Notable Alumni of Knox College

John Podesta 1949–

20th White House chief of staff under Clinton

Also attended: Georgetown University

Sibling: Tony Podesta (University of Illinois at Chicago, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

Hiram Rhodes Revels 1827–1901

Politician, minister and college administrator

Attended until 1857

Child: Susie Revels Cayton (Rust College)

John Buford 1826–1863

Union Army cavalry officer

Also attended: The United States Military Academy at West Point

Elizabeth Eckford 1941–

Civil rights activist, one of the Little Rock Nine

Also attended: Central State University

Ismat T. Kittani 1929–2001

Iraqi diplomat, President of the UN General Assembly 1981–82

Hobart R. Gay 1894–1983

United States Army lieutenant general

Don Samuelson 1913–2000

25th governor of Idaho

Ellen Browning Scripps 1836–1932

Journalist, philanthropist and E.W. Scripps Company co-founder

Whitcomb L. Judson 1846–1909

Mechanical engineer and inventor with thirty patents

David A. Kolb 1939–

Educational theorist on experiential learning

Also attended: Harvard University

Thomas E. Kurtz 1928–2024

Dartmouth professor, co-developer of BASIC

Bachelor of Science · Mathematics

Also attended: Princeton University

George Latimer Bates 1863–1940

Naturalist who collected specimens in central Africa

Also attended: Chicago Theological Seminary

Edgar Lee Masters 1868–1950

Poet and author of Spoon River Anthology

Dorothea Tanning 1910–2012

Painter and writer inspired by Surrealism

Don Marquis 1878–1937

Humorist, columnist and author

Jack Finney 1911–1995

Science fiction and thriller novelist

Charles Eastman 1858–1939

Native American physician and writer

Also attended: Boston University, Dartmouth College, Beloit College

Amy Carlson 1968–

Actress known for Blue Bloods

Richard Newman 1946–

Canada-based voice, film and television actor

Also attended: American Conservatory Theater

Eugene Field 1850–1895

Writer known for children's poetry and humorous essays

Also attended: Williams College, University of Missouri-Columbia

Vir Das 1979–

Indian comedian, actor and musician

Otto Harbach 1873–1963

Broadway lyricist and librettist

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York, Whitman College

Ralph Waldo Trine 1866–1958

New Thought writer and philosopher

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Shu Kitamura 1996–

Hong Kong former professional footballer

Robert Hanssen 1944–2023

FBI agent who spied for Soviet and Russian intelligence

Bachelor's degree · Chemistry · Class of 1966

Also attended: Northwestern University