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The School of General Studies, Columbia University (GS) is a
liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such colleges aim to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual capac ...
and one of the
undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-lev ...
colleges A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...
of
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, situated on the university's main campus in
Morningside Heights Morningside Heights is a neighborhood on the West Side of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Morningside Drive to the east, 125th Street to the north, 110th Street to the south, and Riverside Drive to the west. Morningside ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. GS is known primarily for its traditional B.A. program for non-traditional students (those who have had an academic break of at least one year or are pursuing dual degrees). GS students make up almost 30% of the Columbia undergraduate population (including Columbia College, the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences,
Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...
, and GS). GS offers dual-degree programs with several leading universities around the world. It offers dual degrees with
List College Albert A. List College of Jewish Studies, known simply as List College, is the undergraduate school of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTS). It was founded by Solomon Schechter in 1909 as the Teachers Institute with the original goa ...
of the Jewish Theological Seminary,
Sciences Po , motto_lang = fr , mottoeng = Roots of the Future , type = Public university, Public research university''Grande école'' , established = , founder = Émile Boutmy , a ...
in France,
Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...
in Ireland,
Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...
in Israel, and
City University of Hong Kong City University of Hong Kong (CityU) is a world-class public research university located in Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1984 as City Polytechnic of Hong Kong and became a fully accredited university in 1994. Currently, CityU is ...
. It also offers the BA/MA Option with the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the Combined Plan and the MS Express program with the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and five-year joint degrees with the
School of International and Public Affairs The School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University (SIPA) is the international affairs and public policy school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university located in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, New York City. It ...
. GS offers the Postbaccalaureate Premedical Program, the oldest and largest program of its kind in the United States. Notable alumni include
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
winners
Simon Kuznets Simon Smith Kuznets (; rus, Семён Абра́мович Кузне́ц, p=sʲɪˈmʲɵn ɐˈbraməvʲɪtɕ kʊzʲˈnʲɛts; April 30, 1901 – July 8, 1985) was an American economist and statistician who received the 1971 Nobel Memorial Pr ...
,
Baruj Benacerraf Baruj Benacerraf (; October 29, 1920 – August 2, 2011) was a Venezuelan-American immunologist, who shared the 1980 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the "discovery of the major histocompatibility complex genes which encode cell s ...
, and
Louise Glück Louise Elisabeth Glück ( ; born April 22, 1943) is an American poet and essayist. She won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Literature, whose judges praised "her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal". He ...
, as well as
Isaac Asimov yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...
,
J.D. Salinger Jerome David Salinger (; January 1, 1919 January 27, 2010) was an American author best known for his 1951 novel ''The Catcher in the Rye''. Salinger got his start in 1940, before serving in World War II, by publishing several short stories in ''S ...
,
Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( , born July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She set many oth ...
,
Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...
and
Princess Firyal of Jordan Firyal Irshaid ( ar, فريال إرشيد, born 1945) is a Jordanian humanitarian and philanthropist. She became a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in 1992, working on programs for education and protection of world heritage. She is a board member at t ...
.


History


Predecessor institutions

GS's evolutionary ancestor is the now-defunct, all-male Seth Low College, named for former Brooklyn mayor and President of Columbia
Seth Low Seth Low (January 18, 1850 – September 17, 1916) was an American educator and political figure who served as the mayor of Brooklyn from 1881 to 1885, the president of Columbia University from 1890 to 1901, a diplomatic representative of t ...
. It was established in
Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third largest central business district in New York City after Midtown Manhattan and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is known for its office and ...
in 1928 to help alleviate the flood of Jewish applicants to Columbia College. The entrance requirements for Seth Low Junior College were reportedly the same as those enforced in Columbia College. Following completion of the two-year program, graduates could complete their undergraduate degrees at the University's professional schools, such as the
School of Law A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...
,
Business School A business school is a university-level institution that confers degrees in business administration or management. A business school may also be referred to as school of management, management school, school of business administration, o ...
, or School of Engineering and Applied Science (all of which conferred terminal bachelor's degrees at the time) or earn B.S. degrees in the liberal arts as University Undergraduates. Seth Low Junior College was closed in 1936 due to the adverse economic effects of the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
and concomitant popularity of the tuition-free
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 ...
in 1930. Henceforth, its remaining students were absorbed into the Morningside Heights campus as students in the University Undergraduate program, which was established by
Nicholas Murray Butler Nicholas Murray Butler () was an American philosopher, diplomat, and educator. Butler was president of Columbia University, president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, and the deceased Ja ...
in 1904. University Extension was responsible for the founding of the
Columbia Business School Columbia Business School (CBS) is the business school of Columbia University, a Private university, private research university in New York City. Established in 1916, Columbia Business School is one of six Ivy League business schools and is one ...
, the School of General Studies and the School of Dental and Oral Surgery (now the
College of Dental Medicine Dentistry throughout the world is practiced differently, and training in dentistry varies as well. Africa and Middle East Egypt Dentistry in Egypt has a long history, with the dentist occupation first appearing as early as 3000 BC. There is ...
). The School of Continuing Education (now the School of Professional Studies), a separate school, was later established to reprise University Extension's former role.


The Establishment of the School of General Studies

With an influx of students attending the University on the
GI Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...
following the resolution of World War II, in December 1946, the University Undergraduate program was reorganized as an official undergraduate college for "qualified students who, because of employment or for other reasons, are unable to attend other schools of the University." Columbia University pioneered the use of the term "General Studies" when naming the college, adapting the medieval term for universities, "Studium Generale." Thus, the School of General Studies bears no semblance to general studies or extension studies programs at other universities in the United States. In December 1968, the University Council permitted GS to grant the B.A. degree instead of the B.S. degree (over the objections of some members of the Columbia College Faculty).


Merging of Columbia College and School of General Studies Faculties

In 1991, the Columbia College (CC), School of General Studies (GS), and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) faculties were merged into the Faculty of Arts & Sciences, which resulted in the complete academic integration between the School of General Studies and Columbia College. As a result, both GS and CC students receive B.A. degrees conferred by the Trustees of Columbia University through the Faculty of Art & Sciences, and GS is recognized as an official liberal arts college at Columbia University.


