The Washington State University Alumni Association defines an alumnus as anyone who was a student at WSU and is no longer attending. This page lists accomplished alumni and faculty members of WSU.
Irwin Rose, 1948, 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner for research in immune defense and proteins; first year of undergraduate study was at WSU; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2005
Weldon Gibson, 1938 B.A. business administration, executive vice president of Stanford Research Institute; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1979
Ivan Peterson, 1942 D.V.M., member of Alpha Tau Omega; president of Sphinx Club and of Crimson Court; veterinarian in California; worked with television series Lassie; friend to Jane Goodall and helped sponsor her chimpanzee research; died in 1967
The arts, literature and media
Sherman Alexie, 1994 B.A. American studies, author and filmmaker; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2003
Rudy Autio, sculptor, best known for figurative ceramic vessels
Grace Kim, cofounder of Schemata Workshop architecture firm in Seattle; cohousing expert; author of The Survival Guide to Architectural Internship and Career Development; commissioner of the Seattle Planning Commission.
Gary Larson, 1972 B.A. communications, Far Sidecartoonist; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1990
Scott Shigeoka, 2011 B.A. communications, author of Seek: How Curiosity Can Transform Your Life and Change the World and TED Speaker
Patrick F. McManus, outdoor humor writer; studied at Washington State College before it became Washington State University
Edward R. Murrow, 1930 B.A. speech, journalist for CBS; "father of television news broadcasting"; WWII radio correspondent; Hear It Now radio program host; See It Now television program host; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1963
Krist Novoselic, 2016 B.S. social sciences, founding member and bassist for grunge band Nirvana
Svend Auken, 1962, Danish politician, Minister of Environmental Affairs 1993–2001
John C. Early, American colonial administrator in the Philippines
John Folger, 1914 B.S. horticulture, 1917 M.S. horticulture, US Ambassador to Belgium 1957–59; member of board of governors of New York Stock Exchange; president of Investment Bankers Association of America; chaired GOP National Finance Committee; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1963
Anthony Curcio, 2004 social sciences, author and youth speaker; athlete; became notorious criminal known as D.B. Tuber after masterminding armored car robbery;[3] has since devoted life to educating youth on drug addiction[4]
William Julius Wilson, 1966 Ph.D. sociology, wrote The Truly Disadvantaged: The Inner City, the Underclass and Public Policy and The Declining Significance of Race; one of nine people to receive National Medal of Science; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1988
Military
James Fleming, colonel in US Air Force; helicopter pilot; Medal of Honor recipient for life-saving actions at Duc Co, South Vietnam in 1968
Robert Higgins, 1957 B.S. pharmacy, navy rear admiral, deputy surgeon general, and Medical Corps chief; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2002
Neva Abelson, 1934 B.S. chemistry, developed blood test for Rh disease; wife of Philip Abelson; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1989
Philip Abelson, 1933 B.S. chemistry, 1935 M.S. physics, "father of the nuclear-fueled submarine"; Manhattan Project participant; editor of Science; husband of Neva Abelson; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1962
Gary L. Bennett, scientist and engineer, specializing in aerospace and energy
William A. Bugge, 1922 B.S. civil engineering, Washington director of highways 1949–63; project director for design and construction of Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) System in San Francisco; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1980
Clint Cole, co-founder of Heartstream, creator of first automatic external defibrillator (AED) for commercial use; co-founder of Digilent, a Pullman electronics manufacturer
John Fabian, 1962 B.S. mechanical engineering, NASA astronaut; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1983
Irwin Rose, 1948, 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner for research in immune defense and proteins; discoveries may lead to development of drugs to combat Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, cystic fibrosis, and cervical cancer; first year of undergraduate study was at WSU; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2005
Karl Sax, 1916 B.S. horticulture, radiation biologist and geneticist; received WSU Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1966
Paul Wulff, former NCAA All-American and WSU football head coach
Notable faculty
Olusola Adesope, Boeing Distinguished Professor of STEM Education
James Asay, Institute of Shock Physics researcher; member of the National Academy of Engineering
LeRoy Ashby, regents professor of history; twice Washington Professor of the Year; author of With Amusement for All: A History of American Popular Culture Since 1830
Anjan Bose, electrical engineering professor and former dean; developed training simulators and computational tools for reliable power-system operation; member of the National Academy of Engineering
Susmita Bose, Indian-American scientist and Herman and Brita Lindholm Endowed Chair Professor in the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Washington State University
Walter Clore, horticulture researcher; "father of the Washington wine industry"
Clint Cole, co-founder of Heartstream, creator of the first automatic external defibrillator (AED) for commercial use; co-founder of Digilent, a local Pullman electronics manufacturer
R. James Cook, plant pathologist, cropping systems and biotechnology researcher; led first field test of a genetically modified organism in the Pacific Northwest; member of the National Academy of Sciences
William Henry Dietz ("Lone Star Dietz"), WSU football coach; won first annual Rose Bowl; professional football coach
Don A. Dillman, sociologist; Regents Professor; Foley Distinguished Professor of Government and Public Policy; major contributor to modern survey methods; past president of the American Association of Public Opinion Research; Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
John Hirth, mechanical and materials engineer; characterized and modeled the behavior of materials at atomic and microstructural levels, including thin film formation useful to the semiconductor industry; member of the National Academy of Engineering
Armand Mauss, former professor of sociology and religious studies; frequently published works relating to Mormonism
Amy Mazur, Claudius O. and Mary W. Johnson Distinguished Professor in Political Science[7]
Frances K. McSweeney, psychologist known for work on behavior and reinforcement, with findings on short-term changes in reinforcer effectiveness; WSU Meyer Distinguished Professor of Psychology; Fellow of the Association for Behavior Analysis
Sue Peabody, Meyer Distinguished Professor of history
Charles Pezeshki (Dr. Chuck), WSU professor of mechanical and materials engineering, 1998–present; past chair of the University Faculty Senate; founder and director of the Industrial Design Clinic
Clarence A. "Bud" Ryan Jr., isolated and synthesized systemin, first polypeptide hormone found in plants, and discovered that plants produce natural insecticides in response to pest attacks; member of the National Academy of Sciences
Michael Skinner, molecular and reproduction biologist; made discoveries in epigenetics including reduction in male fertility for four generations; his findings appeared in Discover magazine's "100 top science stories of 2005"
William Jasper Spillman, WSU professor of agriculture; wheat breeder; independently rediscovered Mendel's Law of Heredity; "father of agricultural economics
Clyfford Still, abstract expressionist painter, Clyfford Still Museum, Denver
Allen I. White, WSU professor of pharmacy faculty 1940–1960; dean of the WSU College of Pharmacy 1960–1979; pioneered off-campus training for the college
Notable regents
Frances Penrose Owen, first woman on the WSU Board of Regents, serving 1957–1975
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