SUNY: A Launchpad for Global Leaders and Innovators
The State University of New York (SUNY) system has fostered nearly 3 million alumni who hold positions of leadership and influence around the globe, from scientific research to government, business, athletics, performing arts, and more. SUNY alumni are running local businesses, teaching in schools, saving lives in hospitals, fighting to save the environment, building careers in the trades, leading global corporations, making world-changing discoveries, even orbiting the earth. As a SUNY alum, a world of opportunity is at your fingertips.
SUNY's Impact and Reach
SUNY's impact is undeniable. Ask around - you'll find SUNY alumni making a difference in diverse fields. The SUNY system is a testament to accessible, quality education that propels individuals toward extraordinary achievements.
SUNY at Albany, for example, is ranked 551st in the world, 210th in North America, and 193rd in the United States by aggregated alumni prominence, according to EduRank. This ranking underscores the university's significant contribution to various sectors through its notable graduates and faculty.
Notable Alumni Across SUNY
Across the 64 SUNY schools, numerous alumni have achieved prominence in their respective fields. Here are a few examples of notable alumni from across the SUNY system:
SUNY at Albany
- Awkwafina: Known professionally as Nora Lum, is an American actress, comedian, and rapper. She rose to prominence in 2012 when her rap song "My Vag" became popular on YouTube. She then released her debut album, Yellow Ranger (2014), and appeared on the MTV comedy series Girl Code (2014-2015). She expanded to films with supporting roles in the comedies Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (2016), Ocean's 8 (2018), Crazy Rich Asians (2018), and Jumanji: The Next Level (2019). For her starring role as a grieving young woman in The Farewell (2019), she won a Golden Globe Award.
- Harvey Milk: Was an American politician and the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
- Edward Burns: Is an American actor and filmmaker. He rose to fame with The Brothers McMullen (1995), his low-budget independent film that became successful worldwide. His other film appearances include Saving Private Ryan (1998), The Holiday (2006), 27 Dresses (2008), Man on a Ledge (2012), Friends with Kids (2012), and Alex Cross (2012). Burns directed films such as She's the One (1996), Sidewalks of New York (2001), and The Fitzgerald Family Christmas (2012). On television, he appeared as Bugsy Siegel in the TNT crime drama series Mob City and as Terry Muldoon in TNT's Public Morals.
- D. B. Woodside: Is an American actor. He is best known for his television roles as the bass singer Melvin Franklin in The Temptations, Robin Wood in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Malcolm Franks in Single Ladies, and Jeff Malone in Suits, Dr. Joseph Prestridge in Parenthood, the angel Amenadiel in Lucifer, and Wayne Palmer in the thriller series 24.
- Theo Rossi: Is an American actor and producer. He portrayed Juan Carlos "Juice" Ortiz on the FX series Sons of Anarchy (2008-2014) and Hernan "Shades" Alvarez in Luke Cage (2016-2018). In 2024, he portrayed Dr. Julian Rush on the HBO series The Penguin (2024). His film roles include Tino Hull in Red Sands (2009), Todd in Bad Hurt (2015), Francisco "Ghost" Alvarez in Lowriders (2017), Deuce in Vault (2019), and Youcef in Emily the Criminal (2022), the latter of which earned him an Independent Spirit Award nomination.
- Ashley Massaro: Was an American professional wrestler, reality television contestant and model. She was best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and for her appearance on Survivor: China.
- John Ortiz: Is an American actor. He is known for his antagonist role as Arturo Braga in Fast & Furious (2009) and Fast & Furious 6 (2013), and Clyde in Jack Goes Boating (2010), which earned him a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor. He is also an artistic director/co-founder of the LAByrinth Theater Company.
- Lee Zeldin: Is an American attorney, politician, and officer in the United States Army Reserve who has been serving as the 17th administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency since January 29, 2025. A member of the Republican Party, he represented New York's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2023. From 2011 to 2014, Zeldin served as a member of the New York State Senate from the 3rd Senate district.
