Alumni

With poetry's lofty reputation, the uninitiated might think that humor and poetry overlap only in dirty limericks, but for UCLA alumna Kay Ryan, who was named poet laureate of the United States on July 17, "much of the best poetry is funny."   Continue »
Jul 21, 2008

The Hollywood sign is one of the best-known (and biggest) icons in the world. And it's tended by a Bruin: Chris Baumgart '73.  Continue »
Nov 5, 2007

When Kareem walked away from the NBA in 1989, he had more than basketball to fall back on. A history major at UCLA, Kareem had a passion for understanding the present in light of the past, and a flair for writing.   Continue »
Aug 31, 2007

With "The Simpsons Movie" topping the box office, director David Silverman, '79, MFA '83, takes time out to talk about his work.  Continue »
Aug 28, 2007

The man who broke the color barrier in professional baseball is a UCLA alumnus: Jackie Robinson.   Continue »
Apr 13, 2007

Better known as a punk rock singer, Greg Graffin has a Ph.D. and teaches Life Science 1 at UCLA. The syllabus includes evolution.   Continue »
Mar 19, 2007

Phillip Carter, lawyer and soldier, went to Iraq to help reform the legal system. The Bruin alumnus reflects on his experiences.   Continue »
Mar 12, 2007

As a UCLA student, Saul Sarabia fought for social change. Now he's back on campus with the School of Law's Critical Race Studies program. And he's still working for change.   Continue »
Feb 28, 2007

The 79th Academy Awards included many ties to UCLA - from winning directors to alumni working backstage.   Continue »
Feb 19, 2007

LuValle Commons bears the name of James E. LuValle, first president of UCLA's graduate students. LuValle earned an Olympic medal and a Ph.D. in chemistry - an unusual combination.   Continue »
Feb 12, 2007

2006 has been a big year for UCLA alumni filmmakers, and 2007 promises to be at least as big. Read about recent and upcoming films by alumni of the School of Theater, Film and Television.   Continue »
Nov 22, 2006

Filmmakers Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (both '80) met as undergraduates at UCLA, after 18 years of marriage and working in the entertainment industry, the couple has directed their first feature length film: Little Miss Sunshine.   Continue »
Sep 1, 2006

Maddalena Bearzi Ph.D. '03 is passionate about the health of the Santa Monica bay, especially the dolphins.   Continue »
Aug 14, 2006

The career of UCLA alum Gil Kenan is taking off. Three years after an agent from Creative Artists Agency saw his senior thesis film and signed him, Kenan has been asked to direct the latest Spielberg and Zemeckis production, Monster House.   Continue »
Jul 24, 2006

There are plenty of UCLA alumni up for Oscars at this year's Academy Awards. Here is a list of some of the Bruin nominees.  Continue »
Feb 27, 2006

Rafer Johnson graduated from UCLA in 1959, but this Olympic gold medalist's relationship with the university was just beginning. Now after two of his children have graduated from UCLA, Johnson is still involved and is the speaker at October 2005's Parents' Weekend.   Continue »
Oct 1, 2005

After getting an MBA from UCLA in 1986, Allison Brown put her degree to work, trying her hand at investment banking for two years. Twenty years later later she is a Grammy-winning banjo player and putting her degree to work in a different way: running her own record label.  Continue »
Sep 1, 2005

Where some dream of adventure, Diana de Jesus pursued it. After graduating UCLA, de Jesus, hungry for adventure, postponed career plans to spend time volunteering as a teacher in Ghana. After returning to LA and meeting with UCLA alums, de Jesus re-evaluated her life and is now moving in an entirely different direction. Read about her plans and listen to her speak about her experiences.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2005

Jackie Robinson — the player who broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier and the only athlete in UCLA history to letter in four sports (football, basketball, track and baseball) — has been posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. The details inside.  Continue »
Feb 1, 2005

Adam Martin, a graduate of UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television, flexes his skills in UCLA's new NCAA television spot. Watch the NCAA spot as it has aired on TV, and also check out Adam talking about UCLA and what sort of work he'd like to do future.  Continue »
Nov 1, 2004

There are 37 former Bruins that now compete in the Olympics. Here is a glance at some the Bruin athletes who now wear red, white and blue instead of blue and gold.  Continue »
Aug 1, 2004

Native Gautemalan Octavious Gillespie is most widely known for his athletic abilities as a track star. Most recently he won the California Invitational Decathlon and hopes to go on to the olympics in Athens for the Guatemalan team. But that's not all this UCLA alum can do, he is also a self taught artist whose work has appeared on websites and publications across the campus.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2004

UCLA Alumnus Richard Tapia is the best known Hispanic in mathematical sciences in the United States today. He has received many prestigious awards and was appointed to the National Science Board by President Clinton. Tapia's life-story began in the barrios of East Los Angeles, where success does not come easy. Take a look at Tapia's story, accomplishments, and passion.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2004

Recently UCLA's School of Public Policy and Social research honored Terri Elders as an outstanding alumna. Elders has traveled the globe working on and studying social welfare programs. She credits UCLA with giving her the skills to accomplish what she has. Take a look.  Continue »
Jan 1, 2004

Ralph Bunche '27 was the grandson of a slave and the first African-American to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Find out more about this accomplished diplomat and former Bruin basketballer.  Continue »
Oct 1, 2003

