Notable Alumni of Southern Methodist University
Notable alumni of Southern Methodist University include Laura Bush (Former First Lady of the United States), Kathy Bates (Actress and director, Academy Award winner) and Jayne Mansfield (Actress and singer, 1950s–60s sex symbol).
Alumni list
Politics and law
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Laura Bush 1946–
Former First Lady of the United States
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James Baker 1930–
Former U.S. Secretary of State and White House chief of staff
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Jo Jorgensen 1957–
2020 Libertarian Party presidential nominee
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Rick Scott 1952–
US Senator from Florida and former governor
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John Ratcliffe 1965–
CIA director and former Director of National Intelligence
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S. M. Krishna 1932–2024
Former Indian Minister of External Affairs
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Hope Hicks 1988–
Former White House communications director
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Lamar S. Smith 1947–
Former Republican US Representative from Texas
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John Tower 1925–1991
Former Texas senator, Tower Commission chairman
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Eddie Bernice Johnson 1934–2023
Former US Representative from Texas
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Bill Clements 1917–2011
Businessman and former Governor of Texas
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Sam Johnson 1930–2020
Former US Representative from Texas
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Adam Hamilton 1964–
Methodist pastor and Kansas senator-elect
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Bob Krueger 1935–2022
Former US senator from Texas and ambassador
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Harriet Miers 1945–
Lawyer and former White House counsel to George W. Bush
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Ralph Hall 1923–2019
Former U.S. Representative for Texas
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Kendra Horn 1976–
Former US Representative from Oklahoma
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Karen Hughes 1956–
Former US Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy
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Meechai Ruchuphan 1938–
Thai legal expert and former acting prime minister
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John Culberson 1956–
Republican politician and former US representative
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Dennis Moore 1945–2021
Six-term U.S. representative from Kansas
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Laura Farnsworth Dogu 1964–
Diplomat, former ambassador to Honduras and Nicaragua
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TJ Cox 1963–
Former U.S. Representative from California
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Chad Wolf 1976–
Former acting U.S. secretary of homeland security
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Clay Fuller 1981–
U.S. Representative for Georgia's 14th district
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John Phelan 1964–
Former US Secretary of the Navy
Business
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Whitney Wolfe Herd 1989–
Founder and CEO of Bumble, Tinder co-founder
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Jeffrey Skilling 1953–
Former CEO of Enron
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Bob Dudley 1955–
Former group chief executive of BP
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Clark Hunt 1965–
Chairman and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs
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Jim Irsay 1959–2025
Owner of the Indianapolis Colts
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Tsai Hong-tu 1952–
Taiwanese banker, chairman of Cathay Financial Holdings
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Zhang Rujing 1948–
Founder of SMIC
Science and academia
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James Cronin 1931–2016
Particle physicist, 1980 Nobel Prize in Physics
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Mary Ellen Weber 1962–
Former NASA astronaut
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E. P. Sanders 1937–2022
New Testament scholar, proponent of New Perspective on Paul
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Thomas C. Oden 1931–2016
Methodist theologian and author
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Walter Wink 1935–2012
Biblical scholar, theologian and activist
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Donald Holmquest 1939–
Former NASA astronaut and physician
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Lü Junchang 1965–2018
Chinese paleontologist who named dinosaur taxa
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Winston Chang 1941–1996
Taiwanese legal scholar, president of Soochow University
Arts and media
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Kathy Bates 1948–
Actress and director, Academy Award winner
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Jayne Mansfield 1933–1967
Actress and singer, 1950s–60s sex symbol
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Kourtney Kardashian 1979–
Media personality and businesswoman, Kardashian family star
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Dorothy Malone 1924–2018
American actress
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Amy Acker 1976–
Actress known for Angel and Person of Interest
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Lauren Graham 1967–
Actress known for Gilmore Girls
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Sarah Shahi 1980–
Actress in The L Word and Person of Interest
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Powers Boothe 1948–2017
Actor and Primetime Emmy Award winner
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Aaron Spelling 1923–2006
Film and television producer
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Candice Patton 1985–
