amateur athlete (as he also won that year (a) the Olympic try-outs [for 1940 Olympics, which were cancelled because of World War II], (b) the National Regatta, and (c) the Philadelphia Challenge Cup aka The Gold Cup)
- Russell "Rusty" Callow, Penn coach who also coached US Olympic Team
- Susan Francia (winner of gold medals as part of the women's 8 oared boat at 2008 Olympics and 2012 Olympics)
- Augustus Goetz (August 21, 1904 through December 7, 1976), Penn College Class of 1925 and Penn Law Class of 1929, competed in the men's coxed pair event at the 1928 Summer Olympics[190][191][192]
- Janusz Hooker (Wharton class of 1992)[193] won the bronze medal in Men's Quadruple Sculls for Australia at the 1996 Summer Olympics.[194]
- John B. Kelly Jr., son of John B. Kelly Sr. (winner of three medals at 1920 Summer Olympics) and brother of Princess Grace of Monaco, was the second Penn Crew alumnus to win the James E. Sullivan Award[195] for being nation's best amateur athlete (in 1947), who was winner of a bronze medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics).
- Ted A. Nash (former Penn Coach) - 1960 (gold medal) & 1964 (bronze medal) US Olympic Teams and US Olympic Coach from 1968 to 2008[196]
- Harry Parker, Class of 1957: 1960 US Olympic Team member[197] and US Olympic Coach 1964-1984
- John Anthony Pescatore (who competed in the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games for the United States as stroke of the men's coxed eight which earned a bronze medal[198] and later competed at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games in the men's coxless pair),
- Regina Salmons (member of 2021 USA team),[199]
Other athletes[edit]
- Sam Burley: track and field record holder
- Danny Cepero: first Major League Soccer goalkeeper to score a goal from open play
- Grace "Sunny" Choi (born November 10, 1988 - ) Wharton Undergrad Class of 2011 BS in Econ.: Breakdancer for United States Olympic team at 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris,[200] won the silver medal at World Games, and won first gold medal in breakdancing ever given at the Pan American Games[201][202] and as a result of such win became the first American woman to qualify for breakdancing at the 2024 Olympics[203]
- Frank B. Ellis, Class of 1893: co-founder of the Penn Relays, the oldest and largest track and field competition in the US
- Alexander Grant: early 20th-century U.S. and world champion and record holder in several track and field events
- Nelson Zwingluis Graves (August 10, 1880 to March 31, 1918) Class of 1903; while at Penn played cricket in (a) 1898 for United States team in its game against Canada where he hit up 128 and (b) in 1902 for Philadelphian cricket team where he was one of the stars for a team that beat teams in Great Britain[204]
- Syed Mohammed Hadi (August 12, 1899 – July 14, 1971) Masters Degree in Class of 1926:[205] played for India or one of its constituent states in cricket, tennis, field hockey, soccer, table tennis, chess, and polo (nicknamed "Rainbow Hadi" because of his expertise in these seven sports[206]) and was one of the first Indians to compete as a tennis player at the Olympics (1924 Summer Olympics) and also represented India in the 1924 and 1925 Davis Cups[207]
- Wallace F. Johnson: early 20th-century U.S. tennis champion
- Florian Gerard Kempf (born May 25, 1956) Class of 1978: played four (a) seasons in the National Football League[164] for the Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints[165][166] and (b) soccer for the Philadelphia Fury of the North American Soccer League and the Pennsylvania Stoners of the American Soccer League[208]
- Frank Villeneuve Nicholson: rugby player, University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine (class of 1910);[209] in 1904 captained the Australian national rugby team in its match against England and in 1906 reintroduced rugby union as a sport to Penn students[210][211][212]
- George Patterson (class of 1888), who still holds the North American batting record (and who starred for the professional Philadelphia Cricket Team[213]
- Stan Startzell Class of 1972: played (a) on Penn men’s soccer team from 1969 to 1971[214](where he was twice a second team All American and a first team All American in 1971[215][216][217] and was also second team All Ivy League as a placekicker on the Penn football team in 1971)[218] and (b) for the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League (who drafted Startzell on 1972 as the only native U.S. player on the roster that season[219]) and (c) for Philadelphia Atoms in 1973 (who won the league championship that year)[220]
- John Borland Thayer, II (April 21, 1862 – April 15, 1912 [due to sinking of the Titanic]) Class of 1882: captain of the Penn Lacrosse team in 1879, previously a member of Penn baseball team,[221] and when not playing on Penn cricket team was part of the Philadelphian side that visited England in 1884.[221]
- William Bill Tilden, Jr. Class of 1915 (did not graduate): tennis player who won 10 Grand Slam titles, including 7 US Opens and 3 Wimbledons
Sports executives and owners[edit]
- Steve Baumann: president of the National Soccer Hall of Fame
- Bert Bell: former National Football League Commissioner from 1946 to 1959; co-founder of the Philadelphia Eagles; past co-owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers
- David Blitzer: owner of several sports teams
- Mel Bridgman: former National Hockey League player and general manager of the Ottawa Senators
- Clarence Clark, Class of 1878: first secretary of the United States Lawn Tennis Association; member of the Tennis Hall of Fame
- Steven A. Cohen, owner of New York Mets
- Joseph Dey: former executive director of the United States Golf Association; first commissioner of the PGA Tour; namesake of the Joe Dey Award sponsored by the USGA; member of the World Golf Hall of Fame
- Eddie Einhorn: vice chairman of the Chicago White Sox
- Otto Frenzel: co-owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins, 1975–77
- Marvin Goldklang, minority owner of the New York Yankees
- Austin Gunsel: Commissioner of the National Football League, 1959–60
- Josh Harris: owner of the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Devils, and Washington Commanders
- Ron Hines: co-founder of the Black American Racers Association
- Ned Irish: founder and president of the New York Knicks, 1946–74; enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
- Lee Joannes: president of the Green Bay Packers, 1930–47
- Red Kellett: former president of the Baltimore Colts
- Craig Littlepage: director of athletics at the University of Virginia
- Jeff Luhnow: general manager of the Houston Astros
- Ed McCaskey: Past chairman of the Chicago Bears
- David Montgomery: part-owner, president, and CEO of the Philadelphia Phillies
- Walter O'Malley: owner and chief executive of the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers; member of the Baseball Hall of Fame
- Carroll Rosenbloom: former owner of the Baltimore Colts and Los Angeles Rams
- Ed Stefanski: president and general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers
- Vernon Stouffer: former owner of the Cleveland Indians
- Lud Wray: founder of the Philadelphia Eagles with fellow Penn alumnus Bert Bell; first Head Coach of the Boston Braves (now the Washington Commanders)
Business[edit]
For a more comprehensive list of notable alumni in the business world, see Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. (Note: Not all of the following individuals attended the Wharton School, but may be alumni of other schools within the University of Pennsylvania).
Company founders[edit]
- William Bingham, Class of 1768, a founder and director of the Bank of North America, the first modern United States bank
- John Bogle: founder and retired CEO of The Vanguard Group
- Richard Bloch (Class of 1942): co-founder, H&R Block
- Len Bosack: co-founder, Cisco Systems (Internet router company)
- David J. Brown: co-founder of Silicon Graphics
- Warren Buffett: CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, investor, the second richest man in the world (attended for two years before transferring to the University of Nebraska)
- Jonathan Brassington : CEO and co-founder LiquidHub.[222]
- William P. Carey: founder of W. P. Carey & Co. LLC,[223] a corporate real estate financing firm headquartered in New York City
- Steven A. Cohen: founder and Manager, SAC Capital Partners and Point72 Asset Management
- Catherine Austin Fitts: CEO and founder of Solari Inc., former United States Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for Housing
- John Grayken: founder and chairman of Lone Star Funds[224]
- James Dinan: hedge fund manager and founder of York Capital Management
- Sam Hamadeh: founder, Vault Inc. and film producer
- Brad Handler: co-founder and chairman of Inspirato; first in-house attorney at eBay
- Josh Harris: co-founder of Apollo Global Management
- Gilbert W. Harrison, founder, chairman and CEO, Financo, Inc.
- Vernon Hill: founder, chairman, and CEO, Commerce Bancorp
- Jon Huntsman Sr.: billionaire, founder of the Huntsman Corporation
- Josh Kopelman: founder of Half.com
- Geraldine Laybourne: founder of Oxygen Media
- Douglas Lenat: founder of artificial intelligence company Cycorp
- Ronald Li: founder and past chairman of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
- Ken Moelis: founder of Moelis & Company
- Elon Musk: technology entrepreneur; founder, CEO and CTO of SpaceX; co-founder of PayPal; board member of Planetary Society; investor and chairman of the board of Tesla Motors
- Peter Nicholas: billionaire co-founder of the medical device firm Boston Scientific
- William Novelli: CEO of AARP; founder and past president of Porter Novelli, one of the world's largest lobbying and public relations firms, now part of the Omnicom Group
- William S. Paley: founder, CBS Corporation
- Stephen M. Peck: investor and philanthropist, co-founder of Weiss, Peck & Greer
- Mark Pincus: co-founder of Zynga (class of 1988)
- J.D. Power III: founder of marketing research firm J.D. Power & Associates
- Raj Rajaratnam: billionaire founder of the hedge fund Galleon Group
- Josh Resnick: founder and President, Pandemic Studios
- Ralph J. Roberts: co-founder, Comcast Corporation
- Michael Tiemann: co-founder of Cygnus Solutions (a GNU software company), now CTO of Red Hat
- Edward Rosenthal: founder of Riverside Memorial Chapel
- Henry Salvatori: founder, Western Geophysical; founding stockholder of the National Review magazine
- Harry Scherman: co-founder of the Book of the Month Club
- Tanya Seaman: co-founder of PhillyCarShare
- Joseph Segel: founder, QVC; founder, Franklin Mint
- Brian Sheth: co-founder and President of Vista Equity Partners
- Gregg Spiridellis: founder, JibJab Media, Inc.
- Michael Steinhardt: co-founder of hedge fund Steinhardt, Fine, Berkowitz & Co.; philanthropist
Other entrepreneurs and business leaders[edit]
- Laura J. Alber: president and CEO of Williams-Sonoma, Inc.
- Anil Ambani: billionaire, chairman, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group
- Walter Annenberg: billionaire publisher; philanthropist; former U.S Ambassador to the United Kingdom; awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom; given the rank of Knight Commander (the second-highest rank in the Order of the British Empire) by Queen Elizabeth II
- Susan Arnold: past chairman of the Walt Disney Company; past vice chairman of Procter & Gamble
- Morton J. Baum: president of Hickey Freeman
- Nariman Behravesh (born 1948): economist
- Alfred Berkeley: former president and vice-chairman of the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc.
- Nicholas Biddle: president of the Second Bank of the United States
- Norman Blackwell, Baron Blackwell: chairman of Interserve and Lloyds Banking Group
- Matt Blank: chairman and CEO of Showtime
- Mitchell Blutt: Executive Partner, J.P. Morgan Chase
- Christopher Browne: past managing director of Tweedy, Browne Co.
