This list of Duke University people includes alumni, faculty, presidents, and major philanthropists of Duke University, which includes three undergraduate and ten graduate schools. The undergraduate schools include Trinity College of Arts and Sciences, Pratt School of Engineering, and Sanford School of Public Policy. The university's graduate and professional schools include the Graduate School, the Pratt School of Engineering, the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, the School of Medicine, the School of Nursing, the Fuqua School of Business, the School of Law, the Divinity School, and the Sanford School of Public Policy.
Famous alumni include U.S. President Richard Nixon; Chilean President Ricardo Lagos; former cabinet member and former Senator Elizabeth Dole; philanthropist Melinda French Gates; the chief executive officers of Apple (Tim Cook), Morgan Stanley (John J. Mack), and Pfizer (Edmund T. Pratt, Jr.); former General Motors Corporation CEO (Rick Wagoner); and the first United States Chief Performance Officer Jeffrey Zients. Notable alumni media personalities include Dan Abrams, the former General Manager of MSNBC; Jay Bilas, a commentator on ESPN; Sean McManus, the President of CBS News and CBS Sports; Charlie Rose, the host of Charlie Rose and a 60 Minutes contributor; and Judy Woodruff, an anchor at CNN. William DeVries (GME 1971–79) was the first doctor to perform a successful permanent artificial heart implantation, and appeared on the cover of Time in 1984.
Current notable faculty include Manny Azenberg, a Broadway producer whose productions have won 40 Tony Awards; Adrian Bejan, inventor of the constructal theory and namesake of the Bejan number; and David Brooks, a columnist for the New York Times. Walter E. Dellinger III, formerly the United States Solicitor General, Assistant Attorney General, and head of the Office of Legal Counsel under Bill Clinton, serves as a law professor. Novelist and playwright Ariel Dorfman won the 1992 Laurence Olivier Award, while Peter Feaver was a member of the National Security Council under Clinton and George W. Bush. David Gergen served as an advisor to Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton. John Hope Franklin was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton, while William Raspberry, a syndicated columnist for The Washington Post, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1994. 10 Nobel Prize winners have been associated with the university.
As of 2015, 10 Nobel laureates have been affiliated with Duke University. This list includes only those who have graduated from Duke or spent at least one year as a postdoctoral researcher or two years as a faculty member at Duke.
Charles Townes (A.M. in Physics, 1937), 1964 Nobel Laureate in Physics and winner of the 2005 Templeton Prize, National Medal of Science (1982)
Gertrude B. Elion (Adjunct Professor of Pharmacology and of Experimental Medicine from 1971 to 1983 and Research Professor from 1983 to 1999), 1988 Nobel Laureate in physiology or medicine
George H. Hitchings (Adjunct Professor of Pharmacology and of Experimental Medicine from 1970 to 1985), 1988 Nobel Laureate in physiology or medicine
Hans Dehmelt (Post-Doc. 1952–55), 1989 Nobel Laureate in physics, recipient of the National Medal of Science (1995)
Martin Rodbell (Adjunct Professor of Cell Biology from 1991 to 1998), 1994 Nobel Laureate in physiology or medicine
Robert Coleman Richardson (Ph.D in Physics, 1966), 1996 Nobel Laureate in Physics
Peter Agre (Vice Chancellor for Science and Technology at Duke University Medicine Center from 2005 to December 2007), 2003 Nobel Laureate in chemistry
Robert Lefkowitz (James B. Duke Professor of Medicine and Professor of Biochemistry and Chemistry, joined Duke in 1973), 2012 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry. National Medal of Science (2007)
Brian Kobilka (Post-Doc. 1984–1989), 2012 Nobel Laureate in chemistry
Paul L. Modrich (James B. Duke Professor of Biochemistry at Duke University, joined Duke in 1976), 2015 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry
In the absence of a Nobel Prize in Computer science, the Turing Award generally is recognized as the highest honor in the subject and the "Nobel Prize of computing". As of 2015, 3 Turing Award laureates have been affiliated with Duke University.
Frederick P. Brooks (A.B. 1953), software engineer and computer scientist, known for managing the development of IBM's System/360 family of computers; National Medal of Technology and Innovation laureate in 1985, IEEE John von Neumann Medal laureate in 1993 and Turing Award laureate in 1999
Edmund M. Clarke (M.A. 1968; faculty, 1976 to 1978), computer scientist; academic; developed model checking; Turing Award laureate in 2007
John Cocke (B.S. 1945, Ph.D. 1956), considered the father of the RISC computer architecture, Turing Award laureate in 1987, National Medal of Technology and Innovation laureate in 1991 and National Medal of Science in 1994
Government, law, and public policy
Note: individuals who belong in multiple sections appear in the most relevant section.
Ricardo Lagos (Ph.D. 1966), former President of Chile
Richard Nixon (J.D. 1937), 37th President of the United States
Cabinet members and White House staff
David Addington (J.D. 1981), chief of staff to former Vice President Dick Cheney
Claude Allen (J.D. 1990), White House domestic policy advisor
Josephus Daniels, Secretary of the Navy during World War I
Elizabeth Dole (A.B. 1958), former United States Senator for North Carolina; former Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission; former United States Secretary of Transportation; former United States Secretary of Labor; former President of the American Red Cross
W. Neil Eggleston (A.B. 1975), White House Counsel under President Barack Obama
Danielle C. Gray (A.B. 2000), Cabinet Secretary, Senior Advisor to President Barack Obama
John P. Hannah (A.B. 1984), Assistant for National Security to former Vice President Dick Cheney
John Hillen (A.B. 1988), former Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs
John Koskinen (A.B. 1961), Commissioner of Internal Revenue (2013–present), former Deputy Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget
Juanita M. Kreps (A.M. 1944, Ph.D. 1948), United States Secretary of Commerce, 1977–79
Reggie Love (A.B. 2005), Personal Aide to President Barack Obama
Macon Phillips (A.B. 2000), White House Director of New Media with oversight responsibility for Whitehouse.gov
Daniel Calhoun Roper (A.B. 1888), United States Secretary of Commerce under Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Sonal Shah (M.A. 1994), Director of the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation, former Head of the Global Development Initiative at Google.org
Eric Shinseki (A.M. 1976), retired four-star general, 7th United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (2009–2014), 34th Chief of Staff of the Army (1999–2003)
Doug Sosnik (A.B. 1979), senior advisor and political director to former President Bill Clinton
Tommy Sowers (A.B. 1998), Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs
Kenneth Starr (J.D. 1973), former United States Solicitor General, Independent Counsel during the Whitewater Affair
James Young (physician) (M.D. 1955), MC USN, Attending White House Physician to Kennedy and Johnson, 1963-1966
Jared Weinstein (A.B. 2002), Personal Assistant to former President George W. Bush
Jeffrey Zients (B.S. 1988), United States Chief Performance Officer
Stephen Miller (A.B. 2007), Senior Advisor to the President of the United States
U.S. Senators
Mo Cowan (A.B. 1991), United States Senator from Massachusetts
Shelley Moore Capito (A.B. 1975), United States Senator from West Virginia, former U.S. Representative for West Virginia's 2nd congressional district
Edward Gurney (LL.M. 1948), former United States Senator from Florida
Rand Paul (M.D. 1988), United States Senator from Kentucky
Everett Jordan (A.B.), former U.S. Senator from North Carolina
Ted Kaufman (B.S.E. 1960), United States Senator of Delaware
Bob Krueger (A.M. 1959), former U.S. Representative and Senator from Texas
Lee Slater Overman (A.B. 1874), former United States Senator from North Carolina
James B. Pearson (A.B. 1942), United States Senator from Kansas
U.S. Representatives
Hugh Quincy Alexander (1932), former U.S. Representative from North Carolina (1953–1963)
Robert Franklin Armfield, former Congressman from North Carolina, Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
Morris Brooks (A.B. 1975), U.S. Representative for Alabama's 5th congressional district
Maurice G. Burnside (PhD, 1937), former Congressman from West Virginia
Bradley Byrne (A.B. 1977), U.S. Representative for Alabama's 1st congressional district
Jim Courter (J.D. 1966), former Congressman from New Jersey
Nick Galifianakis (A.B. 1951, J.D. 1953), U.S. Representative from North Carolina
Lisa Gladden (A.B. 1986), Maryland State Representative, Annapolis, Maryland
Hannibal Lafayette Godwin (A.B. 1897), Democratic US Representative from North Carolina
Tom Grady (J.D., 1982), Republican U.S. Representative from Florida
Robin Hayes (A.B. 1967), Congressman of North Carolina's 8th district (1998–present)
Paul B. Henry (A.M., Ph.D. 1968), U.S. Representative from Michigan and Michigan State Senator
Henry Hyde (X. 1947), former U.S. Representative of Illinois
Robert D. Inglis (A.B. 1981), U.S. Representative of South Carolina
Dan Lipinski (Ph.D. 1998), Congressman for Illinois' 3rd district (2005–present)
Stan Lundine (A.B. 1961), Congressman from New York (1976–1987)
Denise Majette (J.D. 1979), former Georgia state judge, former U.S. Representative of Georgia
Ron Paul (M.D. 1961), U.S. Representative from Texas (1997-2013); 2008 Republican Presidential candidate
Scott Peters (A.B. 1980), U.S. Representative for California's 52nd congressional district
Ben Quayle (A.B, 1998), U.S. Representative from Arizona; son of former U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle
Nick Rahall (A.B. 1971), Congressman for West Virginia
Dave Trott (J.D. 1985), U.S. Representative from Michigan (2015–present)
Basil Lee Whitener (J.D. 1937), U.S. Representative from North Carolina, 1957-1968
George Venable Allen (A.B. 1920), U.S. Ambassador to Iran, 1946–1948; Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs, 1948–1949; U.S. Ambassador to Yugoslavia, 1949–1953.