- Harold Gould: Was an American character actor. He appeared as Martin Morgenstern on the sitcom Rhoda (1974-78) and Miles Webber on the sitcom The Golden Girls (1985-92). A five-time Emmy Award nominee, Gould acted in film and television for nearly 50 years, appearing in more than 300 television shows, 20 major motion pictures, and over 100 stage plays. He was known for playing elegant, well-dressed men (as in The Sting), and he regularly played Jewish characters and grandfather-type figures on television and in film.
- Frances Allen: Was an American computer scientist and pioneer in the field of optimizing compilers. Allen was the first woman to become an IBM Fellow, and in 2006 became the first woman to win the Turing Award. Her achievements include seminal work in compilers, program optimization, and parallelization. She worked for IBM from 1957 to 2002 and subsequently was a Fellow Emerita.
- Susan Molinari: Is an American politician, company executive, journalist, and lobbyist from New York. House of Representatives from 1990 to 1997, representing Staten Island for three terms. Molinari, who was considered a rising star in the party, was selected to deliver the keynote address at the 1996 Republican National Convention. However, the next year, she resigned from Congress to become a television journalist for CBS News. Later, she became a vice president for public policy at Google from 2012 to 2018.
- David Bordwell: Was an American film theorist and film historian. After receiving his PhD from the University of Iowa in 1973, he wrote more than fifteen volumes on the subject of cinema including Narration in the Fiction Film (1985), Ozu and the Poetics of Cinema (1988), Making Meaning (1989), and On the History of Film Style (1997).
Other SUNY Institutions
- Empire State University:
- Alice Fulton B.A. '78, DHL '94 Poet and professor of English at Cornell University
- SUNY Oneonta: Graduates who have achieved stature in their field.
Additional Notable Alumni
- Terry Gross: Is a renowned journalist who is the host and co-executive producer of Fresh Air, a popular radio show that is distributed nationally by NPR.
- Michael Diana: Is a comic book artist and owner of Warp Zone Graphics. He currently works for Lucasfilm and Marvel Comics, creating illustrations for use in their trading card sets.
- John Golisano: Is a human rights activist known around the world and a graduate of Onondaga Community College.
- Hamdi Ulukaya: Is a Turkish billionaire businessman, activist and philanthropist of Kurdish ethnicity based in the United States. He is the founder, owner, chairman, and chief executive officer of the strained yogurt brand Chobani. According to Forbes, his net worth as of October 2022 is US$2.1 billion.
- Brandon Jay McLaren: Is a Canadian actor. He made his first screen appearance in the television series Just Cause (2002). He has been known for his main and supporting roles in shows such as Graceland, Power Rangers S.P.D., Ransom, Harper's Island, The Rookie and Slasher. He has also had roles in the feature films She's the Man, Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, and Dead Before Dawn.
- Josh Ostrovsky: Known professionally as The Fat Jewish, is an American entrepreneur, social media influencer, author and plus size model.
- Tom Junod: Is an American journalist. He is the recipient of two National Magazine Awards from the American Society of Magazine Editors.
- Tara VanDerveer: Was the head women's basketball coach at Stanford University from 1985 until her retirement in 2024. Designated the Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women's Basketball, VanDerveer led the Stanford Cardinal to three NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championships, winning in 1990, 1992 and 2021. women's national team to a gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games.
- Gregory Maguire: Is an American novelist. He is the author of Wicked, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and several dozen other novels for adults and children. Many of Maguire's adult novels are inspired by classic children's stories. Maguire published his first novel, The Lightning Time, in 1978. Wicked, published in 1995, was his first novel for adults. It was adapted into a popular Broadway musical in 2003, which was later adapted into a two-part musical film, with the first half released in 2024 and the second half scheduled to be released in 2025.
- Celâl Şengör: Is a Turkish geologist. He is retired from the faculty at Istanbul Technical University, Department of Geological Engineering.
- Luo Ying-shay: Was a Taiwanese politician who served as the Minister of Justice from 30 September 2013 until 20 May 2016.