- Charles Butt: billionaire, CEO and chairman, H-E-B Grocery Company[225]
- Robert Castellini: CEO and part-owner of the Cincinnati Reds baseball team
- Arthur D. Collins Jr.: chairman and CEO, Medtronic
- Stephen Cooper: CEO of Warner Music Group
- Robert Crandall: chairman and CEO, American Airlines, Inc
- Donny Deutsch: chairman, Deutsch, Inc.
- Michael DiCandilo: Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of AmerisourceBergen corporation
- Alexis Irénée du Pont Jr.: business executive for DuPont
- Eugene du Pont: first head of modern-day DuPont
- Mike Eskew: chairman and CEO, UPS
- Alexander C. Feldman: president, US-ASEAN Business Council; former Assistant Secretary of State
- Jay S. Fishman: chairman and CEO of The Travelers Companies
- Russell P. Fradin: chairman and CEO of Hewitt Associates
- Robert B. Goergen: chairman and CEO of Blyth, Inc.
- Steven Goldstone: former chairman and CEO of RJR Nabisco
- Joel Greenblatt: hedge fund manager and author
- George H. Heilmeier: former president and CEO of Bellcore (now Telcordia)
- Charles A. Heimbold, Jr.: U.S. Ambassador to Sweden, former chairman and CEO of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
- C. Robert Henrikson: chairman, president and CEO, MetLife
- Lauren Hobart: President and CEO of Dick's Sporting Goods
- Philip B. Hofmann: past chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson
- Jirair Hovnanian: home builder
- John Carmichael Jenkins: planter and proponent of slavery in the Antebellum South
- Reginald H. Jones: former chairman and CEO of General Electric
- Yotaro Kobayashi: chairman and co-CEO, Fuji Xerox
- Kong Dongmei: Chinese entrepreneur and granddaughter of the founder of the People's Republic of China Mao Zedong
- Leonard Lauder: chairman and CEO of Estée Lauder; billionaire investor[226]
- Terry Leahy: CEO, Tesco
- Gerald Levin: former CEO of AOL Time Warner
- Edward J. Lewis: former chairman of the board of the Oxford Development Company, one of the largest Pennsylvania-based real estate firms
- George Lindemann: billionaire industrialist
- Joseph Wharton Lippincott: past president and chairman of the board of J. B. Lippincott Company, and grandson of industrialist Joseph Wharton, founder of the Wharton School of Business
- Robert Litzenberger: partner, Goldman Sachs
- Betty Liu: executive vice chairman of the New York Stock Exchange
- John A. Luke Jr.: chairman and chief executive officer of MeadWestvaco Corporation
- Peter Lynch: investor; vice chairman of Fidelity Investments
- Harold McGraw III: president and CEO of McGraw-Hill Companies and chairman of the Business Roundtable
- Michael Milken: trader, financier, pardoned felon
- Bill Miller: chairman and chief investment officer, Legg Mason Capital Management
- Jordan Mintz: Enron whistleblower
- Aditya Mittal: president and CFO, Mittal Steel Company
- Michael Moritz: venture capitalist, Sequoia Capital
- Michael H. Moskow: 8th President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
- Laxman Narasimhan: CEO of the Starbucks Corporation
- Phebe Novakovic: chairman and CEO of General Dynamics
- Bruce Pasternack: president and CEO of the Special Olympics International; former Senior Vice President of Booz Allen Hamilton Inc.
- Ronald O. Perelman: billionaire investor
- Benjamin W. Perkins Jr.: Thoroughbred racehorse trainer
- Douglas L. Peterson: CEO of McGraw Hill Financial
- Lionel Pincus: past chairman of Warburg Pincus
- Lewis E. Platt: president, CEO and chairman of the board of Hewlett-Packard
- Edmund T. Pratt Jr.: former chairman and CEO of Pfizer, Inc.
- Frank Quattrone: prominent investment banker, formerly with Credit Suisse First Boston
- Robert Rabinovitch: former president and CEO of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
- Sylvia Rhone: former president and CEO of Eastwest Records, Elektra Records, and Motown Records; first Black woman to head a major record company
- Rich Riley: CEO, Shazam; former Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Yahoo! Europe, Middle East & Africa
- James O. Robbins: president and CEO of Cox Communications
- Brian L. Roberts: chairman and CEO, Comcast Corporation
- Lucille Roberts University of Pennsylvania (College for Women, Class of 1964): namesake and proprietor of women's fitness clubs[227]
- Eileen Clarkin Rominger: Goldman Sachs partner
- Frank Rooney: past CEO of Melville Corporation
- Harold Rosen: Executive Director of the Grassroots Business Fund
- Arthur Ross: businessman and philanthropist
- Perry Rotella: senior vice president and CIO of Verisk Analytics
- J. Brendan Ryan: chairman of Foote, Cone, and Belding
- Charles S. Sanford Jr.: CEO of Bankers Trust
- Alan D. Schnitzer: CEO of the Travelers Companies
- John Sculley: former president of PepsiCo; former CEO of Apple Computer
- Paul V. Scura: former Executive Vice President and Head of the Investment Bank of Prudential Securities
- Mike Sievert:Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (Class of 1991): CEO of T-Mobile US[228]
- Henry Silverman: COO of the Apollo Group, formerly head of Cendant Corporation
- Young Sohn: president and Chief Strategy Officer of Samsung Electronics
- Richard Stearns: president of World Vision
- Patrick J. Talamantes: CEO of McClatchy Company
- James S. Tisch: CEO, Loews Corporation
- Laurence Tisch: former CEO of CBS
- Roy Vagelos: former CEO of Merck
- James L. Vincent: past president and CEO of Biogen Idec
- George Herbert Walker IV: College and Undergraduate Class of 1991 and Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School Class of 1992, Benjamin Franklin Scholar graduated Phi Beta Kappa and received a dual degree – a B.S. and a B.A., both summa cum laude and received an MBA as a Palmer Scholar[229] after completing the 5 year MBA program; received the Harry S. Truman Scholarship was a member of the St. Anthony Hall fraternity; CEO of Neuberger Berman; former managing director of Lehman Brothers; formerly a Partner with Goldman Sachs & Co; Co-President, Commodities Corporation.[230]
- Jacob Wallenberg: chairman, Investor
- Jeff Weiner: CEO of LinkedIn
- Dawne Williams: former CEO of St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla National Bank.
- Joseph P. Williams: creator of the first all-purpose bank credit card, BankAmericard, now known as the Visa, Inc. card
- Gary L. Wilson: CEO and chairman, Northwest Airlines
- William Wrigley Jr. II: chairman and former CEO of the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, makers of chewing gum and confectionery products
- Steve Wynn: chairman and CEO Wynn Resorts; former chairman and CEO Mirage Resorts, Inc.; responsible for the renaissance of Las Vegas
- Morrie Yohai: co-creator of Cheez Doodles snack food
- Mark Zandi: economist
- Mortimer Zuckerman: real estate billionaire; publisher/owner of the New York Daily News; editor-in-chief of U.S. News & World Report
- Martin Zweig: stock investor and author
Exploration[edit]
- Robert Adams Jr.: Penn graduate; served as a botanist with Penn professor Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden while exploring the northwest corner of Wyoming; their efforts led directly to the founding of Yellowstone National Park, the first national park in the United States
- Peter Custis, Class of 1807: a leader of the Red River Expedition in 1806, the first civilian scientific expedition to explore the American West
- Michael L. Gernhardt: (Penn Engineering Class of 1983 (Masters) and 1991 (Ph.D.) in Bioengineering)[231] NASA astronaut
- Charles Guillou: member of the 19th-century United States Exploring Expedition
- Isaac Israel Hayes: 19th-century Arctic explorer; Heiss Island[232] in Franz Josef Land (Russia) was named in his honor
- Elisha Kane: Arctic explorer who received medals from the United States Congress, the Royal Geographical Society, and the Société de Géographie for his work; namesake of the naval destroyer USS Kane
- Garrett Reisman: (Penn Class of 1991) dual bachelor degrees from Wharton and Engineering schools via the Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology[233] NASA Space Shuttle astronaut
- B. Clark Wheeler: founder of Aspen, Colorado
Government, politics, and law[edit]
Colonial American leaders[edit]
Members of the Continental Congress[edit]
- Andrew Allen: (College Class of 1759) Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1775–76[234][235]
- William Bingham: (College Class of 1768) Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1786–88
- Elias Boudinot: (attended the Academy, but did not earn a college degree) New Jersey delegate to the Continental Congress, 1778 and 1781–1783, and president of the Continental Congress in 1782–83
- Lambert Cadwalader: (College class of 1760, but did not graduate) New Jersey delegate to the Continental Congress, 1784–87
- Tench Coxe: (attended in 1770s but did not graduate)[236] Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1788–89 (who authored dozens of essays that were an important contribution to Federalist Papers advocating for the ratification of United States Constitution)[237]
- Philemon Dickinson: (College Class of 1759) Delaware delegate to the Continental Congress, 1782–83[238]
- Jonathan Elmer: (Medical School class of 1769 (Bachelor's) and class of 1771 (Doctor's degree)) New Jersey delegate to the Continental Congress, 1777–1778, 1781–1783, 1787–1788[239]
- Robert Goldsborough: (College Class of 1760) Maryland delegate to the Continental Congress, 1774–1776[240]
- William Grayson: (College Class of 1760, but did not graduate) Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress, 1785–1787[241]
- Whitmell Hill: (College Class of 1760) North Carolina delegate to the Continental Congress, 1778–1780 accessed November 4, 2021[242]
- William Hindman: (College Class of 1761, but did not graduate) Maryland delegate to the Continental Congress, 1785–86
- Francis Hopkinson: (College Class of 1757 with Bachelor's and Class of 1760 with Master's degree) was New Jersey delegate to the Continental Congress, 1776, who signed Declaration of Independence[243]
- David Jackson: (Medical School class of 1768), Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1785[244]
- Henry Latimer: (College Class of 1770) Delaware delegate to the Continental Congress, 1784[245]
- Thomas Mifflin: (College Class of 1760, Trustee 1773 - 1791, and Treasurer 1773 - 1775)[246] Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1774–75 and 1782–84, and president of the Continental Congress, 1783–84
- Samuel Cadwalader Morris: (College Class of 1760[247]) Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1783–84[248]
- Richard Peters: (College Class of 1761)[249] Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1782–83
- David Ramsay: (Medical School Class of 1773[250][251] and Honorary Doctorate Class of 1780[252]) South Carolina delegate to the Continental Congress, 1782–83 and 1785–86, and acting President of the Continental Congress in 1785–86
- Joshua Seney: (College Class of 1773) Maryland delegate to the Continental Congress, 1778
- Jonathan Sergeant: (College Class of 1763) New Jersey delegate to the Continental Congress, 1776–77
- James Tilton: (Medical School Class of 1768 (Bachelor's) and 1771 (Doctor's degree)) Delaware delegate to the Continental Congress, 1783–84
Signers of the US Constitution and/or Declaration of Independence[edit]
Sources: University of Pennsylvania Archives[253][254]
- George Clymer: Penn Trustee 1779–1813; an elected member of the Continental Congress who was one of only six people who signed the Declaration of Independence and signed (for Pennsylvania) US Constitution[255]
- Thomas FitzSimons, Penn Trustee 1789–1811: signed (for Pennsylvania) US Constitution
- Benjamin Franklin, Penn founder and Trustee 1749–1790: was one of only six people who signed the Declaration of Independence and signed (for Pennsylvania) US Constitution
- Francis Hopkinson, Penn degrees A.B. 1757; A.M. 1760; LL.D. 1790; Penn Trustee 1787–1791: signed the Declaration of Independence
- Jared Ingersoll, Penn Trustee 1778–1791: signed the US Constitution
- Robert Morris, Penn Trustee 1778–1791: one of only six people who signed the Declaration of Independence and signed (for Pennsylvania) US Constitution
- Thomas McKean, Penn degrees: A.M. (hon.) 1763 and LL.D. 1785; Penn Trustee 1779–1817; president of Penn Board of Trustees: signed the Declaration of Independence
- Thomas Mifflin, Penn degree: A.B. 1760; Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress and president of the Continental Congress; 1st Governor of Pennsylvania; signed US Constitution
- William Paca, Penn degrees: A.B. 1759 and A.M. 1762; Penn Trustee; Maryland delegate to the Continental Congress, 1774–79; signed the Declaration of Independence;[256] Chief Justice of Maryland (1788–1790)
- Benjamin Rush, Penn Med class of 1766; Penn Med professor 1769–1813; signed the Declaration of Independence
- Hugh Williamson, Penn degrees: A.B. 1757, A.M. 1760, and LL.D. (hon.) 1787; tutor 1755–1758; Penn professor of mathematics 1761–1763: North Carolina delegate to the Continental Congress, signed US Constitution; representative to US Congress[257]
- James Wilson, Penn degrees A.M. (hon.) 1766 and LL.D. 1790; Penn Trustee; delegate to Continental Congress; signed the Declaration of Independence and signed (for Pennsylvania) US Constitution, the first draft of which he wrote; US Supreme Court justice[258]
United States government[edit]
Presidents of the United States[edit]
- Joseph R. Biden, former Benjamin Franklin Professor 2017-2019: 46th President of the United States
- Dwight David Eisenhower, Honorary Doctor of Law, Class of 1947[259]
- James A. Garfield, Honorary Doctorate, Class of 1881[259]
- William Henry Harrison, Penn Med class of 1791 but did not graduate: 9th president of the United States[260]
- Herbert Hoover, Honorary Doctorate, Class of 1917[259]
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Honorary Doctor of Law, Class of 1940[259]