Robert Sherwood Dillon (A.B. 1951), U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon (1981–1983)
William Eacho (A.B. 1976), U.S. Ambassador to Austria (2009–2013)
Cynthia G. Efird (A.M.), U.S. Ambassador to Angola (2004-2007)
Robert C. Frasure (Ph.D 1971), U.S. Ambassador to Estonia (1992-1994)
Gordon D. Giffin (A.B. 1971), U.S. Ambassador to Canada (1997–2001)
Jack Gosnell (A.B. 1966), former U.S. Consul General to St. Petersburg, Russia
Richard Graber (A.B. 1978), former United States Ambassador to the Czech Republic
Jaime Aleman Healy (J.D. 1978), Panamanian Ambassador to the USA (2009–2011)
Stuart E. Jones (A.B. 1982), United States Ambassador to Jordan (2011-2014); United States Ambassador to Iraq (2014–present)
Robert Jordan (A.B. 1967), former United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
Bob Krueger (M.A. 1959), U.S. Ambassador to Burundi during administration of Bill Clinton
Philip Lader (A.B. 1966), Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Chairman of the WPP Group
Steven Lett (B.S.E. 1980), diplomat; head of the International Cospas-Sarsat Programme
Jack F. Matlock, Jr. (A.B. 1950), United States Ambassador to Czechoslovakia and to the Soviet Union under Ronald Reagan
Walter P. McConaughy (A.B. 1930), former United States Ambassador to Burma, South Korea, Pakistan, and Taiwan
David McKean (J.D. 1986), U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg, former Director of Policy Planning
Geeta Pasi (A.B. 1984), U.S. Ambassador to Djibouti
Manuel Sager (LL.M. 1985), ambassador of Switzerland to the United States
Elizabeth Verville (A.B. 1961), Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Political and Military Affairs
William Atwater (MA, PhD 1982), retired Captain in the US Marines; author, historian, and director of the US Army Ordnance Museum
Walter E. Boomer (B.S. 1960), retired General, former assistant commandant, US Marine Corps, Desert Storm Commander; business executive
Frank Bowman (B.S. 1966), retired Admiral, former Chief of Naval Personnel, former Director of Naval Nuclear Propulsion, US Navy; Honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE)
Winston Choo (MA, History), retired Lieutenant-General, former Chief of Defence Force (1974-1992) in the Singapore Armed Forces
Edward H. Deets (1979), Rear Admiral in the United States Navy
Martin E. Dempsey (M.A. 1984), Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Charles S. Hamilton (B.S. 1974), Rear Admiral in the United States Navy
John L. Helgerson (MS, PhD), former CIA Inspector General
James W. Holsinger (M.D. 1964), retired Major General in the United States Army Reserve, physician, nominated to become the 18th Surgeon General of the United States
Gilmary M. Hostage III (B.S.E. 1977), United States Air Force four-star general, currently serving as the commander of Air Combat Command
Vergel L. Lattimore, Brigadier General in the Air National Guard
Ng Jui Ping (MA, History), retired Lieutenant-General; former Chief of Defence Force (1992-1995) in the Singapore Armed Forces
Eric Schoomaker (residency and fellowship), Surgeon General of the United States Army
Eric Shinseki (A.M. 1976), retired four-star general, the 7th United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs; former 34th Chief of Staff of the Army
Brett Velicovich (MBA), drone intelligence specialist during the Iraqi and Afghan War.
Judges
Scott Brister (A.B.), Chief Justice, Texas Supreme Court
Patricia E. Campbell-Smith (B.S. 1987), nominated to serve as chief judge on the United States Court of Federal Claims by President Barack Obama
Robert L. Clifford (LL. B. 1950), Associate Justice, New Jersey Supreme Court
Ann Covington (A.B. 1963), former Chief Justice, Missouri Supreme Court
Allyson Duncan (J.D. 1975), Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit
Christine M. Durham (J.D. 1971), Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court
Orinda Evans (A.B. 1965), U.S. District Court Judge
Richard Mark Gergel (A.B. 1975, J.D. 1979), federal judge on the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
Karen L. Henderson (A.B. 1966), U.S. Court of Appeals
Todd M. Hughes (A.M. 1992, J.D. 1992), U.S. attorney nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
Susan Illston (A.B. 1970), Federal Judge
Barbara Jackson (LL.M. 2014), Associate Justice, North Carolina Supreme Court
Jeffrey W. Johnson (B.A.), Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal
Jane Kelly (A.B. 1987), United States Circuit Judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
Denise Majette (J.D. 1979), former Georgia state judge, former United States Representative of Georgia
David Nahmias (A.B. 1986), Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia; former US Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia
Paul Martin Newby (A.B. 1977), Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court
Susan Owens (A.B. 1971), Associate Justice of the Washington State Supreme Court
William H. Pauley III (A.B. 1974, J.D. 1977), United States federal judge
Cary Douglas Pugh (A.B. 1987), U.S. attorney nominated by President Obama to serve as a judge on the US Tax Court
Robin L. Rosenberg (J.D. 1989), United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Gary Stein (A.B. 1954, J.D. 1956), Associate Justice, New Jersey Supreme Court
John J. Tharp, Jr. (A.B. 1982), United States District Judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Michael B. Thornton (J.D. 1982), judge on the United States Tax Court
Patricia Timmons-Goodson (LL.M. 2014), former Associate Justice, North Carolina Supreme Court
Gerald B. Tjoflat (LL.B. 1957), Chief Judge Emeritus, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit
John M. Tyson (M.B.A. 1988), judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals
Peter Verniero (J.D. 1984), Associate Justice, Supreme Court of New Jersey; Attorney General of New Jersey
Charles K. Wiggins (J.D. 1976), member of the Washington Supreme Court
Don Willett (A.M. 1992, J.D. 1992), Associate Justice, Texas Supreme Court
Attorneys
Ward Armstrong (B.A. 1977), lawyer and politician
Laurence Brahm (A.B. 1983), lawyer; pioneering global activist
Charlie Condon (J.D. 1978), former Attorney General of South Carolina
Jack Conway (A.B. 1991), Attorney General of Kentucky
Jeffrey L. Fisher (A.B. 1992), professor at Stanford Law School
John Harmon (J.D. 1969), former United States Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel
Stanley Hilton (J.D. 1975), lawyer and activist
Larry Klayman (A.B. 1973), public interest lawyer
Jeffrey Lichtman (J.D. 1990), defense attorney for John Gotti, Fat Joe, and The Game
Dan McCarthy (J.D. 1983), chief prosecutor of the Judge Advocate General's Corps of the United States Navy
C. Allen Parker, Presiding Partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore
Wilhelmina Reuben-Cooke (A.B. 1967), professor of law at the University of the District of Columbia, one of the first five African American undergraduates admitted to Duke in 1963
Russell M. Robinson, II (LL.B. 1956), founding partner of Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, P.A.
Eric Rothschild (A.B. 1989), lead attorney for Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District
Rodney A. Smolla (J.D. 1978), author; first amendment scholar; 11th president of Furman University
Ellen Stiefler (A.B. 1980), intellectual property attorney
Zephyr Teachout (A.M. 1999, J.D. 1999), Associate Professor of Law at Fordham University, candidate for the Democratic Party nomination for Governor of New York
John H. Adams (J.D. 1962), co-founder of the Natural Resources Defense Council
Maya Ajmera (M.P.P. 1993), founder and President of The Global Fund for Children
William Barber II (M.Div. 1989), member of the NAACP National Board of Directors
Mary Duke Biddle (A.B. 1907), daughter of Benjamin Newton Duke and Sarah Pearson Angier Duke, founder of the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation
Lisa Borders (A.B. 1979), Chair of The Coca-Cola Foundation; Vice President of Global Community Affairs at The Coca-Cola Company
Charlotte Bunch (A.B. 1966), author and human rights activist
Susan Bysiewicz (J.D. 1986), Secretary of the State of Connecticut, 1999-2011
Benjamin Chavis, Jr. (MDiv 1980), civil rights activist, executive director of the NAACP
Eugene A. Conti, Jr. (MA Public Policy, PhD Anthropology 1978), Asst. Secretary USDOT, Secretary of Transportation, NCDOT
Peter Cook (A.B. 1989), Pentagon press secretary for Defense Secretary Ash Carter
Pete Crossland (Ph.D. 1966), former member of the Ohio House of Representatives
Chris Daly, former member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
Chris Dorworth (M.B.A. 2006), Member of the Florida House of Representatives
Allan Fels (Ph.D.), Chairperson of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
Nelson M. Ford (B.A.), former United States Under Secretary of the Army
Eric Greitens (A.B. 1996), former Rhodes Scholar and Navy SEAL; CEO of The Mission Continues; named one of the "The World's 100 Most Influential People" by TIME magazine in 2013
John Hanger (A.B. 1979), Pennsylvania Secretary of Environmental Protection, candidate for Governor of Pennsylvania
Deborah Lee James (A.B.), President Obama's nominee for United States Secretary of the Air Force
Shavar Jeffries (A.B. 1996), civil rights attorney, candidate for Mayor of Newark, New Jersey
B.J. Lawson (B.S.E 1996, M.D. 2000), Republican politician
Jerry Meek (A.B. 1993, J.D. 1997), Chairman of the North Carolina Democratic Party
Kimeli Wilson Naiyomah (M.I.D.P,), Kenyan author
Neil Newhouse (A.B. 1974), Republican pollster
Brendan Nyhan (Ph.D. 2009), author and political columnist
Jesse Panuccio (A.B. 2003), Director of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity
Muhammad Ali Pate (M.B.A. 2006), former Minister of State for Health in Nigeria
Art Pope (J.D. 1981), Budget Director for North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory
Robert Satloff (A.B. 1983), Executive Director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans (A.B. 1939), philanthropist
Eleanor Smeal (A.B. 1961, LL.D 1991), political activist; president of the Feminist Majority Foundation; former president of the National Organization for Women
Margaret Taylor Smith (A.B. 1947), Chair, Board of Trustees, Kresge Foundation
Damon Wilson (A.B. 1995), executive vice president at the Atlantic Council of the United States, former Senior Director for European Affairs at the National Security Council
Howard Wolfson (M.A. 1991), Democratic political strategist, Deputy Mayor of New York City for governmental affairs
R. Gregg Cherry (A.B. 1913), Governor of North Carolina (1945-1949)
Claude R. Kirk, Jr. (B.S.), former Governor of Florida (1967-1971)
William B. Umstead (J.D 1921), Governor of North Carolina (1953-1954)
Bob Wise (A.B. 1970), Governor of West Virginia (2001-2005)
Ed Austin (A.B. 1948), Mayor of Jacksonville (1991–1995)
Bill Campbell (J.D. 1977), Mayor of Atlanta (1994–2002)
J. Kane Ditto (A.B.), former Mayor of Jackson, Mississippi
Stan Lundine (A.B. 1961), former Mayor of Jameston, former Congressman and Lieutenant Governor of New York
Enrique Peñalosa (A.B. 1978), Mayor of Bogotá, Colombia (2016–present)
Austin M. Allran (A.B. 1974), member of the North Carolina General Assembly
Daniel T. Blue, Jr. (J.D.), former member of the North Carolina House of Representatives, 1981–2002
Bob Blumenfield (B.A. 1989), current Los Angeles City Council member, former California State Assembly member, 2009-2013,
Samuel Bogley (A.B), former Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
F. Vernon Boozer (A.B 1958), former member of Maryland Senate, 1981–1999
Jason Carter (A.B. 1997), Democratic Party nominee for Governor of Georgia; member of the Georgia State Senate; grandson of President Jimmy Carter
J.B. Fuqua (G.Hon 1973), Chairman of the Georgia Democratic Party
Raj Goyle (A.B. 1997), member of the Kansas House of Representatives
Ember Reichgott Junge (J.D. 1977), former State Senator from Minnesota
Herb Kirsh, former member of the South Carolina House of Representatives
Bill Kramer (J.D. 1994), former Majority Leader, Wisconsin State Assembly
Evelyn Murphy (A.B. 1965, Ph. D 1981), former Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
Robert Sheheen (A.B. 1965), former Speaker, South Carolina House of Representatives
John H. Shields (A.B.), former member of the Texas House of Representatives from San Antonio
Lura S. Tally (A.B. 1942), Member of the North Carolina House of Representatives, 1973–1983, and the North Carolina Senate, 1983–1995
Mike Turzai (J.D. 1987), nominee for Speaker of the Pennsylvania House Representatives, former Republican Caucus (Majority) Leader
Floyd McKissick, Jr. (J.D. 1983), member of the North Carolina Senate
Kelli Ward (B.S. 1991), former State Senator from Arizona
Lekso Aleksishvili (M.A. 2004), former Georgian Minister of Finance
Michael Bassett (Ph.D. 1961), former Cabinet Minister and Member of the Parliament of New Zealand
Arkady Dvorkovich (M.S. 1997), Russian Deputy Prime Minister for industry and energy, former chief economic advisor to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
Amit Mitra (Ph.D. 1978), Finance Minister of the Indian State of West Bengal; economist; member of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly
David Usupashvili (M.A. 1999), Chairperson of the Parliament of Georgia
Paul Auerbach (B.S. 1973, M.D. 1977), physician; a leading voice in the area of wilderness medicine; founder and past president of the Wilderness Medical Society
Hashim bin Al Hussein (X), Prince of Jordan
Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani (B.A. 2005), 14th child of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the current Emir of Qatar
Bernard Chan Pak-li (Ph.D. 2003), Ping Shek representative in the Kwun Tong District Council of Hong Kong, 2007–2013
Kevin J. Martin (M.P.P. 1993), Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission
Charlie Soong (X. 1881), Duke's first international student and patriarch of the Soong Dynasty
Daniel Tarullo (M.A. 1974), member of the Board of Governors of the United States Federal Reserve
Paul Teller (B.A. 1993), Executive Director of the United States House of Representatives Republican Study Committee
Frederic Whitehurst (Ph.D. 1980), former Supervisory Special Agent in the FBI Laboratory
Mike Woodard (A.B. 1981), Durham, North Carolina City Council member
Jeff Williams (M.B.A 1991), COO of Apple
Rex Adams (A.B. 1962), chairman of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), former VP of Mobil Corporation
Howard Lerman (A.B. 2002), founder and CEO of Yext
Chad Dickerson (A.B. 1993), CEO of Etsy
Aaron Patzer (B.S.E 2002), founder and CEO of Mint
Harsha Agadi (M.B.A. 1987), President and CEO, Church's Chicken
Shaikha Al-Bahar, CEO of the National Bank of Kuwait; named the 85th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes
John A. Allison IV (M.B.A. 1974), Chairman (and former CEO), BB&T
John Angelos, Executive Vice President of the Baltimore Orioles
Donna Arduin (A.B. 1985), founder of Arduin, Laffer & Moore Econometrics
Carter Beard (M.B.A. 1996), CEO of Annin & Co.