Academics

GS students make up almost 30% of the Columbia undergraduate population and in 2013 were reported as consistently collectively earning the highest average GPA among undergraduates at Columbia University.https://s3.amazonaws.com/BWARCHIVE/2013/may13.pdf Approximately 20% of GS students are part-time students who have significant, full-time work commitments in addition to their academic responsibilities. Numerous GS students have gone on to win prestigious fellowships, including the
Rhodes Scholarship The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...
, the
Gates Cambridge Scholarship The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation established the Gates Cambridge Scholarships in 2000 with a $210 million donation to support outstanding graduate students' study at the University of Cambridge. The scholarship is one of the most competitiv ...
, and the
Fulbright Scholarship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
. The School of General Studies confers the degree of
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in more than 70 majors. All GS students are required to complete the
Core Curriculum In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...
, which includes University Writing, Literature/Humanities, Contemporary Civilization/Social Science, Art Humanities, Music Humanities, Global Core, Quantitative Reasoning, Science, and Foreign Language. GS offers dual degree programs with
Sciences Po , motto_lang = fr , mottoeng = Roots of the Future , type = Public university, Public research university''Grande école'' , established = , founder = Émile Boutmy , a ...
, the
City University of Hong Kong City University of Hong Kong (CityU) is a world-class public research university located in Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1984 as City Polytechnic of Hong Kong and became a fully accredited university in 1994. Currently, CityU is ...
,
Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...
(
University of Dublin The University of Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Átha Cliath), corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a university located in Dublin, Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dubl ...
) in Ireland, and List College of the Jewish Theological Seminary. It also offers dual degree programs with the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the
School of International and Public Affairs The School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University (SIPA) is the international affairs and public policy school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university located in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, New York City. It ...
, and
Columbia Business School Columbia Business School (CBS) is the business school of Columbia University, a Private university, private research university in New York City. Established in 1916, Columbia Business School is one of six Ivy League business schools and is one ...
. GS has a Post-baccalaureate Premedical Program, the oldest program of its kind.


Admission

Admission to Columbia GS requires an online application, official high school (or GED) transcripts, SAT or ACT test scores within the past eight years or a score on the General Studies Admissions Examination, an essay of 1,500-2,000 words, and two recommendation letters. Interviews are conducted in person and over phone.


Dual degree programs


Joint Program with the Jewish Theological Seminary – Albert A. List College

Since 1954, the
Jewish Theological Seminary of America The Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) is a Conservative Jewish education organization in New York City, New York. It is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studie ...
(JTS) and the School of General Studies have offered a joint degree program leading to a B.A. from Columbia University and a B.A. from
List College Albert A. List College of Jewish Studies, known simply as List College, is the undergraduate school of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTS). It was founded by Solomon Schechter in 1909 as the Teachers Institute with the original goa ...
. Professor Lisa Rosen-Metsch, Dean of the School of General Studies, is an alumna of the Joint Program.


Dual BA with Sciences Po Paris

The Dual BA Program is a unique program in which undergraduate students earn two Bachelor of Arts degrees in four years from both Columbia University and Sciences Po, one of the most prestigious universities in France and Europe. This program is geared towards traditionally-aged applicants in high school, and is one of the most selective undergraduate programs in the nation. Students spend two years at one of three Sciences Po campuses in France (Le Havre, Menton, or Reims), each of which is devoted to a particular region of the world. At Sciences Po, undergraduates can pursue majors in political science, economics, law, finance, history, among others. After two years at Sciences Po, students matriculate at Columbia University, where they complete the Core Curriculum and one of over 70 majors offered at Columbia. Graduates of the program are guaranteed admission to a Sciences Po graduate program.


Joint Bachelor's Degree with City University of Hong Kong

This program is open to top-ranked undergraduates enrolled at the
City University of Hong Kong City University of Hong Kong (CityU) is a world-class public research university located in Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1984 as City Polytechnic of Hong Kong and became a fully accredited university in 1994. Currently, CityU is ...
and allows graduates to receive two bachelor's degrees from the City University and Columbia in four years. Undergraduates spend their first two years at the City University and their final two years at Columbia, where they complete the Core Curriculum and choose one of 70 majors offered at Columbia.


Dual BA Program with Trinity College Dublin

The Dual Bachelor's Degree Program with Trinity College Dublin is a unique program in which undergraduate students earn two Bachelor of Arts degrees in four years from both Columbia University and Trinity College Dublin (
University of Dublin The University of Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Átha Cliath), corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a university located in Dublin, Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dubl ...
). Trinity College Dublin is the oldest university in Ireland and is widely considered to be its most prestigious institution. This program is geared towards traditionally-aged applicants in high school.


Tel Aviv University and Columbia University Dual Degree Program

The Tel Aviv Columbia Dual Degree Program allows undergraduates to earn two bachelor's degrees over the course of four years. Students spend the first two years of their undergraduate careers at Tel Aviv and then spend their final two years at Columbia while completing the Core Curriculum and major. Tel Aviv University is considered to be one of Israel's leading and most prestigious institutions. This program is geared towards traditionally-aged applicants in high school.


Combined Plan with the School of Engineering and Applied Science

GS students are eligible for competitive admission to the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) through the Columbia Combined Plan program, under the condition that they complete the necessary pre-engineering courses with a high GPA and obtain recommendations from 3 instructors. Students in the program receive a B.A. in a liberal arts discipline from GS and a B.S. in an engineering discipline from SEAS. Students may apply for the Combined Plan program in their junior (3-2 program) or senior (4-2) year of undergraduate study.


Notable alumni

An asterisk (*) indicates a former student who did not graduate.


