Notable Alumni

Great Careers Begin at SUNY!

Imagine your future. Imagine success. Join 2.4 million graduates from around the globe who earned their start at SUNY. SUNY graduates - actors, artists, athletes, authors/writers, nurses, CEOs, inventors, teachers, scientists, journalists, TV/radio personalities, musicians, performers, accountants, producers and trailblazers – do it all, making a real difference in their communities. If you can imagine it, you can achieve it with a SUNY start. Great careers begin at SUNY!

Actors

Billy Baldwin (Binghamton '85). Actor
Carolee Carmello (Albany ’83). Obie award winning actress and star of Broadway’s Mama Mia!
Billy Crystal (Nassau '68). Emmy award winning actor/comedian
Harold Gould (Albany ’47). Five-time Emmy nominated actor
Mary McDonnell (Fredonia '74). Actress
Bill Pullman (Delhi '71 & Oneonta '75). Actor
Paul Reiser (Binghamton '77). Actor/writer/comedian
Ron Silver (University at Buffalo '69). Actor
Brian Williams (Dutchess ‘74). Three-time Emmy winner for work in sports and entertainment programming

Artists

Wayne Cilento (Brockport '72). Choreographer
Hernando Cortez (Purchase ‘85). Principal, Paul Taylor Dance Company
Val Cushing (Ceramics at Alfred University '56). Artist
Lee Ann Daffner (Buffalo State ’94). Conservator of Photographs, The Museum of Modern Art
Greg Fox (Geneseo ’83). Artist/writer of nationally syndicated comic strip Kyle's Bed & Breakfast
Calvin Klein (FIT). Fashion designer and entrepreneur
Malia Mills (Human Ecology at Cornell University ‘90). Designer
Corey Smith (Corning ’98). Modeling Supervisor, Walt Disney Feature Animation

Athletes

Joe Nathan (Stony Brook ‘97). Pitcher for the Minnesota Twins
James “Jimmy” Shea (North Country). 2002 Olympic Gold Medalist
Tom Steitz (Morrisville '75). Former U.S. Olympic Ski Team head coach and Founder/Executive Coach of CO2Partners
Dave Trembley (Brockport ’73). Baltimore Orioles manager
Stan Van Gundy (Brockport ‘81). Orlando Magic head coach
Matthew Winnick (Buffalo ’60). Vice President of Scheduling and Game Operations for the NBA

Authors and Writers

Marcia Brown (Albany ’40). Best-selling author and illustrator of children’s books
Nancy Kress (Plattsburgh ’69). Award-winning Science Fiction Author
Gregory Maguire (Albany ’76). Author of Wicked (hit Broadway musical)
Curt Smith (Geneseo '73). Speechwriter for George H. W. Bush and sports broadcast historian
Deborah Tannen (Binghamton '66). Author

CEOs

David Bernstein (Albany ’79). Vice President/Treasurer of the Carnival Corporation
Tom Calderone (Buffalo State College '86). VH1 General Manager
John Caparella (Delhi ’78). Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center, Kissimmee, FL
Tom Clarke (Albany '73). President of New Business Ventures for Nike, Inc.
James Dolan (New Paltz '79). Chairman and CEO of Cablevision, Inc.
Glenn S. Goldberg (Brockport '80). President of Information and Media of The McGraw-Hill Companies
Russell Lewis (Stony Brook '69). CEO and President of The New York Times Co.
C.J. Rapp (Potsdam '81). Creator of Jolt Cola and CEO of Wet Plant Beverage Company
Susan Bauer-Wu (Plattsburgh ‘83). Director of The Cantor Center/Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Justin Ziemniak (Brockport '96). Founder/Editor of Computerlink Magazine

Inventors and Scientists

Dr. Joyce Brothers (Human Ecology at Cornell University ‘47). Psychologist
Jill Bargonetti-Chavarria (Purchase ’85). Award winning molecular geneticist and winner of a National Science Foundation Early Career Award
Jack Henion (Albany ’72). Developed gold standard of pharmaceutical testing
Mario Paniccia (Binghamton ‘88). Intel inventor of world's fastest silicon photonic chip
Daniel Salmon (Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University). First recipient of DVM degree and scientist who discovered salmonella
Andrea P. Thau, OD (College of Optometry). First woman president of the New York State Optometric Association and New York Academy of Optometry

Journalists and TV/Radio Personalities

Joy Behar (Stony Brook). Comedienne and co-host of ABC’s The View
Wolf Blitzer (University at Buffalo '70). Anchor of CNN's Wolf Blitzer Reports
Randy Cohen (Albany ’71). New York Times Magazine writer of the “The Ethicist”
Dawn Fratangelo (Plattsburgh '82). NBC News Dateline
Mylous Hairston (Buffalo State ’86). News Anchor for WIVB-TV 4
Tony Kornheiser (Binghamton ‘71). Washington Post sportswriter, host of ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption and co-host of Monday Night Football
Brian Lehrer (Albany ’73), Newstalk Radio Host and Commentator
Adam Nagourney (Purchase '77). Chief national political correspondent for The New York Times
Sal Paolantonio (Oneonta ‘77). National correspondent for ESPN
Al Roker (Oswego '76). Weather forecaster for NBC's Today Show
Laura Schlessinger (Stony Brook). Host of the Dr. Laura radio call-in show
John Walsh (Cayuga '65 & University at Buffalo). Host of TV's America's Most Wanted

Musicians, Performers and Producers

Glenn Gordon Caron (Geneseo ‘75). Executive producer of TV series Medium and Moonlighting
Maryann De Leo (Old Westbury ‘77). Oscar winning producer
Renee Fleming (Potsdam '81). World-renowned soprano, New York Metropolitan Opera
John McTiernan (Old Westbury). Film director/producer
Natalie Merchant (Jamestown '82). Singer
Ken Topolsky (Dutchess ’73). Producer of The Wonder Years and Party of Five
Bob Wilbur (Empire State '82). Jazz saxophonist

Trailblazers

Ellen Shulman Baker (University at Buffalo '74). Doctor/astronaut who flew on the Atlantis missions
Brett Bodine (Alfred State ’79). NASCAR Winston Cup driver
Fernando Caldeiro (Farmingdale '78). NASA Astronaut
Eileen Collins (Corning '76). NASA Ret. Commander and U.S. Air Force Colonel
Lisa and Debbie Ganz (Albany ’88 & ’89). Creators of Twins Talent, only referral service/talent company exclusively for twins and multiples and founders of Twins Restaurant in New York City
Victoria Graffeo (Oneonta '75). Associate Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals
Scott Kelly (Maritime '87). NASA Astronaut/Space Shuttle Commander
Kevin Mannix (Maritime ‘86). Flight Leader/Commanding Officer U.S. Navy and Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Team
Lolita McDavid (Albany ’70), pediatrician and children’s advocate
Yendi Phillips (Brockport ’06). Miss Jamaica World 2007
Richard Wesley (Albany ’71). Federal Judge 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals appointed by President George W. Bush