Steven Black (A.B. 1974), Vice-Chairman, JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Roy J. Bostock (A.B. 1962), former Chairman of B|Com3 Group, Inc.; on the board of directors for Morgan Stanley, Yahoo, and Northwest Airlines; namesake of Bostock Library
Wallace E. Boston, Jr. (A.B. 1974), President and Chief Executive Officer, American Public University System
Jack O. Bovender, Jr. (A.B. 1967, MHA 1969), Chairman and CEO of HCA
Jonathan Browning (M.B.A.), CEO of Volkswagen Group of America
Lewis B. Campbell (B.S.E. 1968), CEO of Textron
John Canning, Jr., founder of private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners; co-owner of the Milwaukee Brewers
John Chambers (attended 1967-1968; X. 1968), CEO of Cisco Systems
Mickey Conlon (A.B., 1998), Celebrity real estate broker and star of HGTV's reality television series Selling New York
Timothy D. Cook (M.B.A. 1988), CEO of Apple Inc.
Eddy Cue (B.S.), Apple's Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services
Tom Davin (B.A. 1979), former COO of Taco Bell Corporation and CEO of Panda Restaurant Group
Grant DePorter (M.B.A.), restaurateur
Gary Dickinson (B.S. 1960), automotive industry executive
Clay Felker (A.B. 1951), Founding Editor of New York Magazine
Michael J. Fitzpatrick, Chairman and CEO, E-TEK Dynamics; namesake of Duke's Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences
Jeffrey Fox (B.S. 1984), President and CEO of Convergys
J. B. Fuqua (G.Hon 1973), Chairman of the Board of The Fuqua Companies, founder of the J.B. Fuqua Foundation, namesake of Duke's Fuqua School of Business
Melinda Gates (A.B. 1986, M.B.A. 1987), co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; wife of Bill Gates
Andrew K. Golden (A.B. 1981), President of the Princeton University Investment Company, which manages the university's financial endowment
David R. Goode (A.B. 1962), Chairman, President, and CEO of Norfolk Southern
William H. Gross (B.S. 1966), founder and Chief Investment Officer, PIMCO, the world's largest bond fund
Jonathan Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere (A.B. 1991), British Viscount; Chairman of the Evening Standard and the Daily Mail; one of the wealthiest men in Britain
Gerald Hassell (B.A. 1973), Chairman and CEO, Bank of New York Mellon
William A. Hawkins (B.S. 1976), CEO of Medtronic
Sally Hogshead (B.A. 1991), CEO of Fascinate, Inc.
Betsy Holden (A.B.), CEO of Kraft Foods, 2001–2003
Amy Hood (A.B. 1994), first female CFO of Microsoft
Lisa Hook (B.A.), President and CEO of NeuStar
John Idzik, Jr. (A.M. 1993), consultant for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the NFL; former general manager of the NFL's New York Jets
David B. Ingram (A.B. 1985), Chairman of Ingram Entertainment
W. Bruce Johnson (B.A., J.D., M.B.A.), Interim Chief Executive Officer and President, Sears Holdings Corporation
William D. Johnson (B.A), Chairman, President and CEO of Progress Energy
Tom Kain (A.B. 1986), Nike's Director of Global Marketing (Soccer)
Bruce Karsh (A.B 1977), co-founder and President of Oaktree Capital Management
Lesa Kennedy (B.A. 1983), CEO of International Speedway Corporation; member of the board of directors of NASCAR
John A. Koskinen (A.B. 1961), President of US Soccer Foundation, former Deputy Director, Office of Management and Budget
Michael Lamach (M.B.A.), President and COO, Ingersoll Rand
David Lauren (B.A), Senior Vice President at Polo Ralph Lauren
Dylan Lauren (A.B. 1996), President and founder of Dylan's Candy Bar
Dan Levitan (1979), co-founder and Managing Partner, Maveron
Gérard Louis-Dreyfus (A.B., J.D.), French billionaire businessman
Gary Lynch (J.D. 1975), former chief legal officer and vice chairman of Morgan Stanley
John J. Mack (A.B. 1968), CEO of Morgan Stanley; former CEO of Credit Suisse First Boston
Aslaug Magnusdottir (LL.M. 1998), co-founder and former CEO of Moda Operandi
Steven Marks (A.B. 1989, J.D. 1992), General Counsel for the Recording Industry Association of America
Christopher Martenson (PhD 1994), biochemist, former vice president of Pfizer
Aubrey McClendon (A.B. 1981), CEO, chairman, and co-founder of Chesapeake Energy
Bart McDade (A.B. 1981), former President and COO of Lehman Brothers, tasked with saving the firm towards the end of its existence
Joey McMahon (A.B. 2009, M.B.A. 2013), founder and CEO of The Monday Life
Lalit Modi (A.B. 1986), Modi Enterprises Scion, Chairman and founder of Indian Premier League
Carter Murray (A.B. 1997), CEO of DraftFCB
Raymond Nasher (1943), real estate developer, philanthropist, namesake of Duke's Nasher Museum of Art
Peter Nicholas (A.B. 1964), founder and Chairman of Boston Scientific Corporation
Edward Nixon (B.S. 1952), entrepreneur and last surviving brother of former US President Richard Nixon
Stephen Pagliuca (1977), part owner of the Boston Celtics, Managing Director of Bain Capital
Robert A. Pascal (A.B. 1957), entrepreneur and politician
J. Michael Pearson (B.S. 1981), Chairman and CEO of Valeant Pharmaceuticals
Gopa Periyadan (M.B.A. 2012), entrepreneur
Poman Lo (A.B. 1999), founder of Bodhi and Friends
Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. (B.S.E. 1947), former CEO of Pfizer, philanthropist, namesake of Duke's Edmund T. Pratt School of Engineering
Robert M. Price (B.S. 1952), CEO of the Control Data Corporation
J.B. Pritzker (A.B.), managing partner and co-founder of The Pritzker Group, principal owner of Hyatt Hotels Corporation and TransUnion Corporation, one of the 400 richest Americans
Joanna Rees (B.S.), venture capitalist
Jeffrey Reich (A.B. 1979), former Senior Managing Director of Bear Sterns
Mark Reuss (M.B.A. 1990), Head of Global Product Development at General Motors; former President of GM North America
Allard Roen, businessman from Las Vegas, Nevada and Carlsbad, California
Andrew Rosen (A.B. 1982), Chairman and CEO of Kaplan, Inc.
Drew Rosenhaus (J.D. 1990), NFL sports agent
David M. Rubenstein (A.B. 1970), co-founder of The Carlyle Group
Georg Schaeffler (J.D. 1999), owner of the Schaeffler Group; currently the wealthiest person in Germany
Alan Schwartz (A.B. 1972), CEO, Bear Stearns
Granville Semmes, founder of 1-800-Flowers
Malvinder Mohan Singh (M.B.A. 1998), former Chairman and CEO of Ranbaxy Laboratories; Chairman of Fortis Hospitals and Religare Financial Services; one of the twenty richest Indians in the world
Shivinder Mohan Singh (M.B.A. 2000), Managing Director of Fortis Healthcare; Advisory Board Member of AIESEC India; one of the twenty richest Indians in the world
David B. Snow, Jr. (M.S. 1978), Chairman and CEO of Medco Health Solutions, a Fortune 100 company
Jimmy Soni (A.B. 2007), Managing Editor of the Huffington Post
Robert K. Steel (A.B. 1973), Chairman of the Duke University Board of Trustees, President and CEO, Wachovia
Joseph R. Swedish (M.H.A. 1979), CEO of WellPoint Inc., the second-largest health insurance provider in the US
David S. Taylor (B.S.E 1980), President and CEO at Procter & Gamble
Bill Timmerman (1968), Chairman, President, and CEO of SCANA
Randall L. Tobias, former CEO of Eli Lilly and Company; served as U.S. Director of Foreign Assistance and Administrator of USAID, with the rank of ambassador
David Trott (J.D. 1985), businessman; Republican politician
James L. Vincent (B.S. 1961), Chairman and CEO, Biogen Idec
Jeffrey Vinik (B.S. 1981), Chairman, President, and CEO of Vinik Asset Management, owner of Tampa Bay Lightning
Karl von der Heyden (1962), Vice Chairman and CFO, Pepsico, Inc., namesake of the von der Heyden pavilion at Duke
G. Richard Wagoner, Jr. (A.B. 1975), President and CEO, General Motors Corporation
Gary L. Wilson (A.B. 1962), Director of The Walt Disney Company; Co-Chairman of Northwest Airlines; namesake of Wilson Rec Center at Duke
Charles Xiaolin Wang (J.D. 1999), Chinese lawyer, entrepreneur and financier
Thomas S. White, Jr. (1965), asset manager
William Wrigley, Jr. (B.A), Chairman, President, CEO Wrigley Company
Gao Xiqing (J.D. 1986), General Manager and Chief Investment Officer of the China Investment Corporation
University presidents and administrators
Rick Brewer, President of Louisiana College
John Chandler (B.D. 1952, Ph.D. 1954), former President of Williams College
Margaret Cuninggim, Dean of Women at the University of Tennessee and at Vanderbilt University
Charles L. Flynn, Jr. (Ph.D.), President of the College of Mount Saint Vincent
W. Kent Fuchs (B.S.E. 1977), President of the University of Florida, former provost of Cornell University
Pamela Gann (J.D. 1973), President of Claremont McKenna College and former Dean of Duke University School of Law
Susan Henking (B.A. 1977), President of Shimer College; scholar of religious studies
Susan Herbst (B.A. 1984), President of University of Connecticut; political scientist
Matthew S. Holland (M.A., Ph.D.), President of Utah Valley University
A. D. Kirwan (Ph. D., 1947), seventh President of the University of Kentucky
Benjamin Ladner (Ph.D. 1970), former President of American University
Theodore E. Long (A.M 1968), President of Elizabethtown College
Mirta Martin (B.S. 1982), ninth President of Fort Hays State University
Lloyd B. Minor (residency), scientist, surgeon, and Dean of Stanford University School of Medicine
Roy Kinneer Patteson, Jr. (Th.M. 1964, Ph.D. 1967), ancient language scholar; authority on the origin of the alphabet; former President of Southern Virginia University and King College
David P. Roselle (Ph.D. 1965), President, University of Delaware
David E. Sweet (Ph.D., 1968), founding President of Metropolitan State University and later President of Rhode Island College
Jill Tiefenthaler (A.M., Ph. D.), President of Colorado College; former provost of Wake Forest University
Theodore Ziolkowski (A.B. 1951), former Dean of the Graduate School, Princeton University
Jeffrey Vitter (M.B.A 2002), 17th Chancellor of the University of Mississippi
Professors and academics
Arun Agrawal (M.A. 1988, Ph.D. 1992), professor at the University of Michigan
Dan Ariely (Ph.D. 1998), professor of behavioral economics at Duke and head of the eRationality research group at the MIT Media Lab, author of Predictably Irrational
Susan Athey (A.B. 1991), professor of economics at Harvard University and winner of the John Bates Clark Medal
Roy Baumeister (MA 1976), psychologist, fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Bill Brown (A.B.), Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Chicago
Robin M. Canup (B.S.), astrophysicist; member of the National Academy of Sciences; recipient of the Harold C. Urey Prize
Barry F. Cooper (Ph.D. 1969), Canadian political scientist
Thomas Daniel (Ph.D.), biologist, won a MacArthur Fellowship in 1996
Sara Danius (Ph.D. 1997), Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy, a Royal Academy which awards the Nobel Prize in Literature
Paul Doran (A.B. 2003), expert on history of religions and history of Europe
David L. Downie (A.B. 1983), author, professor of politics and environment policy at Fairfield University
David Efird (A.B. 1995), philosopher and lecturer at the University of York
Garrett Epps (J.D. 1991), legal scholar, professor at the University of Baltimore
Thomas Eugene Flanagan (Ph.D), conservative Canadian political scientist
R. Edward Freeman (A.B. 1973), philosopher and professor of business administration, known for the stakeholder theory
Ken Gergen (Ph. D. 1962), psychologist and professor at Swarthmore College
John Graham (Ph.D. 1994), economist
Huck Gutman, PhD from Duke; Professor of English at the University of Vermont and political advisor to Bernie Sanders.
