Notable Alumni of Vassar College

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis 1929–1994

First Lady of the United States, 1961–1963

Also attended: George Washington University, Georgetown University, Smith College

Spouse: John F. Kennedy (Harvard University, Princeton University)

Father: John Vernou Bouvier III (Yale University)

Crystal Eastman 1881–1928

Lawyer, feminist, co-founder of the ACLU

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

Sibling: Max Eastman (Williams College, Columbia University in the City of New York)

Lucy Burns 1879–1966

Suffragist and women's rights advocate

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

Inez Milholland 1886–1916

Suffragist, lawyer and peace activist

Also attended: New York University

Urvashi Vaid 1958–2022

Indian-born LGBT rights activist, lawyer and writer

Also attended: Northeastern University

Father: Krishna Baldev Vaid (Harvard University)

Anne Armstrong 1927–2008

First woman US Ambassador to the United Kingdom

Rick Lazio 1958–

Attorney and former U.S. representative from New York

Bachelor of Arts · Class of 1980

Also attended: American University

Elizabeth Bentley 1908–1963

American spy for the Soviet Union

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Catherine Abate 1947–2014

New York State Senator and former Correction commissioner

Also attended: Boston University

Julia Lathrop 1858–1932

Social reformer, first woman to head a US federal bureau

Also attended: Rockford University

Pauline Newman 1927–

US Federal Circuit judge

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

Frances Farenthold 1926–2021

Texas politician; ran for governor twice

Also attended: The University of Texas at Austin

Betsy McCaughey 1948–

Former New York lieutenant governor and health policy commentator

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Spouse: Wilbur L. Ross Jr. (Yale University, Harvard University)

Selwa Roosevelt 1929–

Chief of Protocol of the United States under Reagan

Katharine Graham 1917–2001

Former publisher of The Washington Post

Also attended: University of Chicago

Spouse: Phil Graham (University of Florida, Harvard University)

Father: Eugene Meyer (University of California-Berkeley, Yale University)

Caterina Fake 1969–

Co-founder of Flickr and investor

Jon Fisher 1972–

Silicon Valley entrepreneur, Vici Network co-founder

Also attended: University of San Francisco

Grace Hopper 1906–1992

Computer scientist, Navy rear admiral, programming pioneer

Bachelor's degree · Mathematics, Physics · Class of 1928

Also attended: Yale University

Vera Rubin 1928–2016

Astronomer who pioneered galaxy rotation research

Also attended: Georgetown University, Cornell University

Child: Judith Young (Harvard University, University of Massachusetts-Amherst)

Child: Karl Rubin (Harvard University, Princeton University)

Ruth Benedict 1887–1948

Anthropologist and folklorist

Attended until 1909

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York, The New School

Spouse: Stanley Rossiter Benedict (Yale University, University of Cincinnati-Main Campus)

Ellen Swallow Richards 1842–1911

Environmental chemist and pioneer of home economics

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Edith Clarke 1883–1959

Electrical engineer specializing in power system analysis

Attended until 1908

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Antonia Maury 1866–1952

Astronomer who first calculated a spectroscopic binary orbit

Attended until 1887

Sibling: Carlotta Joaquina Maury (Harvard University, Cornell University)

Ellen Churchill Semple 1863–1932

Geographer, first female president of the AAG

Linda Nochlin 1931–2017

Feminist art historian and NYU professor

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

Mary Watson Whitney 1847–1921

Astronomer and head of Vassar College Observatory

Master of Science · Class of 1872

Also attended: Harvard University

Margaret Floy Washburn 1871–1939

Psychologist known for animal behavior research

Also attended: Cornell University

Christine Ladd-Franklin 1847–1930

Psychologist, logician and mathematician

Attended until 1869

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University

Spouse: Fabian Franklin (George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University)

Caroline Furness 1869–1936

Astronomer who taught at Vassar College

Attended until 1887

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Adelaide Ames 1900–1932

Astronomer and Harvard research assistant

Also attended: Harvard University

Patricia S. Goldman-Rakic 1937–2003

Yale neuroscientist, prefrontal cortex research pioneer

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles

Katharine Way 1902–1995

Physicist known for the Nuclear Data Project

Also attended: Barnard College, Columbia University in the City of New York, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Winifred Asprey 1917–2007