- Theodore Roosevelt, Honorary Doctorate, Class of 1905[259]
- William Howard Taft, Honorary Doctorate, Class of 1902[259]
- Donald J. Trump, Wharton School of Finance class of 1968: 45th president of the United States
- George Washington, Honorary Doctor of Law, Class of 1783[259]
- Woodrow Wilson, Honorary Doctorate, Class of 1903[259]
Members of the United States Cabinet (or top level executive branch)[edit]
- Robert S. Adler: College class of 1966:[261] commissioner (and, in 2013-2013, Acting Chair) of the US Consumer Product Safety Commission
- Neil Barofsky (born 1970) Wharton Undergraduate Class of 1992:[262] special Treasury Department inspector general who supervised the Troubled Assets Relief Program
- Richard E. Besser: Penn Medical School Class of 1986:[263] served as acting director of the Centers for Disease Control
- Antony J. Blinken: US secretary of the State under President Joseph R. Biden, director of the Penn Biden Center from 2018-2020
- Adolph E. Borie: US secretary of the Navy under President Ulysses S. Grant
- William Bradford: United States attorney general under President George Washington
- David Brailer: National Resource Center for Health Information Technology Coordinator—the "health information czar" under President George W. Bush
- Kenneth Braithwaite: US secretary of the Navy under President Donald J. Trump earned a master's degree in government administration from the University of Pennsylvania, Fels Institute of Government,[264] in 1995.[265]
- Marshall Jordan Breger: past chairman of the Administrative Conference of the United States
- William H. Brown, III: past chairman of the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- Shirley Chater: commissioner of Social Security, 1993–97
- Richard A. Clarke: National Counter-Terrorism Director under presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush
- Jay Clayton (Penn Engineering Class of 1988 and Penn Law Class of 1993): 32nd Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission under President Donald Trump
- William T. Coleman Jr.: US secretary of transportation, 1975–77, and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
- John Howard Dalton (Wharton Graduate School Class of 1971, MBA): served as 70th Secretary of the Navy from July 22, 1993, to November 16, 1998.
- John DiIulio: first director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives under President George W. Bush
- George Hall Dixon: deputy secretary of the treasury under President Gerald Ford
- George Nicholas Eckert: director of the United States Mint, 1851–53
- Myer Feldman: White House Counsel to presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson
- William R. Ferris: chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, 1997–2000
- Thomas K. Finletter: US secretary of the Air Force, 1950–53
- Lindley M. Garrison: secretary of war under President Woodrow Wilson
- Thomas S. Gates, Jr. (Penn College Class of 1928, A.B., and Hon. LL.D., 1956) Trustee): 7th United States Secretary of Defense (December 2, 1959 - January 20, 1961) and Secretary of the Navy[266]
- Henry Dilworth Gilpin: US attorney general under President Martin Van Buren
- Earl G. Harrison: dean of the University of Pennsylvania Law School; commissioner of the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1942–44
- Francis J. Harvey (born July 8, 1943) Penn Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Class of 1969, Ph.D. in Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science[267][268] served as the 19th Secretary of the United States Army from November 19, 2004, to March 9, 2007
- Kevin Hassett: senior advisor to the president under Donald J. Trump
- Henry Hoyt: US solicitor general, 1903–09
- George A. Jenks, Class of 1850 and 1853: US solicitor general, 1886–89
- Neel Kashkari: head of the Office of Financial Stability in the US Department of the Treasury
- Virginia Knauer (March 28, 1915 – October 16, 2011) Class of 1937: first director of the Office of Consumer Affairs under President Ronald Reagan, and special assistant to the president for consumer affairs under President Richard Nixon (1969–1977 and 1981–1989) and started her political career in 1959 when she became the first Republican woman to be elected to the Philadelphia City Council[269]
- C. Everett Koop: (University of Pennsylvania Medical School Class of 1947 Doctor of Science degree in medicine[270]) surgeon general, 1981–89
- John F. Lehman: US Secretary of the Navy under President Ronald Reagan
- William Flynn Martin: deputy secretary of energy and executive secretary of the National Security Council under President Reagan
- Ann Dore McLaughlin: US secretary of labor
- William M. Meredith: US secretary of the treasury, 1849–1850
- Samuel Moore: director, United States Mint, 1824–35
- David W. Ogden: deputy attorney general under President Barack Obama
- William Tod Otto: deputy secretary of the interior under President Abraham Lincoln, 1863–71
- Frances Perkins (Wharton School class of 1908, no degree)[271] served as the 4th United States secretary of labor from 1933 to 1945, the longest serving labor secretary and the first woman ever to serve in a presidential cabinet who was instrumental in developing the Social Security system
- Shira Perlmutter (Penn Law Class of 1983) is the 14th Register of Copyrights[272]
- Thomas M. Pettit: Class of 1815 (A.B.) and Class of 1818 (A.M.)[273] 8th Director of the United States Mint, which term started in March of 1853 and ended when he died in office in April of 1853
- Caesar Augustus Rodney: US attorney general 1807–11 under presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison; US senator (Delaware)
- Philip H. Rosenfelt: United States Secretary of Education under president Joe Biden
- Rajiv Shah: under secretary of agriculture for Research, Education, and Economics and administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under President Barack Obama
- David Shulkin (Penn Med Alumnus who was Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar[274]): 9th United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
- Gene Sperling: director of the National Economic Council under President Barack Obama
- Clifford L. Stanley: under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness under President Barack Obama
- Benjamin Stoddert: first US secretary of the Navy (attended but did not earn a degree)
- Rexford Tugwell: head of the Resettlement Administration and part of Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Brain Trust"
- Katherine Kathi Vidal (nee Kelly) (Penn Law Class of 1996)[275] serves (as of June of 2022) as Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)[276]
- Michael G. Vickers: assistant secretary of defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict; Central Intelligence Agency's principal strategist in paramilitary operation to drive the Soviets out of Afghanistan
- Robert John Walker: July 19, 1801 - November 11, 1869) (Class of 1819) served as a member of the U.S. Senate from Mississippi from 1835 until 1845, as Secretary of the Treasury from 1845 to 1849, and briefly as Territorial Governor of Kansas in 1857 (when he resigned due to his opposition to the administration-sponsored pro-slavery Kansas Lecompton Constitution and was responsible for drafting the 1849 bill that eventually established the United States Department of the Interior[277]
- George W. Wickersham: US attorney general, 1909–1913
- George Washington Woodruff: acting secretary of the interior under Theodore Roosevelt
- Hubert Work: United States postmaster general, 1922–1923 under President Warren G. Harding, and US secretary of the interior, 1923–1928 under Harding and President Calvin Coolidge
United States senators[edit]
As of May 2020[update], 31 Penn alumni have served as senators from 16 different states as detailed below:
- Lewis Heisler Ball: US senator from Delaware, 1903–05, 1919–25; Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1901–03[278]
- Ephraim Bateman: US senator and congressman from New Jersey[279]
- William Wyatt Bibb: US senator and US Representative from Georgia; governor of Alabama[280]
- William Bingham, Class of 1768: namesake of Binghamton, New York, and Bingham, Maine; US senator from Pennsylvania, 1795–1801 and President pro tem of the Senate; Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1786–88[281]
- Clayton Douglass Buck: US senator from Delaware, 1943–49; governor of Delaware, 1929–37; attended Towne School of Engineering but did not earn a degree[282]
- Joseph Maull Carey: US senator from Wyoming, 1890–95; governor of Wyoming, 1911–15; Wyoming delegate to the US Congress, 1885–90[283]
- Henry H. Chambers, Penn Med Class of 1811: U.S. Senator from Alabama 1825–26[284]
- Joseph Sill Clark: US senator from Pennsylvania, 1957–69[285]
- Simon Barclay Conover: US senator from Florida, 1873–79; attended School of Medicine and graduated from the University of Nashville[286]
- George Robertson Dennis: US senator from Maryland, 1873–79[287]
- Philemon Dickinson: US senator from New Jersey, 1790–93[238]
- James Henderson Duff: US senator from Pennsylvania, 1951–57; attended law school but did not earn a degree[288]
- Henry A. Du Pont: US senator from Delaware, 1906–17, attended Penn and graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point[289]
- Jonathan Elmer: US senator from New Jersey, 1789–91[239]
- William Grayson: US senator from Virginia, 1789–90; attended College of Philadelphia but did not earn a degree[290]
- William Henry Harrison: US senator from Ohio, 1825–28[citation needed]
- Weldon Brinton Heyburn: US senator from Idaho, 1903–12
- William Hindman: US senator from Maryland, 1800–01; attended College of Philadelphia but did not earn a degree[291]
- Ted Kaufman: US senator from Delaware, 2009–2011[292]
- Henry Latimer: US senator from Delaware, 1795–1801; Delaware representative to the US Congress,[245]
- Lewis Fields Linn: US senator from Missouri, 1833–43; attended School of Medicine but did not earn a degree[293]
- James Murray Mason: (College Class of 1818) US senator from Virginia in the early 19th century[294]
- Gouverneur Morris: New York delegate to the Continental Congress, 1778–79; US senator from New York, 1800–1803; attended Academy of Philadelphia but did not graduate[citation needed]
- John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg: US senator from Pennsylvania, 1801; Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1789–91, 1793–95, 1799–1801; attended College of Philadelphia but did not earn a degree[295]
- Arnold Naudain: US senator from Delaware, 1830–36[citation needed]
- George Wharton Pepper: US senator from Pennsylvania, chronicler of the Senate[296]
- Caesar Augustus Rodney: US senator from Delaware, 1822–23[297]
- Arlen Specter: former US senator from Pennsylvania, former Philadelphia district attorney[298]
- John Selby Spence: US senator from Pennsylvania 1836–40; attended School of Medicine but did not earn a degree[299]
- Robert John Walker, Class of 1819: US senator from Mississippi, 1836–45, he introduced the bill that established the US Department of the Interior[300]
- Joseph Rodman West: US senator from Louisiana, 1871–77; attended the College but did not earn a degree[301]
Members of the United States House of Representatives[edit]
As of May 2020, 163 Representatives from 21 different states have been affiliated with Penn
- Ephraim Leister Acker M.D., 1852 LL.B., 1886: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1871–1873[302]
- Robert Adams Jr. - University of Pennsylvania (Class of 1869) where he was a member of St. Anthony Hall fraternity: a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 2nd congressional district from 1893 to 1906 (who also served as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Brazil from April 1, 1889, through June 1, 1890, and served as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 6th district from 1883 to 1885)[303][304]
- Wilbur L. Adams: Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1933–1935[305]
- John Archer: Maryland representative to the US Congress, 1801–1807[306]
- James Armstrong: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1793–1795[307]
- L. Heisler Ball: Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1901–03[278]
- Ephraim Bateman: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1826–29[279]
- John Milton Bernhisel: Utah delegate to the US Congress, 1851–1859, 1861–1863[308]
- George A. Bicknell: Indiana representative to the US Congress, 1877–1881[309]
- Richard Biddle, Class of 1811: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1837–40[310]
- Andrew Biemiller: Wisconsin representative to the US Congress, 1945–1947 (attended the Graduate School but did not earn a degree)[311]
- Elias Boudinot: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1789–1795; New Jersey delegate to the Continental Congress, 1778; Attended Academy of Philadelphia but did not graduate.[citation needed]
- Benjamin Markley Boyer: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1865–1869[312]
- Samuel Carey Bradshaw: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1855–1857[313]
- Charles Browne: (September 28, 1875 – August 17, 1947) University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine Class of 1900,[314][315] elected as a candidate from Democratic Party to the Sixty-eighth Congress representing New Jersey's 4th congressional district (serving in office from March 4, 1923, to March 4, 1925, but was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1924 to the Sixty-ninth Congress)[316][317]
- George Franklin Brumm: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1923–1927, 1929–1934[318]
- Hiram R. Burton: Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1905–1909[319]
- John Cadwalader: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1855–1857[320]