Dagmar Herzog (A.B., 1983), Distinguished Professor of History, the Graduate Center, City University of New York
Craig Henriquez (B.S.E., 1981, Ph.D, 1988), Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Duke University
Douglas Hodgkin (Ph.D.), political scientist; author; professor at Bates College
D. Kern Holoman (B.A. 1969), Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of California, Davis
Robert A. Jarrow (B.S. 1974), Ronald P. and Susan E. Lynch Professor of Investment Management at the Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell University
Siddharth Kara (B.A.), expert on modern-day slavery and human trafficking
Kevin Lane Keller (Ph.D. 1986), E. B. Osborn Professor of Marketing at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College
Anne R. Kenney (B.A. 1972), Carl A. Kroch University Librarian, Cornell University Library
M. A. R. Koehl (Ph.D. 1976), professor at the University of California, Berkeley; member of the National Academy of Sciences; awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 1990
Juanita M. Kreps (A.M. 1944, Ph.D. 1948), professor, economist, United States Secretary of Commerce
Bruce R. Kuniholm (M.A. 1972, M.A.P.P.S. 1976, Ph.D. 1976), professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy; expert on U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East
Luciano L'Abate (PhD 1956), the father of relational theory; author of 50 books in the field of American psychology
Frank Lentricchia (Ph.D. 1960), literary critic; professor of literature at Duke University
Jerry B. Lincecum (Ph.D.), Emeritus professor of English; author; affiliated with Austin College in Sherman, Texas
Marc Lynch (A.B.), Professor of Political Science at George Washington University
Khaled Mattawa (Ph.D. 2009), Libyan poet, awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2014
Raven I. McDavid, Jr., linguist, dialectologist
Lionel W. McKenzie (B.S. 1939), economist
Allan Meltzer (A.B. 1948, A.M. 1955), economist who served on the Council of Economic Advisors for Presidents Kennedy and Ronald Reagan
Jean-Paul C. Montagnier (Ph.D. 1994), musicologist
Richard L. Morrill (Ph.D. 1968), Chancellor of the University of Richmond
Robert L. Morris (Ph.D. 1969), notable psychologist, Koestler professor at the University of Edinburgh
Chip Mosher, education columnist, poet, teacher
Burl Noggle (B.A. 1950, M.A. 1951, Ph. D. 1955), historian at Louisiana State University; wrote work on Teapot Dome scandal
W. Darrell Overdyke (Ph.D. 1941), historian at Centenary College of Louisiana
Noel Perrin (A.M., 1950), scholar, essayist, and critic; professor at Dartmouth College
Joseph Gaither Pratt (A.B. 1931, M.A. 1933, Ph.D. 1936), psychologist
Reynolds Price (A.B 1955), author and professor of literature at Duke
John A. Rich (M.D. 1984), chair of the department of health management and policy at Drexel University; 2006 MacArthur Fellowship
Haun Saussy (A.B., 1981), University Professor of comparative literature at the University of Chicago
Baba Shiv (Ph.D. 1996), Professor of Marketing at Stanford's Graduate School of Business
Glen Stassen (Ph.D.), ethicist; Baptist theologian; son of former Minnesota governor and nine-time Presidential candidate Harold Stassen
Robert Tally (A.B. 1990, J.D. 2001), Professor of English at Texas State University
John E. Thomas (Ph.D. 1959), medical ethicist
J. Anderson Thomson (A.B. 1970), Trustee of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science
Robert M. Townsend (A.B. 1970), professor of economics at MIT and two-time winner of the Frisch Medal (1998, 2012)
Peter Turchin (Ph.D. 1985), Russian-American scientist, specializing in population biology and "cliodynamics"
Betty Miller Unterberger (Ph.D. 1950), historian
Sam Wang (Post Doc), neuroscientist, professor and best-selling author
Daniel T. Willingham (A.B. 1983), professor of psychology at the University of Virginia
Nikolai Khokhlov (Ph.D.), professor of psychology at California State University, San Bernardino, former KGB officer
William Kaelin, Jr. (A.B. 1978, M.D. 1982), Professor of Medicine at Harvard University, recipient of the 2016 Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research
Medicine, science and technology
David H. Adams, heart valve surgery and mitral valve repair
Soleio Cuervo (A.B. 2003), creator of the Facebook like button, head of design at Dropbox
Raymond Delacy Adams (M.D. 1936), professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School; chief of neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital; Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Waleed Al-Salam (Ph.D. 1958), mathematician
Eben Alexander (M.D. 1980), neurosurgeon and best-selling author
Lenox Baker (M.D. 1973), physician, public servant
Lt. Andy Baldwin, The Bachelor, lieutenant, and doctor
Ian Barbour (M.S. 1946), physicist, theologian, and recipient of the Templeton Prize in 1999
Charles E. Brady, Jr. (M.D. 1975), astronaut
John C. Browne (Ph.D.), former director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory
Jerome Bruner (A.B. 1937), psychologist and professor
David R. Bryant (PhD 1961), organic chemist
John Buse (Ph.D. 1985, M.D. 1986), former President of the American Diabetes Association
C. Thomas Caskey (M.D. 1963), medical geneticist and biomedical entrepreneur
Iain Cheeseman (B.S. 1997), assistant professor at MIT
George M. Church (B.S. 1974), father of most current sequencing and array technologies; helped initiate the Human Genome Project; professor at Harvard Medical School
Daniel J. Clancy (A.B. 1985), computer scientist, engineering director for Google Book Search
Marcus Conant (B.S. 1957, M.D. 1961), dermatologist and AIDS researcher
Richard Cytowic (B.A. 1973), neuroscientist and leading authority on the field of synesthesia
Rose May Davis (Ph.D. 1929), chemist; first woman to be awarded a Ph.D. at Duke
William DeVries (GME 1971–1979), pioneer of artificial organs
Patrick Emmet Duffy (M.D. 1986), malaria researcher
Scott Dulchavsky (surgical fellowship), chairman of surgery and surgeon-in-chief at the Henry Ford Hospital
Sylvia Earle (Ph. D, 1966), marine biologist; Chief Scientist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Jim Ellis, co-creator of Usenet with Tom Truscott
Robert Everett (B.S. 1942), National Medal of Technology and Innovation laureate (1989)
Paul Farmer (B.S. 1982), infectious disease specialist; winner of MacArthur Award; subject of Pulitzer Prize–winning author Tracy Kidder's biography Mountains Beyond Mountains
Robert Fischell (B.S. 1951), physicist, inventor, holder of more than 200 U.S. and foreign medical patents, National Medal of Technology and Innovation laureate in 2015
C. Stephen Foster (B.S. 1965), ophthalmologist, developed the "step ladder approach to care" for treating patients with ocular inflammatory disease.
