46° FFeatured Alumni
Mildred Fish Harnack
Mildred Fish-Harnack: Secrets & Sacrifice Mildred Fish Harnack BA1925, MA1926’s final words were: “And I have loved Germany so much.“ Young Mildred Fish, known as Mili to friends, appreciated the German culture in her hometown... Read more »
Murat Kalayoglu
Medicine, Business a Recipe for Success Skilled in medical science, ophthalmologist Murat Kalayoglu BS1994, PhD1998, MD2000 comes at life with an entrepreneur’s vigor — bringing an energy that is changing the face of both medicine... Read more »
Natasha Ali
Newsroom Leader As a producer for HLN (formerly CNN Headline News), Natasha Ali MA1997 has worked on developing and launching new programming for the 24-hour news network. She was previously a producer for the network’s... Read more »
Neil Willenson
Power Promoter of Human Achievement At age 15, Neil Willenson BS 1992 raised money to alleviate homelessness. At age 17, he was the youngest-ever candidate for Wisconsin State Assembly. He lost. At age 21, he... Read more »
Pat Lucey
Governor, Ambassador Patrick Lucey BA1946 went home to Ferryville, Wisconsin, one weekend during his final semester of college to discover that he’d been elected justice of the peace. A friend had organized a write-in campaign,... Read more »
Phillip & Elizabeth Gross
Family investment One won’t find many media interviews or public anecdotes about the frugality for which Phillip Gross BBA1982, MS1983 and Dr. Elizabeth Cochary Gross are known in investment circles. But if money does indeed... Read more »
Pongsak Payakvichien
Thailand’s Pioneer for the Power of the Press Newspapers have long been entrusted as watchdogs for society. And in his native Thailand, legendary editor Pongsak Payavichien MA1971 leads the pack. As an editor and industry... Read more »
Raymond Damadian
Father of the MRI No scalpels required. Thanks to Raymond Damadian BS1956’s remarkable invention, it’s no longer necessary to open up the human body to detect cancer or pinpoint an injury. Damadian built the world’s... Read more »
Robert La Follette
The fire of “Fighting Bob” One of the most fiery and influential American politicians of the 20th century began as a struggling UW student well known for his campus pranks. Robert La Follette BS1879, LLD1901,... Read more »
Russ Feingold
Feingold: “Destined to be a Badger” Russ Feingold BA1975’s father, Leon BA1935, LLB1937, shaken by anti-Vietnam War violence in Madison – especially the Sterling Hall bombing that claimed a researcher’s life — urged his son... Read more »
Rustem Ismagilov
Nobel-Caliber Discoveries Think of your high school chemistry lab shrunk down smaller than the palm of your hand. Now you are in Rustem Ismagilov’s world. A former Harvard researcher and professor at the University of... Read more »
Scott Resnick and Jon Hardin
The Authors of Apps When Scott Resnick BA2009 and Jon Hardin BS2008 were undergrads, they weren’t busy downloading the latest apps on their smartphones and computers. They were developing them. While living in Chadbourne Hall,... Read more »
Serena Pollack
Attorney to the Rescue Serena Pollack BA1997 is general counsel at Boelter Companies, a third-generation, Wisconsin-based company in the restaurant and hospitality industry. A Badger through and through, she’s motivated to help others both on... Read more »
Sergio Fajardo
A New Medellín The city of used to be the scarred face that Colombia showed to the world. The streets of this cocaine capital were pockmarked by car bombs, bloodied by drug violence; its people... Read more »
Shirley Abrahamson
High Court Pioneer Passes Test of Time The day when Shirley Abrahamson DJS1962 became the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s longest-serving justice in 2013, folks celebrated with pastries and good humor. “It’s just living. That’s good, right?”... Read more »
Stephen Hawk and Frank Graner
Bullish on Investment Frank Graner PhD1948’s dream of allowing UW–Madison business students to work the levers of Wall Street — with all of the markets’ real-time rewards and consequences — came to life under his... Read more »
Tamara Grigsby
Change Agent The UW inspired Tamara Grigsby MS2000 to become an agent for social change. “I became angry as I learned the full extent of injustice in our world,” she said. But thanks to the... Read more »
Tammy Baldwin
U.S. Senator from Wisconsin Breaking barriers is stock-in-trade for Tammy Baldwin JD1989; it’s part of her makeup, her identity, and her legacy. One of the first hurdles Baldwin needed to overcome was when the 24-year-old... Read more »
Thomas Vonder Haar
Climate Scientist Thomas Vonder Haar MS1964, PhD1968’s distinguished career as a climate scientist began with his head in the clouds. While pursuing his pilot’s license at age 19, Vonder Haar developed a fascination with the... Read more »
Tim Keck and Christopher Johnson
The Onion: Area men ignore homework, say college newspaper will lead to fame The Onion launched on August 29, 1988, with an alarmingly alliterative headline: “Mendota Monster Mauls Madison.” But the real story behind the... Read more »
Tom Koch
The King of Corn As vice president of research at AgReliant Genetics, Tom Koch PhD2005 is helping to change the face of agriculture around the globe. Koch, who is a 2014 recipient of the Wisconsin... Read more »
Tom Loftus
Lessons of State Politics Go Global The phone rang in Tom Loftus MA1972’s office at the U.S. Embassy in Norway, and South Africa’s Nelson Mandela was on the line. Mandela, who received the 1993 Nobel... Read more »
Tommy Thompson
Tommy Thompson BS1963, JD1966 helped pay undergraduate and law school tuition as a bouncer, bartender, and manager at the Varsity Bar on State Street in the 1960s. He joked with “Var Bar” patrons, greeting them... Read more »
Tony Evers
Long before becoming Wisconsin’s governor, Tony Evers BS1973, MS1976, PhD1986 devoted his life to education.... Read more »
Vel Phillips
First in Fighting for Social Justice The first woman and first African American to ascend to major political posts in Wisconsin, Vel Phillips LLB1951 says that she found her gender presented more roadblocks than her race. “But... Read more »