- Lambert Cadwalader: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1789–1791, 1793–1795; Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1784–1787; entered College of Philadelphia in 1757 but did not earn a degree[321]
- Greene Washington Caldwell: North Carolina representative to the US Congress, 1841–1843[322]
- Joseph Maull Carey: Wyoming representative after statehood and delegate (before statehood) to the US Congress, 1885–1890
- Matt Cartwright: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 2013–
- E. Wallace Chadwick: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1947–1949[323]
- Earl Chudoff: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress 1949–1958[324]
- George Bosworth Churchill: Massachusetts representative to the US Congress, 1925; Attended Graduate School, 1892–1894, but did not earn a degree[325]
- John Claiborne: Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1805–1808[326]
- John Daniel Clardy: Kentucky representative to the US Congress, 1895–1899[327]
- Isaiah Dunn Clawson: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1855–1859[328]
- John Clopton: Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1795–1799, 1801–1816[329]
- Bill Cobey: North Carolina representative to the US Congress, 1985–1987[330]
- Lewis Condict: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1811–1817[331]
- Joel Cook: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress 1907–1911[332]
- Thomas Buchecker Cooper: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1861–1862
- James Harry Covington: Maryland representative to the US Congress, 1909–1914[333]
- William Radford Coyle: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1925–1927, 1929–1933; attended law school but did not earn a degree[334]
- George William Crump (Penn Med School Class of 1812 - did not graduate): member of the United States House of Representatives in the 19th United States Congress (1826-27) and the U.S. Ambassador to Chile[335] Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1826–1827; attended School of Medicine but did not earn a degree[336]
- Willard S. Curtin (November 28, 1905 – February 4, 1996) (University of Pennsylvania Law School Class of 1932) Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1957–1967, having been elected as a Republican to the Eighty-fifth and to the four succeeding Congresses (and his election triumphs included defeating noted author James A. Michener in the 1962 election) and respected for voting in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957, 1960, and 1964, as well as the 24th Amendment to the US Constitution and the Voting Rights Act of 1965[337]
- J. Burrwood Daly: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1935–39; attended law school but did not earn a degree[338]
- William Darlington: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1815–17 and 1819–23[339]
- Philemon Dickerson: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1833–36 and 1839–41[340]
- Charles Djou: Hawaii representative to the US Congress, 2010[341]
- Frank Joseph Gerard Dorsey Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1935–39[342]
- Charles F. Dougherty: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1979–83[343]
- George Eckert: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1847–49[344]
- Norman Eddy: Indiana representative to the US Congress, 1853–55[345]
- Joshua Eilberg (Wharton Undergrad Class of 1941, BS in Econ):[346] Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1967–1979[347]
- Lucius Elmer: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1843–45[348]
- Phillip Sheridan English: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1995–2009[349]
- Thomas Dunn English: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1891–95[350]
- Chaka Fattah: US Congressman representing 2nd Congressional district of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia region)[351]
- Clare G. Fenerty: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1935–37[352]
- John Floyd: Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1817–29[353]
- Harold Ford Jr.: US representative from Tennessee, candidate for House minority leader, 2002, candidate for United States Senate from Tennessee[354]
- Vito Fossella: New York representative to the US Congress, 1997–2009[355]
- Oliver W. Frey: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1933–39[356]
- Benjamin Gilman: New York representative to the US Congress, 1973–2003[357]
- Benjamin Golder: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1925–33[358]
- Josh Gottheimer: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 2017–
- George Scott Graham: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1913–31[359]
- John Hahn: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1815–17[citation needed]
- William Henry Harrison: Ohio representative to the US Congress, 1816–19[360]
- Charles Eaton Haynes: Georgia representative to the US Congress, 1825–31 and 1835–39[361]
- James C. Healey: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1956–65[362]
- William Hindman: Maryland representative to the US Congress, 1793–99[363]
- George Holcombe: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1821–28[364]
- Trey Hollingsworth: Indiana representative to the US Congress, 2017–
- Joseph Hopkinson, Class of 1786: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1815–19[365]
- Charles R. Howell, attended in 1936 and 1937, did not graduate: represented New Jersey's 4th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives, 1949–1955[366]
- John William Jones: Georgia representative to the US Congress, 1847–49[367]
- Owen Jones: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1857–59[368]
- Albert Walter Johnson: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1947–63[369]
- Joseph Jorgensen: Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1877–83[370]
- James Kelly: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1805–09[citation needed]
- William Kennedy: North Carolina representative to the US Congress, 1803–1805, 1809–1811, 1813–1815[371]
- Everett Kent: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1923–25 and 1927–29[372]
- Karl C. King: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1951–57[373]
- William Huntington Kirkpatrick: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1921–23[374]
- Thomas Kittera: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1826–27[375]
- John A. Lafore Jr.: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1957–61[376]
- Conor Lamb: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 2018-23
- Henry Latimer: Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1794–95[245]
- Caleb Layton: Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1919–23[377]
- James Leech: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1927–32[378]
- William Eckart Lehman: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1861–63[379]
- George Leiper: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1829–31[380]
- John Thomas Lenahan: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1907–09[381]
- Samuel Lilly: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1853–55[382]
- Lloyd Lowndes Jr.: Maryland representative to the US Congress, 1873–75[383]
- James McDevitt Magee: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1923–27[384]
- Levi Maish: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1875–79 and 1887–91[385]
- Francis Mallory: Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1837–43[386]
- John Hartwell Marable: Tennessee representative to the US Congress, 1825–29[387]
- Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky (College for Women Class of 1963): representative of Pennsylvania's 13th congressional district to the US Congress, 1993–95[388][389]
- Robert Marion: South Carolina representative to the US Congress, 1805–10[390]
- Alexander Keith Marshall: Kentucky representative to the US Congress, 1855–57[391]
- James Murray Mason: Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1837–39[294]
- Samuel K. McConnell Jr.: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1944–57[392]
- George Deardorff McCreary: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1903–13[393]
- Joseph McDade: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1963–99[394]
- Robert C. McEwen: New York representative to the US Congress, 1965–81[395]
- John Miller: New York representative to the US Congress, 1825–27[396]
- James Milnor: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1811–13[397]
- George Mitchell: Maryland representative to the US Congress, 1823–27 and 1829–32[398]
- John Moffet: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1869[399]
- Samuel Moore: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1818–22[400]
- Edward Joy Morris: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1843–45 and 1857–61[401]
- Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1947–49,[402] architect, founder of Muhlenberg Greene Architects
- Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg (Trustee 1779-1786): Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, 1789–1791, 1793–1795; Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1779–1780; Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1789–1797[403]
- Edward de Veaux Morrell: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1900–07[404]
- John Murphy: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1943–46[405]
- Leonard Myers: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1863–75[406]
- William Augustus Newell, Class of 1839: New Jersey Representative to the US Congress, 1847–1851, 1865–1867[407]
- Robert N.C. Nix Sr.: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1958–79[citation needed]
- Edson Olds: Ohio representative to the US Congress, 1849–55[408]
- Archibald Olpp: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1921–23[409]
- Cyrus Maffet Palmer: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1927–29[410]
- John Patton: Virginia representative to the US Congress, 1830–38[411]
- Levi Pawling: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1817–19[412]
- John H. Pugh: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1877–79[413]
- Robert R. Reed: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1849–51[414]
- Jacob Richards: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1803–09[415]
- Lewis Riggs: New York representative to the US Congress, 1841–43[416]
- Caesar Augustus Rodney: Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1803–05[417]
- Albert Rutherford: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1937–41[418]
- Leon Sacks: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1937–41[419]
- Benjamin Say: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1808–09[420]
- Mary Gay Scanlon: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 2018–
- Pius Schwert: Wharton School class of 1914, B.S. econ.: professional baseball catcher; New York representative in US Congress, 1939–1941[421][422]
- David Scott: Georgia representative to the US Congress, 2003–[423]
- Hardie Scott: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1947–53[424]
- John Roger Kirkpatrick Scott: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1915–19[425]
- Joshua Seney: Maryland representative to the US Congress, 1789–92[426]
- John Sergeant: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1815–23, 1827–29 and 1837–41[427]
- Adam Seybert: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1809–15 and 1817–19[428]
- Henry Marchmore Shaw: North Carolina representative to the US Congress, 1853–55 and 1857–59[429]
- William B. Shepard: North Carolina representative to the US Congress, 1829–37[430]
- John E. Sheridan: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1939–47[431]
- William Simonton: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1839–43[432]
- Edward J. Stack: Florida representative to the US Congress, 1979–81[433]
- James Strawbridge: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1873–75[434]
- Joel Barlow Sutherland: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1827–37[435]
- John Swope: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1884–87[436]
- William Terrell: Georgia representative to the US Congress, 1817–21[437]
- Martin Thayer: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1863–65[438]
- John Chew Thomas: Maryland representative to the US Congress, 1799–1801[439]
- John Parnell Thomas: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1937–50[440]
- Hedge Thompson: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1827–28[441]
- Philip A. Traynor: Delaware representative to the US Congress, 1941–43 and 1945–47[442]
- William Troutman: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1943–45[443]
- Charles Turpin: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1929–37[444]
- Jonathan Updegraff: Ohio representative to the US Congress, 1879–82[445]
- Joseph Vigorito: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1965–77[446]
- Percy Walker, MD (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine Class of 1835): Alabama representative to the US Congress, 1855–57[447]
- George Wallhauser: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1959–65[448]
- John H. Ware, III: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1970–75[449]
- John Goddard Watmough: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1831–35[450]
- Anthony Wayne: Georgia representative to the US Congress, 1791–92[citation needed]
- James D. Weaver: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1963–65[451]
- William H. Wilson: Pennsylvania representative to the US Congress, 1935–37[452]
- Charles A. Wolverton: New Jersey representative to the US Congress, 1927–59[453]
United States ambassadors[edit]
As of July 2021[update], Penn alumni have served as United States ambassadors to at least 51 different countries.
