The following is a list of individuals associated with

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a private liberal arts women's college in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It is the oldest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite historically women's colleges in the Northeastern United States. ...

through attending as a student, or serving as a member of the faculty or staff.

Notable alumnae

Academics and scientists

Clara Harrison Stranahan Clara Harrison Stranahan (, Harrison; pen name, C. H. Stranahan; April 9, 1831 – January 22, 1905) was an American author and the founder of Barnard College. Long identified with the higher education of women in the United States, she was at one ...

, 1849 - author; founder and trustee of Barnard College *

Harriet Newell Haskell Harriet Newell Haskell (January 14, 1835 – May 6, 1907) was an American educator and school administrator from the U.S. state of Maine. She taught from 1855 to 1860 in Waldoboro, Maine and Boston, Massachusetts. From 1860 to 1868, she was a tea ...

, 1855 - educator and administrator *

Lucy Myers Wright Mitchell Lucy Myers Wright Mitchell (March 20, 1845 – March 10, 1888) was an American writer, historian, and expert on ancient art. Mitchell was one of the first Americans to write and publish a book on classical sculpture and was one of the first women ...

, 1864 - one of the first female classical archaeologists *

Cornelia Clapp Cornelia Maria Clapp (March 17, 1849 – December 31, 1934) was an American Zoology, zoologist and educator, specializing in marine biology. She earned the first Doctor of Philosophy, Ph.D. in biology awarded to a woman in the United States from ...

, 1871 - zoologist and marine biologist * Mary Cutler Fairchild, 1875 - pioneering librarian *

Alice Carter Cook Alice Carter Cook (April 8, 1868 – June 14, 1943), (born Alice Carter), was an American botanist and author whose plant collections are now held by the Smithsonian Institution and the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. Cook was the ...

, circa 1888 - botanist and later faculty, first female recipient of an American botany PhD * Marian E. Hubbard, 1889 - zoology professor *

Alice Huntington Bushee Alice Huntington Bushee (December 4, 1867 – April 28, 1956) was an American librarian and early pioneer in Hispanic studies. She was a professor at Wellesley College and wrote several books, including ''Fundamentals of Spanish Grammar''. Ear ...

, 1891 - Spanish literature professor at Wellesley College *

Martha Warren Beckwith Martha Warren Beckwith (January 19, 1871 – January 28, 1959) was an American folklorist and ethnographer, appointed to the first chair in Folklore established in the U.S. Early life and education Beckwith was born in Wellesley Heights, Mass ...

, 1893 - anthropologist *

Abby Howe Turner Abby Howe Turner (1875 – 1957) was a noted professor of physiology and zoology who founded the department of physiology at Mount Holyoke College. She specialized in colloid osmotic pressure and circulatory reactions to gravity. Life Turner ...

, 1896 - founded Mount Holyoke's department of physiology *

Caroline Ransom Williams Caroline Ransom Williams (February 24, 1872 – February 1, 1952) was an Egyptologist and classical archaeologist. She was the first American woman to be professionally trained as an Egyptologist. She worked extensively with the Metropolitan Mus ...

, 1896 - first female Egyptologist in North America *

Margaret Morse Nice Margaret Morse Nice (December 6, 1883 – June 26, 1974) was an American ornithologist, ethologist, and child psychologist who made an extensive study of the life history of the song sparrow and was author of ''Studies in the Life History of the S ...

, 1905 - ornithologist *

Alzada Comstock Alzada Peckham Comstock (November 23, 1888 – January 15, 1960) was an economist who taught at Mount Holyoke College. She became a Guggenheim Fellow in 1926. Early life and education Comstock was born in Waterford, Connecticut. She earned a B ...

, 1910 - economics professor *

Mildred Sanderson Mildred Leonora Sanderson (May 12, 1889 – October 10, 1914) was an Americans, American mathematician, best known for her mathematical theorem concerning Modular invariant theory, modular invariants. Life Sanderson was born in Waltham, Massa ...

, 1910 - mathematician *

Louise Freeland Jenkins Louise Freeland Jenkins (July 5, 1888 – May 9, 1970) was an American astronomer who compiled a valuable catalogue of stars within 10 parsecs of the sun, as well as editing the 3rd edition of the Yale Bright Star Catalogue. She was born in Fit ...

, 1911 - astronomer *

Marion Elizabeth Blake Marion Elizabeth Blake (March 23, 1892 – September 11, 1961) was a classical languages professor who is known for her work in researching the technology of Roman construction. Blake died in Rome, Italy, in 1961. Early life and education Mario ...

, 1913 - classics professor *

Helen G. Fisk Helen Graves Fisk (1895–1986) was an American vocational support executive who was active in service bureaus in Pasadena and Los Angeles from the 1920s. For many years, she was assistant director at the Pasadena Vocation Bureau where she was ...

, 1917 - vocational services educator *

Rachel Fuller Brown Rachel Fuller Brown (November 23, 1898 – January 14, 1980) was a chemist best known for her long-distance collaboration with microbiologist Elizabeth Lee Hazen in developing the first useful antifungal antibiotic, nystatin, while doing researc ...

, 1920 - chemist who discovered

Nystatin Nystatin, sold under the brandname Mycostatin among others, is an antifungal medication. It is used to treat '' Candida'' infections of the skin including diaper rash, thrush, esophageal candidiasis, and vaginal yeast infections. It may also be ...

Mildred Trotter Mildred Trotter (February 3, 1899 – August 23, 1991) was an American pioneer as a forensic historian and forensic anthropologist. Biography Trotter was born in Monaca, Pennsylvania. She received her B.A. in zoology and physiology from Moun ...

, 1920 -

forensic anthropologist Forensic anthropology is the application of the anatomical science of anthropology and its various subfields, including forensic archaeology and forensic taphonomy, in a legal setting. A forensic anthropologist can assist in the identification o ...

* Elizabeth K. Worley, 1924 - zoologist, microbiologist *

Lucy Weston Pickett Lucy Weston Pickett (January 19, 1904 – November 23, 1997) was a Mary Lyon Professor and Camille and Henry Dreyfus Chair in Chemistry at Mount Holyoke College. Her research on X-ray crystallography and ultraviolet absorption spectroscopy of ...

, 1925 - chemist *

Helen Sawyer Hogg Helen Battles Sawyer Hogg (August 1, 1905 – January 28, 1993) was an American-Canadian astronomer who pioneered research into globular clusters and variable stars. She was the first female president of several astronomical organizations and a ...

, 1926 - astronomer * Alice Standish Allen, 1929 - first female engineering geologist in North America *

Janet Wilder Dakin Janet Wilder Dakin (June 3, 1910 – October 7, 1994), was an American philanthropist and zoologist, known for her animal advocacy and environmental work. Biography Janet Frances Wilder was born in China, the daughter of Isabella Niven and A ...

, 1933 - zoologist who was the youngest sister of

Thornton Wilder Thornton Niven Wilder (April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975) was an American playwright and novelist. He won three Pulitzer Prizes — for the novel ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' and for the plays ''Our Town'' and ''The Skin of Our Teeth'' — a ...

and

Charlotte Wilder Charlotte Wilder (Aug 28, 1898 – May 26, 1980 Brattleboro, Vermont) was an American poet and academic who worked in the Federal Writers Project. Wilder published poetry in ''The Nation'' and ''Poetry Magazine''. She also published poetry ...

Sara Anderson Immerwahr Sara Anderson Immerwahr (August 28, 1914 in Royersford, Pennsylvania – June 25, 2008 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina) was an American Classical archaeologist. Life Immerwahr earned her bachelor's degree from Mount Holyoke College in 1935. O ...

, 1935 - classical archaeologist *

Phoebe Stanton Phoebe Baroody Stanton (1914–2003) was an American architectural historian, professor and urban planner. She taught at Johns Hopkins University, from 1955 until 1982. Stanton was outspoken about the architectural history and design for the city ...

, 1937 -

architectural historian An architectural historian is a person who studies and writes about the history of architecture, and is regarded as an authority on it. Professional requirements As many architectural historians are employed at universities and other facilities ...

, professor at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

, and active in urban planning for the city of Baltimore. * Virginia Griffing, 1940, physicist and chemist, first woman on the faculty of Catholic University of America's physics department * Carolyn Shaw Bell, 1941 - economics professor * Marie Mercury Roth, 1945 - synthetic organic chemist * Eva Moseley, 1953 - curator and archivist * Mary McHenry, 1954 - professor of English credited with introducing

African American literature African American literature is the body of literature produced in the United States by writers of African descent. It begins with the works of such late 18th-century writers as Phillis Wheatley. Before the high point of slave narratives, African-A ...

to Mount Holyoke *

Jane English Jane English (born 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts) is a philosopher, physicist, photographer, journalist and translator. Biography English received her B.A. in Physics from Mount Holyoke College in 1964 and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin ...

, 1964 - physicist, translator, photographer *

Dolores Hayden Dolores Hayden is an American professor emerita of architecture, urbanism, and American studies at Yale University. She is an urban historian, architect, author, and poet. Hayden has made innovative contributions to the understanding of the soc ...

, 1966 - professor of architecture, urbanism, and American studies * Carolyn Collette, 1967 - professor of English * Karen E. Rowe, 1967 - English professor at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

Susan Shirk Susan L. Shirk (born 1945) is a professor at the School of Global Policy and Strategy at the University of California, San Diego. Her research field is Chinese politics. Shirk served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of East ...

, 1967 - professor of political science and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for North Asia during the

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a given ...

administration * Susan B. Vroman, 1968 - Professor of Economics at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

* Lila M. Gierasch, 1970 - professor of chemistry, biochemistry and molecular biology * Melissa McGrath, 1977 - astronomer; Chief Scientist at NASA Marshall Spaceflight Center

Activists

Lucy Stone Lucy Stone (August 13, 1818 – October 18, 1893) was an American orator, abolitionist and suffragist who was a vocal advocate for and organizer promoting rights for women. In 1847, Stone became the first woman from Massachusetts to earn a colle ...