Joseph F. Fraumeni, Jr. (M.D. 1958), cancer researcher; member of the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Association of American Physicians
Irwin Fridovich (Ph.D. 1955), biochemist, member of the National Academy of Science
Ken Gergen (Ph. D. 1962), psychologist and professor at Swarthmore College
Myron L. Good (Ph.D. 1951), particle physicist
Scott Guthrie, Executive Vice President of the Cloud and Enterprise group at Microsoft
Robert S. Haltiwanger (B.S. 1980, Ph.D. 1986), Chairman of the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at SUNY Stony Brook
Mark S. Humayun (M.D. 1989), recipient of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation (2015), member of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Engineering
George A. Keyworth, II (Ph.D. 1968), physicist; presidential science advisor; former board member of Hewlett Packard
Derek Lowe (Ph.D. 1988), medicinal chemist
John M. MacDougal (Ph. D. 1984), botanist
Robert Malkin (Ph.D. 1993), biomedical engineer; fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering
Peter V. E. McClintock (Post-Doc. 1968), physicist
Joe M. McCord (Ph.D. 1970), biochemist; discovered the enzyme superoxide dismutase
Frank B. McDonald (B.S. 1948), astrophysicist; former chief scientist of NASA; member of the National Academy of Sciences
Delano Meriwether (M.D. 1967), physician, head of the United States Government 1976 swine flu immunization program
Tony Mills (A.B. 1982, M.D. 1986), physician specializing in the treatment of HIV and AIDS
Radhe Mohan (Ph. D. 1969), medical physicist and radiation treatment safety pioneer
Harold A. Mooney (Ph.D. 1960), former President of the Ecological Society of America; member of the National Academy of Sciences
Robert Morris (Ph. D 1969), psychologist, Koestler professor at the University of Edinburgh
Terry Myerson (B.S. 1992), head of Microsoft's operating systems engineering group
Bert W. O'Malley (residency), Distinguished Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Baylor College of Medicine; recipient of the National Medal of Science
George B. Pegram (B.A. 1895), conducted pioneering research on the behavior of neutrons and played a key role in the administration of the Manhattan Project
Sheldon Pinnell (A.B.), dermatologist; lead scientist of SkinCeuticals
Walter Rudin (A.B. 1947, Ph.D. 1949), mathematician, recipient of the Leroy P. Steele Prize awarded by the American Mathematical Society
Michael Ryschkewitsch (Ph.D. 1978), NASA Chief Engineer
Alan R. Saltiel (A.B. 1975), Director of the Life Sciences Institute at the University of Michigan
Sir John Skehel (Post-Doc 1968–1971), British virologist
Dylan Smith, co-founder and Chief Financial Officer of Box
William Kennedy Smith, founder of Physicians Against Land Mines
Michael Tomasello (B.A. 1972), Director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology; 1997 Guggenheim Fellowship
Joseph Travis (Ph.D. 1980), biologist; fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; former president of the American Society of Naturalists
Tom Truscott, co-creator of Usenet with Jim Ellis
Luis von Ahn, inventor of CAPCHA and the Google image labeler; awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2006
Olaf von Ramm (Ph.D. 1973), first patent on a 3-D ultrasound, later developed the first electronically steered matrix-array 3-D ultrasound imager
Ge Wang, creator of the ChucK programming language
Lewis W. Wannamaker (M.D. 1946), biochemist; recipient of the Robert Koch Prize; member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences
R. Sanders Williams (M.D. 1974), President of Gladstone Institutes; Professor of Medicine at UCSF
Blake S. Wilson (B.S.E.E 1974), co-developer of the cochlear implant; recipient of the 2013 Lasker Award for clinical research
Melanie Wood (B.S. 2003), mathematician
Ricardo J. Komotar (B.S. 1999), academic neurosurgeon
John H. Gibbons (Ph.D. 1954), American scientist, nuclear physicist, and internationally recognized expert in technologies for energy efficiency and energy resource conservation
Louis Pillemer, (B.S. 1932), immunologist; discoverer of properdin
John H. Sampson (Ph.D. 1996, M.B.A. 2011), world-renowned neurosurgeon
David Tab Rasmussen (Ph.D. 1986), paleontologist
Arthur Talmage Abernethy (A.M. 1891, Trinity College), journalist, theologian, minister, first North Carolina Poet Laureate
Dorsey Armstrong (Ph. D 1998), editor-in-chief of Arthuriana
John W. Campbell (B.S. 1932), science fiction writer, described as "the most powerful force in science fiction" by Isaac Asimov
Fred Chappell (A.B. 1961, A.M. 1964), North Carolina Poet Laureate, novelist
Lucy Corin (A.B. 1992), novelist and short story writer; awarded Rome Prize by the American Academy of Arts and Letters
Guy Davenport (B.A. 1948), author, Thasos and Ohio, National Review contributor
G. William Domhoff (A.B. 1958), author of the controversial bestseller Who Rules America?
David Drake (J.D. 1972), author of science fiction and fantasy literature
Lee McGeorge Durrell (Ph. D 1979), author, television presenter, zookeeper
Elizabeth A. Fenn (A.B. 1981), American historian, recipient of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for History
Josephine Humphreys (A.B. 1967), novelist
Mac Hyman (A.B. 1947), author of No Time for Sergeants
Russell Kirk (A.M. 1941), author, The Conservative Mind
Nathaniel Lande (B.A. 1956), author, filmmaker, and former creative director of TIME magazine
Peter Maas (A.B. 1949), author of novels The Valachi Papers and Serpico, later made into movies
Tucker Max (J.D. 2001), author of I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell
Lydia Millet (M.E.M. 1996), author of novels Oh Pure and Radiant Heart, Everyone's Pretty
Peggy Payne (1970), author, Sister India
Noel Perrin (A.M., 1950), scholar, essayist, critic, professor at Dartmouth College
Michael Peterson (A.B. 1965), author, politician, convicted of murdering his wife in 2003
Reynolds Price (A.B 1955), author; James B. Duke professor of literature at Duke
Lynn Veach Sadler, poet, author, and playwright
Haun Saussy (A.B., 1981), University Professor of Comparative Literature at the University of Chicago; formerly at Stanford University, where he chaired the comparative literature department, and Yale University
William Seale (PhD 1965), American historian and author
Frank G. Slaughter (B.A. 1926), novelist and physician
Margaret Taylor Smith (A.B. 1947), author, social activist, Chair of Kresge Foundation
William C. Styron (A.B. 1947), author, Pulitzer Prize winner, wrote The Confessions of Nat Turner and Sophie's Choice
Anne Tyler (A.B. 1961), Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and writer of short stories
Haim Watzman (B.A. 1978), writer
Richard Zimler (A.B. 1977), novelist, author of The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon and The Warsaw Anagrams
Douglas Brunt (A.B. 1993), American novelist and entrepreneur
Ben Fountain (J.D. 1983), award-winning author of fiction
Michael Best (A.B. 1962), former Principal Artist of the Metropolitan Opera
Les Brown (A.B. 1936), musician, Les Brown & The Band of Renown; Jazz Hall of Fame inductee, 1999
Michael Ching (A.B. 1980), composer
Bill Cunliffe (A.B. 1978), Grammy Award-winning composer, arranger, pianist
Mike Posner (B.S. 2010), musician
William Stone (B.A., 1966), operatic baritone
Oleg Timofeyev (Ph.D. 1999), musicologist
Ian Abrams, co-creator of the CBS TV series Early Edition, Undercover Blues, Rolling Thunder
Andy Baldwin (B.S. 1999), The Bachelor, lieutenant, and doctor
Jayne Brook (1982), actress, Chicago Hope
Ryan Carnes (X. 2004), actor, Desperate Housewives, Eating Out
Bailey Chase (B.A. 1995), actor, Longmire
Jack Coleman (A.B. 1980), actor, Heroes, Dynasty, Days of Our Lives
Robert L. Cook (B.S. 1973), Academy Award-winning software-programmer whose computer-graphics program, RenderMan, is used in many contemporary films
Kara DioGuardi (A.B. 1993), songwriter for musicians including Carlos Santana, Kelly Clarkson and Britney Spears, American Idol judge
Lee McGeorge Durrell (Ph.D. 1979), author, television presenter, zookeeper
René Echevarria (A.B. 1984), producer, The 4400, Dark Angel, Now and Again; screenwriter, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Sean Flynn (X. 1963), actor and Vietnam War photojournalist
Annabeth Gish (A.B. 1992), actress, X-Files, The West Wing
Kelly Goldsmith (A.B. 2001), actress, Survivor
Kevin Gray (A.B. 1980), Broadway actor, Phantom on Broadway after Michael Crawford
Emmett Grogan (attended), founder of the Diggers theatre
John Gromada (A.B. 1986), Broadway composer and sound designer
Jared Harris (B.F.A. 1984), Emmy-nominated actor, Mad Men, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
David Hudgins, television writer, Friday Night Lights
Ken Jeong (B.S. 1990), comedian, physician, actor, Community, Knocked Up, Role Models,The Hangover
Daniel Karslake, documentary filmmaker who directed For the Bible Tells Me So
Eric Kirsten (A.B. 1991), screenwriter, "Midnight Sun"
Martin Kratt (B.S. 1989), creator and star of PBS's Zoboomafoo
Rossana Lacayo (B.S. 1979), Nicaraguan photographer and pioneer filmmaker
Alisa Lepselter (A.B. 1985), editor of director Woody Allen's films since 1999
Jon Marans (A.B. 1979), playwright, Old Wicked Songs, The Temperamentals
Jon Martin (B.S. 2009), writer for Linus Media Group
Tucker Max (J.D. 2001), author of the New York Times bestselling book I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell; internet celebrity (TuckerMax.com)
Ben Mulroney (A.B. 1997), host of Canadian Idol and eTalk Daily; son of former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
Stephanie and Matthew Patrick, hosts of the webseries Game Theory on YouTube.
Ellary Porterfield (A.B. 2011), actress, The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio, Sugar, Hidden Palms
Mike Posner (A.B. 2010), singer, songwriter, Cooler Than Me, Please Don't Go
Charles Randolph-Wright, director, writer, and producer
Retta (B.S. 1992), stand-up comedian and actress, Parks and Recreation
Teddy Schwarzman (J.D. 2006), Academy Award-nominated film producer, The Imitation Game; former corporate lawyer at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom
Rebecca Sealfon (Ph.D. 2009), internet celebrity and winner of 1997 Scripps National Spelling Bee
David H. Steinberg (J.D. 1993), screenwriter and film director; wrote screenplays for American Pie 2, Slackers, National Lampoon's Barely Legal, and American Pie Presents: The Book of Love
Travis Lane Stork (B.S. 1994), reality star of ABC's Bachelor 8
Mike Stud (A.B. 2010), singer, songwriter, A Toast to Tommy (2011), Relief (2013), Closer (2014), These Days (2016).
Rita Volk (B.S. 2009), actress and model, known for her role as Amy Raudenfeld in the MTV hit romantic comedy series Faking It
Randall Wallace (A.B. 1971), Academy Award-nominated screenwriter of Braveheart; also wrote screenplay for Pearl Harbor and wrote and directed The Man in the Iron Mask and We Were Soldiers
Patrick Williams (A.B. 1961), Academy Award-nominated composer for movies and TV; Emmy and Grammy winner
Robert Yeoman (A.B. 1973), Academy Award-nominated cinematographer, Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, The Darjeeling Limited, and The Grand Budapest Hotel
Dan Abrams (A.B. 1988), chief legal correspondent for NBC News, host of Verdict with Dan Abrams, former General Manager of MSNBC
Diana Butler Bass (PhD 1991), columnist and author
J. Bowyer Bell (doctorate 1959), historian, artist and art critic
Dan Bernstein (A.B.), sports journalist, WSCR radio host
Jessica Faye Carter (J.D. 2002, M.B.A. 2002), author, columnist, social media entrepreneur
Seth Davis (A.B. 1992), Sports Illustrated columnist and college basketball analyst for CBS Sports
Kathryn Deane (B.A. 1978), President of the Tobe Report, a fashion merchandising consulting company
Laila el-Haddad (A.B. 2000), Palestinian journalist
Alex Epstein (A.B.), writer, founder and President of the Center for Industrial Progress
John Feinstein (A.B. 1977), sports journalist
Clay Felker (A.B. 1951), Founding Editor of New York Magazine
Sean Flynn (X. 1963), actor and Vietnam War photojournalist
Cornelia Grumman (B.S. 1985), Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist
Kerry Hannon (A.B. 1982), best-selling author
Doug Harlan (M.A.), Texas political consultant, columnist, author, lawyer, educator, and public official
Melissa Harris-Perry (Ph.D. 1999), author, television host and political commentator.
David Hartman (A.B. 1956), first host of Good Morning America on ABC
John Harwood (A.B. 1978), National Political Editor of The Wall Street Journal, frequent panelist on Washington Week
Mangesh Hattikudur (A.B. 2001), co-founder of mental floss with Will Pearson
Louis Isaac Jaffe, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist
Hugo Lindgren (A.B. 1990), Editor of The New York Times Magazine
Mark Mazzetti (A.B. 1996), New York Times national security correspondent and 2009 Pulitzer Prize winner
Scott McCartney (A.B. 1982), Travel Editor and journalist for The Wall Street Journal, author
Sean McManus (A.B. 1977), President of CBS News and CBS Sports
Susannah Meadows (A.B. 1995), Senior Writer for Newsweek
Richard A. Oppel, Jr. (A.B. 1990), journalist, reported for The New York Times from Iraq, Israel and Washington, D.C.