- Robert Adams Jr. (1849 -1906); (Penn College Class of 1869, A.B. and Wharton Class of 1884, B.F.); served as the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Brazil from April 1, 1889, through June 1, 1890[454][304] (and who also served as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 6th district from 1883 to 1885[303] and as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 2nd congressional district from 1893 to 1906[304])
- Paul H. Alling (University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Master's degree, Class of 1924[455]): first United States Ambassador to Pakistan in September 1947,[456] with his credentials being presented in February of 1948.[457]
- Leonore Annenberg (February 20, 1918 – March 12, 2009) Penn, Hon. LL.D., 1985 (Doctor of Laws) (Penn Trustee, 1982-?): Chief of Protocol, officer of the United States Department of State responsible for advising the President and the Vice President of the United States, as well as the United States secretary of state on matters of national and international diplomatic protocol and as chief of protocol holds the rank of Ambassador and Assistant Secretary of State (1981-1982)
- Walter Annenberg (March 13, 1908 – October 1, 2002): Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (Class of 1931 (did not graduate))[458] but was a member of Zeta Beta Tau fraternity[459] and established the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania:[460] served as US ambassador to the United Kingdom from April 29, 1969, through October 30, 1974
- Wilson T. M. Beale Jr. (1909- 1998) Wharton Class of 1933, MBA: 3rd Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of United States to Jamaica September 1, 1965- October 13, 1965[266]
- Robert Mason Beecroft (College Class of 1962, A.B., Graduate School Class of 1965, A.M.; US chief of mission and Special Envoy to the Bosnian Federation 1997-1998[266]
- Kenneth Braithwaite: United States Ambassador to Norway[461] under President Donald J. Trump who in 1995 earned a master's degree in government administration from the University of Pennsylvania, Fels Institute of Government,[264][265]
- George Charles Bruno (Penn Law Fellow 1968): United States Ambassador to Belize[462](1994–1997)[463][464][465]
- Peter Burleigh: US ambassador to the United Nations, the Philippines, Palau, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka; attended graduate school but did not earn a degree
- Patricia A. Butenis (College Class of 1974: US ambassador to Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Bangladesh
- David L. Cohen (Penn Law Class of 1981): Nominated on July 21, 2021, to be United States Ambassador to Canada[466][467] and on December 7, 2021, presented his credentials to Governor General Mary Simon[468]
- William R. Crawford Jr. (Graduate School Class of 1950, A.M.): US ambassador to Yemen (1972-1974) and Cyprus (1974-1978)
- Oliver S. Crosby Penn's College Class of 1946: US ambassador to Guinea (1977)[469]
- George William Crump (Penn Med School Class of 1812 (did not graduate): member of the United States House of Representatives in the 19th United States Congress and the 6th U.S. Ambassador to Chile[335]
- John S. Durham: (College Class of 1885 with bachelor's degree, Class of 1888 Graduate School, Master's degree in Civil Engineering and University of Pennsylvania School of Law alumnus who did not graduate) African-American journalist (Editor of Daily Pennsylvanian[470]), author, attorney, civil engineer, and diplomat who served as United States Minister Resident to Haiti and consul general from September 3, 1891, through November 7, 1893, and concurrently as chargé d’affaires Dominican Republic from September 3, 1891, through November 18, 1893.[471]
- Thomas K. Finletter (November 11, 1893 – April 24, 1980) (Penn College Class of 1915 and Penn Law Class of 1920): served as US ambassador to NATO and Secretary of the Air Force[472]
- Robert A. Flaten Flaten (1934 - ) (Penn Graduate School), Ph.D.: served as the United States ambassador to Rwanda (1990 to 1993)[473] and as chair of the Executive Committee of the Nobel Peace Prize Forum[474]
- Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) Penn Founder and Trustee, 1749-1789; served as Minister (Ambassador) of the United States to France (1776-1785)
- Thomas S. Gates, Jr. (Penn College Class of 1928, A.B., and Hon. LL.D., 1956) Trustee): 3rd Ambassador and Chief of the U.S. Liaison Office in Beijing (1976 - 1979); 7th United States Secretary of Defense (December 2, 1959 - January 20, 1961); 8th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense[266]
- Lloyd Carpenter Griscom (November 4, 1872 – February 8, 1959) (Penn Law Class of 1891, LLB, and Penn Law Class of 1907, Doctor of Laws: US Ambassador to (a) Persia, (b) Japan, (c) Brazil, and (d) Italy[475][476]
- Amy Gutmann: 8th president of University of Pennsylvania and Ambassador to Germany from February 17, 2022, to present[477]
- John E. Hamm: US ambassador to Chile
- William Henry Harrison, third Ambassador to Gran Colombia and ninth President of United States[478]
- John S. Hayes: US ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein
- Charles A. Heimbold, Jr., Penn Law Class of 1960, U.S. Ambassador to Sweden and former chairman and CEO of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company[479]
- Jerome Holland 1916 - 1985 (Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Class of 1950, Ph.D., and Class of 1983, Honorary LL.D.): US ambassador to Sweden (appointed in 1970 as first African American Ambassador of the United States to Sweden, (1970-1972)[266]
- Jon Huntsman Jr.: US ambassador to Russia, the People's Republic of China and Singapore
- Stuart E. Jones (Penn Law Class of 1986): United States Ambassador to Jordan[480] and Iraq[481]
- David Jordan: US ambassador to Peru
- Tina Kaidanow (College Class of 1987): US ambassador to Kosovo[482]
- Sung Kim: (College Class of 1982) US ambassador to Indonesia, U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, the U.S. Ambassador to Republic of Korea and US special envoy to the Six-Party Talks[483][484]
- Yuri Kim: US ambassador to Albania
- Michael David Kirby: College Class of 1976, BA, US ambassador to Serbia and Moldova[485][486][487]
- Robert E. Lamb (1936 - ) (Penn College Class of 1962, A.B.): served as Ambassador of the United States to Cyprus (1990-1993)
- Ronald Lauder (1944 - ) Wharton Undergrad Class of 1965, B.S. in Econ.: Ambassador of the United States to Austria (1986-1987)
- Franklin L. Lavin (Wharton Graduate School Class of 1996, M.B.A.); Ambassador of the United States to Singapore (2001-)
- Jeffrey Lunstead Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Class of 1977, Ph.D.; Ambassador of the United States to (a) Sri Lanka and (b) Maldives, 2003-present[266]
- James Murray Mason (1798 - 1871); Penn's College Class of 1819, A.B.; Ambassador of the Confederate States of America to (a) the United Kingdom and France, 1862-1865[294]
- Marilyn McAfee (1940 - ) Penn's College for Women Class of 1961, A.B.: US ambassador to Guatemala (1993-1996)[266]
- Gillian Milovanovic: United States Ambassador to Mali and 4th United States Ambassador to North Macedonia
- Edward Joy Morris (1815 - 1881) attended College (1831-1832, but did not earn degree): served as Charge d'Affaires (aka United States ambassador) to Sicily (1850–53) and Minister Resident (Ambassador) of the United States to the Ottoman Empire, (1861-1870)[266]
- Gouverneur Morris (1752 - 1816) attended Penn's Academy of Philadelphia, 1761, but did not earn a degree); Minister of the United States to France (1792-1794)[266]
- John H. Morrow (1910 - 2000) Penn Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Class of 1952, Ph.D.: Ambassador of the United States to Guinea, 1959-1961[266]
- Phil Murphy: US ambassador to Germany
- Wanda L. Nesbitt Penn College Class of 1978, A.B.; Ambassador of the United States to (a) Madagascar, (b) Ivory Coast, and (c) Namibia[266]
- Condy Raguet: 1st US ambassador to Brazil
- William Bradford Reed: US minister to China
- Caesar Augustus Rodney (1772- 1824); Penn College Class of 1789, A.B., 1789; Plenipotentiary (Ambassador) of the United States to Argentina, 1823-1824[266]
- Thomas J. Scotes: US ambassador to Yemen
- Charles S. Shapiro: US ambassador to Venezuela
- Thomas P. Shoesmith: US ambassador to Malaysia
- Martin J. Silverstein: US ambassador to Uruguay
- Susan N. Stevenson, United States Ambassador to Equatorial Guinea, was nominated by President Donald Trump on September 13, 2018, and was confirmed as Ambassador on January 2, 2019.[488][489]
- Robert Strausz-Hupé: US ambassador to Sri Lanka, Belgium, Sweden, NATO, and Turkey; founder of the Foreign Policy Research Institute; prolific scholar of international relations and geopolitics
- Henry J. Tasca: US ambassador to Greece and Morocco
- Nicholas F. Taubman: US ambassador to Romania
- Marilyn Ware: US ambassador to Finland
- Faith Ryan Whittlesey: US ambassador to Switzerland
State government[edit]
Governors[edit]
As of May 2020, 48 Penn alumni or trustees have served as governors of 24 different states, Puerto Rico and American Samoa.