Actress who played Iris West-Allen in The Flash
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Stephen Tobolowsky 1951–
Actor known for Groundhog Day and Memento
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Dylan Baker 1959–
Actor known for Spider-Man 2 and Happiness
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Khary Payton 1972–
Actor known for The Walking Dead and voicing Cyborg
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Bill Fagerbakke 1957–
Actor, voice of Patrick Star in SpongeBob
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Clarence Gilyard 1955–2022
Actor and educator
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NoViolet Bulawayo 1981–
Zimbabwean writer
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Lee Hazlewood 1929–2007
Singer, songwriter and record producer
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Jordan Ladd 1975–
Film and television actress
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Debra Monk 1949–
Actress and Tony Award winner, known for Broadway
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Regina Taylor 1960–
Actress and playwright, Golden Globe winner
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Brian Baumgartner 1972–
Actor, played Kevin Malone on The Office
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Brent Renaud 1971–2022
Documentary filmmaker and journalist
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Patricia Richardson 1951–
Actress known for Home Improvement
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Katie Featherston 1982–
Actress in the Paranormal Activity series
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Mary Elizabeth Ellis 1979–
Actress in New Girl and It's Always Sunny
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William Joyce 1957–
Children's author, illustrator and filmmaker
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Sarah Jane Morris 1977–
Actress in Brothers & Sisters and NCIS
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Sibongile Mlambo 1990–
Zimbabwean actress in Lost in Space
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Cliff Simon 1962–2021
South African actor, Ba'al in Stargate SG-1
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Saundra Santiago 1957–
Actress known for Miami Vice
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Henry Calvin 1918–1975
Actor known for Disney's Zorro series
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Jerrika Hinton 1981–
Actress known for Grey's Anatomy
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Wrenn Schmidt 1983–
American actress in For All Mankind
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Fernando del Valle 1964–
Operatic tenor
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Joey Slotnick 1968–
Actor known for Twister
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Kellie Waymire 1967–2003
Actress known for Six Feet Under and Star Trek: Enterprise
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Shawne Fielding 1969–
American-Swiss model and actress
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Artemis Pebdani 1977–
Actress in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
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Beth Henley 1952–
Playwright, Pulitzer winner for Crimes of the Heart
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Kathleen Noone 1945–
American television actress
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Belita Moreno 1949–
Television and film actress
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Anna Anthropy 1901–
Video game designer and author of Dys4ia
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Margaret Tallichet 1914–1991
Actress and wife of director William Wyler
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John A. Davis 1961–
Film director of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius
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Todd Haberkorn 1982–
Voice actor and voice director
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James Brooks 1906–1992
Abstract expressionist painter and muralist
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Diana Bellamy 1943–2001
Character actress of stage, film and television
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Cynthia Sikes 1954–
Actress and producer known for St. Elsewhere
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Charlie Finn 1975–
Actor, voice of Spud in American Dragon
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Gerardo Celasco 1982–
American actor
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Ike Altgens 1919–1995
AP photojournalist known for Kennedy assassination photos
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Matt Zoller Seitz 1968–
Film and television critic and author
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Anne Edwards 1927–2024
Biographer of celebrities and royalty
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James Noble 1922–2016
Actor known for playing Governor Gatling in Benson
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J. Mills Goodloe 1971–
Film producer, screenwriter, director and actor
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Michael Aronov 1976–
Actor, Tony winner for Best Featured Actor in a Play
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Enrique Bátiz 1942–2025
Mexican conductor and concert pianist
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Leo Fong 1928–2022
Chinese-American martial artist and actor
Sports
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Kajsa Bergqvist 1976–
Swedish high jumper and Olympic bronze medallist
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Maureen Connolly 1934–1969
Tennis player, first woman to win a Grand Slam
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Aleksander Tammert 1973–
Estonian discus thrower
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Martina Moravcová 1976–
Slovak swimmer, five-time Olympian
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Erin McLeod 1983–
Canadian women's national team goalkeeper
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Jim Duggan 1954–
Professional wrestler known as Hacksaw Jim Duggan