Mathematician and computer scientist

Attended until 1938

Also attended: University of Iowa

Elizabeth Eisenstein 1923–2016

Historian of early printing and print culture

Bachelor of Arts

Also attended: Harvard University

Philip Kitcher 1947–

Philosopher, professor emeritus at Columbia University

Also attended: Princeton University

Gladys Lounsbury Hobby 1910–1993

Microbiologist who advanced antibiotics research

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Bernadine Healy 1944–2011

Cardiologist and first female director of the NIH

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University

Michael Kimmel 1951–

Sociologist specializing in gender studies

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley, Brown University

Frank Rattray Lillie 1870–1947

Zoologist and embryology pioneer

Mary Cover Jones 1896–1987

Developmental psychologist and pioneer of behavior therapy

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Caroline Kathryn Allen 1904–1975

Botanist who studied trees of the laurel family

Susan Moller Okin 1946–2004

Liberal feminist political philosopher and author

Also attended: Harvard University

Mary Calderone 1904–1998

Physician; first female medical director of Planned Parenthood

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

Sau Lan Wu 1940–

Particle physicist, University of Wisconsin–Madison professor

Also attended: Harvard University

Uma Narayan 1958–

Feminist scholar and Vassar philosophy professor

Helen Dean King 1869–1955

Zoologist involved in breeding the Wistar rat

Attended until 1892

Also attended: Bryn Mawr College

Lily Ross Taylor 1886–1969

Historian; first female Fellow of American Academy in Rome

Also attended: Bryn Mawr College, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Agnes Fay Morgan 1884–1968

Chemist, longtime chair of home economics at UC

Also attended: University of Chicago

Eugenia del Pino 1945–

Ecuadorian developmental biologist, US National Academy member

Also attended: Emory University

Katharine Blunt 1876–1954

Chemist, professor and nutritionist

Also attended: University of Chicago, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Susan Jane Cunningham 1842–1921

Mathematician instrumental in founding Swarthmore College

Attended until 1867

Richard Krautheimer 1897–1994

German art and architectural historian

Susan Buck-Morss 1942–

Political theorist and philosopher, CUNY professor

Clarisse Doris Hellman 1910–1973

Historian of science specializing in early astronomy

Attended until 1930

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

Meryl Streep 1949–

Acclaimed American actress

Bachelor of Arts · Class of 1971

Also attended: Yale University

Spouse: Don Gummer (Yale University, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis)

Child: Henry Wolfe Gummer (Dartmouth College)

Jane Fonda 1937–

Actress and activist

Spouse: Ted Turner (Brown University)

Spouse: Tom Hayden (University of Michigan-Ann Arbor)

Anne Hathaway 1982–

Actress and Academy Award winner

Also attended: American Academy of Dramatic Arts-New York, New York University

Anthony Bourdain 1956–2018

Celebrity chef, author and travel documentarian

Also attended: Culinary Institute of America

Lisa Kudrow 1963–

Actress known as Phoebe in Friends

Bachelor of Arts · Biology

Edna St. Vincent Millay 1892–1950

Lyrical poet and playwright

Elizabeth Bishop 1911–1979

Poet, 1956 Pulitzer Prize winner for Poetry

English-language literature · Attended until 1934

Justin Long 1978–

Actor known for comedy and horror films

Mark Ronson 1975–

Musician and producer, ten-time Grammy winner

Also attended: New York University

Spouse: Grace Gummer (Vassar College)

Sibling: Samantha Ronson (New York University)

Mary Oliver 1935–2019

Poet and Pulitzer Prize winner

Also attended: Ohio State University-Main Campus

Troian Bellisario 1985–

Actress known for Pretty Little Liars

Also attended: University of Southern California

Spouse: Patrick J. Adams (University of Southern California)

Father: Donald P. Bellisario (The Pennsylvania State University, The Pennsylvania State University)

Hope Davis 1964–

Actress with Emmy and Tony nominations

Noah Baumbach 1969–

Filmmaker known for New York-set films

Spouse: Greta Gerwig (Barnard College)

Mary McCarthy 1912–1989

Novelist and critic, author of The Group

Spouse: Edmund Wilson (Princeton University, Columbia University in the City of New York)

Sibling: Kevin McCarthy (University of Minnesota-Twin Cities)

Jean Webster 1876–1916

Author of Daddy-Long-Legs

Also attended: SUNY at Fredonia

Jonathan Togo 1977–

Actor known for CSI: Miami

Joe Hill 1972–

Horror writer, author of Locke & Key

Father: Stephen King (University of Maine)

Mother: Tabitha King (University of Maine)

