List of San Jose State University people

The following is a list of notable persons associated with San José State University, located in the American city of San Jose, California.

Notable alumni

Academia

Bettina Aptheker — author, professor, political activist
Marshall Drummond — former chancellor, California Community College System
Harry Edwards — professor emeritus of Sociology, University of California, Berkeley; author of The Revolt of the Black Athlete
Terry Erwin — entomologist, Smithsonian Institution
Lawrence H. Keeley — archaeologist; professor, University of Illinois Chicago; author of War Before Civilization
Mary E. Lyons — president, University of San Diego
Sidney Siegel — psychologist and economist, known for the Siegel–Tukey test and considered a founding father of experimental economics
Henry Suzzallo — former president, University of Washington
Jennifer Wilby — director of the Centre for Systems Studies, University of Hull
Hamza Yusuf — Islamic scholar

Artists and musicians

Amber Aguirre — ceramic sculptor
Bernd Behr — artist
Mary Blair — artist and illustrator who helped create Disney's Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951) and Peter Pan (1953)
Lindsey Buckingham — musician best known for Fleetwood Mac
Doug Clifford — rock drummer best known for his work as a founding member of Creedence Clearwater Revival
Stu Cook — bass guitarist best known for his work with Creedence Clearwater Revival
Binh Danh —photographer noted for chlorophyll leaf prints and dauggerotypes of National Parks
Irene Dalis — New York Metropolitan Opera star and founder of Opera San Jose
Allan Graham — visual artist
Robert Graham — internationally acclaimed sculptor whose work includes the Olympic Gateway in Los Angeles
PJ Hirabayashi — co-founder of San Jose Taiko, recipient of National Heritage Fellowship
Roy Hirabayashi — co-founder of San Jose Taiko, recipient of National Heritage Fellowship
Shinichi Ishizuka — manga artist
Tom Johnston — rock guitarist and vocalist best known for his work as a founding member of The Doobie Brothers
Paul Kantner — rock guitarist best known for his work as a founding member of Jefferson Airplane
Titus Kaphar — contemporary painter and 2018 MacArthur Fellows Program Genius Award recipient
David Kuraoka — ceramic artist
Peter Wayne Lewis — Jamaican-American contemporary artist known for his large-scale abstract paintings
Sal Maccarone — nationally acclaimed woodworker and sculptor whose work includes "The Spirit of Tenaya" in Yosemite National Park
Bryan "Brain" Mantia — drummer, Primus, Guns N' Roses, Tom Waits, Buckethead
Ann Millikan — musician and composer
Stevie Nicks — musician best known for Fleetwood Mac
Larry Norman — Christian rock musician, singer and songwriter; founding member of the '60s rock band People!
Fred H. Roster — sculptor
Na Omi Judy Shintani — artist known for works about Japanese internment during WWII; CAAIAF 2023
Patrick Simmons — rock guitarist and vocalist best known for his work as a founding member of The Doobie Brothers
Gordon Smedt — pop artist and painter
Wayne Thiebaud — painter
Cal Tjader — Grammy Award-winning jazz musician
Michael Whelan — artist and illustrator specializing in imaginative realism; Science Fiction Hall of Fame inductee

Authors

Lorna Dee Cervantes — poet, Pulitzer Prize nominee
William J. Craddock — novelist, author of Be Not Content and Twilight Candelabra
Carmen Giménez Smith — poet, American Book Award winner
James D. Houston — co-author of Farewell to Manzanar; author of Continental Drift, Snow Mountain Passage, and others; Lurie Distinguished Visiting professor of Creative Writing at SJSU in Spring 2006
Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston — co-author of Farewell to Manzanar
Jayne Ann Krentz — New York Times bestselling author
Ella Leffland — novelist and short story writer
Edwin Markham — 1st Poet Laureate of Oregon, most known for "The Man with the Hoe"
Patricia A. McKillip — novelist
Sandra McPherson — poet
Robert Scoble — blogger, author, and social media pioneer
Amy Tan — novelist; author of ''The Joy Luck Club''

Aviation

Jason Dahl — airline pilot and United Airlines Flight 93 captain who died in the September 11 attacks