- Amos W. Barber: 2nd governor of Wyoming, 1890–93
- Gunning Bedford Sr.: governor of Delaware, 1796–97[490]
- John C. Bell, Jr., Class of 1917, (October 25, 1892 – March 18, 1974) was the 18th Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania (1943–1947) before becoming the 33rd and shortest-serving Governor of Pennsylvania, serving for nineteen (19) days in 1947, 1937–37[491][492][493]
- William Wyatt Bibb: first governor of the state of Alabama, 1819–1820; served as governor of the Alabama Territory, 1817–1819[280]
- Martin G. Brumbaugh (Ph.D. earned in 1894): governor of Pennsylvania, 1911–15 and first Professor of Pedagogy in Penn's Department of Philosophy[494]
- C. Douglass Buck: governor of Delaware, 1929–37[282]
- William Burton: governor of Delaware, 1859–63[495]
- Joseph M. Carey, class of 1864, governor of Wyoming, 1911–1915[283]
- Thomas King Carroll: governor of Maryland, 1829–31
- Joshua Clayton: governor of Delaware 1793–1798, attended Academy of Philadelphia but did not graduate[496]
- Philemon Dickerson: governor of New Jersey, 1836–37[497]
- James Henderson Duff: Governor of Pennsylvania (1947–51) studied law at Penn Law before graduating from the University of Pittsburgh[288]
- James B. Edwards, post-graduate student at Penn: governor of South Carolina, 1975–79[citation needed]
- John Floyd, Class of 1804 of Penn Med: 25th governor of Virginia, 1830–34[498] Virginia representative to the U.S. Congress
- George F. Fort: governor of New Jersey, 1851–54[citation needed]
- William Gilpin, Class of 1833: first governor of the Territory of Colorado, 1861–1862[citation needed]
- Charles Goldsborough: governor of Maryland, 1819[499]
- James Hamilton (Trustee 1755 -1783; President of Board 1764, 1771-1773) Governor of Province of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Provincial Council (May 4 - October 16, 1771)[500]
- William Henry Harrison: first governor of Indiana Territory, 1800–12[citation needed]
- John Hubbard: governor of Maine, 1850–1853[citation needed]
- Jon Huntsman Jr.: governor of Utah, 2005–2009[501]
- George Izard, Class of 1792: second governor of Arkansas Territory, 1825–1828[citation needed]
- Lawrence M. Judd: governor of Hawaii (1929–34), and American Samoa (1954)[citation needed]
- William Carr Lane (Penn Med attended 1815-1816 academic year): 2nd Governor of Territory of New Mexico, 1852–1853, and first mayor of St. Louis, Missouri, 1823–29[502]
- George M. Leader (Penn College Class of 1940, BA, and Penn Fels Institute of Government Class of 1941, MGA): 36th Governor of Pennsylvania, 1955–1959[503]
- Lloyd Lowndes Jr.: Governor of Maryland, 1895–1899[504][505]
- George B. McClellan: General-in-chief of the Union Army during the U.S. Civil War; unsuccessful Democratic candidate for president 1864; later governor of New Jersey; attended law school for two years at the age of 12 before transferring to the U.S. Military Academy, from which he graduated at the age of 16[506]
- John G. McCullough, Attorney General of California during the American Civil War; Governor of Vermont, 1902–1904
- Alexander McNair: first governor of Missouri[citation needed]
- Thomas Mifflin, Class of 1760: first governor of Pennsylvania, 1790–1799; signatory to the U.S. Constitution; brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American Revolution[citation needed]
- Charles R. Miller, Governor of Delaware, 1913–17[507]
- Wayne Mixson: governor of Florida, 1987
- Phil Murphy: 56th governor of New Jersey
- William Augustus Newell: 18th governor of New Jersey, 1857–1860; governor of the Washington Territory, 1880–1884[508]
- John M. Patton: acting governor of Virginia, 1841; great-grandfather of World War II General George S. Patton Jr.[509]
- Samuel W. Pennypacker: Governor of Pennsylvania, 1903–07[510]
- Jesús T. Piñero: governor of Puerto Rico, 1946–49[citation needed]
- Ed Rendell: governor of Pennsylvania, former mayor of Philadelphia and former Democratic National Committee chairman[citation needed]
- Gove Saulsbury: governor of Delaware, 1865–71[citation needed]
- Hulett C. Smith: governor of West Virginia[511]
- Rexford Tugwell: governor of Puerto Rico[citation needed]
- Robert John Walker: July 19, 1801 - November 11, 1869 (Class of 1819) served briefly as Governor of Kansas in 1857 (when he resigned due to his opposition to the administration-sponsored pro-slavery Kansas Lecompton Constitution)[512] and also served as a member of the U.S. Senate from Mississippi from 1835 until 1845 (where he was responsible for drafting the 1849 bill that eventually established the United States Department of the Interior), and as Secretary of the Treasury from 1845 to 1849.[277]
- Matthew E. Welsh: governor of Indiana[citation needed]
- James Wilkinson: first governor of the Louisiana Territory
State legislators[edit]
At least 53 Penn alumni and/or trustees have served in state legislatures in at least 18 states (at least five of whom have served as speaker of their respective houses of representatives (in Maine, New Jersey, Oregon, and Pennsylvania) and one of whom served as President of New Jersey Senate.
- Robert Adams Jr. (February 26, 1849 – June 1, 1906) - University of Pennsylvania (Class of 1869) where he was a member of St. Anthony Hall fraternity: a Republican member of the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 6th district from 1883 to 1885[303](who also served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 2nd congressional district from 1893 to 1906 and served as the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Brazil from April 1, 1889, through June 1, 1890)[304]
- Harry W. Bass, (Penn Law Class of 1896) first African American member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 1911–1914[513]
- Jennifer Beck: (University of Pennsylvania Fels Institute of Government, MGA) Republican Party politician who served in the New Jersey State Senate representing the 11th Legislative District from 2012 to 2018 and prior to redistricting, served in the Senate from 2008 to 2012 representing the 12th Legislative District, serving portions of Monmouth and Mercer counties, and represented the 12th District in the New Jersey General Assembly from 2006 to 2008
- Arthur L. Bell MBA 1976, Maine state Representative
- William Bingham: (March 8, 1752 – February 7, 1804) first Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- Louis A. Bloom: Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for Delaware County (1947–1952) and Judge Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas for Delaware County
- Karen Boback: Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (2007–22)
- Stacy Brenner: Democratic member of the Maine State Senate (2020-)[514]
- John F. Byrne, Jr.: Pennsylvania State Senator for the 6th district (1967–1970)
- Martha Hughes Cannon, BS, MD, Penn Med post doc education Class of 1882; Penn College Class of 1882: Utah State Senator; first female state senator elected in the United States[515]
- John B. Chase: member of Wisconsin State Senate[516]
- Robert J. Clendening: Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (1949–1952)
- Herbert B. Cohen (July 2, 1900 – December 2, 1970) Wharton (Class of 1922) and University of Pennsylvania Law School (Class of 1925) served as (a) Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for four consecutive terms, 1933–40, twice as Majority leader, once as Minority leader, (b) Attorney General of Pennsylvania from 1955 through 1956 and (c) Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court from 1957 through 1970[517][518]
- Mark B. Cohen: Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- Eckley Brinton Coxe: Pennsylvania State Senator for the 21st district from 1881 to 1884
- Jean B. Cryor: former Maryland Delegate
- Glenn Cummings: Democratic member of the Maine House of Representatives, including one term as Speaker of the House (2000–2008)
- John Warren Davis: former member of the New Jersey State Senate; United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey; judge for the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey and United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- Dan Debicella: member of the Connecticut Senate
- William K. Dickey: Speaker of the New Jersey General Assembly and chairman of the Delaware River Port Authority
- Marie Donigan (Penn School of Design, MS in Landscape Architecture): Democratic member of the Michigan State House of Representatives (2004–2011)[519]
- David Frockt: (born July 14, 1969)[520] University of Pennsylvania, B.A. in Political Science (Class of 1991): first elected to the Washington State House of Representatives in 2010 and in 2011, after the death of Senator Scott White, the Metropolitan King County Council voted unanimously to appointed for the 46th legislative district of Washington State Senate, which includes North Seattle, Lake Forest Park, and Kenmore Washington State Senate[521] and in 2012 was retained by voters to serve the remaining two years of the open Senate term and in 2014 was re-elected to a full term in the State Senate, where he is a member on the Ways & Means, Law & Justice, and Human Services committees[522]
- Michael F. Gerber: Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- Michael U. Gisriel: former member of the Maryland House of Delegates
- Stewart Greenleaf: Republican member of the Pennsylvania State Senate (1978– )
- Bernard Gross (born May 22, 1935) Wharton School of Finance Class of 1956 and Penn Law Class of 1959; lawyer elected twice[523] as Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 200th district for years 1967–1970[524][525]
- John J. Hafer: former Maryland State Senator
- James Hamilton (Trustee 1755 -1783; President of Board 1764, 1771-1773) member of Assembly of Province of Pennsylvania (1735 - 1740) and member of Pennsylvania Provincial Council (1746 - 1747)[500]
- Phil Hart (Wharton MBA, Class of 1984): Republican Party Senator in Idaho Senate (2022- ) who previously served in the Idaho House of Representatives for Legislative District 3B from 2004 to 2012[526]
- Charlie Brady Hauser: member of the North Carolina General Assembly
- Jon Hinck: member of the Maine House of Representatives (2006– )
- Constance N. Johnson: Democratic member of the Oklahoma State Senate (2005–2014); United States Senate Democratic nominee of Oklahoma (2014)
- Eric Johnson: Democratic member of the Texas House of Representatives (2010– )
- Movita Johnson-Harrell: Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (2019– )
- Tony Jordan: member of the New York State Assembly (2009– )
- Steve Katz: member of the New York State Assembly and Candidate for New York State Senate
- John Manners: president of the New Jersey Senate (1852)
- John Hartwell Marable: University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (Class of 1814) but with no record of graduation; member of the Tennessee Senate (1817–18)[527]
- Bruce Marks: Republican member of the Pennsylvania 2nd senatorial district 1994 to 1995[528][529][530][531]
- Charles B. Moores: University of Pennsylvania Law School (Class of 1874)[532] Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives (1895–96)[533]
- Raj Mukherji: Assemblyman of the New Jersey State Legislature
- Jennifer O'Mara (Penn Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, Class of 2017) represents the 165th Legislative District, which includes parts of Springfield Township, Marple Township, Radnor Township and the borough of Morton.[534][535]
- Joseph J. Roberts: former Speaker and Assemblyman of the New Jersey State Legislature
- Ronald B. Russell (Penn College Class of 1982): Democratic member of the Maine House of Representatives (2022 - )[536]
- Richard Peters Jr., Class of 1761: Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1782–83; Commissioner for the Board of War for the Continental Army; Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives; served in the Pennsylvania Senate; appointed as judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (1815–1828)
- James N. Robertson: Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representative (1949–1952)
- Vaughn Stewart: Democratic member of the Maryland House of Delegates (2019– )
- David W. Sweet: Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (1978–88)
- Chris Taylor: Democratic member of the Wisconsin State Assembly (2011– )
- Eric Turkington: Democratic member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
- Charles R. Weiner: Democratic Leader of the Pennsylvania Senate
- "Buck" Charles Wharton (1868 – November 15, 1949) Wharton School of Finance Class of 1897: selected as an All-American guard in 1896 and also played on Penn teams that were undefeated and won back-to-back national championships in 1894 and 1895; served as Delaware State Senator from 1914 to 1917; in 1963, was posthumously inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
- Constance H. Williams: Democratic member of the Pennsylvania State Senate
- Robert C. Wonderling: Republican member of the Pennsylvania State Senate
- Bob Ziegelbauer: Democratic Party member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
Mayors[edit]
- Edward Bader: 29th mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey, 1920–29[537]
- Joseph F. Battle Jr.: mayor of Chester, Pennsylvania, 1979–1986
- Ralph Becker Jr.: 34th mayor of Salt Lake City, 2008–2015[538]
- John S. Brenner (Fels Institute of Government MGA): 23rd mayor of York, Pennsylvania, 2002–2010
- Peter Brownell: 39th mayor of Burlington, Vermont, 1993-95
- Joseph M. Carey: 14th mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming, 1881–85
- Urban Carmel: mayor of Mill Valley, California, 2023-24
- John B. Chase: mayor of Oconto, Wisconsin[539]
- Joseph S. Clark: 90th mayor of Philadelphia, 1952–1956
- Donald S. Coburn: mayor of Livingston, New Jersey, 1977–78
- Elisha C. Dick (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine Class of 1782): mayor of Alexandria, Virginia, 1804–05[540][541]
- Stephen Dilts: mayor of Hampton, New Jersey
- Walter Drumheller: first mayor of Sunbury, Pennsylvania