Frances Sternhagen 1930–2023

Character actress on stage, film and television

Also attended: Catholic University of America

Jane Smiley 1949–

Novelist, 1992 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winner

Also attended: University of Iowa

Ernst Krenek 1900–1991

Austrian-born American composer

Jason Blum 1969–

Founder and CEO of Blumhouse Productions

Scott Westerfeld 1963–

Young adult author of the Uglies series

Sakina Jaffrey 1962–

Actress known for House of Cards

Father: Saeed Jaffrey (Catholic University of America)

Erin Daniels 1973–

Actress known for The L Word

Grace Gummer 1986–

Actress and Theatre World Award winner

Spouse: Mark Ronson (New York University, Vassar College)

Father: Don Gummer (Yale University, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis)

Rachael Yamagata 1977–

Singer-songwriter and pianist

Also attended: Northwestern University

Neil Strauss 1973–

Author and journalist, wrote The Game

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Jon Tenney 1961–

Actor in The Closer and Major Crimes

Also attended: The Juilliard School

Marguerite Moreau 1977–

Actress known for Queen of the Damned and Mighty Ducks

Alexandra Ripley 1934–2004

Novelist, author of Scarlett

Michael Wolff 1953–

Journalist and author

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Dan Bucatinsky 1965–

Actor and writer, known for Scandal

Spouse: Don Roos (University of Notre Dame)

Muriel Rukeyser 1913–1980

Poet, essayist and political activist

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Ken Levine 1966–

Video game developer, co-founder of Ghost Story Games

Art

Lisa Zane 1961–

American actress and singer

Angela Goethals 1977–

Film, television and stage actress

Kerri Green 1967–

Actress known for The Goonies

Alysia Reiner 1970–

Actress known for Orange Is the New Black

Adelaide Crapsey 1878–1914

American poet

Mike D 1965–

Rapper, founding member of Beastie Boys

Spouse: Tamra Davis (Los Angeles City College)

Jeff Davis 1975–

Writer and producer, creator of Criminal Minds

Also attended: University of Southern California

Lara Parker 1938–2023

Actress and writer known for Dark Shadows

Also attended: University of Iowa, Rhodes College

Janet Cooke 1954–

Former journalist whose Pulitzer-winning article was fabricated

Also attended: University of Toledo

Lecy Goranson 1974–

Actress known for playing Becky in Roseanne

Jonás Cuarón 1981–

Mexican film director and screenwriter

Phyllis Lambert 1927–

Canadian architect and philanthropist

Also attended: Illinois Institute of Technology

Sibling: Edgar Bronfman, Sr. (Williams College)

Frances Goodrich 1890–1984

Screenwriter, co-wrote The Diary of Anne Frank play

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Louisa Jacobson 1991–

Actress, youngest child of Meryl Streep

Also attended: Yale University

Father: Don Gummer (Yale University, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis)

Mother: Meryl Streep (Yale University, Vassar College)

Owen King 1977–

Author of novels and graphic novels

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Father: Stephen King (University of Maine)

Mother: Tabitha King (University of Maine)

Sasha Velour 1987–

Drag queen, winner of RuPaul's Drag Race season 9

Father: Mark D. Steinberg (University of California-Berkeley, Harvard University)

Greg Rucka 1969–

Writer of novels and comics including Wonder Woman

Also attended: University of Southern California

John Gatins 1968–

Screenwriter and director, Oscar nominee

Catherine Kellner 1970–

Character actress

Also attended: New York University

Harriot Eaton Stanton Blatch 1856–1940

Writer and suffragist

Mathematics · Attended until 1878

Child: Nora Stanton Blatch Barney (Cornell University)

Sibling: Theodore Stanton (Cornell University)

Shana Alexander 1925–2005

Journalist, first woman staff writer at Life magazine

Mary Pinchot Meyer 1920–1964

Painter romantically involved with President Kennedy

Spouse: Cord Meyer IV (Yale University)

Father: Amos Pinchot (Yale University, Columbia University in the City of New York)

Ethan Slater 1992–

Actor and singer who starred as SpongeBob on stage

Attended until 2014

Kofoworola Ademola 1913–2002

Nigerian educationist and women's education advocate

Mary Zophres 1964–

Costume designer, four-time Oscar nominee

Lisa Lassek 1976–

Film and television editor

Also attended: Boston University

Andrew Zimmern 1961–

Chef and TV host of Bizarre Foods

Mary Borden 1886–1968

Novelist and poet who served as a war nurse

Sibling: William Whiting Borden (Yale University, Princeton University)