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Lee Haney 1959–
Former professional bodybuilder
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Lars Frölander 1974–
Swedish swimmer, six-time Olympian
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Payne Stewart 1957–1999
Professional golfer with three major championships
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Libor Charfreitag 1977–
Slovak hammer thrower
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Jerry Heidenreich 1950–2002
Swimmer and 1972 Olympic champion
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Lamar Hunt 1932–2006
Businessman and sports executive
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Keith Connor 1957–
British triple jumper and Olympian
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Bryson DeChambeau 1993–
Professional golfer, two-time U.S. Open champion
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Richey Reneberg 1965–
Former professional tennis player
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Steve Lundquist 1961–
Swimmer, 1984 Olympic gold medalist
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Sterling Brown 1995–
Professional basketball player
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Jon Koncak 1963–
Former NBA player, fifth pick in 1985 draft
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Semi Ojeleye 1994–
Professional basketball player
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Oscar Furlong 1927–2018
Argentine basketball player and tennis coach
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Shake Milton 1996–
Professional basketball player, played for SMU
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Ricardo Prado 1965–
Brazilian medley swimmer, former world record holder
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Colin Clark 1984–2019
Soccer player who played left winger
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Kevin Robinzine 1966–
Sprinter, 1988 Olympic 4×400m relay gold medalist
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Michael Carter 1960–
Former NFL nose tackle with the San Francisco 49ers
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Yanick Moreira 1991–
Angolan professional basketball player
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Sven Nylander 1962–
Swedish hurdler
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Lars Arvid Nilsen 1965–
Norwegian shot putter
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Fritz Von Erich 1929–1997
Professional wrestler and wrestling promoter
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Margus Hunt 1987–
Estonian athlete and former NFL defensive end
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Jackie Galloway 1995–
Taekwondo athlete, 2016 Olympic bronze medalist
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Flavia Rigamonti 1981–
Swiss swimmer
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Paul Hart 1953–
English football manager and former defender
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Rodney Harmon 1961–
Tennis player, 1982 US Open quarterfinalist
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Ryan Berube 1973–
Swimmer, 1996 Olympic 4×200m freestyle relay gold medalist
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Greg Ryan 1957–
Former player and US women's national soccer team coach
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Alenka Kejžar 1979–
Slovenian Olympic swimmer
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Mickael Hanany 1983–
French high jumper and national record holder
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Amy White 1968–
Swimmer, 1984 Olympic 200m backstroke silver medalist
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Quinton Ross 1981–
Former professional basketball player
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Charlie Beasley 1945–2015
Basketball player who played for SMU
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Jason Tunks 1975–
Canadian discus thrower and three-time Olympian
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Dave Wilson 1960–
Swimmer, two-time medalist at the 1984 Olympics
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Richard Saeger 1964–
Swimmer and 1984 Olympic gold medalist
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Ronnie Mills 1951–
1968 Olympic bronze medalist in backstroke
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Florence Ezeh 1977–
Hammer thrower who formerly represented France
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Courtland Sutton 1995–
Denver Broncos wide receiver
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Jeryl Sasser 1979–
Former professional basketball player
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Laura Bennett 1975–
Triathlete, fourth at 2008 Olympics
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Isiaha Mike 1997–
Canadian professional basketball player
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Jon Ridgeon 1967–
British hurdler, 1987 World Championships silver medalist
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Jalen Jones 1993–
Professional basketball player
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Henry Andrade 1962–
Hurdler
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Ben Moore 1995–
Professional basketball player
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Stefan Kruger 1966–
South African tennis player, doubles specialist
No alumni match.
From Wikidata “educated at” records (including people who attended without graduating), ordered by the number of Wikipedia language editions. Degrees and years follow Wikidata and are left out where it has none.
Alumni network
Colleges that share the most alumni with Southern Methodist University (people who attended both).
- The University of Texas at Austin 4
- Yale University 3
- University of California-Berkeley 2
- University of California-Los Angeles 2
- George Washington University 2
- University of Miami 2
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 2
- Harvard University 2
- Columbia University in the City of New York 2
- Cornell University 2
- Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York 2
- Duke University 2