- Mark Farrell: (Penn Law class of 2001) 44th mayor of San Francisco (January through July 2018
- Shirley Franklin: M.A. in sociology;[542] mayor of Atlanta, 2002–10
- Katherine Sarah Kate Gallego nee Widland (born October 21, 1981) Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania[543][544] 62nd Mayor of Phoenix 2019–
- Wilson Goode: first African-American 95th mayor of Philadelphia, 1984–92
- Oscar Goodman: 21st mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1999–2011
- Robert M. Gordon: mayor of Fair Lawn, New Jersey, 1988–91[545]
- Henry Winfield Haldeman: mayor of Girard, Kansas, 1895–99
- James Hamilton (Trustee 1755 -1783; President of Board 1764, 1771-1773) 28th Mayor of Philadelphia[500]
- John E. Hamm: mayor of Zanesville, Ohio, 1815
- Paul Heroux: Master's in criminology, elected state representative in Massachusetts[546] and in 2018 as mayor of Attleboro, Massachusetts[547]
- George Hewston: 16th mayor of San Francisco, 1875[548]
- George Janeway: mayor of New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1869–71
- Eric Johnson (Penn Law JD Class of 2003[549]): 60th Mayor of Dallas, Texas, 2019–Present
- Judith Flanagan Kennedy (Penn Law, JD Class of 1987) was the 56th mayor of Lynn, Massachusetts, (2010 through 2018). She launched a write-in campaign for mayor and became Lynn's first female mayor.[550]
- Michael Keppele: (College Class of 1788[551]) 54th mayor of Philadelphia, 1811–12
- William Kerr: mayor of Pittsburgh, 1845–47
- William Carr Lane (Penn Med attended 1815-1816 academic year): first mayor of St. Louis, Missouri, 1823–29[502]
- Harry Arista Mackey: 85th mayor of Philadelphia, 1928–31
- Hannah McKinney: mayor of Kalamazoo, Michigan, 2005–07
- Ryan McLemore: mayor of Griffin, Georgia, 2014
- Morton McMichael: 70th mayor of Philadelphia, 1866–69
- Marc Morial: mayor of New Orleans, 1994–2002; president of the United States Conference of Mayors, 2001–2002; president and CEO of the National Urban League, 2003–
- Magnus Miller Murray: mayor of Pittsburgh
- Ron Nirenberg: mayor of San Antonio, Texas, 2017–
- Michael Nutter (Wharton Class of 1979, BS in Economics): 98th mayor of Philadelphia, 2007–16
- Cherelle Parker (Fels Institute of Government Class of 2016, MGA) 100th mayor of Philadelphia 2024- present[552]
- Thomas R. Potts: first mayor of St. Paul, Minnesota, 1850–51
- Samuel Powel, class of 1759: 45th mayor of Philadelphia and speaker of the Pennsylvania Senate
- Ed Rendell: 96th mayor of Philadelphia, 1992–99
- Felix Robertson: mayor of Nashville, Tennessee, 1818–19, 1827–29
- Alan Schlesinger: mayor of Derby, Connecticut, 1994–97
- Edward J. Stack: mayor of Pompano Beach, Florida, 1965–69
- Walton Danforth Stowell: mayor of Harper's Ferry, West Virginia, 1995–2001
- Nao Takasugi: mayor of Oxnard, California, 1982–92
- Ivy Taylor: mayor of San Antonio, Texas, 2014–2017. The first female African-American mayor of a city with a population of more than one million.
- J. Parnell Thomas: mayor of Allendale, New Jersey, 1926–30
- Victor Yarnell: mayor of Reading, Pennsylvania, 1968–72
- Francisco Zayas Seijo: mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico, 2004–08
State Supreme Court justices[edit]
As of February 2023, twenty-nine (29) Penn alumni have served as justices of supreme courts of ten (10) different states and the District of Columbia, and eleven (11) have served as chief justices of a state supreme court.
- William Allen, a founder of Pennsylvania Hospital and trustee of University of Pennsylvania, funded the state house (Independence Hall), served as Mayor of Philadelphia, appointed judge of the Orphans’ and Common Pleas courts of Philadelphia and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (September 20, 1750 through 1767)[553][554]
- Rachel Wainer Apter, College Class of 2002, New Jersey Supreme Court Associate Justice who was confirmed by New Jersey Senate on October 17, 2022, and was sworn into office on October 21, 2022[555][556]
- John C. Bell Jr. (October 25, 1892 – March 18, 1974), Class of 1917, was a justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1950–1972), and Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1961–1972)
- Alexander F. Barbieri (July 6, 1907 – January 1993) Penn College Class of 1929, Penn Law Class of 1932: Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and Judge of Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania- one of the original members of the Commonwealth Court in 1970 (who was then appointed to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1971 but was defeated for election in 1971 and returned to the Commonwealth Court as a senior judge (1983 to 1993))[557]
- William J. Brennan: justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court (1951–56) (later Justice of the United States Supreme Court)
- William Bradford: justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1791–94), and Attorney General of Pennsylvania (1780–91); attended Penn for three years before graduating from Princeton University
- Elissa F. Cadish (College Class of 1986): Justice Nevada Supreme Court (2019- )[558][559][560]
- Joseph M. Carey: Attorney General of Wyoming (1869–71); justice, Wyoming Supreme Court (1871–1876)
- Herbert B. Cohen (July 2, 1900 – December 2, 1970) Wharton (Class of 1922) and University of Pennsylvania Law School (Class of 1925) served as (a) Representative of Pennsylvania State House of Representatives for four consecutive terms, 1933–40, twice as Majority leader, once as Minority leader, (b) Attorney General of Pennsylvania from 1955 through 1956 and (c) Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court from 1957 through 1970[517][518]
- James Harry Covington, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia (1914–18)(and co-founder of Covington & Burling)[561]
- Lucius Elmer: former justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court and Attorney General of New Jersey
- Arthur J. England Jr.: (Wharton Undergraduate Class of 1955 and Penn Law Class of 1961) served on the Florida Supreme Court (1975–1981) and was the Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court (1978–1980)[562]
- Richard L. Gabriel, Penn Law Class of 1987, (born March 3, 1962) was appointed in 2015 (and continues to serve after being retained in 2018) as an Associate Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court. Justice Gabriel previously served on the Colorado Court of Appeals from 2008 to 2015
- Randy J. Holland, justice of the Delaware Supreme Court (1986–2017)[563]
- William H. Lamb, (born 1940) Penn Law Class of 1965): former justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (January 29, 2003 until January 2004)[553]
- Daniel J. Layton: Chief Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court (1933–45), and Attorney General of Delaware (1932–33)
- Robert N. C. Nix Jr.: former chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1984–1996), he was the first African-American Chief Justice of any state's highest court; justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1971–1984)
- Joseph B. Perskie (1885–1957; class of 1907), associate justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1933 to 1947.[564]
- Deborah T. Poritz, Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court (1996–2006)[565](and previously was the Attorney General of New Jersey from 1994 to 1996, in both cases becoming the first woman to serve in that position
- Mark Rindner (College Class of 1971, Graduate School of Education Class of 1971): justice of Alaska Supreme Court[566]
- Albert Rosenblatt: judge on the New York Court of Appeals, the highest court in New York state (1998–2006)
- George Sharswood: former chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and Dean of the University of Pennsylvania School of Law
- Thomas Smith: (University of Pennsylvania Medical School (Class of 1829) Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court[567] (January 29, 1847, through January 3, 1853)[568]
- Horace Stern (Penn Law Class of 1890): Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1952–56) and Justice of Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1932–1952)[569][570]
- Leo E. Strine Jr. (Penn Law Class of 1988): Chief Justice of Delaware Supreme Court (2014–2019)[571][572] and judge and vice-chancellor of the Delaware Court of Chancery
- Richard B. Teitelman: Chief Justice of the Missouri Supreme Court (2011–13)
- William Tilghman: Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1805–27); attended Penn but did not earn a degree
- Jasper Yeates (College Class of 1758),[573] was a delegate to the Pennsylvania convention that ratified the United States Constitution in 1787, appointed as a justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1791, served until his death in 1817.[574]
- Karen L. Valihura (Penn Law Class of 1986) Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court[575] (appointed June 6, 2014)[576]
U.S. federal judges[edit]
As of February 2024 there are at least 84 Penn Alumni and/or faculty who have been appointed judges in United States federal court system (3 of whom have served on the Supreme Court, at least 20 of whom have served on Courts of Appeals, and at least 60 of whom have served on District Courts)
United States Supreme Court Justices[edit]
- William J. Brennan: US Supreme Court justice; recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
- Owen J. Roberts, Justice, Supreme Court of the United States[577]
- James Wilson (founding father), Penn's first Professor of Law: appointed by George Washington as one of first Supreme Court Justices who taught Washington and his cabinet (as a Penn Professor) a course on the United States Constitution, which Wilson helped draft
United States Courts of Appeals[edit]
- Arlin Adams (April 16, 1921 – December 22, 2015), judge, Penn Law Class of 1947 United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit 1969–1987[578][579]
- Edward R. Becker (May 4, 1933 – May 19, 2006) Penn College Class of 1954: former chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- George M. Dallas (1839-1917)[580], Penn Law Professor of Torts and Evidence: Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1892–1909[581]
- Andre M. Davis (born February 11, 1949) Penn College Class of 1971[582]: judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (2009–14)
- Ronald M. Gould (born October 17, 1946): Penn Class of 1968[583] judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- James Hunter III (December 26, 1916 – February 10, 1989) Penn Law Class of 1939, judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1971–1989[584][585]
- Harry Ellis Kalodner (March 28, 1896 – March 15, 1977) Penn Law Class of 1917[586] chief judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1946–1977[587]
- Phyllis A. Kravitch: judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit[588]
- Robert Lowe Kunzig (October 31, 1918 – February 21, 1982) Penn College Class of 1939- Penn Law Class of 1942, judge, U.S. Court of Claims, 1971–82[589]
- Alan David Lourie (born January 13, 1935) Penn Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Class of 1965, Ph.D. in Chemistry, judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit[590]
- John Bayard McPherson (November 5, 1846 – January 20, 1919) Penn Law Professor (1890 -?) judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1912–1919[585]
- Florence Y. Pan: (Born 1965) Class of 1988; College, BA, and Wharton, BS, Economics, Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit[591][592]
- Arthur Raymond Randolph, judge, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit[593]
- Marjorie Rendell: judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (1994–97), and for the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (1997– )
- L. Felipe Restrepo (Penn College Class of 1981): United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (2015 to present) and former United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (2006 to 2014)[594][595][596][597]
- Paul Hitch Roney: chief judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (1986–89)
- Max Rosenn, judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1970–2006[598]
- Patty Shwartz, Penn Law Class of 1986, judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, assumed office April 10, 2013
- Dolores Sloviter, judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit[599]
- Joseph Whitaker Thompson, judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (1931–46)[600]
- Henry Galbraith Ward, judge, U.S. United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (1907–24)[601]
- Helene White, judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit[602]
- Scott Wilson: judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (1929–43)[603]
Other United States Court Judges (District Courts, and other federal courts)[edit]
- Guy K. Bard (October 24, 1895 – November 23, 1953) Penn Law Class of 1922,[604] judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[605]
- Harvey Bartle III, (born June 6 1941) Penn Law Class of 1965[606] judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[607]
- Michael Baylson, judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[608]
- Ralph C. Body, judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1965–1973[609]
- Raymond J. Broderick, judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[610]
- Margo Kitsy Brodie (née Williams born April 12, 1966) -Penn Law Class of 1991: Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York[611][612]
- Allison D. Burroughs, Penn Law Class of 1988 (born April 25, 1961), is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts who received her federal judicial commission on December 19, 2014, and was sworn in on January 7, 2015. Judge Burroughs began her legal career as a law clerk for fellow Penn Law alumna Judge Norma L. Shapiro of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1988 to 1989 and also served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1989 to 1995 and in the District of Massachusetts from 1995 to 2005.