Will Pearson (A.B. 2001), co-founder of mental floss with Mangesh Hattikudur
Steven Petrow (A.B. 1978), columnist for the New York Times
Windland Smith Rice (X. 1992), photographer, daughter of Frederick W. Smith, billionaire founder of FedEx
Charlie Rose (A.B. 1964, J.D. 1968), journalist, former CBS News anchor, 60 Minutes contributor
Jim Rosenfield (A.B. 1981), WCBS-TV anchor
Michael Ruhlman (A.B. 1985), nonfiction author
Monty Sarhan (J.D. 1999), publisher and CEO of national humor magazine Cracked
John Seigenthaler, Jr. (B.S. 1978), Al Jazeera America news anchor, formerly at NBC News and MSNBC
Elizabeth Spiers (A.B. 1999), founding editor of Gawker.com
Susan Tifft (A.B. 1973), writer and editor for TIME magazine; professor at Sanford School of Public Policy
Kelly Tilghman (A.B. 1991), broadcaster for The Golf Channel; the PGA Tour's first female lead golf announcer
Jim Toomey (B.S.E. 1983), syndicated cartoonist of Sherman's Lagoon
Judy Woodruff (A.B. 1968), NBC's White House correspondent and Washington correspondent for the MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour, anchor at CNN
JJ Ramberg (A.B. 1992), host of MSNBC's weekend business program Your Business
Barry Svrluga (A.B. 1993), national baseball writer for the Washington Post
See also men's basketball players, women's basketball players, and football players.
Patrick Bailey, NFL linebacker, Pittsburgh Steelers
Brian Baldinger (1982), former National Football League offensive lineman; commentator for Fox
Dave Brown (1991), ten seasons in the NFL with the New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals
Wray Carlton (1965), American Football League all star, Buffalo Bills fullback and all-time leading rusher from the AFL years.
Mike Curtis, NFL All Pro linebacker with the Baltimore Colts
Al DeRogatis (1948), Pro Bowl tackle for the New York Giants
Anthony Dilweg (1989), former NFL quarterback, enjoyed brief success with the Green Bay Packers
Dave Dunaway, NFL wide receiver
Ryan Fowler, NFL linebacker, New York Jets
Lennie Friedman NFL offensive lineman
Sonny Jurgensen, Hall of Fame quarterback who played for the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins
Kevin Lewis, NFL linebacker
Patrick Mannelly, NFL longsnapper
George McAfee, Hall of Fame halfback who played for the Chicago Bears
Scottie Montgomery, Arena Football League wide receiver/defensive back
Ed Newman (1973), NFL offensive guard; 12 seasons with the Miami Dolphins
Ayanga Okpokowuruk, football player
Clarence "Ace" Parker, Hall of Fame quarterback who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Boston Yanks, and New York Yankees
Tommy Prothro, former head coach of the Los Angeles Rams and San Diego Chargers
Tawambi Settles, player of gridiron football
Drew Strojny, NFL football offensive tackle
Wayne Ambler, professional baseball player
Bob Brower, Major League Baseball (MLB) player
Chris Capuano (2000), MLB player, currently with the New York Mets
Claude Corbitt, MLB player
Lawrence "Crash" Davis, professional baseball player (see also Bull Durham)
Nate Freiman, MLB player, currently with the Oakland A's
Ryan Jackson, professional baseball player
Kenny Koplove, professional baseball player
Bill McCahan, MLB player
Quinton McCracken, MLB player, member of 2001 World Series Champion Arizona Diamondbacks
Scott Schoeneweis, MLB pitcher, member of the 2002 World Series Champion Anaheim Angels, currently with the Boston Redsox
Al Spangler, MLB player
Marcus Stroman (A.B. 2015), MLB player, currently with the Toronto Blue Jays
Eric Tipton, MLB player
Mike Trombley, MLB pitcher
Hal Wagner, MLB player
Alaa Abdelnaby, former professional basketball player, college basketball analyst
Tommy Amaker, Harvard University head basketball coach
Alison Bales, former professional player (WNBA)
Shane Battier, former professional basketball player
Alana Beard, professional basketball player, Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA (jersey retired)
Jay Bilas (A.B. 1986, J.D. 1992), ESPN sports commentator
Carlos Boozer, professional basketball player, Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA
Elton Brand, professional basketball player, Atlanta Hawks in the NBA
Jeff Capel, men's basketball assistant coach, former head coach at the University of Oklahoma
Chris Collins, men's basketball associate head coach
Quinn Cook, NBA player, last played for Cleveland Cavaliers.
Johnny Dawkins, Stanford University head basketball coach, former Duke associate head basketball coach and former professional basketball player (jersey retired)
Luol Deng, professional basketball player, Miami Heat in the NBA
Charles "Lefty" Driesell, former college basketball coach
Chris Duhon, former professional basketball player; assistant coach for Marshall University
Mike Dunleavy, Jr., professional basketball player, Chicago Bulls in the NBA
Daniel Ewing, professional basketball player, Maccabi Ashdod of the Israeli Premier League
Danny Ferry, former Cleveland Cavaliers general manager, former professional basketball player, member of 2003 NBA Champion San Antonio Spurs (jersey retired)
Pat Garrity (M.B.A 2011), former professional basketball player and investment professional
Mike Gminski, FSN sports commentator (jersey retired)
Dick Groat, former professional baseball and basketball player (jersey retired)
Lindsey Harding, professional basketball player, Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA (jersey retired)
Art Heyman, former professional basketball player (jersey retired)
Grant Hill, former professional basketball player (jersey retired)
Nick Horvath, West Sydney Razorbacks professional baseball player
Bobby Hurley, former professional basketball player (jersey retired), head coach at the University at Buffalo
Brandon Ingram, NBA player for Los Angeles Lakers, No. 2 pick in 2016 NBA Draft
Kyrie Irving, professional basketball player, Cleveland Cavaliers; No. 1 of the 2011 NBA Draft; 2011–2012 NBA Rookie of the Year, 2016 NBA Champion.
Dahntay Jones, professional basketball player
Tyus Jones, NBA player for Minnesota Timberwolves
Billy King, President and General Manager of the Brooklyn Nets
Christian Laettner, former professional basketball player (jersey retired)
Corey Maggette, professional basketball player
Jeff Mullins, professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors and head basketball coach at UNC Charlotte (jersey retired)
DeMarcus Nelson, professional basketball player, Panathinaikos in Greece
Jahlil Okafor, NBA player for Philadelphia 76ers
Jabari Parker, professional basketball player, Milwaukee Bucks; No. 2 of the 2014 NBA Draft
Marshall Plumlee, NBA player for New York Knicks
Mason Plumlee, professional basketball player, Brooklyn Nets in the NBA
Miles Plumlee, professional basketball player, Phoenix Suns in the NBA
Shavlik Randolph, professional basketball player, Phoenix Suns in the NBA
J. J. Redick (A.B. 2006), NCAA's all-time leader in three-point field goals, professional basketball player, Los Angeles Clippers (jersey retired)
Austin Rivers, professional basketball player, Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA
Jon Scheyer, American-Israeli McDonald's All American, All-American basketball player for national champion 2009–10 Duke basketball team
Adam Silver (1984), Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer of the NBA
Kyle Singler, NBA player for Oklahoma City Thunder.
Nolan Smith (2011), 2010 national champion
Quin Snyder, former University of Missouri head coach; former Austin Toros of the NBDL head coach; head coach of the Utah Jazz in the NBA
Jim Spanarkel, former professional basketball player, NBA and college basketball commentator
Lance Thomas (2010), 2010 national champion (captain); 10th on Duke’s all-time list of offensive rebounds; professional basketball player, New York Knicks in the NBA
Michele Van Gorp, former professional basketball player (WNBA)
Abby Waner, former professional basketball player (WNBA)
Jason Williams, former professional basketball player (jersey retired), college basketball commentator and analyst for ESPN
Shelden Williams, Duke's all-time leader in rebounds and blocked shots, professional basketball player (jersey retired)
Justise Winslow, NBA player for Miami Heat
Steve Wojciechowski, Marquette men's basketball head coach
Skip Alexander, professional golfer
Beth Bauer, professional golfer
Laetitia Beck, Israeli professional golfer
Amanda Blumenherst, professional golfer
Jenny Chuasiriporn, professional golfer
Liz Janangelo, professional golfer
Brittany Lang, professional golfer
Joe Ogilvie, professional golfer
Leif Olson, professional golfer
Mike Souchak, professional golfer, winner of 15 PGA events
Kevin Streelman, professional golfer
Art Wall, Jr., professional golfer, winner of 1959 Masters
Drew Cannon (B.S. 2012), statistician and sports writer; on Boston Celtics staff
Matt Danowski, professional lacrosse player for New Jersey Pride; all-time leading points scorer in NCAA Lacrosse history; Tewaaraton Trophy winner in 2007; two-time Jack Turnbull Award winner; two-time Lt. Raymond Enners Award winner
Andy Frankenberger, professional poker player and former equity derivatives trader
Paulie Harraka, NASCAR racer
Jay Heaps, Head Coach of the New England Revolution as of November 2011; former player for the New England Revolution MLS team; former Duke basketball and soccer player
Nancy Hogshead, Olympic gold medal winner in swimming
Hiroshi Hoketsu (A.M. 1968), Japanese equestrian rider who debuted in the 1964 Summer Olympics and continues to compete today in the 2012 Summer Olympics
Matthew Jacobs, martial arts expert; frequently appears in Ultimate Fighting Championship
Abigail Johnston won a silver medal in synchronized diving at the 2012 Olympic games while an undergraduate at Duke and competed in the 2016 Olympic games while attending Duke Medical School.
Randy Jones, competed in four Olympics as member of U.S. bobsledding teams
John Kerr, soccer player; winner of Hermann Trophy for top collegian; first American player in the Football League First Division (now known as the Premiership); Duke's head coach
Jason Kreis, professional soccer player
Alison Levine (M.B.A. 2000), mountain climber and explorer; the only woman in the world to have completed the Explorers Grand Slam, reaching the summit of the highest mountain on each continent and skiing to the North and South Poles
Nick McCrory, Olympic diver
Gunnar Peterson (B.A. 1985), fitness expert, author and motivational speaker
Vanessa Rousso, professional poker player
Shannon Rowbury, professional track athlete, middle distance runner
Philip Schwalb, founder of National Sports Museum of America
Jillian Schwartz, Olympic pole vaulter
Dave Sime, champion sprinter, won a silver medal at the 1960 Rome Olympics
Andrew Skurka (A.B. 2003), first person to complete the 7,700 sea-to-sea-route spanning North America
Jessica Rae Springsteen, nationally ranked equestrian; daughter of Bruce Springsteen
Becca Ward, 2008 Olympic bronze medalist in fencing; three-time NCAA champion in individual women's sabre (2009, 2011, 2012)
Andrew Wenger, first draft pick in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft and forward for the Montreal Impact
Ibtihaj Muhammad (B.A. 2007), Olympic fencer
Ben Barry, a character played by Matthew McConaughey in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, is a Duke alumnus.
Myron Bolitar, a character in several of Harlan Coben's novels, attended Duke on a basketball scholarship.
Lt. Colonel Sarah MacKenzie, USMC, a character played by Catherine Bell in the television series JAG, earned her law degree from Duke University School of Law.