- Jamie Gold: Is an American television producer, talent agent, and poker player, based in Malibu, California. He is known for winning the 2006 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event and currently divides his time between his activities as president of production for the entertainment company, Buzznation and poker competition, primarily major tournaments.
- Katie McNeil Diamond: Is an American talent manager and long-form music video and concert documentary producer.
- Jessica Valenti: Is an American feminist writer. She was the co-founder of the blog Feministing, which she wrote for from 2004 to 2011. Valenti is the author of six books: Full Frontal Feminism (2007), He's a Stud, She's a Slut (2008), The Purity Myth (2009), Why Have Kids? (2012), Sex Object: A Memoir (2016), and Abortion: Our Bodies, Their Lies, and the Truths We Use to Win (2024). She also co-edited the books Yes Means Yes: Visions of Female Sexual Power and A World Without Rape (2008), Believe Me: How Trusting Women Can Change the World (2020). Between 2014 and 2018, Valenti was a columnist for The Guardian. She currently runs the Abortion, Every Day newsletter on Substack. The Washington Post described her as "one of the most successful and visible feminists of her generation".
- Monte Lipman: Is an American record executive and film producer. He founded the record label Republic Records in 1995, for which he is chief executive officer. He has worked with artists including James Blake, Drake, Florence + the Machine, Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, Amy Winehouse, Post Malone, The Weeknd, BENEE, Pearl Jam, Jack Johnson, and John Mellencamp. He is the brother of Avery Lipman.
- Garry McCarthy: Is the Chief of Police in Willow Springs, Illinois and previous Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department. He was a candidate for mayor of Chicago in the 2019 Chicago mayoral election.
- Lyle Thompson: Is a Haudenosaunee professional lacrosse player from the Hawk Clan of the Onondaga Nation. His native name is Deyhahsanoondey, which translates into He's Flying Over Us. He plays both indoor and outdoor professional lacrosse. In professional outdoor lacrosse, he plays at the attack position for the Cannons Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League. In professional indoor lacrosse, he plays at the forward position for the Georgia Swarm of the National Lacrosse League. He also competes internationally in both indoor lacrosse for Haudenosaunee men's national indoor lacrosse team, and outdoor lacrosse for the Haudenosaunee men's national outdoor lacrosse team.
- Omar M. Yaghi: Is the James and Neeltje Tretter Chair Professor of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, an affiliate scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the founding director of the Berkeley Global Science Institute, and an elected member of the US National Academy of Sciences as well as the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.
- The Lizardman: Is an American freak show and sideshow performer. He is best known for his body modification, including his sharpened teeth, full-body tattoo of green scales, bifurcated tongue, subdermal implants and green-inked lips.
- Jamar Wilson: Is an American-Finnish former professional basketball player who last played for Boulazac Basket Dordogne of the LNB Pro B. He currently works as an assistant coach for I division A team Tapiolan Honka.
- Brian Lehrer: Is an American radio talk show host on New York City's public radio station WNYC. His daily two-hour 2007 Peabody Award-winning program, The Brian Lehrer Show, features interviews with newsmakers and experts about current events and social issues. Lehrer was formerly an anchor and reporter for NBC Radio Networks and has been in broadcast journalism for over 30 years.
- Ana Rosalinda García Carías: Is a Honduran lawyer who was First Lady of Honduras from 2014 to 2022, as the wife of President Juan Orlando Hernández.
- Priya Anand: Is an Indian actress and model who predominantly appears in Tamil films. She has also appeared in a few Telugu, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam films.
- Pete Lembo: Is an American college football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach at the Uni… it offered - which were many.
The Value of a SUNY Education
With the price of college tuition exponentially increasing each year, many students and families are opting for the SUNY route. According to Education Data, the average cost of attending a state university in 2023 was a little over $26,000 per year. In comparison, the average cost of attending a private institution in 2023 was around $56,000 per year. SUNY schools are earning more and more positive accolades regarding their programs, it's no surprise why so many opt for the SUNY route.
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