Academia

*
Herbert Aptheker Herbert Aptheker (July 31, 1915 – March 17, 2003) was an American Marxist historian and political activist. He wrote more than 50 books, mostly in the fields of African-American history and general U.S. history, most notably, ''American Negro ...
(1933), American
Marxist historian Marxist historiography, or historical materialist historiography, is an influential school of historiography. The chief tenets of Marxist historiography include the centrality of social class, social relations of production in class-divided so ...
and political
activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...
*
Simon Kuznets Simon Smith Kuznets (; rus, Семён Абра́мович Кузне́ц, p=sʲɪˈmʲɵn ɐˈbraməvʲɪtɕ kʊzʲˈnʲɛts; April 30, 1901 – July 8, 1985) was an American economist and statistician who received the 1971 Nobel Memorial Pr ...
(1923), Nobel Prize-winning economist. *
Alex B. Novikoff Alex Benjamin Novikoff ( ) was a Russian Empire-born American biologist who is recognized for his pioneering works in the discoveries of cell organelles. A victim of American Cold War antagonism to communism that he supported, he is also recogn ...
(1931), professor of
Albert Einstein College of Medicine Albert Einstein College of Medicine is a research-intensive medical school located in the Morris Park neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City. Founded in 1953, Einstein operates as an independent degree-granting institution as part of t ...
, recipient of the
E.B. Wilson Medal The E.B. Wilson Medal is the American Society for Cell Biology's highest honor for science and is presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for significant and far-reaching contributions to cell biology over the course of a career. It is name ...
*
Emil L. Smith Emil L. Smith (July 5, 1911 – May 31, 2009) was an American biochemist who studied protein structure and function as well as biochemical evolution. Initially intending to go into medicine, Smith became interested in biology and organic c ...
(1931), American biochemist, professor at
University of California, Los Angeles 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 ...
*
Isaac Asimov yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...
(1939),
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
writer and biochemist, professor of
biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...
*
Baruj Benacerraf Baruj Benacerraf (; October 29, 1920 – August 2, 2011) was a Venezuelan-American immunologist, who shared the 1980 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the "discovery of the major histocompatibility complex genes which encode cell s ...
(1942), Nobel Prize-winning immunologist. *
Eric McKitrick Eric Louis McKitrick (July 5, 1919 – April 24, 2002) was an American historian, best known for ''The Age of Federalism: The Early American Republic, 1788–1800'' (1993) with Stanley Elkins, which won the Bancroft Prize in 1994. Life McKitrick ...
(1949), professor at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, winner of the 1994
Bancroft Prize The Bancroft Prize is awarded each year by the trustees of Columbia University for books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas. It was established in 1948, with a bequest from Frederic Bancroft, in his memory and that of his brother, ...
*
Allen Forte Allen, Allen's or Allens may refer to: Buildings * Allen Arena, an indoor arena at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee * Allen Center, a skyscraper complex in downtown Houston, Texas * Allen Fieldhouse, an indoor sports arena on the Univer ...
(1950), professor at
Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
,
music theorist Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the "rudiments", that are needed to understand music notation (ke ...
and
musicologist Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...
*
Alfred Appel Alfred Appel Jr. (January 31, 1934 – May 2, 2009) was an American professor, author and journal editor noted for his investigations into the works of Vladimir Nabokov, modern art, and jazz modernism. He edited ''The Annotated Lolita'', an edi ...
(1959), scholar on
Vladimir Nabokov Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (russian: link=no, Владимир Владимирович Набоков ; 2 July 1977), also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin (), was a Russian-American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Bo ...
. *
Jehuda Reinharz Jehuda Reinharz (born August 1, 1944) served as President of Brandeis University from 1994–2010. He is currently the Richard Koret Professor of Modern Jewish History and Director of the Tauber Institute for the Study of European Jewry at Brandei ...
(1964), President of
Brandeis University , mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = NECHE , president = Ronald D. Liebowitz , pro ...
*
Edward Cecil Harris Edward Cecil Harris, is a prominent Bermudian archaeologist. He is best known for the "Harris matrix", developed in February 1973 and considered by some to be the "industry standard" for stratigraphic archaeology. This was followed by a five ...
(1971), Creator of the
Harris matrix The Harris matrix is a tool used to depict the temporal succession of archaeological contexts and thus the sequence of depositions and surfaces on a 'dry land' archaeological site, otherwise called a 'stratigraphic sequence'. The matrix reflect ...
*
Roger Pilon Roger Pilon (born November 28, 1942) is Vice President for Legal Affairs for the Cato Institute, and an American libertarian legal theorist. In particular, he has developed a libertarian version of the rights theory of his teacher, noted philosoph ...
(1971), Constitutional scholar and legal theorist. * George M. von Furstenberg (1963), professor at
Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, or simply Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana University and, with ...
*
Gershon Hundert Gershon David Hundert (born 1946) is a Canadian historian of Early Modern Polish Jewry and Leanor Segal Professor at McGill University. Biography Born to a Jewish family in Toronto, Hundert is one of the three sons of Charles and Norma Hunder ...
(1968), Canadian historian of
Jewish history Jewish history is the history of the Jews, and their nation, religion, and culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions, and cultures. Although Judaism as a religion first appears in Greek records during the Hellenisti ...
at
McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...
*
Barbara Ransby Barbara Ransby (born May 12, 1957) is a writer, historian, professor, and activist. She is an elected fellow of the Society of American Historians, and holds the John D. MacArthur Chair at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Ransby attended C ...
(1984), professor at the
University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a Public university, public research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its campus is in the Near West Side, Chicago, Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus esta ...
and president of the
National Women's Studies Association The National Women's Studies Association (NWSA) is an organization founded in 1977, made up of scholars and practitioners in the field of women's studies also known as women's and gender studies, feminist studies, and related names in the 21st c ...
*
Keren Yarhi-Milo Keren Yarhi-Milo is a political scientist specializing in the study of interstate communication, crisis bargaining, reputation and credibility, and the psychology of leaders and decision makers. She is the dean of the School of International and Pu ...
(2003), professor of political science at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
and director of the
Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies The Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies (SIWPS) is a research center that is part of Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs in New York. It was founded in 1951 by President of Columbia Dwight D. Eisenho ...


Politics

*
Philippe Reines Philippe I. Reines (; born November 25, 1969) is an American political consultant. He joined the Department of State as a senior advisor to Hillary Clinton when she became United States Secretary of State in January 2009, and was promoted to deput ...
(2000), Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs and Senior Advisor to Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States senat ...
. *
Patrick Gaspard Patrick Hubert Gaspard (born 1967) is an American former diplomat who serves as president of Center for American Progress (CAP), a liberal think tank. A noted Democratic Party leader and strategist, Gaspard served as executive director of the D ...
* (1994–1997),
United States Ambassador to South Africa Before 1902, the southern part of Africa that is now South Africa was under the hegemony of Great Britain. There also were two self-proclaimed independent states: Transvaal (also known as the South African Republic), and the Orange Free State. T ...
(2013-2016), White House Political Affairs Director for
U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
, former Executive Director of the
Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the governing body of the United States Democratic Party. The committee coordinates strategy to support Democratic Party candidates throughout the country for local, state, and national office, as well a ...
*
Mike Gravel Maurice Robert "Mike" Gravel ( ; May 13, 1930 – June 26, 2021) was an American politician and writer who served as a United States Senator from Alaska from 1969 to 1981 as a member of the Democratic Party, and who later in life twice ran for ...
(1956), Former
United States Senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...
from Alaska and candidate for the 2008 Democratic nomination for
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
. Released full
Pentagon Papers The ''Pentagon Papers'', officially titled ''Report of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Vietnam Task Force'', is a United States Department of Defense history of the United States in the Vietnam War, United States' political and military ...
. *
Howard Dean Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 200 ...
(1975), Former
Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...
and Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. *
Peter H. Kostmayer Peter Houston Kostmayer (born September 27, 1946) is a Democratic politician who served seven terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Early life and career Kostmayer was born in New York City, graduated fro ...
(1971),
United States Congressman 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
from
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. *
Seymour Halpern Seymour Halpern (November 19, 1913 – January 10, 1997) was an American politician from New York. Life He was born in New York City. He graduated from Richmond Hill High School and attended Seth Low College of Columbia University from 1932 to 1 ...
(1934),
United States Congressman 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
from
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
*
Gale Brewer Gale Arnot Brewer (born September 6, 1951) is an American Democratic politician from the state of New York who has represented the 6th New York City Council District since January 2022, a position she previously held from 2002 to 2013. From Janu ...
(1997), 27th Borough president of
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
*
Stewart Rawlings Mott Stewart Rawlings Mott (December 4, 1937 – June 12, 2008) was an American philanthropist who founded the Stewart R. Mott Foundation. He was the son of Charles Stewart Mott, and appeared on Nixon's Enemies List for his support of liberal causes. M ...
(1959), American lobbyist and philanthropist, son of
General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
co-founder
Charles Stewart Mott Charles Stewart Mott (June 2, 1875 – February 18, 1973) was an American industrialist and businessman, a co-founder of General Motors, philanthropist, and the 50th and 55th mayor of Flint, Michigan. Mott is the figure most responsible for foun ...
* Patricia Robinson (1955),
First Lady of Trinidad and Tobago The first lady of Trinidad and Tobago is the title attributed to the wife of the president of Trinidad and Tobago and the first gentleman of Trinidad and Tobago to the husband of the president of Trinidad and Tobago, a position created in 1976. Th ...
from 1997 to 2003 * Perezi Kamunanwire (1969), former ambassador of the Republic of
Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
to the United States and Germany; permanent representative at the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
*
John Paton Davies Jr. John Paton Davies Jr. (April 6, 1908 – December 23, 1999) was an American diplomat and Medal of Freedom recipient. He was one of the China Hands, whose careers in the Foreign Service were ended by McCarthyism and the reaction to the loss ...
(1931), American diplomat,
Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, along with the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by the president of the United States to recognize people who have made "an especially merito ...
recipient, and one of the recognized
China Hands The term ''China Hand'' originally referred to 19th-century merchants in the treaty ports of China, but came to be used for anyone with expert knowledge of the language, culture, and people of China. In 1940s America, the term ''China Hands'' came ...
who took part in the
Dixie Mission The United States Army Observation Group, commonly known as the Dixie Mission, was the first US effort to gather intelligence and establish relations with the Chinese Communist Party and the People's Liberation Army, then headquartered in the mo ...
*
Zoltan Istvan Zoltan Istvan Gyurko, professionally known as Zoltan Istvan (born March 30, 1973), is an American transhumanist, journalist, entrepreneur, political candidate, and futurist. Formerly a reporter for the National Geographic Channel, Istvan now wr ...
(1998), American transhumanist who ran for President of the United States in 2016 *
Ethan Gutmann Ethan Gutmann is an American writer, researcher, author, and a senior research fellow in China Studies at the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation whose work has investigated surveillance and organ harvesting in China. Education Gutmann earn ...
(1986),
China watcher A China watcher, or, less frequently, Pekingologist, is a person who reports on the politics of the People's Republic of China for western consumption, especially in a Cold War context. "China watching" was coined by analogy to birdwatching, which ...
and human rights advocate * Julian F. Harrington* (1924),
United States Ambassador to Panama The United States has maintained diplomatic relations with Panama since its separation from Colombia in 1903. The rank of the U.S. chief of mission to Panama was originally Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, but it was upgraded to A ...
from 1955 to 1960


Literature and arts

*
Ashley Bryan Ashley Frederick Bryan (July 13, 1923February 4, 2022) was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. Most of his subjects are from the African-American experience. He was U.S. nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2006 ...
(1950), writer and illustrator of children's books and recipient of the
Children's Literature Legacy Award The Children's Literature Legacy Award (known as the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal until 2018) is a prize awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to writers or illustrat ...
in 2009 *
Ina Caro Ina Caro is an American author, medieval historian and travel writer. She is the author of ''The Road from the Past: Traveling Through History in France'' and ''Paris to the Past: Traveling through French History by Train''. She is married to Rob ...
(1962), American travel writer, wife of
Robert Caro Robert Allan Caro (born October 30, 1935) is an American journalist and author known for his biographies of United States political figures Robert Moses and Lyndon B. Johnson. After working for many years as a reporter, Caro wrote ''The Power Br ...
*
J. D. Salinger Jerome David Salinger (; January 1, 1919 January 27, 2010) was an American author best known for his 1951 novel ''The Catcher in the Rye''. Salinger got his start in 1940, before serving in World War II, by publishing several short stories in '' ...
* (1939), Writer, ''
The Catcher in the Rye ''The Catcher in the Rye'' is an American novel by J. D. Salinger that was partially published in serial form from 1945–46 before being novelized in 1951. Originally intended for adults, it is often read by adolescents for its themes of angst ...
'' *
Federico García Lorca Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (5 June 1898 – 19 August 1936), known as Federico García Lorca ( ), was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblemat ...
* (1929), Spanish poet and dramatist; influential member of the
Generation of '27 The Generation of '27 ( es, Generación del 27) was an influential group of poets that arose in Spanish literary circles between 1923 and 1927, essentially out of a shared desire to experience and work with avant-garde forms of art and poetry. ...
*
Barbara Probst Solomon Barbara Probst Solomon (December 3, 1928 – September 1, 2019) was an American author, essayist and journalist. Her published works include two novels, two volumes of memoirs, and a book of collected essays. Solomon was the United States cultur ...
(1960), American author, essayist and journalist *
Louis Simpson Louis Aston Marantz Simpson (March 27, 1923 – September 14, 2012) was an American poet born in Jamaica. He won the 1964 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for his work ''At the End of the Open Road''. Life and career Simpson was born in Jamaica ...
(1948),
Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
-winning American poet * Ingrid Bengis (1996), American writer *
Sasha Frere-Jones Alexander Roger Wallace "Sasha" Frere-Jones (né Jones; born 1967) is an American writer, music critic, and musician. He has written for ''Pretty Decorating'', '' ego trip'', ''Hit It And Quit It'', ''Mean'', ''Slant'', ''The New York Post'', ''T ...
(1993), American writer, music critic, and musician *
Alicia Graf Mack Alicia Graf Mack (''Given name#Name at birth, née'' Alicia J. Graf, born 1978/1979) is an American dancer and teacher. She danced with Dance Theatre of Harlem and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and taught at Washington University in St. Lou ...
(2000s), American dancer *
Ted Rall Frederick Theodore Rall III (born August 26, 1963) is an American columnist, syndicated editorial cartoonist, and author. His political cartoons often appear in a multi-panel comic strip, comic-strip format and frequently blend comic-strip and e ...
(1991), Syndicated cartoonist, president of the
Association of American Editorial Cartoonists The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists (AAEC) is a professional association concerned with promoting the interests of staff, freelance and student editorial cartoonists in the United States, Canada and Mexico. With nearly 200 members, it ...
from 2008 to 2009 *
Simi Linton Simi Linton is an American arts consultant, author, filmmaker, and activist. Her work focuses on disability in the arts, disability studies, and ways that disability rights and disability justice perspectives can be brought to bear on the arts. ...
(1977), author, consultant, public speaker who focuses on
disability studies Disability studies is an academic discipline that examines the meaning, nature, and consequences of disability. Initially, the field focused on the division between "impairment" and "disability," where impairment was an impairment of an individual ...
*
Menachem Kaiser Menachem Kaiser is a Canadian writer. He received the 2022 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature for his book ''Plunder: A Memoir of Family Property and Nazi Treasure''. Biography Kaiser grew up in Toronto, Ontario and graduated from Columbia Un ...
(2009), author, winner of the 2022
Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature The Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature is an annual prize awarded to an outstanding literary work of Jewish interest by an emerging writer. Previously administered by the Jewish Book Council, it is now given in association with the National Libr ...
*
Edward Klein Edward J. Klein (born 1936) is an American author and former foreign editor of ''Newsweek'', former editor-in-chief of ''The New York Times Magazine'' (1977–1987). He has written about the Kennedys, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, ...
(1960), Author. *
Kevin Brown Kevin Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Kevin Brown (blues musician) (born 1950), English blues guitarist * Kevin Brown (author) (born 1960), American journalist and translator * Kevin Brown (poet) (born 1970), American poet and teacher * Kevin ...
* (1990), biographer, essayist, translator * Joy Leftow (1983), poet, fiction writer, essayist *
Mykola Dementiuk Mykola Dementiuk (born 1949) is an American author. A graduate of Columbia University, his work has appeared in ''Pink Pages'', ''Atom Mind'', ''Paramour'', and ''EIDOS Magazine''. He was a member of the road crew for Lollapalooza, the Big Apple Ci ...
(1984), American author; twice winner of the
Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted i ...
* Lee Siegel (1980s),
cultural critic A cultural critic is a critic of a given culture, usually as a whole. Cultural criticism has significant overlap with social and cultural theory. While such criticism is simply part of the self-consciousness of the culture, the social positions of ...
* Cecil Brown (1966), African American writer and educator *
John Rousmaniere John Rousmaniere is an American writer and author of 30 historical. technical, and instructional books on sailing, yachting history, New York history, business history, and the histories of clubs, businesses, and other organizations. An authori ...
(1967), American sailor, author on sailing and yachting history * Castle Freeman, Jr. (1968), author, ''
Go with Me ''Go with Me'' is a 2008 novel by American writer Castle Freeman Jr. It is Castle Freeman's third novel and it was first published by Steerforth Press in January 2008. Plot summary This short novel of only 160 pages is set in backwoods Vermont ...
''; contributor to ''
Old Farmer's Almanac The ''Old Farmer's Almanac'' is an almanac containing weather forecasts, planting charts, astronomical data, recipes, and articles. Topics include gardening, sports, astronomy, folklore, and predictions on trends in fashion, food, home, techn ...
'' *
Hunter S. Thompson Hunter Stockton Thompson (July 18, 1937 – February 20, 2005) was an American journalist and author who founded the gonzo journalism movement. He rose to prominence with the publication of '' Hell's Angels'' (1967), a book for which he s ...
*, (1959). Writer, founder of the Gonzo journalism movement * Herbert Kuhner (1959), Austrian writer and translator * Donald Clarence Judd (1953), Artist. * Dolores Dembus Bittleman (1952), American fiber artist *
Louise Glück Louise Elisabeth Glück ( ; born April 22, 1943) is an American poet and essayist. She won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Literature, whose judges praised "her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal". He ...
(attended), poet, recipient of the 2020
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 , ...
, former
United States Poet Laureate The Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress—commonly referred to as the United States Poet Laureate—serves as the official poet of the United States. During their term, the poet laureate seeks to raise the national cons ...
*
Alexandra Ansanelli Alexandra Noel Ansanelli is a retired American ballet dancer who was a Principal dancer at New York City Ballet and the Royal Ballet prior to her retirement at a relatively young age. Early life Ansanelli was born in Manhassett, Long Island ...
(2010-), American ballet dancer for
The Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...
*
Arlene Shuler Arlene Shuler is an American arts administrator and former ballet dancer. She is the president and chief executive of the New York City Center. Biography Shuler grew up in Cleveland playing ballet. She began her training at age six under Margue ...
(1977), President and CEO of the
New York City Center New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama,. The name "City Center for Music and Drama Inc." is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and, until 2011, the New York City Opera. and th ...


Technology and entrepreneurship

*
Thomas Reardon Thomas Reardon (born 1969) is an American computational neuroscientist and the CEO and co-founder of CTRL-labs. Formerly, he was a computer programmer and developer at Microsoft. He is credited with creating the project to build Microsoft's w ...
(2008), creator of
Internet Explorer Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer and Windows Internet Explorer, commonly abbreviated IE or MSIE) is a series of graphical user interface, graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft which was used in the Microsoft Wind ...
*
John W. Backus John Warner Backus (December 3, 1924 – March 17, 2007) was an American computer scientist. He directed the team that invented and implemented FORTRAN, the first widely used high-level programming language, and was the inventor of the Bac ...
(1949), Developer of Fortran, the first true computer language, winner of the 1977
Turing Award The ACM A. M. Turing Award is an annual prize given by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for contributions of lasting and major technical importance to computer science. It is generally recognized as the highest distinction in compu ...
*
Scott Brinker Scott Brinker, born 28 September 1971 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, is a computer programmer and entrepreneur. He currently serves as the VP of platform ecosystem of HubSpot, a customer relationship management (CRM) platform and is known for his mar ...
(2005),
programmer A computer programmer, sometimes referred to as a software developer, a software engineer, a programmer or a coder, is a person who creates computer programs — often for larger computer software. A programmer is someone who writes/creates ...
and
entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...
, VP of
HubSpot HubSpot is an American developer and marketer of software products for inbound marketing, sales, and customer service. HubSpot was founded by Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah in 2006. Its products and services aim to provide tools for customer r ...
*
Chris Dixon Chris Dixon is an American internet entrepreneur and investor. He is a general partner at the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, and previously worked at eBay. He is also the co-founder and former CEO of Hunch. He was #1 on the Midas L ...
(1996),
angel investor An angel investor (also known as a business angel, informal investor, angel funder, private investor, or seed investor) is an individual who provides capital for a business or businesses start-up, usually in exchange for convertible debt or owners ...
, partner of venture capital firm
Andreessen Horowitz Andreessen Horowitz (also called a16z, legal name AH Capital Management, LLC) is a private American venture capital firm, founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. The company is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. Andreessen ...
, co-founder of Hunch and
SiteAdvisor The McAfee SiteAdvisor, later renamed as the McAfee WebAdvisor, is a service that reports on the safety of web sites by crawling the web and testing the sites it finds for malware and spam. A browser extension can show these ratings on hyperlink ...
* Lovens Gjed (2019), Founder of MEnvesti.com *
Arthur Kantrowitz Arthur Robert Kantrowitz (October 20, 1913 – November 29, 2008) was an American scientist, engineer, and educator. Kantrowitz grew up in The Bronx and graduated from DeWitt Clinton High School.Overbye, Dennis"Arthur R. Kantrowitz, Whose ...
(1934), American engineer, professor at
Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
* N. Robert Hammer (1965), former Chairman, President, and CEO of Commvault


Activism

*
Jane Jacobs Jane Jacobs (''née'' Butzner; 4 May 1916 – 25 April 2006) was an American-Canadian journalist, author, theorist, and activist who influenced urban studies, sociology, and economics. Her book '' The Death and Life of Great American Cities ...
* (1940s), author ''
The Death and Life of Great American Cities ''The Death and Life of Great American Cities'' is a 1961 book by writer and activist Jane Jacobs. The book is a critique of 1950s urban planning policy, which it holds responsible for the decline of many city neighborhoods in the United States. ...
'', urban theorist and activist. *
Florynce Kennedy Florynce Rae Kennedy (February 11, 1916 – December 21, 2000) was an American lawyer, radical feminist, civil rights advocate, lecturer and activist. Early life Kennedy was born in Kansas City, Missouri, to an African-American family. Her fath ...
(1949), Feminist, Civil Rights advocate, Social activist * Susan Mesinai (1965), activist, founder of the Ark Project that aimed to find out information on non-Russians taken prisoner by the former Soviet Union *
Matthew Lipman Matthew Lipman (August 24, 1923 in Vineland, New Jersey – December 26, 2010 in West Orange, New Jersey) is recognized as the founder of Philosophy for Children. His decision to bring philosophy to young people came from his experience as ...
(1948), founder of the
Philosophy for Children Philosophy for Children, sometimes abbreviated to P4C, is a movement that aims to teach reasoning and argumentative skills to children. There are also related methods sometimes called "''Philosophy for Young People''" or "''Philosophy for Kids''". ...
movement *
Irwin Kula Irwin Kula (born November 29, 1957) is an American rabbi and author, currently serving as the president of the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership (CLAL). In 2008, he was listed as 7th in ''Newsweek''’s “50 most influential rab ...
(1978), co-president of CLAL,
National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership (CLAL) is a leadership training institute, think tank, and resource center. It is an inter-disciplinary and inter-denominational movement, in which rabbis from all major Jewish denominations in ...
. *
Yeonmi Park Yeonmi Park ( ko, 박연미; born 4 October 1993) is a North Korean defector and activist whose family fled from North Korea to China in 2007 and settled in South Korea in 2009, before moving to the United States in 2014. Her family turned to ...
(2020), North Korean defector and human rights activist * Cameron Kasky (2023), student activist who founded
Never Again MSD Never Again MSD is an American student-led political action committee for gun control that advocates for tighter regulations to prevent gun violence. The organization, also known by the Twitter hashtags #NeverAgain, and #EnoughIsEnough, was fo ...
and organizer of
March for Our Lives March for Our Lives (MFOL) was a student-led demonstration in support of gun control legislation. It took place in Washington, D.C., on March 24, 2018, with over 880 sibling events throughout the United States and around the world, and w ...


Music

*
Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the 2 ...
* (1918), Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer. * Heather D’Angelo (2012), member of the pop band
Au Revoir Simone Au Revoir Simone is an American indie pop band from Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2003. The group is composed of Erika Forster (vocals/keyboard), Annie Hart (vocals/keyboard/bass) and Heather D'Angelo (vocals/drum machine/keyboard ...
. *
Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...
* (1957), Musician and poet *
Jason Everman Jason Mark Everman (born October 16, 1967) is an American musician and soldier who played guitar with Nirvana and Mind Funk, and bass in Soundgarden and OLD. He later served tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan with the U.S. Army as an Army Rang ...
(2013), former member of
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
,
Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yamamo ...
, the Army Rangers, and
Green Berets The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force of the United States Army. The Green Berets are geared towards nine doctrinal m ...
*
Yonatan Gat Yonatan Gat is an Israeli producer, guitarist, and composer based in New York City. His cross-genre work has been called "a vital new music form" by a "legendary live performer" by ''Magnet'' magazine, "melding punk, improvisation, world music ...
(2014), Musician, producer, founder of
Monotonix Monotonix were a garage rock band from Tel Aviv, Israel. The group—singer Ami Shalev, guitarist Yonatan Gat, and drummer Ran Shimoni (later replaced by Haggai Fershtman)—released their debut EP in 2008 and toured mostly in the United States ...
and solo artist *
Gil Shaham Gil Shaham (Hebrew: גיל שחם; born February 19, 1971) is an American violinist of Israeli Jewish descent. Biography Gil Shaham was born in Urbana, Illinois, while his Israeli parents were on an academic fellowship at the University of Illino ...
(1990), Violinist. *
Lena Park Park Jung-hyun (; born March 23, 1976), also known as Lena Park (), is an American-born South Korean singer who debuted in 1998 with the album, ''Piece.'' She is also widely known in South Korea as her nickname "National fairy" due to her peti ...
(2010), Korean-American singer *
Robin Pecknold Robin Noel Pecknold (born March 30, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter, who serves as the principal songwriter and vocalist for indie folk band Fleet Foxes, with whom he has recorded four studio albums. He is known for his distinct baritenor ...
(2016), American musician and frontman of Seattle indie folk band
Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes is an American indie folk band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 2006. The band consists of Robin Pecknold (vocals, guitar), Skyler Skjelset (guitar, mandolin, backing vocals), Casey Wescott (keyboards, mandolin, backing vocals), Ch ...
*
Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer and actor. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He sold more than 45 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and appeared in mo ...
(1957), Singer and actor. *
Tamar Kaprelian Tamar Mardirossian ( hy, Թամար Մարտիրոսեան; born October 28, 1986), known professionally as Tamar Kaprelian, is an Armenian-American singer, songwriter, and philanthropist. Kaprelian began her career in 2008, after winning a cove ...
(2016), Singer. *
Ben Platt Benjamin Schiff Platt (born September 24, 1993) is an American actor, singer, and songwriter. He began his acting career in musical theater as a child and appeared in productions of ''The Sound of Music'' (2006) and ''The Book of Mormon'' (201 ...
* (2016), Broadway actor and singer, ''
Pitch Perfect ''Pitch Perfect'' is a 2012 American musical comedy film directed by Jason Moore and written by Kay Cannon. It features an ensemble cast, including Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Skylar Astin, Anna Camp, Brittany Snow, Hana Mae Lee, Alexis Knap ...
'', ''
The Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude date ...
'', ''
Dear Evan Hansen ''Dear Evan Hansen'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and a book by Steven Levenson. The musical follows Evan Hansen, a high school senior with social anxiety, "who invents an important role for himself in a t ...
'', transferred from Columbia College *
Lipa Schmeltzer Lipa Schmeltzer ( yi, אלעזר ליפא שמעלצער ''Elazar Lipa Schmeltzer'', he, ליפא שמלצר; born March 17, 1978) is an American singer, entertainer, and composer. He is a headliner in Hasidic as well as modern Jewish communit ...
* (2018), singer, "the Lady Gaga of
Hasidic Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of contem ...
music"


Film and entertainment

*
Joseph Gordon-Levitt Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (; born February 17, 1981) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his leading performances ...
* (2000–2004), American actor and director *
Robert Sean Leonard Robert Lawrence Leonard (born February 28, 1969), known by his stage name Robert Sean Leonard, is an American actor. He is best known for playing Dr. James Wilson in the television series ''House'' (2004–2012) and Neil Perry in the film ''Dea ...
*, American actor *
Jonathan Taylor Thomas Jonathan Taylor Thomas (born Jonathan Taylor Weiss; September 8, 1981) is an American actor and director. He is known for portraying Randy Taylor on ''Home Improvement'' and voicing young Simba in Disney's 1994 film ''The Lion King'' and Pinocch ...
(2010), Actor *
Kristi Zea Kristina Gwyn Zea (born October 24, 1948) is an American production designer, costume designer, art director, director and producer in film and television. Born and educated in New York City, she discovered she had a talent for design while workin ...
(1974), American production designer, costume designer, art director, and director *
David O. Selznick David O. Selznick (May 10, 1902June 22, 1965) was an American film producer, screenwriter and film studio executive who produced ''Gone with the Wind'' (1939) and ''Rebecca'' (1940), both of which earned him an Academy Award for Best Picture. E ...
* (1923), Hollywood producer, ''
King Kong King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...
'', ''
Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Win ...
'' *
Telly Savalas Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas (January 21, 1922 – January 22, 1994) was an American actor and singer whose career spanned four decades. Noted for his bald head and deep, resonant voice, he is perhaps best known for portraying Lt. Theo Kojak on th ...
(1946), Actor, Emmy-award winner and Oscar nominee. *
Sarah Ramos Sarah Emily Ramos (born May 21, 1991) is an American actress who began her career as a child actress. She is known for her roles on the television series ''American Dreams'' (2002–2005) and '' Parenthood'' (2010–2015). Early life Ramos was ...
(2013-), American actress, ''
American Dreams ''American Dreams'' is an American drama television series that ran on NBC for three seasons & 61 episodes, from September 29, 2002, to March 30, 2005. The show tells the story of the Pryor family of Philadelphia during the mid-1960s, with many ...
'', '' Parenthood'' *
Michelle Rejwan Michelle Rejwan (born March 8, 1982) is an American film producer and the Senior Vice-President of Live Action Development and Production for Lucasfilm. She produced the ''Star Wars'' film ''The Rise of Skywalker'', alongside Kathleen Kennedy ...
(2008), Senior vice president of
Lucasfilm Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC is an American film and television production company and a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is a business segment of The Walt Disney Company. The studio is best known for creating and producing the ''Star Wars'' and ' ...
, producer of '' Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker'' * Eric Shaw (2003),
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 writer for ''
SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It chronicles the adventures of the title character a ...
'' * Ossie Davis (1948), Actor and social activist, Emmy- and Golden Globe-award nominee * Eric Drath (1994), Sports Emmy Awards, Sports Emmy Award-winning director and producer * Adriana Ferreyr (2011-), Brazilian film, television and stage actress, ''Marisol (Brazilian TV series), Marisol'' * Julia Bacha (2003), Brazilian documentary maker, director of ''Budrus (film), Budrus'' * Larysa Kondracki (2001), Canadian film director, ''The Whistleblower'' * Donald Richie (1953), Film Critic * Anthony Perkins* (1954), Actor and writer known for his portrayal of Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960 film), ''Psycho'' * Frank Sutton (1952), actor, ''Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'' * Famke Janssen* (1990s), Dutch actress, ''GoldenEye'', the X-Men (film series), ''X-Men'' series, Hemlock Grove (TV series), ''Hemlock Grove'' and ''How to Get Away with Murder'' * Taylor Black (2014), American actress, ''All My Children'', winner of Miss New York Teen USA in 2009 * Elegance Bratton (2014), filmmaker and photographer *Chloe Bridges (2020), actress, Freddie (TV series), ''Freddie'', ''Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam'' *Morgan Saylor (2023), actress, Homeland (TV series), ''Homeland''


Media

* R. W. Apple (1961), ''The New York Times'' associate editor. * James S. Vlasto (1950s), American editor, public relations consultant for Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr. and Herman Badillo; press secretary for Governor of New York Hugh Carey; father of Chris Vlasto, executive producer of ''Good Morning America'' * Jacques Pepin (1970), internationally recognized French chef, TV personality, dean at the International Culinary Center * Mary Helen Bowers (2008), celebrity fitness guru, entrepreneur, former New York City Ballet dancer * Ray William Johnson* (2008), YouTube celebrity best known for his show "Equals Three" * Trish Regan (2000), Fox Business Network anchor * Steve Hofstetter (2002), comedian, host, and executive producer of "Laughs" on Fox television stations * Erik Courtney (2000) Bravo (U.S. TV network), Bravo TV personality Newlyweds: The First Year * Mark Rotella (1992), senior editor at ''Publishers Weekly'' * John Horgan (journalist), John Horgan (1982), American Science journalism, science journalist, known for his 1996 book, ''The End of Science'' * Howard G. Chua-Eoan (1983), News Director, ''Time (magazine), Time'' * Jamal Dajani (1988), Palestinian-American journalist, Peabody Award winner, and former aide to Prime Minister of the Palestinian National Authority Rami Hamdallah * Eytan Schwartz (2001), Israeli Reality television personality * Matt Sanchez (2007), journalist and former United States Marine Corps, Marine reservist * Mitch Swenson (2014), American freelance reporter and designer of video game ''1000 Days of Syria''


Athletics

* Red Auerbach* (1937–39), legendary basketball coach of the Washington Capitols, Tri-Cities Blackhawks, and general manager of the Boston Celtics * Kimberly Navarro (2004), ice dancer, 2008 & 2009 United States Figure Skating Championships, U.S. bronze medalist and 2008 2008 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, Four Continents bronze medalist. * Trent Dimas (2002), Olympic champion gymnast * Gillian Wachsman (1994), former skater; 1985 NHK Trophy champion and 1986 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, U.S. national champion * Sandy Koufax* (1955), Hall of Fame pitcher for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers *Courtney King-Dye (2004), Olympic Equestrianism, equestrian * Troy Murphy (2015), former NBA player * Sasha Cohen (2016), Figure skating at the 2006 Winter Olympics, Olympic Silver medalist in figure skating * Reed Kessler (2018 - attending), Olympic show jumping competitor * Silvia Hugec (2023), figure skater and Slovak Figure Skating Championships, Slovak national champion


Fashion

* Gerard W. Ford (1957), Founder of the Ford Modeling Agency. * Mary McFadden (1959), Fashion Designer * Rachel Williams (1994), American model, landscape designer, daughter of architect Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, Tod Williams and sister of filmmaker Tod Williams (filmmaker), Tod Williams * Kelly Killoren Bensimon (1998), model, author, socialite, ''The Real Housewives of New York City'' * Sara Ziff (2011), American supermodel, president and founder of Model Alliance * Cameron Russell (2013), model and activist, daughter of Zipcar founder Robin Chase * Abby Stein (2014 - attending), model and activist, direct descendant of the Hasidic Savran (Hasidic dynasty), Savran dynasty * Alexandra Waterbury (2021), ballet dancer and fashion model


Miscellaneous

*
Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( , born July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She set many oth ...
* (1920), American aviator and early female pilot * Steve Brozak (1982), investment banker, retired marine * Jim Dunnigan (1970), author, military-political analyst, Wargaming, wargame designer *
Princess Firyal of Jordan Firyal Irshaid ( ar, فريال إرشيد, born 1945) is a Jordanian humanitarian and philanthropist. She became a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in 1992, working on programs for education and protection of world heritage. She is a board member at t ...
(1999) Jordanian princess, socialite, and philanthropist * Yitzhak Aharon Korff (1969), Rebbe of the Mezhbizh (Hasidic dynasty), Mezhbizh and Zvhil (Hasidic dynasty), Zvhil dynasties, and ex-husband of ViacomCBS heiress Shari Redstone * Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1962), Rebbe of the Lubavitch, Chabad-Lubavitch Dynasty * John Tauranac (1963), Chief designer of the New York City Subway map of 1979 * Josh Waitzkin* (1999), Child chess prodigy and author, whose life inspired the movie ''Searching for Bobby Fischer'' * Gabby Gabreski (1949), American flying ace during World War II and the Korean War; headed the Long Island Rail Road * Farahnaz Pahlavi (1986), eldest daughter of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, last Shah of Iran


References


External links


Official Website
{{Authority control Columbia University Educational institutions established in 1947 Universities and colleges in Manhattan Universities and colleges in New York City 1947 establishments in New York City