Isobel Flemming-Saltzman, a character from The Vampire Diaries TV show
Tori Frederking, a character played by Teresa Palmer in Take Me Home Tonight, attended Duke.
Theo Huxtable's girlfriend Gwen, a character on The Cosby Show, was said to be very intelligent because she was "going to major in physics at Duke".
Lieutenant Kif Kroker of Futurama mentions in Amazon Women in the Mood that he sang in the Duke Boy's Chorus.
Dr. Jim Pomatter in Waitress
Kelvin Jones in Outlaw is an ambitious honor student who dreamed of going to Duke
Sloan Sabbith, a character played by Olivia Munn on HBO's The Newsroom, received her PhD in Economics from Duke.
Nick Savrinn, a character on Prison Break, attended Duke as an undergraduate.
Nathan Scott, a character played by James Lafferty on the television series One Tree Hill, received a scholarship to play basketball at Duke.
Sam Seaborn, a character portrayed by Rob Lowe (whose son attends Duke in real life) on The West Wing, graduated from Duke University School of Law.
In the pilot episode of Privileged, billionaire Laurel Limoges hires recent Yale graduate Megan Smith to tutor her two granddaughters with the goal of getting them into Duke.
Stingo, the narrator of William Styron's novel Sophie's Choice, attended Duke as an undergraduate (as did Styron).
Stacy Warner, a character played by Sela Ward on House
Charlotte York's brother Wesley on Sex and the City
Quentin, the protagonist of the novel Paper Towns and its film adaptation, is an incoming freshman at Duke.
Natalie, the protagonist of the movie Keith is a high school tennis star who dreams of going to Duke.
David Aers, James B. Duke Professor of English, expert on medieval and Renaissance literature and theology
Pankaj K. Agarwal, computer scientist, known for his research on computational geometry
John Aldrich, political scientist, fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Samuel Alito, associate justice of the US Supreme Court
Nancy Andrews, vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean of the Duke University School of Medicine
Dan Ariely, professor of behavioral economics, author of Predictably Irrational
Nancy Armstrong, Gilbert, Louis and Edward Lehrman Professor of English; critic of 18th- and 19th-century novels; editor of Novel: A Forum on Fiction
Frank Asche, marine economist
Valerie Ashby, Dean of Trinity College of Arts and Sciences
Owen Astrachan (M.S. 1989, Ph.D. 1992), distinguished computer scientist
Manny Azenberg, legendary producer of American theater who has won 40 Tony awards
Lorena S. Beese, biochemist, fellow of the National Academy of Sciences
Adrian Bejan, mechanical engineering professor, inventor of constructal theory and namesake of the Bejan number
Peter B. Bennett, founder and former president and CEO of the Divers Alert Network
Philip Bennett, former managing editor of the Washington Post
James Berger, statistician, member of the National Academy of Sciences, recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship
Paul Berliner, ethnomusicologist
Tim Bollerslev, economist, expert on autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity
Raphael M. Bonelli, professor of neurology and psychiatry
James Boyle, William Neal Reynolds Professor of Law
Geoffrey Brennan, philosopher associated with rational actor theory
David Brooks, columnist for The New York Times
Thomas Brothers, musicologist, received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2009
Kelly D. Brownell, scientist, professor, expert on obesity; named as one of "The World's 100 Most Influential People" by Time magazine in 2006
Caroline Bruzelius, art historian, expert on medieval architecture
Robert Bryant, Chairman of the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute, fellow of the American Mathematical Society, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Allen Buchanan, philosopher
Al Buehler, chairman of the Health, Physical Education, and Recreation department; United States Olympic Track coach at the 1972, 1984, and 1988 Summer Olympics; member of North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame
Robert Calderbank, former vice president of AT&T; recipient of the Shannon Award in electrical engineering
Bruce Caldwell, economist
William Chafe, American historian
Rey Chow, postcolonial, cultural critic
Sarah Cohen, Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist
Philip J. Cook, Professor of public policy
Miriam Cooke, literary critic
Missy Cummings, professor of aeronautics, one of the US Navy's first female fighter pilots
Sandy Darity, Jr., economist
Ingrid Daubechies, first woman president of the International Mathematical Union; recipient of MacArthur Fellowship, Guggenheim Fellowship, and NAS Award in Mathematics
Cathy Davidson, author
Geraldine Dawson, former Chief Science Officer of Autism Speaks
Walter E. Dellinger III, law professor, former United States Solicitor General under President Bill Clinton
Bruce Donald, computer scientist, fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery and the IEE, recipient of the Presidential Young Investigator Award and a Guggenheim Fellowship
Ariel Dorfman, novelist, playwright, human rights activist, 1992 winner of the Laurence Olivier Award
Fred Dretske, philosopher of mind, winner of the Jean Nicod Prize
Patrick Duddy, former Ambassador to Venezuela
Charles J. Dunlap, Jr., deputy Judge Advocate General
Rick Durrett, mathematician, fellow of the National Academy of Sciences
Victor J. Dzau, James B. Duke Professor of Medicine; pioneering translational research scientist
Herbert Edelsbrunner, computer scientist, winner of the Alan T. Waterman Award
Carla Ellis, computer scientist, fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery
Sir Harold Evans, author; editor of The Times; exposed Soviet spies
Wendy Ewald, photographer, awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 1992
Peter Feaver, political scientist; served on the National Security Council staff under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush
Michael Ferejohn, expert on ancient philosophy
Anne Firor Scott, historian, recipient of the National Humanities Medal
Owen Flanagan, philosopher of mind, Phi Beta Kappa Romanell lecturer
John Hope Franklin, civil rights activist, historian, awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton
Ernestine Friedl, professor emerita in cultural anthropology; former president of the American Ethnological Society and the American Anthropological Association; known for her work on gender roles, rural life in modern Greece, and the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin
Allan Friedman, neurosurgeon
David Gergen, former Duke professor; Duke Trustee; adviser to Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton
Jay Golden, environmental engineer
David Goldstein, population geneticist
Mark Goodacre, theologian
Matthias Gromeier, developer of the PVSRIPO virus that has recently shown to be effective in treating cancer
Gordon Hammes, biochemist, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Moo-Young Han, discoverer of the quark color charge
Michael Hardt, literature professor and Marxist, co-author with Antonio Negri of Empire and Multitude
Campbell Harvey, economist
Stanley Hauerwas, theologian and author
N. Katherine Hayles, postmodern literary critic; fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Richard B. Hays, theologian
Dan Heath, bestselling author of Made to Stick
Kieran Healy, Irish sociologist
Oscar Hijuelos, novelist; first Hispanic to win a Pulitzer Prize for fiction
Brigid Hogan, distinguished developmental biologist, known for her groundbreaking work on stem cell biology and transgenic technology and techniques; member of the National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine, and fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Kevin Hoover, economist
Jerry F. Hough, political scientist, author, and professor
Reinhard Hütter, Catholic theologian
Fredric Jameson, Marxist literary theorist; former Chair of the Literature Program
Andrew Janiak, philosopher
Erich Jarvis, National Institutes of Health Director's Pioneer Award recipient, Popular Science's Brilliant 10 of 2006 under the age of 45, Discover top 100 science discoveries of 2005 (avian brain nomenclature listed at #51), People's "Sexiest Brain Researcher" for 2006
Abdul Sattar Jawad, literary theorist, fled Mustansiriya University after the 2003 Invasion of Iraq
Bruce Jentleson, director of Sanford Institute of Public Policy; Senior Foreign Policy Advisor to Vice President Al Gore
Wu Jinglian, economist
James A. Joseph, former U.S. Ambassador to South Africa
Samuel Katz, virologist, known for the development of the measles vaccine
Harold G. Koenig, psychiatrist
Claudia Koonz, feminist historian
Sally Kornbluth, provost and James B. Duke Professor of pharmacology and cancer biology
Rachel Kranton, economist, fellow of the Econometric Society, recipient of the Blaise Pascal Chair
Timur Kuran, Turkish economist
Pedro Lasch, artist and assistant research professor, Department of Art, Art History, and Visual Studies
Mark Leary, psychologist
Frank Lentricchia, literary critic
David F. Levi, jurist
Nan Lin, sociologist
Martin J. Lohse, German physician and pharmacologist doing research on G protein-coupled receptors
Julian Lombardi, computer scientist, inventor
Nathaniel Mackey, poet and novelist, recipient of the 2015 Bollingen Prize and the 2014 Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize
Robert Malkin, biomedical engineer, fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering
J. Lorand Matory, Chair of the department of African and African American Studies
Achille Mbembe, philosopher and political scientist
Mark McCahill, creator of Internet Gopher, POP mail, and Croquet; coined the phrase "surfing the Web"
Thomas Carlos Mehen, nuclear physicist
Walter Mignolo, literary theorist
Terrie Moffitt, pioneering researcher in the development of antisocial behavior
Toril Moi, literary theorist associated with feminist theory
Ebrahim Moosa, religious scholar
V. Y. Mudimbe, philosopher associated with philosophy of language, phenomenology, and structuralism
Norman Myers, British environmentalist
Mark Anthony Neal, author
Lenhard Ng, mathematician, child mathematical prodigy
Miguel Nicolelis, pioneer of brain-machine interfaces
Emerson Niou, political scientist
Mohamed Noor, evolutionary biologist known for experimentally demonstrating speciation by reinforcement; 2008 recipient of the Darwin-Wallace Medal
Wayne Norman, expert on political philosophy
Jean Fox O'Barr, feminist teacher, scholar, and administrator; founded women's studies program at Duke
Linwood Pendleton, former Chief Economist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Henry Petroski, civil engineer and writer
Arlie Petters, pioneer in the mathematical theory and mathematical physics of gravitational lensing; Professor of Mathematics, Physics, and Business Administration
Orrin H. Pilkey, geologist
Robert Plonsey, biomedical engineer, member of the National Academy of Engineering
Reynolds Price, author and professor of literature
Kathy Alexis Psomiades, associate professor of English, specializing in Victorian poetry and novel theory
Christian R. H. Raetz, professor of biochemistry and member of the National Academy of Sciences
William Raspberry, Knight Professor of the Practice of Communications and Journalism; syndicated columnist for The Washington Post; Pulitzer Prize winner
Paul Rehak, archaeologist
John Reif, computer scientist; fellow of the AAAS, IEEE and ACM
Jane S. Richardson, Professor of Biochemistry; developed the Richardson diagram, or ribbon diagram, method of representing the 3D structure of proteins, MacArthur Fellow
Alexander Rosenberg, philosopher; winner of Lakatos Award in philosophy of science, Phi Beta Kappa Romanell lecturer
Kathy Rudy, social constructionist
Omid Safi, professor of Islamic Studies
David H. Sanford, philosopher
Nicola Scafetta, physicist
Tad Schmaltz, editor of the Journal of the History of Philosophy
Christopher H. Schroeder, former Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy for the United States Department of Justice
Barbara Ramsay Shaw, chemist, cancer researcher, expert on signal transduction
Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, philosopher
David Smith, invisibility cloak pioneer; awarded the Descartes Prize in 2005
Tommy Sowers, Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs at the US Department of Veterans Affairs
J. E. R. Staddon, behavioral psychologist
Orin Starn, cultural anthropologist
Kristine Stiles, art historian
John Terborgh, conservation biologist, awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 1992, and the Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal of the National Academy of Sciences in 1996
Timothy Tyson, historian
Cindy Lee Van Dover, professor of biological oceanography
Tuan Vo-Dinh, biophysicist
Olaf von Ramm, Thomas Lord Professor of Engineering; first patent on a 3-D ultrasound
Geoffrey Wainwright, Methodist theologian
E. Roy Weintraub, economist
Huntington F. Willard, human geneticist; former President of American Society of Human Genetics; member of the National Academy of Sciences
E.O. Wilson, biologist, "the father of sociobiology and biodiversity", National Medal of Science (1976)
Lauren Winner, author and journalist
Judy Woodruff, news anchor, journalist
Vanessa Woods, internationally published Australian scientist, author and journalist
Weitao Yang, chemist
Anthony Zinni, decorated general
Bill Adair, founder of the Pulitzer Prize-winning website PolitiFact
Mark McClellan, former Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration
Ravi V. Bellamkonda, biomedical engineer
Jack Knight, legal theorist
Allen Frances, world renowned psychiatrist
Norman B. Anderson, CEO of the American Psychological Association
Kwame Anthony Appiah, philosopher, author of In My Father's House and The Ethics of Identity
Srinivas Aravamudan, Professor of English, Literature and Romance Studies; Dean of Humanities; specialist in 18th-century and postcolonial literature; author
Clay Armstrong, physiologist; recipient of the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research and the Gairdner Foundation International Award for contributions to medical science
James Arthur, mathematician, former President of the American Mathematical Society
Katharine Banham, Associate Professor of Psychology, Emerita
John Spencer Bassett, historian who initiated the Bassett Affair, an important victory for academic freedom
Robert Bates, Eaton Professor in the Department of Government at Harvard University
Upendra Baxi, legal scholar
Andrea Bertozzi, mathematician
Helen Bevington, poet and author
Utpal Bhattacharya, expert on business ethics
Lawrence Biedenharn, theoretical nuclear physicist
Harry Binswanger, objectivist philosopher and philosopher of mind
Calvin B. Hoover, founder of the field of comparative economic systems, awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Harry Truman in 1947.