(attended 1839) - women's rights activist *

Olympia Brown Olympia Brown (January 5, 1835 – October 23, 1926) was an American minister and suffragist. She was the first woman to be ordained as clergy with the consent of her denomination. Brown was also an articulate advocate for women's rights and one ...

(attended 1854-55) - women's rights activist * Helen Pitts, 1859 - women's rights activist, second wife of

Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 1817 or 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became ...

, and founder of the

Frederick Douglass Memorial and Historical Association Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederic ...

Eliza Read Sunderland Eliza R. Sunderland (, Read; April 19, 1839 – March 3, 1910) was an American writer, educator, lecturer, and women's rights advocate of the long nineteenth century. She wrote much for literary and religious papers and magazines. She was prominent ...

(graduated 1865) - writer, educator, lecturer, women's rights advocate *

Hortense Parker Hortense Parker Gilliam, born Hortense Parker (1859–1938), was the first known African-American graduate of Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, in 1883. She taught music and piano at elementary school in Kansas City, Missouri from 1906 to 1913. That y ...

, 1883 - daughter of

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

, John Parker and the first

student to graduate from

* Alice Bradford Wiles, 1873 - Chicago clubwoman *

Elizabeth Holloway Marston Sarah Elizabeth Marston ( Holloway; February 20, 1893 – March 27, 1993) was an American attorney and psychologist. She is credited, with her husband William Moulton Marston, with the development of the systolic blood pressure measurement used ...

, 1915 - the inspiration for

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

Ruth Muskrat Bronson Ruth Muskrat Bronson (October 3, 1897 – June 12, 1982) was a Cherokee poet, educator and Indian rights activist. After completing her education, Bronson became the first Guidance and Placement Officer of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. She serve ...

, 1925 - poet, educator, Indian rights activist * Sybil Bailey Stockdale, 1946 - founded the National League of Families of American Prisoners and MIAs in S.E. Asia; Lecturer; widow of '92 U.S. vice-presidential nominee, Adm. James Stockdale * Nancy Skinner Nordhoff, 1954 - environmentalist and philanthropist; designated a Women’s History Month Honoree by the National Women’s History Project in 2006 * Gloria Johnson-Powell (Gloria Johnson), 1958 - child psychiatrist; an important figure in the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, Racial discrimination ...

and the first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

woman to attain tenure at

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...

Rose Dugdale Bridget Rose Dugdale (born 1941), better known as Rose Dugdale, is a former debutante who rebelled against her wealthy upbringing, becoming a volunteer in the militant Irish republican organisation, the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA). ...

- political activist and prominent member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) * Jody Cohen, 1976 - first woman rabbi in Connecticut history; leader in the

Women's Rabbinic Network Women's Rabbinic Network is an American national organization for female Reform rabbis. It was founded in 1980; Rabbi Deborah Prinz was its first overall coordinator, and Rabbi Myra Soifer was the first editor of its newsletter. In 2010 Ellen Wei ...

and

Union for Reform Judaism The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) until 2003, founded in 1873 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, is the congregational arm of Reform Judaism in North America. The other two arms established ...

Lynn Pasquerella Lynn C. Pasquerella is an American academic and the 14th president of the American Association of Colleges and Universities. Before she assumed this position, she was the 18th president of Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, ser ...

, 1980 - medical ethicist; president,

; president of the

Association of American Colleges and Universities The American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) is a global membership organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States. It works to improve quality and equity in undergraduate education and advance liberal education ...

* Louise C. Purington, 1864 - physician and temperance activist *

Mallika Dutt Mallika Dutt leads Inter-Connected, a new initiative that uplifts the independent nature of self, community and planet to advance collective wellbeing. She brings together the power of ancient wisdom and spiritual practices with contemporary tec ...

, 1983 - executive director of Breakthrough, an international human rights organization *

Kavita Ramdas Kavita Nandini Ramdas (born 1963) is a globally recognized advocate for gender equity and justice. Previously, she was the director of the Open Society Foundations’ Women's Rights Program and the senior advisor to the Ford Foundation's presi ...

, 1985 - president and CEO,

Global Fund for Women The Global Fund for Women is a non-profit foundation funding women's human rights initiatives. It was founded in 1987 by New Zealander Anne Firth Murray, and co-founded by Frances Kissling and Laura Lederer to fund women's initiatives around th ...

* Marcia Hofmann, 2000 - digital rights attorney and activist

Actors, musicians, dancers and performers

* Elizabeth Eaton Converse - later known as Connie Converse, 1946 - singer and songwriter *

Caitlin Clarke Caitlin Clarke (born Katherine Anne Clarke, May 3, 1952 – September 9, 2004) was an American theater and film actress best known for her role as Valerian in the 1981 fantasy film ''Dragonslayer (1981 film), Dragonslayer'' and for her role ...

(Katherine Clarke), 1974 - actress *

Michelle Hurst Michelle Hurst (born June 1, 1953) is an Americans, American actress. She played List of Orange Is the New Black characters#Claudette "Miss Claudette" Pelage, Miss Claudette Pelage in the first season of the streaming television series ''Orange ...

, 1974 - actress, known for her role as Miss Claudette on the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

series ''

Orange Is the New Black ''Orange Is the New Black'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''OITNB'') is an American comedy-drama streaming television series created by Jenji Kohan for Netflix. The series is based on Piper Kerman's memoir '' Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Wo ...

'' *

Nancy Gustafson Nancy Gustafson (born June 27, 1956, in Evanston, Illinois) is an American opera singer. She received her B.A. from Mount Holyoke College in 1978 and her M.Mus. from Northwestern University. She has appeared in numerous productions at venues bo ...

, 1978 - opera singer *

Melinda Mullins Melinda Mullins (born April 20, 1958) is an American film, television and theatre actress. Early life and education She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in the Romance languages from Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, in ...

, 1979 - actress *

Donna Kane Donna Kane is an American theater actress. Born in Beacon, NY, she grew up on Long Island and in Wayne, New Jersey, where she won Miss Teenage New Jersey in 1976, and was first runner-up for America's Junior Miss 1980. She was the recipient o ...

, 1984 - actress *

Geneva Carr Geneva Carr (born May 6, 1971) is an American television and stage actress with an extensive acting résumé. She is best known for her portrayal of Marissa Morgan on the CBS television series ''Bull'' and for her performance as Margery in the or ...

, 1988 - actress,

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

nominee, main cast member in CBS television series ''

Bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e., cows), bulls have long been an important symbol in many religions, includin ...

'' *

Kimberly Hebert Gregory Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, a ...

, 1994 - actress *

Zeb Bangash Zebunisa Bangash (born 7 March 1982), better known as Zeb Bangash, is a Pakistani singer-songwriter from Lahore, Punjab. Her family originally comes from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Apart from her solo career, she was the member of music group Zeb and ...

, 2004 - part of Pakistani music duo

Zeb and Haniya Zeb and Haniya ( ps, زیب اور حانیا, pronounced as "Zayb aur Haa-nee-ya") was a Pakistani music duo from Kohat, active from 2007 to 2014. The pair have sung songs in Pashto, Urdu, Dari and Turkish, combining pop with folk music to crea ...

Zoe Weizenbaum Zoë Weizenbaum (born September 21, 1991) is a former American actress, most recognized for her roles in Memoirs of a Geisha and 12 and Holding. Early life Weizenbaum was born in Seattle, Washington to a Jewish mother and a Chinese father. She ...

, 2014 - actress, known for her roles in ''

Memoirs of a Geisha ''Memoirs of a Geisha'' is a historical fiction novel by American author Arthur Golden, published in 1997. The novel, told in first person perspective, tells the story of Nitta Sayuri and the many trials she faces on the path to becoming and wo ...

'' and ''

12 and Holding ''12 and Holding'' is a 2005 American coming of age, coming-of-age drama film directed by Michael Cuesta and starring Conor Donovan, Jesse Camacho, Zoe Weizenbaum, and Jeremy Renner. The film is distributed by IFC Films and was released on May 19, ...

'' *

Sho Madjozi Maya Christinah Xichavo Wegerif (born 9 May 1992), known professionally as Sho Madjozi ( ), is a South African rapper, singer, songwriter, actress and poet. Madjozi incorporates the Tsonga culture through her music and public image. In 201 ...

, 2015 - South African rapper

Artists

Esther Howland Esther Howland (1828–1904) was an artist and entrepreneur who was responsible for popularizing Valentine's Day greeting cards in America. Early life Esther Allen Howland, born in Worcester, Massachusetts, was the daughter of Southworth Al ...

, 1847 - artist noted for her role in popularizing St. Valentine's Day cards *

Minerva J. Chapman Minerva Josephine Chapman (1858–1947) was an American painter. She was known for her work in miniature portraiture, landscape, and still life. Early life Minerva Josephine Chapman was born December 6, 1858,

, 1880 - painter *

Sarah A. Worden Sarah A. Worden (after marriage, Sarah A. Worden Lloyd; October 10, 1855 – February 25, 1918) was an American painter of landscapes and portraits. She was also an art instructor in various schools and for several years, at Mount Holyoke Colleg ...

1883–1891 - painter, art instructor *

Jane Hammond Jane R. Hammond (born 1950) is an American artist who lives and works in New York City. She was influenced by the late composer John Cage.Hilarie M. Sheets. "Jane Hammond: 'Down the Rabbit Hole of Photography'" ARTnews. February 2013. pp. 74–79. ...