Business

Terry Alderete — businesswoman
Helder Antunes — senior director, Cisco Systems; chairman of the board, OpenFog Consortium
James F. Boccardo — trial lawyer, businessman, and philanthropist
Finis Conner — founder, Conner Peripherals and co-founder of Seagate Technology
Ron Conway — billionaire angel investor and philanthropist; co-founder and former CEO of Altos Computer Systems
Robert Frankenberg — former CEO, Novell
Omid Kordestani — senior vice president, Google
Brian Krzanich — CEO, CDK Global and former CEO, Intel Corporation
Jenny Ming — CEO, Charlotte Russe; former CEO of Old Navy
Gordon Moore — founder of the Intel Corporation and creator of "Moore's law"
Ed Oates — co-founder, Oracle Corporation
Daniel R. Scoggin — founder and CEO, TGI Fridays
Mike Sinyard — founder and CEO, Specialized Bicycle Components
James E. Thompson — founder and chairman, Crown Worldwide Group

Film, theatre, and TV

Stanley Anderson — actor, known for portraying Drew Carey's father on The Drew Carey Show
Coby Bell — actor; best known for his role as NYPD officer Tyrone Davis, Jr. on the NBC drama Third Watch
Danny Lee Clark — actor, writer and producer; played Nitro on American Gladiators
Rosanna DeSoto — film actress, best for her role of Connie Valenzuela in the 1987 film La Bamba
Yousef Erakat —actor, comedian, vlogger
Debrah Farentino — film and television actress; model
Michael Forest — actor, known for portraying Apollo, on Star Trek
Jerry Juhl — head writer and producer for The Muppets and Fraggle Rock
Omar Benson Miller — actor
Steve Silver — founder of Beach Blanket Babylon, a popular cabaret show in San Francisco
Kurtwood Smith — actor, best known for the role of Red Forman on That '70s Show
The Smothers Brothers — comedians
Bobbi Starr — pornographic actress
Mychal Threets — librarian and media host; host of the YouTube revival of PBS series Reading Rainbow
Luis Valdez — Chicano playwright, screenwriter and director best known for his movie ''La Bamba''

Journalism

Chauncey Bailey — Oakland Post editor-in-chief; murdered in 2007
Grant Brisbee — San Francisco Giants writer for The Athletic
Earl Dotter — photojournalist documenting America's most dangerous jobs
Kim Komenich — photojournalist, filmmaker and teacher; Pulitzer Prize winner
John Kouns — photojournalist during the Civil Rights Movement
Tony Kovaleski — broadcast journalist ; multiple Emmy awards; winner of the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award
Hassina Leelarathna — Sri Lankan-American journalist
Steve Lopez — newspaper columnist, Los Angeles Times; novelist
Dave Meltzer —editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter
Anacleto Rapping — photojournalist and teacher; three-time Pulitzer Prize winner
Marcio Sanchez — photojournalist; Pulitzer Prize winner
Steve Starr — photojournalist; Pulitzer Prize winner
David Willman — reporter; Pulitzer Prize winner

Miscellaneous

Christopher Darden — prosecutor in the O. J. Simpson murder case
Dirk Dirksen — godfather of San Francisco punk; tour manager for The Doors, Iron Butterfly, The Supremes and Ray Charles; owner of the Mabuhay Gardens punk club in San Francisco
Rob Janoff — graphic designer best known for his creation of the Apple logo
Harry W. Jenkins — major general, U.S. Marine Corps
Jessica McClintock — fashion designer
Anthony Poshepny, aka Tony Poe — legendary CIA paramilitary officer
Edward Soriano — lieutenant general, United States Army;, highest ranking Filipino American in the United States military

Politics and government

Richard C. Baldwin — associate justice of the Oregon Supreme Court
James T. Beall Jr. — California assemblyman, 24th district, and former Santa Clara County supervisor
Lee P. Brown — former mayor of Houston; former Police Commissioner of New York City; former director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy
Ben Nighthorse Campbell — former U.S. senator from Colorado
Albert E. Carter — former U.S. congressman
David C. Casas — former mayor of Los Altos and Los Altos city council member
Cindy Chavez — former member of San Jose City Council and former vice mayor of San Jose
Judy Chirco — San José City councilmember, District 9
William Clark, Jr. — former U.S. Ambassador to India
Michael Deaver — deputy White House chief of staff for President Ronald Reagan
Robert Doerr — former mayor of San Jose, California
Paul Fong — California assemblyman, 22nd district
Robert "Bob" Foster — mayor of Long Beach, California; former president, Southern California Edison; former CSU trustee
Mike Honda — U.S. representative from California
Lou Henry Hoover — former First Lady of the United States
Johnny Khamis — councilmember on the San Jose City Council
William Langdon — former associate justice of the California Supreme Court
Linda J. LeZotte — San Jose City councilmember, District 1
Evan Low — California state assemblyman; member of California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus
Gus Morrison — mayor of Fremont, California
Gaylord Nelson — former U.S. senator; governor of Wisconsin; founder of Earth Day
Lyn Nofziger — White House advisor to presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan
Robert Rivas — 71st speaker of the California State Assembly
Ed Rollins — national campaign director for Reagan-Bush and Mike Huckabee ; regular guest political analyst on CNN
Jim Silva — California state assemblyman; former mayor of Huntington Beach
Laurie Smith — sheriff, Santa Clara County; first female county sheriff in the history of the state of California
Fernando Torres-Gil — first assistant secretary for aging at the Department of Health and Human Services in the Clinton Administration; associate dean of the School of Public Affairs at UCLA
Joe Trippi — presidential campaign manager for Howard Dean
Aisha Wahab — California state senator, 10th district
Carole Ward Allen — former BART board director, District 4; former Oakland port commissioner
Kent Wiedemann — former U.S. ambassador to Cambodia
Ken Yeager — politician, member of Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors

International politicians

Yao Ching-ling — Taiwanese politician, Magistrate of Taitung
Amy Khor — Singaporean politician, Senior Minister of State for Transport and Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment
Morteza Mohammadkhan — Iranian politician, Minister of Finance
Sim Tze Tzin — member of the Malaysian Parliament
Mahmoud Vaezi — chief of staff of the president of Iran

Science and technology

Barbara Bekins — hydrologist and National Academy of Engineering fellow
Daniel W. Bradley — co-discoverer of Hepatitis C
Sarah Clatterbuck — computer engineer
Ray Dolby — engineer, founder of Dolby Laboratories '
Dian Fossey — ethologist and gorilla expert
Charles Ginsburg — engineer, inventor of the videocassette recorder; National Inventors Hall of Fame inductee
Jan Koum — billionaire entrepreneur, co-founder and CEO of WhatsApp; managing director at Facebook, Inc. '
Gordon Moore — scientist, author of Moore's Law
Roger Wakimoto — atmospheric scientist, tornado expert, director of NCAR and NSF
James Lewis Wayman — 2013 fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Sports

Baseball

Jeff Ball — former Major League Baseball player, San Francisco Giants
Aaron Bates — Major League Baseball player, Boston Red Sox
Mike Brown — former Major League Baseball player, California Angels and Pittsburgh Pirates
Ken Caminiti — former Major League Baseball player, Houston Astros et al.
Anthony Chavez — former Major League Baseball player, California Angels
Chris Codiroli — former Major League Baseball player, Oakland Athletics
Kevin Frandsen — Major League Baseball player, Philadelphia Phillies
Gary Hughes — former Major League Baseball assistant coach, Chicago Cubs
Pat Hughes — play-by-play radio broadcaster for Chicago Cubs
Jason Jimenez — former Major League Baseball player, Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Randy Johnson — former Major League Baseball player, Atlanta Braves
Brad Kilby — Major League Baseball player, Oakland Athletics
Hal Kolstad — former Major League Baseball player, Boston Red Sox
Mark Langston — former Major League Baseball player, Seattle Mariners, California Angels, et al.
Larry Lintz — former Major League Baseball player, Montreal Expos et al.
John Oldham — former Major League Baseball player, Cincinnati Reds
Jason Simontacchi — former Major League Baseball player, St. Louis Cardinals and Washington Nationals
Anthony Telford — former Major League Baseball player, Baltimore Orioles, Montreal Expos, et al.
Carlos Torres — Major League Baseball player, Chicago White Sox

Basketball

Tariq Abdul-Wahad — former NBA player
Jack Avina — former men's basketball coach for the Portland Pilots
Ricky Berry — former NBA player
Wil Carter — former basketball player who played professionally in the Netherlands, Cyprus, France, and Japan
Marquin Chandler — former professional basketball player
Brandon Clarke — NBA player
Rick Darnell — former ABA player
Coby Dietrick — former NBA player
Tony Farmer — former NBA player
Justin Graham — former professional basketball player
Dick Groves — former NBA player
Darnell "Dr. Dunk" Hillman — former NBA player
Ed Hughes — former BAA player
Stu Inman — former NBA player and coach
James Kinney — professional basketball player
Steve McKean — former basketball coach for the New Zealand men's national basketball team
Chris McNealy — former NBA player for the New York Knicks
Walt McPherson — former San Jose Spartans head coach
Omari Moore — current NBA player for the Milwaukee Bucks
Adrian Oliver — former professional basketball player
Wally Rank — former NBA player
C. J. Webster — former professional basketball player
Sid Williams — former NBA player

Football

Courtney Anderson — former NFL tight end, Atlanta Falcons and Oakland Raiders
Marcus Arroyo — head football coach, UNLV
Stacey Bailey — former NFL wide receiver, Atlanta Falcons
Keith Birlem — former SJSU quarterback, NFL player, member of San Jose State Hall of Fame
Kim Bokamper — former NFL linebacker, Miami Dolphins
John Broussard — NFL wide receiver, Jacksonville Jaguars
Gill Byrd — former NFL defensive back, San Diego Chargers; two NFL Pro Bowl appearances
Jim Cadile — former NFL guard, Chicago Bears
Sheldon Canley — former NFL running back, San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets
Matt Castelo — former NFL linebacker, Seattle Seahawks; former CFL linebacker, Hamilton Tiger-cats
Steve Clarkson — nationally renowned quarterbacks coach; founder of Steve Clarkson Dreammaker quarterback camp
Sherman Cocroft — former NFL defensive back, Kansas City Chiefs
Neal Dahlen — former SJSU quarterback, NFL manager and scout; holds the record for the most earned Super Bowl rings at seven
Rashied Davis — NFL wide receiver, Chicago Bears
Yonus Davis — CFL running back, BC Lions
Steve DeBerg — former NFL quarterback, Dallas Cowboys
David Diaz-Infante — former NFL and CFL offensive guard, San Diego Chargers, Denver Broncos, Philadelphia Eagles, and Sacramento Gold Miners
Oscar Donahue — former NFL wide receiver, Minnesota Vikings
Terry Donahue — UCLA head football coach; College Football Hall of Fame inductee
Leon Donohue — former NFL offensive lineman, San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys
Carl Ekern — former NFL linebacker, Los Angeles Rams; one NFL Pro Bowl appearance
David Fales — NFL quarterback, New York Jets
Mervyn Fernandez —former NFL wide receiver, Los Angeles Raiders
Coye Francies — NFL defensive back, Cleveland Browns
Jeff Garcia — NFL quarterback, San Francisco 49ers et al.; four NFL Pro Bowl appearances
Trestin George — CFL defensive back, BC Lions
Jarron Gilbert — NFL defensive tackle, Chicago Bears
Charley Harraway — former NFL running back, Washington Redskins and Cleveland Browns
Paul Held — former NFL quarterback, Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers
Willie Heston — former SJSU halfback; College Football Hall of Fame inductee
James Hodgins — former NFL fullback, St. Louis Rams et al.
Duke Ihenacho — NFL safety, Denver Broncos
Johnny Johnson — former NFL running back, New York Jets; one NFL Pro Bowl appearance; consensus choice for Rookie of the Year
Cody Jones — NFL defensive tackle, Los Angeles Rams; one NFL Pro Bowl appearance
James Jones — NFL wide receiver, Oakland Raiders
Rick Kane — former NFL running back, Detroit Lions
Bob Ladouceur — among winningest high school football coaches in U.S. history; coached De La Salle High Spartans to 151 consecutive wins 1992–2003
Bill Leavy — NFL referee; officiated Super Bowl XL
Dwight Lowery — NFL defensive back, New York Jets and two-time All-American at SJSU
Joe Nedney — NFL kicker, San Francisco 49ers
William Yaw Obeng — Arena Football League lineman, San Jose SaberCats
Chris Owens — NFL defensive back, Atlanta Falcons
Tom Petitthome — former AFL player, San Jose Sabercats
Art Powell — NFL wide receiver, Oakland Raiders; Raiders' 7th all-time leading receiver
Waylon Prather — former NFL punter, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals
Jim Psaltis — former NFL defensive back
David Richmond — NFL wide receiver, Cincinnati Bengals
Scott Rislov — AFL quarterback, San Jose SaberCats
Al Saunders — former NFL head coach for the San Diego Chargers
Rufus Skillern — CFL and NFL wide receiver, BC Lions and Baltimore Ravens
Gerald Small — former NFL defensive back, Miami Dolphins
Carl Sullivan — former NFL defensive end, Green Bay Packers
Adam Tafralis — CFL quarterback, Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Tyson Thompson — NFL kick returner, Dallas Cowboys
Bob Titchenal — former NFL linebacker, Washington Redskins and Los Angeles Dons; one Pro Bowl appearance; former head football coach, University of New Mexico and SJSU
Paul Varelans — retired professional MMA fighter formerly with the UFC
Dick Vermeil — NFL head coach; winning coach, Super Bowl XXXIV
Bill Walsh — NFL head coach; winning coach, Super Bowl XVI, Super Bowl XIX, and Super Bowl XXIII; Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee
Gerald Willhite — former NFL running back, Denver Broncos
Billy Wilson — former NFL receiver, San Francisco 49ers; six NFL Pro Bowl appearances
Louis Wright — former NFL defensive back, Denver Broncos; 1st round NFL draft pick; five NFL Pro Bowl appearances
Roy Zimmerman — former NFL quarterback, Washington Redskins; one Pro Bowl appearance