Quincy Porter 1897–1966

Composer and teacher of classical music

Also attended: Yale University

Stacy London 1969–

Stylist, author and co-host of What Not to Wear

Father: Herbert London (Columbia University in the City of New York, New York University)

Curtis Sittenfeld 1975–

Novelist, author of Prep

Also attended: Stanford University

Sibling: P.G. Sittenfeld (Princeton University)

Nancy Graves 1939–1995

American sculptor, painter and filmmaker

Also attended: Yale University

Spouse: Richard Serra (University of California-Berkeley, University of California-Santa Barbara)

Wesley Strick 1954–

Screenwriter, director and producer

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Victoria Legrand 1981–

Lead vocalist of dream pop band Beach House

Alexa Meade 1986–

Installation artist known for body-painted portraits

Lucille Fletcher 1912–2000

Screenwriter who wrote a radio play for Orson Welles

Spouse: Bernard Herrmann (New York University)

Spouse: Douglass Wallop (University of Maryland-College Park)

E. Lockhart 1967–

Children's and young adult author of We Were Liars

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Brooke Hayward 1937–

Actress and author of best-selling memoir Haywire

Spouse: Dennis Hopper (Kansas City Art Institute)

Spouse: Peter Duchin (Yale University)

Elizabeth Coffin 1850–1930

Artist, educator and philanthropist

Also attended: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

Cele Goldsmith Lalli 1933–2002

Editor of Amazing Stories and Modern Bride

Paul Henry Lang 1901–1991

Hungarian-American musicologist and music critic

Also attended: Cornell University

Tanya Wright 1971–

Actress, screenwriter and director

Delia Sherman 1951–

Fantasy writer and editor

Bachelor's degree · Class of 1972

Also attended: Brown University

Spouse: Ellen Kushner (Barnard College, Bryn Mawr College)

Sue Kaufman 1926–1977

Novelist, author of Diary of a Mad Housewife

Rebecca Stead 1968–

Children's author, 2010 Newbery Medal winner

Lucette Lagnado 1956–2019

Wall Street Journal reporter and memoirist

Anita W. Addison 1952–2004

Television and film director and producer

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles

Alice French 1850–1934

Novelist known as Octave Thanet

Katharine Kuh 1904–1994

Art critic, first woman curator at Art Institute of Chicago

Also attended: University of Chicago

Reggie Nadelson 2000–

Novelist known for mystery novels

Also attended: Stanford University

Jessi Klein 1975–

Writer, screenwriter and stand-up comedian

Amy York Rubin 1950–

Writer and director of Dead to Me pilot

Cassandra Kulukundis 1971–

Casting director, first Best Casting Oscar winner

Eric Menyuk 1959–

Attorney and former Star Trek actor

Hung Huang 1962–

Chinese-American media figure, author and actress

Chen Hengzhe 1890–1976

Writer, first female professor at a Chinese university

Attended until 1919

Also attended: University of Chicago

Spouse: H. C. Zen (Columbia University in the City of New York, Cornell University)

Child: E-An Zen (Harvard University, Cornell University)

Jean Tatlock 1914–1944

Psychiatrist and Communist Party USA member

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley, Stanford University

Father: John Strong Perry Tatlock (Harvard University)

Nancy Walker Bush 1926–2021

Environmentalist, sister of George H. W. Bush

Father: Prescott Bush (Yale University)

Child: Joe Ellis (Colorado College, Northwestern University)

Ōyama Sutematsu 1860–1919

First Japanese woman to receive a college degree

Sibling: Yamakawa Kenjirō (Yale University)

Nancy Harkness Love 1914–1976

Pilot and test pilot during World War II

Alice Huyler Ramsey 1886–1983

First woman to drive across the United States

Joan Quigley 1927–2014

Astrologer who advised the Reagan White House

Catherine Bauer Wurster 1905–1964

Public housing advocate and planning educator

Also attended: Harvard University, Cornell University

Spouse: William Wurster (University of California-Berkeley, Harvard University)

Janet Lee Bouvier 1907–1989

Socialite; mother of Jacqueline Kennedy

Also attended: Barnard College, Sweet Briar College

Spouse: John Vernou Bouvier III (Yale University)

Spouse: Hugh Dudley Auchincloss Jr. (Yale University, Columbia University in the City of New York)