, 1972 - artist *

Susan Mohl Powers Susan Mohl Powers (1944 – 2023), born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, was a contemporary artist who sculpted in polygon and planar metal as well as sewn fabric, blending art and science to design sculptures and fabric-on-canvas paintings. The owner o ...

, 1966 - sculptor, painter * Krista Johnson, 1985 - painter *

Maia Cruz Palileo Maia Cruz Palileo is an interdisciplinary artist based in Brooklyn, New York. Their work consists of paintings, drawings and sculptures, and explores they/them Filipino-American heritage through the examination of memory, family photographs, and or ...

, 2001 - artist *

Zehra Laila Javeri Zehra Laila Javeri (Urdu: ; born on 15 October 1971) is a Pakistani artist. She currently resides in Karachi, Pakistan. Javeri's first solo exhibition, titled 'Weeds', opened at Canvas Gallery, Karachi in January 2014. Javeri was greatly infl ...

(year unknown) - artist

Athletes

* Stacy Apfelbaum - rowing cox; gold medal winner at the

1984 World Rowing Championships The 1984 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held on 26 August 1984 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Since 1984 was an Olympic year for rowing, the World Championships did not include Olympic events scheduled for th ...

* Margaret Hoffman, 1934 -

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

who participated in both the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from ...

and

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...

(200 m breaststroke) * Imogene Opton Fish, 1955 -

alpine skier Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for ...

who was captain of the U.S. women's

1952 Winter Olympics The 1952 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VI Olympic Winter Games ( no, De 6. olympiske vinterleker; nn, Dei 6. olympiske vinterleikane) and commonly known as Oslo 1952, was a winter multi-sport event held from 14 to 25 February 195 ...

ski team * Michele Drolet, 1976 - blind cross-country skier who was the first American woman to ever earn a Paralympic

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

medal - bronze at the

1994 Winter Paralympics The 1994 Winter Paralympics ( no, Paralympiske vinterleker 1994; nn, Paralympiske vinterleikane 1994), the sixth Paralympic Winter Games, were held in Lillehammer, Norway, from 10 to 19 March 1994. These Games marked the second time the Paraly ...

* Harriet (Holly) Metcalf, 1981 - executive director and founder of Row As One Institute who won a gold medal in

rowing at the 1984 Summer Olympics Rowing at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, United States featured 14 events in total, for both men and women. Events were held at Lake Casitas. Due to the Eastern Bloc boycott of these Olympics, some of the strongest rowing ...

Mary Mazzio Mary Mazzio is an American documentary filmmaker, attorney, and Rowing at the 1992 Summer Olympics, a rower for the United States in the 1992 Olympics. She founded the independent film company 50 Eggs Films, 50 Eggs. Mazzio received a B.A. in p ...

, 1983 - filmmaker and Olympic athlete who participated in

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

* Olga Maria Sacasa, 1984 -

cyclist Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

was the first woman ever to represent Nicaragua in cycling, at the

Katheryn Curi Katheryn Curi (formerly Katheryn Curi Mattis; born May 29, 1974 in Goshen, Connecticut) is an American former professional racing cyclist who rode for the Webcor Builders Women's Professional Cycling Team, until the sponsor discontinued it befo ...

, 1996 -

who placed first at the National Road Race Championships in Park City,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

in June 2005

Businesswomen

Jean Picker Firstenberg Jean Picker Firstenberg is an American who served as the President and CEO of the American Film Institute from 1980 through 2007. She was the Institute's second CEO and the only female to have held that title. At the time of her appointment, she ...

, 1958 - director and CEO of the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

* Mary Duffy, 1966 - feminist fashion expert, spokeswoman, entrepreneur, author, and motivational speaker, expanding concepts of beauty for the majority of women who do not fit ideal stereotypes popularized by fashion and media Big Beauties/Little Women, Ford Models * Barbara J. Desoer, 1974 - CEO for

Citibank Citibank, N. A. (N. A. stands for " National Association") is the primary U.S. banking subsidiary of financial services multinational Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, and later became First National City ...

N.A. and a member of its board of directors *

Eileen Kraus Eileen Shanley Kraus (July 19, 1938 – July 1, 2017) was an American business executive who broke the glass ceiling to be the first woman to run a major bank in Connecticut. She was inducted into the Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame in 2002. ...

, 1960 - trailblazing woman banker and president of Connecticut National Bank * Audrey A. McNiff, 1980 - managing director and co-head of Currency Sales,

Goldman Sachs Goldman Sachs () is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered at 200 West Street in Lower Manhattan, with regional headquarters in London, Warsaw, Bangalore, H ...

Vicki Roberts Vicki Michele Roberts (born July 3, 1959) is an American attorney and an on-air legal commentator, as well as a television and film personality. Born in Long Island, New York, Roberts obtained a degree in Radio, Television, and Film from Califo ...

, 1980 - attorney, on-air legal commentator, television and film personality * Barbara Cassani, 1982 - first leader of London's successful bid for the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

* Maria Cirino, 1985 - founder and CEO o
.406 Ventures
*

Sheila Lirio Marcelo Sheila Lirio Marcelo is a Filipino-American entrepreneur. She is the co-founder and CEO of Proof of Learn, an education platform. Prior to Proof of Learn, she founded Care.com, an online marketplace for childcare, senior care, special needs care, ...

, 1993 - founder and CEO of

Care.com Care.com is an online marketplace for Child care, childcare, Senior Care, senior care, special needs care, tutoring, Pet sitting, pet care, and housekeeping through membership in a two-sided marketplace. The firm is based in Austin, Texas, Austi ...

College presidents

Susan Tolman Mills Susan Tolman Mills (November 18, 1826 – December 12, 1912) was the co-founder of Mills College (formerly the ''Young Ladies Seminary'' at Benicia, California). Background Mills was born on November 18, 1826, in Enosburgh, Vermont. She was one ...

, 1845 - co-founder and first president of

Mills College Mills College at Northeastern University is a private college in Oakland, California and part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it was ...

Ada Howard Ada Lydia Howard (December 19, 1829 - March 3, 1907) was the first president of Wellesley College. She received a postgraduate education under private teachers and went on to teach at Western College, Ohio from 1861-62. She was also the prin ...

, 1853 - first president of

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...

* Abbie Park Ferguson, 1856 - founder and president of

Huguenot College The Huguenot College in Wellington, South Africa, is a private institute focused on training social and church service workers. Historical overview The Huguenot College has its origins in three educational institutions which previously existed ...

Sarah Ann Dickey Sarah Ann Dickey (April 25, 1838 – January 23, 1904) was an American educator from Ohio who in 1875 founded Mount Hermon Female Seminary, a historically black institution of higher education for women in Clinton, Mississippi. She returned to t ...

, 1869 - founder of

Mount Hermon Female Seminary Mount Hermon Female Sanctuary (18751924) in Clinton, Mississippi was a historically black institution of higher education for women. History Founded in 1875 by Sarah Ann Dickey, the school was patterned after Dickey's alma mater, Mount Holyoke ...

* Florence M. Read, 1909 - former president,

Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman re ...

Yau Tsit Law Yau Tsit Law (1888-1961) was a Chinese Christian educator, and one of the first Chinese women to graduate from Mount Holyoke College. Early life and education Yau Tsit Law attended the True Light Seminary in Canton, where her mother was the princi ...

, 1916 - dean of women,

Lingnan University Lingnan University (LN/LU), formerly called Lingnan College, is a public liberal arts university in Hong Kong. It aims to provide students with an education in the liberal arts tradition and has joined the Global Liberal Arts Alliance since ...

* Pauline Tompkins, 1941 - former president,

Cedar Crest College Cedar Crest College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Allentown, Pennsylvania. At the start of the 2015-2016 Academic term, academic y ...

* Barbara M. White, 1941 - former president,

Alice Stone Ilchman Alice Stone Ilchman (April 18, 1935 – August 11, 2006) was an American academic administrator who worked as the eighth president of Sarah Lawrence College from 1981 to 1998. Early life and education Ilchman was born in Cincinnati to Donald Cr ...

1957 - former president,

Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Yonkers, New York. The college models its approach to education after the Supervision system, Oxford/Cambridge system of one-on-one student-faculty tutorials. Sara ...

Elizabeth Topham Kennan Elizabeth Topham Kennan (born February 25, 1938) is an American academic who served as the 16th president of Mount Holyoke College from 1978 to 1995. She also served as president of the Five Colleges consortium from 1985 to 1994. Education Ken ...

, 1960 - former president,

* Carol Geary Schneider, 1967 - president,

* Nancy J. Vickers, 1967 - president,

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh: ) is a women's liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Founded as a Quaker institution in 1885, Bryn Mawr is one of the Seven Sister colleges, a group of elite, historically women's colleges in the United St ...

Elaine Tuttle Hansen Elaine Tuttle Hansen is an American academic administrator, scholar and university professor who served as the executive director of the Center for Talented Youth at Johns Hopkins University from 2011 to 2018 and the 8th President of Bates Colle ...

, 1969 - president,

Bates College Bates College () is a private liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian Houses as some of the dormitories. It maintains of nature p ...

, 1980 - president,

* Leocadia I. Zak, 2018 - president,

Agnes Scott College Agnes Scott College is a private women's liberal arts college in Decatur, Georgia. The college enrolls approximately 1,000 undergraduate and graduate students. The college is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church and is considered one of the ...

Computer scientists and graphic designers

Jean E. Sammet Jean E. Sammet (March 23, 1928 – May 20, 2017) was an American computer scientist who developed the FORMAC programming language in 1962. She was also one of the developers of the influential COBOL programming language. She received her B.A. i ...

, 1948 - computer scientist who developed the FORMAC programming language *

Susan Kare Susan Kare ( "care"; born February 5, 1954) is an American artist and graphic designer best known for her interface elements and typeface contributions to the first Apple Macintosh from 1983 to 1986. She was employee #10 and Creative Director at ...

, 1975 - original designer of many of the

interface Interface or interfacing may refer to: Academic journals * ''Interface'' (journal), by the Electrochemical Society * ''Interface, Journal of Applied Linguistics'', now merged with ''ITL International Journal of Applied Linguistics'' * '' Inte ...

elements for the original

Apple Macintosh The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and software en ...

Doctors, nurses and psychologists

* Nancy M. Hill, 1859 - Civil War nurse and one of the first female doctors in the U.S. * Seraph Frissell, 1869 - physician, medical writer * Mary Phylinda Dole, 1886, 1889 - became a doctor at a time when it was difficult for women to do so *

Dorothy Hansine Andersen Dorothy Hansine Andersen (May 15, 1901 – March 3, 1963) was an American physician, pediatrician, and pathologist who was the first person to identify cystic fibrosis, the first to describe the disease, and the one to name it. in 1939, she was a ...

, 1922 - doctor involved in cystic fibrosis research (first to identify the disease) *

Virginia Apgar Virginia Apgar (June 7, 1909August 7, 1974) was an American physician, obstetrical anesthesiologist and medical researcher, best known as the inventor of the Apgar Score, a way to quickly assess the health of a newborn child immediately after bir ...

, 1929 - doctor who developed the

Apgar score The Apgar score is a quick way for doctors to evaluate the health of all newborns at 1 and 5 minutes after birth and in response to Neonatal resuscitation, resuscitation. It was originally developed in 1952 by an anesthesiologist at Columbia Univ ...

for evaluating newborns; anesthesiologist *

Florence Wald Florence Wald (April 19, 1917 – November 8, 2008) was an American nurse, former Dean of Yale School of Nursing, and largely credited as "the mother of the American hospice movement".hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life by ...

movement * Ellen P. Reese, 1948 - psychologist *

- professor of physiology and zoology who founded the department of physiology at Mount Holyoke * Gloria Johnson-Powell (Gloria Johnson), 1958 - child psychiatrist; an important figure in the

and the first

woman to attain tenure at

Filmmakers, broadcast presidents, and producers

* Martha Atwell (attended, 1918-1919) - radio director *

Dulcy Singer Dulcy Singer is an American television producer, who served as executive producer for ''Sesame Street'' from 1980–1993, previously she had worked on that series on a television special called '' Christmas Eve on Sesame Street'' in 1978. For man ...

, 1955 - former

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

-winning producer of ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

'' *

Julia Phillips Julia Phillips (née Miller; April 7, 1944 – January 1, 2002) was an American film producer and author. She co-produced with her husband Michael (and others) three prominent films of the 1970s — ''The Sting'', ''Taxi Driver'', and ''Close E ...

(Julia Miller), 1965 -

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

producer and author *

Debra Martin Chase Debra Martin Chase (born October 11, 1956) is an American motion picture and television producer. Her company, Martin Chase Productions, is affiliated with Universal Television, a division of NBCUniversal Television Group. It was affiliated with ...

, 1977 -

producer *

, 1983 - filmmaker and Olympic athlete who participated in

rowing at the 1992 Summer Olympics At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, 14 events in rowing were contested, eight for men and six for women. The events were held at the Lake of Banyoles, situated some north-east of Barcelona. Medal table Men's events Women's events S ...

Sonali Gulati Sonali Gulati is an Indian Americans, Indian American independent filmmaker, feminist, grass-roots activist, and educator. Gulati grew up in New Delhi, India. Her mother, a teacher and textile designer, raised her independently, getting singl ...

, 1996 - filmmaker and director of the film ''

Nalini by Day, Nancy by Night ''Nalini by Day, Nancy by Night'' is a 2005 documentary film by filmmaker Sonali Gulati. This film explores business process outsourcing in India. Told from the perspective of an Indian living in the United States, the film provides a glimpse i ...

'' *

Chloé Zhao Chloé Zhao, born Zhao Ting (, born 31 March 1982), is a Chinese filmmaker, known primarily for her work on independent films. Zhao's debut feature film, ''Songs My Brothers Taught Me'' (2015), premiered at Sundance Film Festival to critical a ...

, 2005 - Academy Award winner, director/filmmaker

Journalists

Janet Huntington Brewster Janet Huntington Brewster (September 18, 1910 – December 18, 1998) was an American philanthropist, writer, Radio broadcasting, radio broadcaster and Humanitarian aid, relief worker during World War II in London. She was the wife of broad ...

, 1933 - philanthropist, writer, and radio broadcaster; wife of

Edward R. Murrow Edward Roscoe Murrow (born Egbert Roscoe Murrow; April 25, 1908 – April 27, 1965) was an American broadcast journalist and war correspondent. He first gained prominence during World War II with a series of live radio broadcasts from Europe fo ...

Beth Karas Beth Karas (born January 29, 1957) is an attorney and TV commentator who worked as a Senior Reporter with ''truTV'', providing commentary on a number of high-profile cases, including the rape trial of Kobe Bryant, the Martha Stewart trial, and th ...

, 1979 - senior reporter, '' CourtTV'' *

Dari Alexander WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secaucus, New Jersey–licensed MyNetworkTV flagship W ...

, 1991 - co-anchor of

WNYW WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secaucus, New Jersey–licensed MyNetworkTV flagship W ...

's weeknight 6 p.m. newscast, and previously a

reporter A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

and part-time anchor for the

Fox News Channel The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

Judges

Maryanne Trump Barry Maryanne Trump Barry (born April 5, 1937) is an American attorney and a retired United States federal judge. She became an Assistant United States Attorney in 1974, and was first appointed to the United States District Court for the District of ...

, 1958 - judge on the

United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (in case citations, 3d Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts: * District of Delaware * District of New Jersey * Ea ...

; older sister of 45th president of the United States

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

Janet Bond Arterton Janet MacArthur Bond Arterton (born February 8, 1944) is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. Education and career Arterton was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She recei ...

, 1966 - judge on the

United States District Court for the District of Connecticut The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut (in case citations, D. Conn.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Connecticut. The court has offices in Bridgeport, Hartford, and New Haven. Appeals ...

* Janet C. Hall, 1970 - judge on the

, chief judge of the District of Connecticut (2013–present) *

Glenda Hatchett Glenda A. Hatchett (born May 31, 1951) is the star of the former court show, ''Judge Hatchett'' and current day ''The Verdict with Judge Hatchett'', and founding partner at the national law firm, The Hatchett Firm. Early life and education Hatc ...

, 1973 - judge on nationally syndicated television series, ''

Judge Hatchett ''Judge Hatchett'' is an American arbitration-based reality court show, produced and distributed by Sony Pictures Television. The series premiered on September 4, 2000 and ran for eight seasons until its cancellation on May 23, 2008. It was Sony ...

Politics

* Louisa "Louise" Maria Torrey Taft, 1845 - mother of President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

Frances Perkins Frances Perkins (born Fannie Coralie Perkins; April 10, 1880 – May 14, 1965) was an American workers-rights advocate who served as the 4th United States secretary of labor from 1933 to 1945, the longest serving in that position. A member of th ...

, 1902 - first woman cabinet member (

U.S. Secretary of Labor The United States Secretary of Labor is a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and as the head of the United States Department of Labor, controls the department, and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all ot ...

from 1933-1945 under President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

) *

Marion West Higgins Marion West Higgins (January 9, 1915 – December 24, 1991) was an American Republican Party politician who served as the first female Speaker of the New Jersey General Assembly. She was only the third woman (after Minnie D. Craig of North D ...

, 1936 - first female

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

of the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for ...

Ella T. Grasso Ella Rosa Giovianna Oliva Grasso (née Tambussi; May 10, 1919 – February 5, 1981) was an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served as the 83rd Governor of Connecticut from January 8, 1975, to December 31, 1980, after re ...

, 1940 - governor of Connecticut; the first female governor elected in her own right in United States history * Jetta Jones, 1947 - lawyer in Chicago, served in Mayor

Harold Washington Harold Lee Washington (April 15, 1922 – November 25, 1987) was an American lawyer and politician who was the 51st Mayor of Chicago. Washington became the first African American to be elected as the city's mayor in April 1983. He served as ma ...

's administration * Joanne H. Alter, 1949 - activist and politician *

Nancy Kissinger Nancy Sharon Kissinger (née Maginnes; born April 13, 1934) is an American philanthropist and socialite, and the wife of former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. The couple married on March 30, 1974, in Arlington, Virginia. Life and career ...

(Nancy Maginnes), 1955 - philanthropist; wife of former U.S. Secretary of State

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...

Nita Lowey Nita Sue Lowey ( ) ( Melnikoff; born July 5, 1937) is an American politician who formerly served as a U.S. Representative from New York from 1989 until 2021. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Lowey also served as co-Dean of the New York C ...

, 1959 -

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

member (D-NY) * Judith Kurland, 1967 - former regional director,

United States Department of Health and Human Services The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is ...

, 1967 - professor of political science and the former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for North Asia during the

administration * Jane Garvey (Jane Famiano), 1969 (M.A.T.) - former head of

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

(FAA) *

Elaine Chao Elaine Lan Chao (born March 26, 1953) is an American businesswoman and former government official. A member of the Republican Party, she served as the 18th United States secretary of transportation in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2021, ...

, 1975 -

U.S. Secretary of Transportation The United States secretary of transportation is the head of the United States Department of Transportation. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to transportation. The secre ...

, 2017-2021,

, 2001–2009; director of the

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

, 1991–1992; former national director,

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016. United Way organizations raise funds ...

Susan Longley Susan Walsh Longley (born December 15, 1955) is an American politician, lawyer, and jurist from Maine. A Democrat, Longley served in the Maine Senate from 1994 to 2002, where she represented Waldo County. In 2002, she sought the Democratic Party's ...

, 1978 - state senator and judge of probate from

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

* Karen Middleton, 1988 - legislator in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

Mona Sutphen Mona K. Sutphen (born November 10, 1967) was the White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy in the Obama administration from 2009 to 2011. She is currently a partner and Head of Investment Strategies at The Vistria Group, a Chicago-based private ...

, 1989 -

Deputy White House Chief of Staff The White House deputy chief of staff is officially the top aide to the White House chief of staff, who is the senior aide to the president of the United States. The deputy chief of staff usually has an office in the West Wing and is responsible ...

in the Obama administration *

Mahua Moitra Mahua Moitra (born 12 October 1974) is an Indian politician and a Member of parliament in the 17th Lok Sabha from Krishnanagar, West Bengal. She contested and won the seat in the 2019 Indian general election as an All India Trinamool Congress ( ...

, 1998 - member of Indian parliament,

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...

Rabiya Javeri Agha Rabiya Javeri Agha (born Rabiya Adila Javeri on December 2, 1963) is the Chairperson of the National Commission for Human Rights in Pakistan and a retired civil servant officer who served in the Government of Pakistan in BPS-22 grade as Federal S ...

, 1983 - a member of Pakistan Administrative Service,

Pakistan Administrative Service The Pakistan Administrative Service, or PAS ( ur, ) (previously known as the District Management Group or DMG before 1 June 2012) is an elite cadre of the Civil Services of Pakistan. The Pakistan Administrative Service over the years has emerg ...

Laura Loomer Laura Elizabeth Loomer (born May 21, 1993) is an American Radical right (United States), far-right and anti-Muslim political activist, white nationalist, conspiracy theorist, and internet personality. She was the Republican Party (United States ...

(transferred) -

alt right The alt-right, an abbreviation of alternative right, is a far-right, white nationalist movement. A largely online phenomenon, the alt-right originated in the United States during the late 2000s before increasing in popularity during the mid-2 ...

conspiracy theorist

Writers

Edna Dean Proctor Edna Dean Proctor (September 18, 1829 – December 18, 1923) was an American author and poet. Although she occasionally wrote short sketches and stories, poetry was her field. Proctor was characterized as a master of pathos. Her early environmen ...

, 1847 - poet *

Emily Dickinson Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massach ...

(attended 1847–1848) - poet *

Emily Gilmore Alden Emily Gillmore Alden (pen name, E. G. A.; January 21, 1834 – June 6, 1914) was an American author and educator. For forty years, Alden was a member of the faculty of Monticello Seminary, and for nearly fifty years, the poet of the school. Alden ...

, 1855 - author and educator *

Julia Harris May Julia Harris May (April 27, 1833 – May 6, 1912) was an American poet, teacher, and school founder of the long nineteenth century. She spent several years teaching in the south. From 1868, she was the head of a private school in Strong, Maine. H ...

, 1856 - poet, teacher, school founder *

Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman (October 31, 1852 – March 13, 1930) was an American author. Biography Freeman was born in Randolph, Massachusetts on October 31, 1852, to Eleanor Lothrop and Warren Edward Wilkins, who originally baptized her " ...

(attended 1870–1871) - novelist and short story writer * Louise Lamprey, 1891 - writer, children's literature *

Anne W. Armstrong Anne Wetzell Armstrong (September 20, 1872 – March 17, 1958) was an American novelist and businesswoman, active primarily in the first half of the 20th century. She is best known for her novel, ''This Day and Time'', an account of life in a ...

(attended 1890–1892) - novelist * Caroline Henderson, 1901 - Dust Bowl author *

Alice Geer Kelsey Alice Geer Kelsey (September 21, 1896 – September 1982) was an American writer of children's books, many of which were based on folk tales she collected during her long public service career in Europe and the Near East. Life and career A ...

, 1918 - writer, children's literature *

, 1919 - poet *

Kathryn Irene Glascock Kathryn Irene Glascock (1901 – February 23, 1923) was an American poet. The Kathryn Irene Glascock Intercollegiate Poetry Contest is named after her. Early life and education Glascock was born in 1901 to parents Hugh Grundy Glascock, an educ ...

, 1922 - poet *

Constance McLaughlin Green Constance McLaughlin Winsor Green (August 21, 1897 in Ann Arbor, Michigan – December 5, 1975 in Annapolis, Maryland) was an American historian. She who won the 1963 Pulitzer Prize for History for '' Washington, Village and Capital, 1800–1878'' ...

, 1925 (master's degree) - historian who won the 1963

Pulitzer Prize for History The Pulitzer Prize for History, administered by Columbia University, is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished book about the history ...

for '' Washington, Village and Capital, 1800-1878'' *

Roberta Teale Swartz Roberta Teale Swartz Chalmers (9 June 1903 in Brooklyn, New York – 13 May 1993 in Wellesley, Massachusetts) was an American academic, a poet, and co-founder of the Kenyon Review. Early life and education The daughter of William King Swart ...

, 1925 - poet *

Virginia Hamilton Adair Virginia Hamilton Adair (February 28, 1913, New York City – September 16, 2004, Claremont, California) was an American poet who became famous later in life with the 1996 publication of ''Ants on the Melon''. Background Mary Virginia Hamilton wa ...

, 1933 - poet * Martha Whitmore Hickman, 1947 - non-fiction author *

Nancy McKenzie Nancy Affleck McKenzie (February 19, 1948) is an American author of historical fiction. Her primary focus is Arthurian legend. Publishing career McKenzie published ''The Child Queen'' in 1994, and its sequel, ''The High Queen'', a year later. ' ...

, 1948 -

Arthurian legend The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. It was one of the three great Wester ...

author *

Jean Rikhoff Jean Marie Rikhoff (May 28, 1926 – June 19, 2018) was an American author and editor. She is best known for writing two trilogies: the Timble Trilogy, made up of ''Dear Ones All'', ''Voyage In, Voyage Out'', and ''Rites of Passage'', and the tri ...

, 1948 - author * Martha Henissart, 1950 - mystery author writing under the pen-name of

Emma Lathen Emma Lathen is the pen name of two American businesswomen: economic analyst Mary Jane Latsis (July 12, 1927 – October 29, 1997) and attorney Martha Henissart (born 1929). The pseudonym is constructed from two authors' names: "M" of Mary an ...

with Mary Jane Latsis *

Nancy Bauer Nancy Bauer, née Nancy Luke (born July 7, 1934) is a Canadian writer and editor who writes for a number of Canadian maritime magazines about people who write, produce crafts and create visual art. Born in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, the daughter ...

(Nancy Luke), 1956 - non-fiction author *

, 1960 - author writing under the pen-name of Clare Munnings with

Jill Ker Conway Jill Ker Conway (9 October 1934 – 1 June 2018) was an Australian-American scholar and author. Well known for her autobiographies, in particular her first memoir, ''The Road from Coorain'', she also was Smith College's first woman president (1 ...

Nancy Bond Nancy Barbara Bond (born 1945) is an American author of children's literature. In 1977 her first book, '' A String in the Harp'', was fantasy novel with an element of folklore, set in West Wales. It received a Newbery honor and the Welsh Tir na n ...

, 1966 - writer, children's literature *

Olivia Mellan Olivia Mellan, (''born October 14, 1946'') is an American therapist and consultant, specialized in money conflict resolution. Since 1982, she has been a leader in the field of money psychology. She is the author or co-author (with Sherry Christie ...

, 1968 - author of six books on money psychology * Patricia Roth Schwartz, 1968 - poet *

Kathleen Eagle Kathleen Eagle (née Pierson; born November 8, 1947) is an American author of over 40 romance novels. Biography Kathleen Pierson was born on November 8, 1947, in Virginia and traveled throughout her childhood with her military family. She has a ...

(Kathleen Pierson), 1970 - romance novelist * Marisabina Russo, 1971 - writer, children's literature *

Wendy Wasserstein Wendy Wasserstein (October 18, 1950 – January 30, 2006) was an American playwright. She was an Andrew Dickson White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University. She received the Tony Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1989 fo ...

, 1971 - playwright who won the 1989

Tony Award for Best Play The Tony Award for Best Play (formally, the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) is an annual award given to the best new (non- musical) play on Broadway, as determined by Tony Award voters. There was no award in the Tonys' first year ...

and the 1989

Pulitzer Prize for Drama The Pulitzer Prize for Drama is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It is one of the original Pulitzers, for the program was inaugurated in 1917 with seven prizes, four of which were a ...

for ''

The Heidi Chronicles ''The Heidi Chronicles'' is a 1988 play by Wendy Wasserstein. The play won the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Production history A workshop production at Seattle Repertory Theatre was held in April 1988, directed by Daniel J. Sullivan, starrin ...

'' * Lynne Barrett, 1972 - author *

Susan Shwartz Susan Shwartz (born December 31, 1949) is an American author.King, T. Jackson. "SFC Interview: Susan Shwartz". ''Science Fiction Chronicle'' 16(7): 5, (pp. 30-33). June/July 1995. Education and career She received her B.A. in English from M ...

, 1972 - science fiction and fantasy author *

Gjertrud Schnackenberg Gjertrud Schnackenberg (; born August 27, 1953, in Tacoma, Washington) is an American poet. Life Schnackenberg graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1975. She lectured at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Washington University, and w ...

, 1975 - poet * Kathleen Hirsch, 1975 - non-fiction author *

Judith Tarr Judith Tarr (born January 30, 1955) is an American fantasy and science fiction author. Life Tarr was born in Augusta, Maine on January 30, 1955. She is the daughter of Earle A. Tarr, Jr. (a waterworks manager and salesman of real estate), and ...

, 1976 - science fiction and fantasy author *

Carol Higgins Clark Carol Higgins Clark (born July 28, 1956) is an American mystery author and actress. She is the daughter of suspense writer Mary Higgins Clark, with whom she co-authored several Christmas novels, and the former sister-in-law of author Mary Jane ...

, 1978 - mystery author *

Lan Cao Lan Cao (born 1961) is the author of the novels '' Monkey Bridge'' (1997) and '' The Lotus and the Storm'' (2014). She is also a professor of law at the Chapman University School of Law, specializing in international business and trade, interna ...

, 1983 - novelist *

Suzan-Lori Parks Suzan-Lori Parks (born May 10, 1963) is an American playwright, screenwriter, musician and novelist. Her 2001 play ''Topdog/Underdog'' won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2002; Parks was the first African-American woman to receive the award for d ...

, 1985 - playwright who won the

2002 Pulitzer Prize A listing of the Pulitzer Prize award winners for 2002: Journalism * Public Service: **''The New York Times'', for ''A Nation Challenged,'' a special section published regularly after the September 11th terrorist attacks on America, which coherentl ...

in Drama for ''

Topdog/Underdog ''Topdog/Underdog'' is a play by American playwright Suzan-Lori Parks which premiered in 2001 off-Broadway in New York City. The next year it opened on Broadway, at the Ambassador Theatre, where it played for several months. In 2002, Parks recei ...

'' * Liz Fenwick, 1985 - novelist * Sibella Giorello, 1985 - novelist * Bridget Hodder, 1985 - young readers novelist * Emilie Burack, 1985 - young readers novelist * Laurie Pennison, 1985 - mystery writer * Marg Stark, 1985 - writer *

Deborah Harkness Deborah Harkness (born 1965) is an American scholar and novelist, best known as an historian and as the author of the All Souls Trilogy, which consists of ''The New York Times'' best-selling novel ''A Discovery of Witches'' and its sequels '' ...

, 1986 - author of the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' best selling novel ''

A Discovery of Witches ''A Discovery of Witches'' is a 2011 historical-fantasy novel and the debut novel by American scholar Deborah Harkness. It follows Diana Bishop, a history of science professor at Yale University, as she embraces her magical blood after finding ...

'' * Sehba Sarwar, 1986 - novelist * C. Leigh Purtill, 1988 - young adult author *

Sabina Murray Sabina Murray (born 1968) is Filipina-American screenwriter and a novelist. She currently is a professor in the MFA Program for Poets & Writers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Background and career The daughter of an American father ...

, 1989 - screenwriter; wrote screenplay for ''

The Beautiful Country ''The Beautiful Country'' is a 2004 drama film set in 1990. It is directed by Hans Petter Moland and starring Damien Nguyen, Nick Nolte, Bai Ling, Chau Thi Kim Xuan, Tim Roth, Anh Thu, Temuera Morrison and John Hussey. The screenplay was wri ...

'' *

Sherri Browning Erwin Sherri Browning Erwin (born October 8, 1968) is an American novelist, best known for literary mash-ups, paranormal romance, and historical romance. Biography Sherri Browning Erwin was born on October 8, 1968, in Holyoke, Massachusetts. She g ...

, 1990 - author of ''Thornbrook Park'' and ''Jane Slayre'', member of

Romance Writers of America Romance Writers of America (RWA) is an American non-profit writers' association founded in 1980. Its mission is to "advance the professional and common business interests of career-focused romance writers through networking and advocacy and by incr ...

* Tahmima Anam, 1997 - author *

Susan J. Elliott Susan J. Elliott (born November 19, 1956) is an American author, media commentator, and lawyer from New York City. She wrote the book, ''Getting Past Your Breakup: How to Turn a Devastating Loss Into the Best Thing That Ever Happened to You.'' P ...

, 2000 - non-fiction author * Betsy James, writer * Hanna Pylväinen, 2007 - author of ''We Sinners'' * Katy Simpson Smith, ?2018 - novelist *

Hayeon Lim Hayeon Lim (; born July 3, 1993), also known as Heiress Hayeon is a South Korean socialite, and author. Early life Hayeon Lim was born and raised in Seoul. Her father was a businessman, financier, banker and her mother was a housewife. From a ...

, 2017 - South Korean socialite and author

Fictional alumnae

* Catherine, '' Black Widow'' * Frances "Baby" Houseman, ''

Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romantic drama dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tells the story of Frances "Baby" Houseman ...

'' * Sarah Gadon, ''

Indignation IndigNation was Singapore's annual, month-long lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer pride season, first held in August 2005 to coincide with the republic's 40th National Day. Background IndigNation begun as a series of LGBT-themed events meant to f ...

'' * Barbara Kornpett, '' The In-Laws'' * Helen Bishop, ''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its fict ...

'' * Bethany Van Nuys, ''

'' * Judy Maxwell, '' What's Up Doc?'' *Rebecca Morgan, ''

Chapelwaite ''Chapelwaite'' is an American horror television series based on the short story "Jerusalem's Lot" by American writer Stephen King. It is written by Peter and Jason Filardi, and premiered on Epix on August 22, 2021. The show has been renewed f ...

Notable faculty, past and present

Artists

* Leonard DeLonga - professor of art *

William Churchill Hammond William Churchill Hammond (November 25, 1860 – April 15, 1949) was an American organist, choirmaster, and music educator. He is noted for being one of the founding members of the American Guild of Organists, and for a lengthy tenure on the facu ...

- organist, choirmaster, chairman of music department * (Charles) Denoe Leedy - concert pianist and music journalist * Harrison Potter - concert pianist and accompanist * David Sanford - professor of music *

Emmett Williams Emmett Williams (4 April 1925 – 14 February 2007) was an American poet and visual artist. He was married to British visual artist Ann Noël. Williams was born in Greenville, South Carolina, grew up in Virginia, and lived in Europe from 1 ...

- artist in residence 1975-1976

Athletics

Mary Ellen Clark Mary Ellen Clark (born December 25, 1962) is an American diver who won Olympic bronze medals in diving at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics. Background Clark attended Radnor High School, in Radnor, Pennsylvania. She received her B.S. in Heal ...

- former head diving coach; diver who won two

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

bronze medals at the

and the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

Authors, actors, poets, and playwrights

* Martha Ackmann - author and journalist *

Awam Amkpa Awam Amkpa is a professor of drama, film and social and cultural analysis at New York University in New York and Abu Dhabi. Actor, playwright, director of stage plays, films and curator of visual arts, Awam Amkpa is a Nigerian-American. Backgroun ...

- actor and playwright *

W.H. Auden Wystan Hugh Auden (; 21 February 1907 – 29 September 1973) was a British-American poet. Auden's poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in ...

- poet *

James Baldwin James Arthur Baldwin (August 2, 1924 – December 1, 1987) was an American writer. He garnered acclaim across various media, including essays, novels, plays, and poems. His first novel, '' Go Tell It on the Mountain'', was published in 1953; de ...

- Five Colleges faculty and novelist *

Sven Birkerts Sven Birkerts (born 21 September 1951) is an American essayist and literary critic. He is best known for his book ''The Gutenberg Elegies'' (1994), which posits a decline in reading due to the overwhelming advances of the Internet and other tec ...

- author, ''The Gutenberg Elegies'' *

Joseph Brodsky Iosif Aleksandrovich Brodsky (; russian: link=no, Иосиф Александрович Бродский ; 24 May 1940 – 28 January 1996) was a Russian and American poet and essayist. Born in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), USSR in 1940, ...

- winner of the 1987

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...

, and

Poet Laureate A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate) is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) ...

of the United States for 1991–1992 *

Luis Cernuda Luis Cernuda Bidón (September 21, 1902 – November 5, 1963) was a Spanish poet, a member of the Generation of '27. During the Spanish Civil War, in early 1938, he went to the UK to deliver some lectures and this became the start of an exile t ...

- poet *

Anita Desai Anita Desai, born Anita Mazumdar (born 24 June 1937) is an Indian novelist and the Emerita John E. Burchard Professor of Humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. As a writer she has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize three t ...

- novelist * Anthony Giardina - novelist *

John Irving John Winslow Irving (born John Wallace Blunt Jr.; March 2, 1942) is an American-Canadian novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. Irving achieved critical and popular acclaim after the international success of ''The World According to G ...

- author of ''

The Cider House Rules ''The Cider House Rules'' (1985) is a novel by American writer John Irving, a ''Bildungsroman'' that was later adapted into a 1999 The Cider House Rules (film), film and a stage play by Peter Parnell. The story, set in the pre– and post–Wor ...

'', and ''

The World According to Garp ''The World According to Garp'' is John Irving's fourth novel, about a man, born out of wedlock to a feminist leader, who grows up to be a writer. Published in 1978, the book was a bestseller for several years. It was a finalist for the Nation ...

'' *

Denis Johnston (William) Denis Johnston (18 June 1901 – 8 August 1984) was an Irish writer. Born in Dublin, he wrote mostly plays, but also works of literary criticism, a book-length biographical essay of Jonathan Swift, a memoir and an eccentric work on co ...

- playwright *

Brad Leithauser Brad E. Leithauser (born February 27, 1953) is an American poet, novelist, essayist, and teacher. After serving as the Emily Dickinson Lecturer in the Humanities at Mount Holyoke College and visiting professor at the MFA Program for Poets & Writ ...

- author, poet * Margaret Chai Maloney - author *

Jaime Manrique Jaime Manrique (born 16 June 1949) is a bilingual Colombian American novelist, poet, essayist, educator, and translator. His work is a representation of his cultural upbringing and heritage mixed with the flavors of his education in English. A pri ...

- author, poet * Mary Olivia Nutting - librarian and historian *

Valerie Martin Valerie Martin (née Metcalf; born March 14, 1948) is an American novelist and short story writer. Her novel ''Property'' (2003) won the Orange Prize for Fiction. In 2012, ''The Observer'' named ''Property'' as one of "The 10 best historical no ...