Mary L. Boas, mathematician
Ralph Boas, mathematician, recipient of the Lester R. Ford Award
James Bonk, chemist
Edgar Bowers, poet, For Louis Pasteur, Bollingen Prize in Poetry in 1989, Guggenheim Fellowship twice
David S. Broder, current Washington Post and former New York Times reporter
H. Keith H. Brodie, psychiatrist, educator and eventual president of Duke
David Allan Bromley, nuclear physicist, scientific advisor to US President George H.W. Bush, recipient of National Medal of Science (1988)
Annie Leigh Hobson Broughton, advocate of women's education
Hubie Brown, assistant men's basketball coach (1969–1972); NBA coach and commentator
John Buettner-Janusch, anthropologist
Michael Byers, Canadian legal scholar and nonfiction author
Tina Campt, Associate Professor of Women's Studies and History; Director of Graduate Studies
Leonard Carlitz, mathematician
Erwin Chemerinsky, law professor, constitutional scholar
Randolph Chitwood, first cardio-thoracic surgeon to perform robot-assisted heart valve surgery in North America
Amy Chua, best-selling author
George Elliott Clarke, author, poet
G. Wayne Clough, president of the Georgia Institute of Technology
Kalman J. Cohen, economist, pioneer of market micro-structure
Roger Corless, theologian who made significant contributions to interfaith dialogue
John Shelton Curtiss, historian, James B. Duke Professor
Chuck Daly, assistant men's basketball coach (1963–1969); NBA coach
Barun De, historian
Burton Drayer, radiologist; authority on the use of computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for diagnosing neurological disorders
Mike Duffy, television host
Eleanor Lansing Dulles, politician involved in the affairs of post-World War II Germany, Bretton Woods Conference, US State Department
Paul Ebert, cardiovascular surgeon
William M. Fairbank, physicist known for his work on liquid helium; member of the National Academy of Sciences
Stanley Fish, former Chair of the English Department, deconstructionist literary critic
Wallace Fowlie, author and poet, awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1947
Clara Franzini-Armstrong, cell biologist, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Bertram Fraser-Reid, organic chemist
Robert C. Frasure, ambassador to Estonia
Henry Louis Gates, Chair of African-American Studies at Harvard
Erol Gelenbe, computer scientist, known for introducing the random neural network and the eponymous G-networks
David Gergen, political analyst, adviser to Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton
John Jay Gergen, mathematician
S. Malcolm Gillis, prominent economist, former President of Rice University
René Girard, philosopher, literary critic, and historian; member of the Académie française
Peter J. Gomes, preacher and theologian from Harvard University's Divinity School
Walter Gordy, physicist, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Phillip Griffiths, mathematician; fellow of the American Mathematical Society, recipient of the Wolf Prize
Paul Magnus Gross, chemist, former President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
Julia Grout, Chair of the Women's Department of Health and Physical Education, 1924–1964
Allan Gurganus, author
Philip Handler, biochemist; two-term president of the National Academy of Sciences; winner of the National Medal of Science
Gerald Heard, philosopher, historian
Charles Honorton, parapsychologist
Sally Hughes-Schrader, zoologist, Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Aldous Huxley, novelist, mystic
Daniel James, British historian
Harold Jenkins (Shakespeare scholar)
Randy Jirtle, biologist, known for his contribution to the field of epigenetics
Kristina M. Johnson, Under Secretary of Energy for the Obama Administration; former Dean of the Pratt School of Engineering; former Director of Boston Scientific Corporation
Simon Johnson, former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund
Edward E. Jones, social psychologist, developed fundamental attribution error
Alice Kaplan, author, chair of the French department at Yale
Lawrence C. Katz, neurobiologist
Randall Kenan, author
Robert Keohane, neoliberal scholar of international relations
Kim Sung-Hou, structural biologist and biophysicist, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Claudia Koonz, feminist historian
Paul J. Kramer, biologist, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Juanita M. Kreps, United States Secretary of Commerce
Anne O. Krueger, World Bank Chief Economist
Weston La Barre, anthropologist, worked in ethnography
Thomas LaBean, leading researcher in the field of DNA nanotechnology
Howard Nathaniel Lee, former mayor of Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Bernard Lefkowitz, sociologist, journalist, investigative reporter
Raphael Lemkin, human rights activist; coined the word "genocide"
H. Gregg Lewis, labor economist
Michael L. Littman, computer scientist
Daniel A. Livingstone, limnologist, recipient of the G. Evelyn Hutchinson Award
Fritz London, physicist, won the Lorentz Medal
Alasdair MacIntyre, philosopher, virtue ethicist
John Madey, developer of the free electron laser
Ernest Mario, pharmaceutical industry executive
William McDougall, psychologist, author of An Introduction to Social Psychology
George McLendon, biochemist, winner of Eli Lilly Award in Biological Chemistry and Guggenheim fellowship
Karl Menger, mathematician
Edwin Mims, professor of English literature
David R. Morrison, mathematician; Guggenheim Fellow; member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Thom Mount, film producer; President of the Producers Guild of America
Francis Joseph Murray, mathematician and founder of functional analysis; winner of the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal
Toshio Narahashi, pharmacologist, the "founding father of neurotoxicology"
Charles Nemeroff, psychiatrist, known for work in treating depression
Hans Neurath, biochemist, leading researcher in the field of protein chemistry
Lothar Wolfgang Nordheim, theoretical physicist
Albert Outler, Methodist theologian
G. B. Pegram, key administrator of Manhattan Project
William Howell Pegram, chemist
Anton Peterlin, physicist
Ernest C. Pollard, professor of biophysics
David Price, United States Representative
James Rachels, philosopher and cultural relativist
Joseph B. Rhine, psychologist and parapsychologist; founder of modern studies of psychical phenomena
Sidarta Ribeiro, Brazilian neuroscientist
John Ridpath, intellectual historian
Sócrates Rizzo, former mayor of Monterrey; former governor of Nuevo León
Mary Ellen Rudin, mathematician
David Sabiston, cardiac surgeon, one of the pioneers of coronary bypass surgery
Guy Salvesen, biochemist, known for his work in the field of apoptosis
E. P. Sanders, British Academy member; leading figure in the third Historical Jesus movement
Michael Scharf, lawyer, nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005
David Scheffer, diplomat
William H. Schlesinger, biogeochemist, president of the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies
Knut Schmidt-Nielsen, figure in the field of comparative physiology, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, feminist theorist, literary theorist, expert in gender studies
Elwyn L. Simons, paleontologist and primate conservationist
Barbara Herrnstein Smith, literary theorist
Brian Cantwell Smith, scholar who conducts research in the fields of cognitive science, computer science, information studies, philosophy, and ontology
Cordwainer Smith, author
Joseph Tyree Sneed, III, U.S. Deputy Attorney General, judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Ralph Snyderman, biotech entrepreneur
David Soskice, political economist
Joseph J. Spengler, economist, statistician, and historian of economic thought
Eugene A. Stead, medical educator, founder of the physician assistant profession
William Stern, psychologist, philosopher
Kenneth B. Storey, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology
Charles Tanford, protein chemist, member of the National Academy of Sciences
Edward D. Thalmann, expert in hyperbaric medicine
Paul Tillich, theologian
Sander Vanocur, ABC and NBC correspondent; The Washington Post television editor; The New York Times reporter
Robert Ward, composer
Kenny Williams, author, winner of the MidAmerica Award
Mary Lou Williams, composer
Patricia J. Williams, legal scholar, awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2000
William H. Willimon, Methodist theologian
Kwasi Wiredu, philosopher
Karl Zener, parapsychologist
1981 to present: Mike Krzyzewski, five-time national champion men's basketball coach, member of the Basketball Hall of Fame
1975 to 1980: Bill Foster
1974: Neill McGeachy
1970 to 1973: Bucky Waters
1960 to 1969: Vic Bubas, member of the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame
1951 to 1959: Harold Bradley
1943 to 1950: Gerry Gerard
1929 to 1942: Eddie Cameron, namesake of Cameron Indoor Stadium and member of the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame
1925 to 1928: George Buchheit
1923 to 1924: J.S. Burbage
1922: James Baldwin
1921: Floyd Egan
1920: W.J. Rothensies
1919: H.P. Cole
1917 to 1918: Chick Doak
1916: Bob Doak
1914 to 1915: Noble Clay
1913: Joseph Brinn
1906 to 1912: W.W. Card
2007 to present: David Cutcliffe
2003 to 2007: Ted Roof
1999 to 2003: Carl Franks
1994 to 1998: Fred Goldsmith
1990 to 1993: Barry Wilson
1987 to 1989: Steve Spurrier, ACC Coach of the Year in 1988 and 1989
1983 to 1986: Steve Sloan
1979 to 1982: Shirley "Red" Wilson
1971 to 1978: Mike McGee
1966 to 1970: Tom Harp
1951 to 1965: William D. "Bill" Murray
1946 to 1950: Wallace W. Wade
1942 to 1945: Eddie Cameron, namesake of Cameron Indoor Stadium and member of the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame
1931 to 1941: Wallace W. Wade, namesake of Wallace Wade Stadium and member of the College Football Hall of Fame
1926 to 1930: James "Jimmy" DeHart
1925: James P. "Pat" Herron
1924: Howard H. Jones
1923: S.M. Alexander
1922: Herman Steiner
1921: James A. Baldwin
1920: Floyd J. Egan
1888 to 1889 : Dr. John F. Crowell
Donors who have contributed at least $20 million to the university or founding donors:
