List of West Virginia University alumni

This list of West Virginia University alumni includes notable people from published sources that previously attended West Virginia University.

Arts and entertainment



 * Michael Ammar – world-renowned magician; WVU Distinguished Alumni Award winner 2003
 * Emily Calandrelli – science communicator, host and producer for Netflix's Emily's Wonder Lab and children's STEM science programming block Xploration Station
 * Paul Dooley – actor, writer, comedian
 * Conchata Ferrell – actress; known for playing Berta the housekeeper on the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men
 * Antoine Fuqua – director of Training Day, Shooter, Replacement Killers; attended, but did not graduate
 * Steve Harvey – Emmy-winning host of Family Feud; attended, but did not graduate
 * Cheryl Hines – actress, Curb Your Enthusiasm; attended but did not graduate
 * Mike Hodge (B.A. in journalism, minor in theater) – actor and actors' labor union executive; former President of SAG-AFTRA New York local
 * Taylor Kinney – actor; portrays Lt. Kelly Severide in NBC's drama Chicago Fire; stars in The Other Woman
 * Don Knotts – television and movie actor
 * Richard Kuranda – theatrical producer and artistic director Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, Signature Theatre Company, Raue Center for the Arts
 * Billy Mays – television advertiser featured on Discovery Channel's PitchMen and known for promoting several as seen on TV products; attended but did not graduate; died in 2009
 * Kathleen Noone – portrays Edna Wallace on the NBC soap opera Passions; known to have attended
 * Ben Reed – actor; played quarterback for the West Virginia University football team
 * John A. Russo – screenwriter and film director; co-wrote Night of the Living Dead
 * Chris Sarandon – television and movie actor, voice of Jack Skellington
 * David Selby – actor

Athletics

 * Joe Alexander – American-Israeli current professional basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv
 * Michael Baker – football player
 * Terry Bowden – Yahoo sports analyst
 * Tommy Bowden – former head football coach for Clemson University and Tulane University
 * John Browning – former NFL defensive tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs
 * Marc Bulger – former NFL quarterback for the St. Louis Rams, New Orleans Saints, and Baltimore Ravens
 * Da'Sean Butler (born 1987) – basketball player for Hapoel Be'er Sheva of the Israeli Premier League
 * Niccolò Campriani – Olympic gold and silver medal-winning sport shooter; won gold in the men's 50 metre rifle three positions and silver in the men's 10 metre air rifle at the 2012 Summer Olympics
 * Mike Compton – two-time Super Bowl Champion and former NFL guard for the Detroit Lions, New England Patriots, and Jacksonville Jaguars
 * Devin Ebanks – professional basketball player
 * James "Clayster" Eubanks – professional Call of Duty player, two-time Call of Duty Championship winner
 * D'or Fischer (born 1981) – American-Israeli basketball player in the Israeli National League
 * Mike Gansey – former basketball player in the NBA Development League; current assistant general manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers
 * Jedd Gyorko – current second baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals
 * Major Harris – quarterback for West Virginia University in their 1988 undefeated season
 * Sue Haywood – professional mountain bike racer
 * Johannes "Joe" Herber – former professional and German international basketball player
 * Chris Henry – former NFL wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals
 * Jeff Hostetler – Super Bowl Champion and former NFL quarterback for the Washington Redskins, Oakland Raiders, and New York Giants; starting quarterback in Super Bowl XXV
 * Chuck Howley – former NFL linebacker for the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys, and Super Bowl V MVP
 * Sam Huff – former NFL linebacker; inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982
 * Bob Huggins – former head coach of the West Virginia University men's basketball team and former West Virginia University basketball player
 * Rodney Clark "Hot Rod" Hundley – former NBA basketball player for the Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers; first pick in the 1957 NBA draft
 * Hal Hunter – football coach
 * Bruce Irvin – Super Bowl Champion and current NFL linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks
 * James Jett – Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter and former NFL wide receiver for Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders
 * Adam "Pacman" Jones – NFL cornerback, currently a free agent
 * Greg Jones – three-time NCAA Division 1 wrestling champion, 2005 Most Outstanding Wrestler award winner, former associate head coach for the West Virginia University wrestling team, current Blackzilians wrestling coach
 * Brian Jozwiak – former NFL offensive lineman for the Kansas City Chiefs
 * Ken Kendrick – owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball
 * Steve Kline – former Major League Baseball pitcher
 * Ellis Lankster – current NFL cornerback for the New York Jets
 * Ashley Lawrence – soccer player for the Canada national team
 * Oliver Luck – former NFL quarterback, athletic director of West Virginia University, first Commissioner of the XFL, president/general manager of the Houston Dynamo, father of Andrew Luck
 * Billy Joe Mantooth – former NFL linebacker for the Houston Oilers
 * Pat McAfee – former NFL punter for the Indianapolis Colts
 * Casey Mitchell (born 1988) – basketball player for Elitzur Ashkelon of the Israeli Basketball Premier League
 * Dan Mozes – 2006 Rimington Trophy winner
 * Adrian Murrell – former running back for New York Jets
 * Solomon Page – former NFL offensive lineman for the Dallas Cowboys and San Diego Chargers
 * Tarik Phillip (born 1993) – British-American basketball player in the Israel Basketball Premier League
 * Kevin Pittsnogle – former basketball player in the NBA Development League
 * Adrian Pledger (born 1976) – basketball player
 * Jerry Porter – former NFL wide receiver for the Oakland Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars
 * Wil Robinson – former ABA basketball player; All-American at West Virginia
 * Rich Rodriguez – former head football coach of the University of Michigan; current head football coach of the University of Arizona
 * Todd Sauerbrun – former All-Pro NFL punter (five different teams)
 * Owen Schmitt – former NFL fullback for the Seattle Seahawks, Philadelphia Eagles, and Oakland Raiders
 * Floyd B. "Ben" Schwartzwalder – former head coach of the 1959 National Championship Syracuse University football team
 * Heath Slater – professional wrestler, former wrestler at WVU
 * Steve Slaton – former NFL running back for the Houston Texans and Miami Dolphins; current CFL running back for the Toronto Argonauts
 * Dave Stephenson – former NFL guard for the Los Angeles Rams and Green Bay Packers
 * Darryl Talley – West Virginia University all-time team member and former NFL Linebacker for the Buffalo Bills
 * Rod Thorn – former NBA and ABA basketball player and current President of Basketball Operation for the NBA
 * John Thornton – former NFL defensive tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals
 * Virginia Thrasher – current WVU rifle team member and 2016 Olympic gold medalist in air rifle
 * Yutaro Tsukada – professional soccer player
 * Mike Vanderjagt – former NFL placekicker for the Indianapolis Colts and Dallas Cowboys
 * Jerry West – former NBA basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers and Hall of Famer; considered one of the greatest NBA and college basketball players of all time; is the image on the logo for the NBA
 * Pat White – former NFL quarterback for the Miami Dolphins
 * Andrew Wright – current defender/midfielder for Morecambe F.C.
 * John Writer – Olympic gold and silver medal-winning sports shooter
 * Amos Zereoué – former NFL running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Oakland Raiders, and New England Patriots

Authors

 * Maggie Anderson – poet
 * Allen Appel – writer
 * Matt Carson – novelist
 * Stephen Coonts – New York Times bestselling author
 * Paul Russell Cutright – historian and biologist
 * Chip Ingram – Christian writer
 * Chuck Kinder – novelist
 * Ann Pancake – author
 * Jayne Anne Phillips – Pulitzer Prize-winning author

Business

 * Heather Bresch – CEO of Mylan, Inc.
 * John Chambers – President and CEO of Cisco Systems
 * Karen S. Evans – de facto CIO of the United States under President George W. Bush
 * Maggie Hardy Magerko – President of 84 Lumber Company and Nemacolin Woodlands Resort (attended for two years but did not graduate)
 * Richard Wallen – CEO and General Manager of Grant County Public Utility District

Education

 * Charles E. Bayless – president of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology
 * Todd H. Bullard – former president of Potomac State College and Bethany College
 * Margaret Buchanan Cole – American mathematician, retired professor emeritus from WVU
 * Joseph DiSarro (Ph.D.) – professor and chair in the Department of Political Science at Washington & Jefferson College
 * Wanda Franz (Ph.D.) – professor and anti-abortion activist
 * Ruqayyah Ahmed Rufa'i – Nigeria's Minister of Education
 * Steven E. Shreve - University Professor Emeritus at Carnegie Mellon University
 * Patrick Vaughan – historian and professor at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Poland
 * Charles M. Vest – President Emeritus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Journalists

 * Frank Kearns (died 1986) – foreign correspondent and broadcast journalist with CBS News 1953–1971; WVU Professor of Journalism 1971–1983
 * Frank Lovece
 * Asra Nomani
 * Michael Tomasky – editor in chief of Democracy, editor of The New Republic
 * Ken Ward Jr. – reporter for the Charleston Gazette-Mail; 2018 MacArthur Fellow

Military



 * Ret. Gen. Earl E. Anderson – Marine Corps General
 * Corporal Thomas W. Bennett – US Army conscientious objector corporal who served as a combat medic
 * Ret. Gen. Bantz J. Craddock – United States Army, former Supreme Allied Commander Europe
 * Brig. Gen. Frank Kendall Everest, Jr – test pilot and pioneer of rocket aircraft
 * Gen. Robert H. Foglesong – retired Commander, US Air Force in Europe; former President of Mississippi State University

Music

 * Velvet Brown – tuba soloist, music educator
 * Jay Chattaway – Star Trek music score writer
 * Little Jimmy Dickens – country music singer
 * Fuzzy Knight – writer of the WVU Fight Song and country-western actor
 * Scott Krippayne – singer/songwriter
 * Kathy Mattea – country music singer
 * James Valenti – tenor at the Metropolitan Opera, New York
 * Charles Wesley Godwin - new age folk/country singer/songwriter

Politics

 * Victor A. Arredondo – former Minister of Education at the State of Veracruz, Mexico, 2004–2010
 * Carl George Bachmann – United States Congressman, Republican Minority Whip 1931–1933
 * Clark S. Barnes – West Virginia Senate, District 15, 2004–present
 * William Wallace Barron – 26th Governor of West Virginia
 * Irene Berger – United States District Judge for the Southern District of West Virginia
 * Frank L. Bowman – politician who represented West Virginia in the United States House of Representatives
 * Eric Brooks – West Virginia House of Delegates
 * Virginia Mae Brown – first woman to head the Interstate Commerce Commission
 * Becky Cain – past president of the League of Women Voters
 * Geno Chiarelli - West Virginia state delegate
 * William G. Conley – 18th Governor of West Virginia
 * William Harrison Courtney – special assistant to President Clinton
 * Joseph M. Devine – Governor of North Dakota from 1898 to 1899
 * David Ginsburg (1912–2010) – presidential adviser and executive director of the Kerner Commission
 * William E. Glasscock – 13th Governor of West Virginia
 * Howard Mason Gore – 17th Governor of West Virginia
 * Kathleen M. Hawk – Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons
 * Robert Lynn Hogg – represented West Virginia in the United States House of Representatives, 1930–1933
 * Brad Hoylman – sitting New York State Senator representing the 27th District which includes Midtown, Times Square, and Greenwich Village of lower Manhattan
 * Nancy Jacobs – Maryland State Senator (1973)
 * Sen. Harley M. Kilgore – chairman of the US Senate Subcommittee on War Mobilization during World War II
 * Tim Mahoney – United States Congressman from Florida
 * Joe Manchin – 34th Governor of West Virginia; United States Senator from West Virginia
 * William C. Marland – 24th Governor of West Virginia
 * Edward F. McClain – member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
 * Darrell McGraw – former West Virginia Attorney General, former Chief Justice of the West Virginia Supreme Court
 * Carlos Eduardo Mendoza – United States District Judge for the Middle District of Florida
 * M. Blane Michael – Circuit Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
 * Alan Mollohan – United States Congressman
 * Arch A. Moore, Jr. – 28th and 30th Governor of West Virginia
 * Ephraim F. Morgan – 16th Governor of West Virginia
 * Matthew M. Neely – 22nd Governor of West Virginia
 * Asra Nomani – former Wall Street Journal reporter, author and Islamic reform and feminism activist
 * Corey Lee Palumbo – West Virginia Senate, District 17, 2009 – present and West Virginia House of Representatives 2003–2009
 * Mike Pantelides – Mayor of Annapolis, Maryland
 * Tom Pridemore – West Virginia House of Delegates and football player
 * Jeff Pyle – Pennsylvania State Representative
 * Stuart F. Reed – politician who represented West Virginia in the United States House of Representatives
 * Clay Riley - West Virginia state delegate
 * Nelson Stamler – New Jersey State Senator, Assemblyman, Judge, and Prosecutor
 * Virginia Starcher – member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, 1986–1990
 * Paul S. Stull – member of the Maryland House of Delegates
 * John G. Trueschler – former member of the Maryland House of Delegates (1979)
 * Cecil H. Underwood – youngest (25th) and oldest (32nd) Governor of West Virginia
 * Christopher C. Wilkes – Judge, West Virginia Circuit Court
 * William S. Thompson - United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia

Royalty

 * Princess Sarah Culberson – Mende princess and philanthropist

Science and technology



 * Ann Bartuska – ecologist and biologist, Senior advisor at Resources for the Future and former Deputy Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics at United States Department of Agriculture
 * James M. Bobbitt – chemist and professor at the University of Connecticut
 * Emily Calandrelli – science communicator; host of science programs and author of science books for children
 * Dianne Dorland – engineer and first female president of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers
 * Frances Harshbarger (1902–1987) – mathematician
 * Steven C. Hayes – psychologist
 * Katherine Johnson – mathematician, NASA computer scientist, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
 * Robert Kerns – psychologist
 * Jon McBride – NASA astronaut
 * Kim Weaver – astrophysicist

Other notable alumni

 * Cynthia Germanotta – philanthropist, co-founder of Born This Way; also, Lady Gaga's mother.
 * Patsy Ramsey – mother of JonBenet Ramsey; Miss West Virginia in 1977