- novelist and short story writer *

Mary Jo Salter Mary Jo Salter (born August 15, 1954) is an American poet, a co-editor of The ''Norton Anthology of Poetry'' and a professor in the Writing Seminars program at Johns Hopkins University. Life Salter was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and was r ...

- poet and a coeditor of The '' Norton Anthology of Poetry'' *

Bapsi Sidhwa Bapsi Sidhwa ( ur, بیپسی سدھوا; born 11 August 1938) is a Pakistani novelist of Gujarati Parsi Zoroastrian descent who writes in English and is a resident in the United States. She is best known for her collaborative work with Indo- ...

- novelist * Paul Smyth - poet *

Ada L. F. Snell Ada Laura Fonda Snell (May 11, 1870 – April 18, 1972) was an American poet and college professor. She taught English at Mount Holyoke College from 1892 until 1938. Early life and education Ada Laura Fonda Snell was born in Geneva, New York, ...

- poet *

Genevieve Taggard Genevieve Taggard (November 28, 1894 – November 8, 1948) was an American poet. Biography Genevieve Taggard was born in Waitsburg, Washington, to James Taggard and Alta Arnold, both of whom were school teachers. Her parents were both active mem ...

- poet *

Peter Viereck Peter Robert Edwin Viereck (August 5, 1916 – May 13, 2006) was an American poet and professor of history at Mount Holyoke College. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1949 for the collection ''Terror and Decorum''.Pulitzer Prize for Poetry The Pulitzer Prize for Poetry is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes awarded annually for Letters, Drama, and Music. It was first presented in 1922, and is given for a distinguished volume of original verse by an American author, published ...

for ''Terror and Decorum'' and professor of Russian History * Richard Weber - Irish poet; visiting lecturer from 1967 to 1970 * Douglas Whynott - author

Education

Eunice Caldwell Cowles Eunice Caldwell Cowles (February 4, 1811 – September 10, 1903) was an American educator who influenced hundreds of women in the U.S. and abroad. She was the first associate of Mary Lyon in the opening of Mount Holyoke Seminary (now Mount Holyo ...

- assistant to Mary Lyon in the founding of Mount Holyoke Female Sminary * Robert Hess (1938–1994) - president of

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls about 15,000 undergraduate and 2,800 graduate students on a 35-acre campus. Being New York City's first publ ...

Mary Lyon Mary Mason Lyon (; February 28, 1797 – March 5, 1849) was an American pioneer in women's education. She established the Wheaton Female Seminary in Norton, Massachusetts, (now Wheaton College) in 1834. She then established Mount Holyoke Femal ...

- founder of Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in 1837 (later Mount Holyoke College) *

Beverly Daniel Tatum Beverly Christine Daniel Tatum (born September 27, 1954) is a psychologist, administrator, and educator who has conducted research and written books on the topic of racism. Focusing specifically on race in education, racial identity development in ...

- president of

Historians

* Michael Burns *

Joseph Ellis Joseph John-Michael Ellis III (born July 18, 1943) is an American historian whose work focuses on the lives and times of the founders of the United States of America. '' American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson'' won a National Boo ...

* Robert Matteson Johnston *

Stephen F. Jones Stephen F. Jones (born 1953) is an English expert on post-Communist societies in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe who currently serves as Chair of Russian and Eurasian Studies at Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts. Jon ...

William S. McFeely William Shield McFeely (September 25, 1930 – December 11, 2019) was an American historian known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning 1981 biography of Ulysses S. Grant, as well as his contributions to a reevaluation of the Reconstruction era, and f ...

* Nellie Neilson *

Bertha Putnam Bertha Haven Putnam (1872 – February 26, 1960) was an American historian, specialising on the judicial and administrative history of medieval England. Putnam grew up in Philadelphia, the daughter of George Haven Putnam, author and publisher ...

Annah May Soule Annah May Soule (September 5, 1859 – March 17, 1905) was a professor of American history and political economy at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts. Early life Annah May Soule was born in Port Huron, Michigan, and raised in Jackson, ...

Peter Viereck Peter Robert Edwin Viereck (August 5, 1916 – May 13, 2006) was an American poet and professor of history at Mount Holyoke College. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1949 for the collection ''Terror and Decorum''.Christopher Benfey Christopher Benfey (born October 28, 1954) is an American literary critic and Emily Dickinson scholar. He is the Mellon Professor of English at Mount Holyoke College. Early life and education Benfey was born in Merion, Pennsylvania, but spent ...

- professor of English * Peter Berek - professor of English *

- classics professor * Flora Bridges - taught Greek and English *

Gordon Keith Chalmers Gordon Keith Chalmers (7 February 1904 in Waukesha, Wisconsin – 8 May 1956 in Hyannis, Massachusetts) was a scholar of seventeenth-century English thought and letters, president of Rockford College and Kenyon College, and a national leader i ...

- professor of English * Carolyn Collette - professor of English *

Emmanuel Chukwudi Eze Emmanuel Chukwudi Eze (18 January 196331 December 2007) was a Nigerian philosopher. Eze was a specialist in postcolonial philosophy. He wrote as well as edited influential postcolonial histories of philosophy in Africa, Europe, and the Americas. ...

- philosopher *

Leah Blatt Glasser Leah Blatt Glasser is an American literary critic and Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman scholar at Mount Holyoke College. She was Dean of First-Year Studies and is currently a Lecturer in English at Mount Holyoke College. Her former student (the Pulit ...

- dean of first-year studies and lecturer in English * Mary McHenry - professor of English *

Indira Viswanathan Peterson __NOTOC__ Indira may refer to: People * Indira (name) Films and books * ''Indira'', an 1873 novella by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee * ''Indira'' (film), directed by Suhasini Manirathnam * ''Indira'' (1989 film), a Hindi film (Hema malini as Indir ...

- professor of Asian Studies * William H. Quillian - professor of English * Clara F. Stevens - professor of English, department head * Ellen Bliss Talbot - professor of Philosophy and chair of the Department of Philosophy and Psychology for 32 years *

Jean Wahl Jean André Wahl (; 25 May 188819 June 1974) was a French philosopher. Early career Wahl was educated at the École Normale Supérieure. He was a professor at the University of Paris, Sorbonne from 1936 to 1967, broken by World War II. He was in ...

- philosopher *

Donald Weber Donald Weber is a literary critic and a specialist in Jewish American literature and film studies. He is the Lucia, Ruth, and Elizabeth MacGregor Professor of English and Chair of the English department at Mount Holyoke College. Background Weber ...

- professor of English *

Jon Western Jon Western (1963 – January 29, 2022) was an American political scientist who was the Carol Hoffmann Collins '63 Professor of International Relations and Five College Professor of International Relations at Mount Holyoke College and the Five ...

- professor of international relations * Mary Gilmore Williams - professor of Greek

Journalists

Todd Brewster Todd Brewster is an American author, journalist, and film producer. He is presently the senior visiting lecturer in journalism at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts. Career Brewster served as senior editorial producer for ...

- journalist, author, film producer, and current senior visiting lecturer in journalism

Politics

Shirley Chisholm Shirley Anita Chisholm ( ; ; November 30, 1924 – January 1, 2005) was an American politician who, in 1968, became the first black woman to be elected to the United States Congress. Chisholm represented New York's 12th congressional distr ...

- U.S. representative, 1968–1983, founding member of the

Congressional Black Caucus The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) is a caucus made up of most African-American members of the United States Congress. Representative Karen Bass from California chaired the caucus from 2019 to 2021; she was succeeded by Representative Joyce ...

, and simultaneously the first woman and the first African-American to run for U.S. president *

Ellen Deborah Ellis Ellen Deborah Ellis (1878 – 1974) was an American Professor of history and political science. She founded the political science department at Mount Holyoke College and was named its first chairman. Biography Ellen Deborah Ellis was born in Ph ...

- founder and first chair of the political science department at the college * Jean Grossholtz - professor emeritus of politics;

bodybuilder Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses o ...

who won a silver medal at the 1994

Gay Games The Gay Games is a worldwide sport and cultural event that promotes acceptance of sexual diversity, featuring lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) athletes, artists and other individuals. Founded as the Gay Olympics, it was starte ...

* W. Anthony Lake - U.S. National Security Advisor, 1993–1997 *

Christopher Pyle Christopher H. Pyle (born 1939) is a journalist and Professor Emeritus of Politics at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts. He testified to Congress about the use of military intelligence against civilians, worked for the Senate Ju ...

- professor of politics, journalist and whistleblower *

Margaret Rotundo Margaret "Peggy" R. Rotundo (born July 16, 1949) is an American politician from Maine. Rotundo served as a Democratic member of the Maine House of Representatives, representing District 74, which included part of Lewiston, from 2008 until 2016. ...

- Maine State legislator *

Cyrus Vance Cyrus Roberts Vance Sr. (March 27, 1917January 12, 2002) was an American lawyer and United States Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter from 1977 to 1980. Prior to serving in that position, he was the United States Deputy Secretary of ...

- U.S. Secretary of State, 1977–1980

Sciences and social sciences

* A. Elizabeth Adams - zoologist * Katherine Aidala - physicist * Mildred Allen - physicist *

Elisabeth Bardwell Elisabeth Miller Bardwell (December 4, 1831 in Colrain, Massachusetts – May 27, 1899 in Greenfield, Massachusetts) was an American astronomer whose main area of study was meteor showers. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1866, and ...

- astronomer *

Susan R. Barry Susan R. Barry is a Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences and Professor Emeritus of Neuroscience and Behavior at Mount Holyoke College and the author of two books, ''Fixing My Gaze: A Scientist's Journey into Seeing in Three Dimensions'' and ...