Golf

Ron Cerrudo — PGA golfer and tour winner
Bob Eastwood — PGA golfer and tour winner
Pat Hurst — LPGA golfer and tour winner; #16 on the all-time LPGA money list
Juli Inkster — LPGA golfer; two-time U.S. Women's Open winner ; #4 on the all-time LPGA money list
Mark Lye — PGA golfer and tour winner
Roger Maltbie — PGA golfer and tour winner
Janice Moodie — LPGA golfer and tour winner
Arron Oberholser — PGA golfer; AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am winner
Patty Sheehan — LPGA golfer; two-time U.S. Women's Open winner
Ken Venturi — PGA golfer; 1964 U.S. Open winner and Sports Illustrated "Sportsman of the Year"
Mark Wiebe — PGA golfer and tour winner

Olympic Games

Charles Adkins — 1952 Olympian ; gold medalist
Kevin Asano — 1988 Olympian ; silver medalist; USA Judo Hall of Fame inductee
Bob Berland — 1984 Olympian ; silver medalist
Felix Böhni — 1980 and 1984 Olympian
Suzannah Brookshire-Gonzales — 2020 Olympian
Colton Brown — 2016 and 2020 Olympian
Ed Burke — 1964 and 1968 Olympian, U.S.A. flagbearer at the 1984 Opening Ceremonies in Los Angeles
Robin Campbell — 1984 Olympian
John Carlos — 1968 Olympian ; bronze medalist; best known for giving raised fist salute from the medalists' podium during the 1968 Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City
Dedy Cooper — 1980 Olympian
Michelle Cox — 2020 Olympian
Jim Doehring — 1992 Olympian ; silver medalist
Emma Entzminger — 2020 Olympian
Clara Espar Llaquet — 2020 Olympian ; silver medalist
Lee Evans — 1968 Olympian ; two-time gold medalist and world record holder
Jeff Fishback — 1964 Olympian
George Haines — swim coach for seven U.S. Olympic teams; head swim coach at UCLA and Stanford University
Steve Hamann — 1980 Olympian
Mike Hernandez — 1972 Olympian
Mitch Ivey — 1968 and 1972 Olympian ; silver and bronze medalist
Margaret Jenkins — 1928 Olympian
Stacey Johnson — 1980 Olympian
Marti Malloy — 2012 Olympian ; bronze medalist
Keith Nakasone — 1980 Olympian
Ben Nighthorse Campbell — 1964 Olympian
Ray Norton — 1960 Olympian
Christos Papanikolaou — 1968 Olympian ; world record holder
John Powell — 1976 and 1984 Olympian ; two-time bronze medalist
Raju Rai — 2008 Olympian
Ronnie Ray Smith — 1968 Olympian ; gold medalist and world record holder
Tommie Smith — 1968 Olympian ; gold medalist; best known for giving raised fist salute from the medalists' podium during the 1968 Summer Olympic Games
Willie Steele —1948 Olympian ; gold medalist
Robyn Stevens — 2020 Olympian
Jill Sudduth — 1996 Olympian : gold medalist
Mike Swain — 1988 Olympian ; bronze medalist; first American male to win the World Judo Championships
Lynn Vidali — 1968 and 1972 Olympian ; silver and bronze medalist
Jim Zylker — 1972 Olympian

Other

Joey Chestnut — competitive eater; world record holder
Shane Golobic — dirt track racing driver
Krazy George Henderson — professional cheerleader and self-proclaimed inventor of the audience wave
Ryan Suarez — former MLS soccer player
Yoshihiro Uchida — head coach, SJSU judo team; team coach, 1964 U.S. Olympic judo team; instrumental in developing organized intercollegiate judo competition in the U.S.
Peter Ueberroth — Major League Baseball Commissioner ; U.S. Olympic Committee chair; Time magazine's "Man of the Year"
Robert Wall — actor and martial artist
Justin Willis — professional mixed martial artist, current UFC heavyweight

Fictional alumni

Amir Qadiri — protagonist of the novel ''The Kite Runner''

Faculty and staff

James J. Asher — professor emeritus of psychology; inventor of Total Physical Response
Dwight Bentel — driving force behind the development of the SJSU School of Journalism and Mass Communications
Elbert Botts — former chemistry professor; California Department of Transportation employee; inventor of Botts dots
Celia Correas de Zapata — former Spanish professor; world expert on Latin American women's fiction; widely published author
Paul Douglass — English professor; renowned literary scholar; winner of the 2007 Elma Dangerfield award for his publication of new and original work related to the life and times of the poet Lord Byron;
Bob Gliner — emeritus faculty of sociology
Daniel Goldston — mathematics professor; developed breakthrough methods for proving there are arbitrarily large primes that are unusually close together
Lou Harrison — former composer-in-residence; world-renowned composer
Fred Iltis — Holocaust emigre and entomologist
Persis Karim — former co-director of the Persian Studies Program, and professor
Jessica Mitford — former sociology professor; renowned muckraking journalist; author of The American Way of Death
Bruce Ogilvie — psychology professor; renowned sports psychologist
Sam Richardson — post-war artist known for minimalist sculpture
Rudy Rucker — former computer science professor; renowned science fiction author; often credited as a founding father of cyberpunk
Frederick Spratt — art professor and art department chair; known for his Color Theory paintings; founder of the Frederick Spratt Gallery in San Jose
Shelby Steele — former English professor; writer; documentary filmmaker; author of The Content of our Character; Emmy Award winner; National Book Critics Circle Award winner
Allen Strange — professor emeritus of music; renowned musician and composer; author of Electronic Music: Systems, Techniques, and Controls, a key text on modular analog synthesis; author of other texts on modern music practices
Jacqueline Thurston — professor emerita of Art; visual artist and writer
Lloyd (Bud) Winter — track coach; produced over 100 All-Americans and nine Olympians at SJSU; coached SJSU track team to two NCAA national titles; National Track and Field Hall of Fame inductee; author of ''So You Want to be a Sprinter''