UCLA Alum Tom Laichas has been teaching high school history for 20 years and has helped develop the UCLA-based National Center for History in the Schools, a program that creates study materials for K-12 students. Now, for the 100th anniversary of Ralph Bunche's birth, he has been asked to create a special Bunche study guide. The task has turned him into a walking Ralph Bunche Encyclopedia.  Continue »
Oct 1, 2003

It sounds like a coincidence too improbable for a screenplay. Big Star endows prize for student filmmakers. Promising Student wins prize. Years later, Promising Student (now a topflight director) gets his chance to direct Big Star. Film is a major success. Big Star is showered with praise and wins Academy Award.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2003

Sir Rafe Esquith '81 has had his troop of Shakespearian actors honored many times, from opening for the Royal Shakespeare Company to performing at the Globe in London, they have seen a lot. The only thing strange about his troop: they are only ten or eleven and are learning English as a second language. Esquith heads up a program that turns low-income immigrant children into latter-day Renaissance Scholars. Take a look.  Continue »
Feb 1, 2003

The longest-running news anchor in the history of television, Hal Fishman, earned his M.A. in political Science from UCLA in 1956 with the intent to go into teaching. After serving as an associate professor, he made the switch to television in 1960. This month's alumni spotlight takes a look at the career of Hal Fishman.  Continue »
Oct 1, 2002

After retiring from the business world, Stan Penton '43 began volunteering as a docent at UCLA's Mildred Mathias Botanical Gardens in 1997. But his love affair with plants has been going on for decadesand can even be traced up his family tree.  Continue »
Sep 1, 2002

Jake Heggie '84 is an accomplished operatic composer whose passion for music is inspiring. Read why he attributes UCLA for much of his success.  Continue »
Jul 1, 2002

Geoffrey Marcy doesn't have his head in the clouds. Since graduating from UCLA summa cum laude in 1976, with a double major in physics and astronomy, the scientist and his team have discovered 45 of the 78 extrasolar planets currently known in the universe.  Continue »
Apr 1, 2002

When UCLA alum Bobby Okinaka is not managing the web for the UCLA Alumni Association, he is doing research on Japanese-American World War II veterans, a group often underrepresented in history. Read about this interesting group of people that offer new insight into American history.   Continue »
Mar 1, 2002

Doby must be the all-around Bruin; not only has he worked at UCLA for decades, he also received three degrees from here. Now this former track star is moving on to become the UC vice-president of educational outreach. Surprisingly enough, this super-Bruin almost didn't come to UCLA in the first place, read on.  Continue »
Feb 1, 2002

When UCLA alumnus Marla Berns sees a piece of artwork from another time or culture, she doesn't just wonder who made it, she asks why they made it. Berns returned to her alma mater October 2001 when she was named director of UCLA's Fowler Museum of Cultural History. What are her plans for the museum in the future? Find out here.  Continue »
Feb 1, 2002

UCLA Alumnus John Rando seems to have a a sixth sense for the comedic. This director of comedy has directed three Broadway-bound plays in less than a year. Read what he has to say about his time at UCLA.  Continue »
Nov 1, 2001

Sheila Kuehl '62 began her professional life as a television star, but after leaving the entertainment industry to go after a bachelor's degree at UCLA, her life took a very different path. She ended becoming the first openly gay member of the California State Assembly and now serves as a California State Senator. This spotlight details the Kuehl's interesting journey that took her into the world of politics.  Continue »
Apr 1, 2001

Mark Gold '94 was pursuing a Masters in biology when a guest lecturer spoke of the need for academics to apply their knowledge to the political decision-making process. Gold switched tracks and received his D.Env. instead. Now he is the executive director of Heal the Bay, an organization that specializes in providing policy-makers with the necessary facts to make proper public health decisions.   Continue »
Apr 1, 2001

UCLA Alumnus Judy Cohen has been creating art since she was a child, but after getting her masters and changing her name to Judy Chicago, her art took off in a new direction. Chicago began creating art from a feminist standpoint, founding numerous centers dedicated to the female artistic point of view. Chicago continues to create art and undertake new projects, read on to find out more about what she is up to.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2001

UCLA alumnus Tom Bradley was more than just a great mayor who governed Los Angeles for five mayoral terms, he was a man who fought against injustice and never lost hope. The first black mayor of a major U.S. city, Bradley transformed Los Angeles into what it is today. This month's alumnus spotlight looks at some of his challenges and accomplishments.  Continue »
Feb 1, 2001

Agnes de Mille, niece of Cecil B., was told that she was a terrible dancer as a child. But this UCLA Alumnus was not going to let a little criticism stop her; she became the "Queen of Broadway", choreographing scores of famous musicals. This spotlight describes de Mille's time at UCLA and outlines some her many life accomplishments.  Continue »
Aug 21, 2000

Benjamin Cayetano '66 had narrowly escaped a life of crime and had been married five years before he decided to attend UCLA. This decision marked the beginning of a journey that would ultimately lead him to the first first Filipino American state governorship. This month's Alumnus spotlight outlines Cayetano's unique trek from a latchkey existence to a state politician who made history.  Continue »
Aug 7, 2000

Ralph Bunche '27 was the grandson of a slave and the first African-American to win the Nobel peace Prize. Find out more about this accomplished diplomat and former Bruin basketballer.  Continue »
Jun 19, 2000