- neurobiologist *

Grace Bates Grace Elizabeth Bates (13 August 1914 – 19 November 1996) was an American mathematician and one of few women in the United States to be granted a Ph.D. in mathematics in the 1940s. She became an emeritus professor at Mount Holyoke College. Bate ...

- mathematician *

John Bissell Carroll John Bissell Carroll (June 5, 1916 – July 1, 2003) was an American psychologist known for his contributions to psychology, linguistics and psychometrics.Stansfield, Charles W. “Carroll, John Bissell.” ''Concise Encyclopedia of Educatio ...

- psychologist * Jill Bubier - environmental scientist * Patty Brennan - evolutionary biologist *

- zoologist and marine biologist *

- zoologist, youngest sister of

and

* Ethel B. Dietrich - economist, foreign service officer * Melinda Darby Dyar - planetary geologist, mineralogist, and spectroscopist *

Joanne Elliott Joanne Elliott (born December 5, 1925) is an American mathematician specializing in potential theory, who has been described as a "disciple" of her co-author, probability theorist William Feller. She is a professor emeritus of mathematics at Rutge ...

- mathematician *

Alice Hall Farnsworth Alice Hall Farnsworth (October 19, 1893 – October 1, 1960) was an American astronomer. She was director of John Payson Williston Observatory at Mount Holyoke College from 1936 until her retirement in 1957. Early life Alice Hall Farnsworth wa ...

- astronomer, director of the John Payson Williston Observatory * Anna Lockhart Flanigen - chemistry professor from 1903 to 1910 *

Dorothy Hahn Dorothy Anna Hahn (1876–1950) was a lifelong educator and American professor of organic chemistry at Mount Holyoke College. Her research utilized the then newly developed technique of ultraviolet spectroscopy to study hydantoins. Biography D ...

- organic chemist *

Anna J. Harrison Anna Jane Harrison (December 23, 1912 – August 8, 1998) was an American organic chemist and a professor of chemistry at Mount Holyoke College for nearly forty years. She was the first female President of the American Chemical Society, and the ...

- organic chemist, first female President of the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...

* Olive Hazlett - mathematician * Amy Hewes - economist * Karen Hollis - psychologist * Janice Hudgings - physicist, former associate dean of faculty at Mount Holyoke College * Elizabeth Laird - head of the physics department from 1903 to 1940 * Flora Belle Ludington - librarian *

Emilie Martin Emilie Norton Martin (30 December 1869 – 8 February 1936) was an American mathematician and professor of mathematics at Mount Holyoke College. Life Martin earned her bachelor's degree at Bryn Mawr College in 1894 majoring in mathematics an ...

- mathematician *

Mark McMenamin Mark A. S. McMenamin (born c. 1957) is an American paleontologist and professor of geology at Mount Holyoke College. He has contributed to the study of the Cambrian explosion and the Ediacaran biota. He is the author of several books, most ...

- paleontologist and geologist *

Ann Haven Morgan Ann Haven Morgan (born "Anna" May 6, 1882 – June 5, 1966) was an American zoologist and ecologist. Biography One of three children of Stanley G. Morgan and Julia A. Douglass Morgan, Anna Morgan was born in Waterford, Connecticut and attend ...

- zoologist *

Lucy Taxis Shoe Meritt Lucy Taxis Shoe Meritt (August 7, 1906, in Camden, New Jersey – Austin, Texas, April 13, 2003) was a classical archaeologist and a scholar of Greek architectural ornamentation and mouldings. Biography Born in Camden, New Jersey, Lucy Shoe ...

, classical archaeologist and Greek scholar * Kerstin Nordstrom - physicist *

Donal O'Shea Donal O'Shea is a Canadian mathematician, who is also noted for his bestselling books. He served as the fifth president of New College of Florida in Sarasota, from July 1, 2012, until June 30, 2021. He was succeeded by Patricia Okker on July 1, 2 ...

- mathematician * Harriet Pollatsek - mathematician *

Becky Wai-Ling Packard Becky Wai-Ling Packard is Professor of Psychology and Education, and former Director of the Weissman Center for Leadership, Associate Dean of Faculty, and Founding Director of Teaching and Learning at Mount Holyoke College. She received her B.A ...

- educational psychologist *

- chemist * Louise Fitz-Randolph, 1872 - art historian; established Department of Art and plaster cast collection in Dwight Art Memorial Building (forerunner of

Mount Holyoke College Art Museum The Mount Holyoke College Art Museum (established 1876) in South Hadley, Massachusetts, is located on the Mount Holyoke College campus and is a member of Museums10. It is one of the oldest teaching museums in the country, dedicated to providing ...

) * Ellen P. Reese - psychologist * Margaret M. Robinson - mathematician * Lydia Shattuck - botanist, founding member of the American Chemical Society *

Mignon Talbot Mignon Talbot (August 16, 1869 – July 18, 1950) was an American paleontologist. Talbot recovered and named the only known fossils of the dinosaur ''Podokesaurus holyokensis'', which were found near Mount Holyoke College in 1910, and published ...

- paleontologist who recovered and named the only fossils of the dinosaur ''Podokesaurus holyokensis'' *

- founder of Mount Holyoke College's department of physiology *

Esther Boise Van Deman Esther Boise Van Deman (October 1, 1862 – 3 May 1937) was a leading archaeologist of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She developed techniques that allowed her to estimate the building dates of ancient buildings in Rome. Life Esther ...

- archeologist *

Anne Sewell Young Anne Sewell Young (January 2, 1871 – August 15, 1961) was an American astronomer. She was an astronomy professor at Mount Holyoke College for 37 years. Biography Anne Sewell Young was born in Bloomington, Wisconsin on January 2, 1871, to Rever ...

- astronomer, director of the John Payson Williston Observatory *

Antoni Zygmund Antoni Zygmund (December 25, 1900 – May 30, 1992) was a Polish mathematician. He worked mostly in the area of mathematical analysis, including especially harmonic analysis, and he is considered one of the greatest analysts of the 20th century. ...

- mathematician, co-founder of the Chicago school of mathematical analysis

Actors

* Michael Burns - Moondoggie in ''

Gidget Gets Married ''Gidget Gets Married'' is a 1972 American made-for television comedy film produced by Screen Gems for ABC. It was written by John McGreevey, directed by E.W. Swackhamer and starred Monie Ellis as Gidget. Plot Now that Jeff has completed his ...

'', 1972

Presidents

A number of individuals have acted as head of Mount Holyoke. Until 1888, the term principal was used. From 1888 to the present, the term president has been used. *1837–1849:

, 1st president (founder and principal) *1849–1850: Mary C. Whitman, 2nd president (principal) *1850–1865: Mary W. Chapin, 3rd president (principal) *1865–1867: Sophia D. Stoddard 4th president (acting principal) *1867–1872: Helen M. French, 5th president (principal) *1872–1883: Julia E. Ward, 6th president (principal) *1883–1889: Elizabeth Blanchard, 7th president (principal and president) *1889: Mary A. Brigham, 8th president (president elect - died in an accident) *1889–1890: Louisa F. Cowles, 9th president (acting president) *1890–1900:

Elizabeth Storrs Mead Elizabeth Storrs Mead (''née'' Billings; May 21, 1832 – March 25, 1917) was an American educator who was the 10th President of Mount Holyoke College from 1890 - 1900. She taught at Andover Seminary and Oberlin College, before becoming the firs ...

, 10th president *1900–1937:

Mary Emma Woolley Mary Emma Woolley (July 13, 1863 – September 5, 1947) was an American educator, peace activist and women's suffrage supporter. She was the first female student to attend Brown University and served as the 11th President of Mount Holyoke College ...

, 11th president *1937–1957: Roswell G. Ham, 12th president (first male president of MHC) *1954:

Meribeth E. Cameron Meribeth Elliott Cameron (May 22, 1905, Ingersoll, Ontario, Canada – July 12, 1997, Holyoke, Massachusetts) was an American historian of China and academic who served as the 13th (Acting) President of Mount Holyoke College from 1968-69. She wa ...

, served as acting president for part of 1954 while President Ham was on leave *1957–1968:

Richard Glenn Gettell Richard Glenn Gettell (March 3, 1912 – August 14, 1988) was an American educator who served as the 12th President of Mount Holyoke College from 1957 to 1968. His mother, Nelene Groff Gettell (née Knapp), taught at Amherst High School fr ...

, 13th president *1966:

, served as acting president part of 1966 while President Gettell was on leave *1968–1969:

, 14th president (acting president) *1969–1978:

David Truman David Bicknell Truman (June 1, 1913 – August 28, 2003) was an American academic who served as the 15th president of Mount Holyoke College from 1969–1978. He is also known for his role as a Columbia University administrator during the Columbia ...

, 15th president *1978–1995:

'60, 16th president *1984:

, served as acting president for part of 1984 while President Kennan was on leave *1995: Peter Berek, served as interim president in fall 1995 *1996–2010:

Joanne V. Creighton Joanne Vanish Creighton (born 1942) is an American academic who served as the 17th President of Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, from 1996-2010. On August 10, 2011, the Haverford College Board of Managers named her interim ...

, 17th president *2002:

, served as acting president for part of 2002 while President Creighton was on leave *2010–2016:

'80, 18th president *2016–2022: Sonya Stephens, 19th president *2022-2023:

, served as interim president *2023-present: Danielle Ren Holley, 20th president, first Black president of MHC

Commencement speakers

The following is a list of Mount Holyoke College

commencement speaker A commencement speech or commencement address is a speech given to graduating students, generally at a university, although the term is also used for secondary education institutions and in similar institutions around the world. The commencement ...

s by year.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mount Holyoke College people Lists of people by university or college in Massachusetts *People