- James C. Cacheris: judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- A. Richard Caputo, judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[613]
- Tanya Chutkan, Penn Law class of 1987, judge, United States District Court for the District of Columbia; judge overseeing the criminal trial of former U.S. president Donald Trump related to the events leading up to the January 6, 2021 United States Capitol attack
- Rudolph Contreras, judge, United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
- James Harry Covington, judge, United States District Court for the District of Columbia; Co-founder of Covington & Burling[614]
- James C. Cacheris: judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- Stewart Dalzell (September 18, 1943 – February 18, 2019), who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1965 and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1969, was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.[615]
- John Morgan Davis, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 1964–84
- John Warren Davis, former United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit[616]
- Paul S. Diamond, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[617]
- John William Ditter Jr., United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[618]
- Susan J. Dlott: judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (1995– )
- Herbert Allan Fogel, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1973–78[619]
- James S. Halpern: judge, United States Tax Court (1990–2005)[620]
- Francis Hopkinson, Class of 1757: Founding Father and signatory to the Declaration of Independence; judge of the Admiralty Court of Pennsylvania in 1779 and reappointed in 1780 and 1787; judge in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1789–1791; considered to have played a key role in the design of the first American flag, and is credited with writing the first secular American song
- Daniel Henry Huyett III, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1970–98
- Abdul Kallon, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Alabama[621]
- William Huntington Kirkpatrick, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 1927–58
- John C. Knox, judge, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1948–55[622]
- Charles William Kraft Jr., United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1956–2002
- Caleb Rodney Layton III, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, 1957–88[623]
- Paul Conway Leahy, judge for the United States District Court for the District of Delaware (1942–66 -judge)(1948–57 -chief judge)[624]
- James Russell Leech, judge, United States Tax Court (1932–52)[625]
- Joseph Simon Lord III, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1961–92; Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (1971–82)
- Alfred Leopold Luongo, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (1961–86); Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (1982–86)
- Thomas Ambrose Masterson, judge, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1967–73
- James Focht McClure Jr., United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania[626]
- Barron Patterson McCune, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania[627]
- Joseph Leo McGlynn Jr., United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1974–99
- Gerald Austin McHugh Jr., United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 2014–
- Charles Louis McKeehan, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1923–25
- Roderick R. McKelvie, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, 1991–2002[628]
- Mary A. McLaughlin, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[629]
- Howard G. Munson: Chief Judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York (1980–88)
- John W. Murphy: Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania (1946–62); Chief Judge (for portion of 1945-1962)
- Thomas Newman O'Neill Jr., United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[630]
- Richard Peters Jr., Class of 1761: Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress, 1782–83; Commissioner for the Board of War for the Continental Army; Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives; served in the Pennsylvania Senate; appointed by George Washington as judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (1815–1828)
- Gene E. K. Pratter, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[631]
- Bruce E. Reinhart (Penn Law Class of 1987) United States magistrate judge for the Southern District of Florida sworn in on March 14, 2018, law clerk for fellow Penn Law graduate Judge Norma L. Shapiro of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1988 and also served as an Assistant United States Attorney, and known for approving search of former President's private residence[632]
- Sue Lewis Robinson, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware[633]
- Juan Ramon Sánchez, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[634]
- Ralph Francis Scalera, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania[635]
- Allen G. Schwartz, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1993–2003[636]
- Murray Merle Schwartz, Chief United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, 1974–[637]
- Murray Merle Schwartz: Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware (1985–89)
- Norma Levy Shapiro, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania[638]
- Jerome B. Simandle, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey[639]
- Jonathan R. Steinberg: former judge for the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
- Charles Swayne, judge, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, 1890–1907
- Donald West VanArtsdalen, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 1970–19 85[640]
- Jay Waldman, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 1988–2003
- Gerald Joseph Weber,(Penn Law Class of 1939), senior judge, chief judge, and judge, United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania (1964–1988) (Chief Judge 1976 – 1982)[641]
- Harold Kenneth Wood, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 1959–1971
State Attorneys General[edit]
As of January 2023 there are at least 20 Penn Alumni who have been attorneys general in 5 states and District of Columbia
- Andrew Allen, Class of 1759: last colonial Attorney General of Pennsylvania, represented Province of Pennsylvania at the Second Continental Congress (later attained of treason for his Tory sympathies), elected to the Pennsylvania Assembly in 1766, and appointed by his brother in law John Penn to Governor's Council in 1770
- Thomas J. Baldrige, Attorney General of Pennsylvania, judge and President Judge of Superior Court of Pennsylvania
- Beau Biden: 44th Attorney General of Delaware (2007–15)
- William Bradford: Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1791–94), and Attorney General of Pennsylvania (1780–91); attended Penn for three years before graduating from Princeton University
- Joseph M. Carey: Attorney General of Wyoming (1869–71); justice, Wyoming Supreme Court (1871–1876) (also Mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming, U.S. Attorney for the Territory of Wyoming, Governor of Wyoming, U.S. Representative for Wyoming, U.S. Senator for Wyoming)
- Hampton L. Carson, Attorney General of Pennsylvania, 1903–07
- Paula Dow: 52nd Attorney General of New Jersey (2010–12)
- Lucius Elmer: former justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court and 13th Attorney General of New Jersey (1850 -1852)
- William F. Hyland (Wharton Class of 1944): 37th Attorney General of New Jersey
- Daniel J. Layton: (Penn Law Class of 1901) Chief Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court (1933–45), and 29th Attorney General of Delaware (1932–33)
- John G. McCullough: Attorney General of California during the American Civil War
- William M. Meredith: Attorney General of Pennsylvania (1861–67); president of the Philadelphia City Council (1834–49)
- Karl Racine:(College Class of 1985) 15th Attorney General of the District of Columbia (2015–23)
- William Bradford Reed: Attorney General of Pennsylvania (1838)
- Grover C. Richman Jr.: (Penn Law Class of 1934) 33rd Attorney General of New Jersey(1954–58)
- David Samson: 47th Attorney General of New Jersey
- William A. Schnader: Attorney General of Pennsylvania (1930–34)
- Jonathan Sergeant, Class of 1763: Attorney General of Pennsylvania; member of the Continental Congress; framer of the New Jersey Constitution
- George Washington Woodruff: former Attorney General of Pennsylvania
- H. Albert Young (Penn Law Class of 1929): 34th Attorney General of Delaware (1951–1954)[642]
Other state, or local executive or judicial branch officials[edit]
- Branch Tanner Archer - Penn Medical School Class of 1808: secretary of war for the Republic of Texas, 1840–41[643]
- Alexander F. Barbieri (July 6, 1907 – January 1993) Penn College Class of 1929, Penn Law Class of 1932: Justice Pennsylvania Supreme Court and Judge -Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania- one of the original members of the Commonwealth Court in 1970 (who was the appointed to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1971 but was defeated for election in 1971 and returned to the Commonwealth Court as a senior judge (1983 to 1993)[557]
- Geoffrey Berman: (born September 12, 1959) United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York since 2018 (on June 19, 2020, was fired by William Barr but asserts that he need not resign until United States Senate appoints his successor.
- Kathryn Kathy Boockvar (born October 23, 1968) Penn College Class of 1990[644] since January 5, 2019, has served as Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and thus head of the Pennsylvania Department of State, previously served, as of March 2018, Senior Adviser to the Governor of Pennsylvania on Election Modernization[645] was named co-chair of the Elections Committee of the National Association of Secretaries of State[646]
- Raymond Broderick: Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania (1967–71)
- Peter Brown: at-large Houston City Council member
- Robert Butkin: State Treasurer of Oklahoma (1995–2005)
- David Byerman: Secretary of the Nevada Senate (2010– )
- James Cannon, Class of 1767: Scottish-born American mathematician; one of the principal draftsmen of the State of Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776; often described as the most democratic in America
- Harold L. Ervin, Pennsylvania Superior Court judge from 1954 to 1967.[647]
- Mary Pat Clarke: first woman president of the Baltimore City Council
- Bill Cobey: chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party (1999–2003)
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