# List of Pepperdine University people

The following is a list of notable people associated with Pepperdine University, located in the American city of Malibu, California.

## Notable alumni
### Academia

* Mike Aamodt (B.A., 1978) – industrial and organizational psychology researcher
* Christopher Chetsanga (B.S., 1964) – Zimbabwean scientist who discovered two enzymes that repair damage to DNA
* Michael A. O'Donnell – adolescent wellness researcher
* Michael Shermer (B.A., 1976) – founder of The Skeptics Society
* Kirk Snyder (M.A., 1991) – LGBT business communication researcher

### Business

* Sophia Hutchins (B.S., 2019) – chief executive officer of LUMASOL and Executive Director of the Caitlyn Jenner Foundation
* Rick J. Caruso (J.D., 1983) – chief executive officer of Caruso Affiliated
* Benjamin de Rothschild (1984) – Chairman of the Edmond de Rothschild Group
* Julia Hartz (B.A., 2001) – Founder and CEO of Eventbrite
* George Randolph Hearst III (B.A. 1977) publisher of the Times Union newspaper in Albany, New York and director of the Hearst corporation
* Rod Menzies (MBA, 1988) – entrepreneur
* Oscar Munoz (M.B.A., 1986) – president and CEO of United Airlines
* Greg Popovich (M.B.A. 1996) – owner of Castle Rock Winery
* Nicolette Rankin – entrepreneur
* Jeffrey Sprecher – founder and CEO of Intercontinental Exchange and current chairman of the New York Stock Exchange
* Dean Stoecker – founder, chairman and former CEO of Alteryx
* Robert Tchenguiz (LL.B., 1982) – London-based property tycoon
* Neil Clark Warren (1956) – chairman and co-founder of eHarmony.com
* Kelly Zong (B.A., 2004) – president of the Hangzhou Wahaha Group founded by her father, Zong Qinghou
* Wishnu Wardhana – chairman of PT Teladan Resources

### Entertainment

* Nicole Kidman – actress
* Les Baxter – soundtrack and exotica composer
* Brittany Dawn Brannon – Miss Teen America 2007 and Miss Arizona 2010
* D.J. Caruso – film director
* Marshall Colt – actor, McClain's Law; later marriage and family therapist in San Diego
* Chace Crawford – actor, Gossip Girl The Boys
* Andrew de Burgh – film director, Just One Drink
* Pat Dubar – singer, Mind Funk
* Cami Edwards – cast member, Laguna Beach
* Douglas Emerson – former child actor, The Blob and Beverly Hills, 90210
* Kim Fields (1995) – actress, U.S. TV sitcoms The Facts of Life and Living Single
* Kimberly Forsyth – Miss Arkansas USA 2006
* Brad Fuller – video game composer (M.S. technology management 2006)
* Lillian Glass – author, TV commentator, body language expert
* Madison Hildebrand – star of Bravo Channel's Million Dollar Listing
* Darby Hinton – actor, Daniel Boone
* Porntip Nakhirunkanok (Bui Simon) – Miss Universe 1988 and Miss Thailand 1988
* Kelly Hu – Miss Teen USA 1985 and actress
* Ashley Jones – television actress, The Bold and the Beautiful
* Montell Jordan – R&B recording artist famous for his hit 1995 single, "This is How We Do It"
* Till Kahrs – recording artist, singer-songwriter, communication skills expert
* Marlene King – television writer, creator of Pretty Little Liars
* John Lasseter – animator and Chief Creative Officer of Pixar Entertainment
* Carla Laureano – RITA award-winning author of Five Days in Skye
* Coco Lee – member of K-pop duo CocoSori
* Jeff Loveness – screenwriter, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Rick and Morty, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
* Chloe Lukasiak – Dance Moms
* Kate Mansi – television actress, Days of Our Lives
* Rob Moore – Vice Chairman of Paramount Pictures
* Shana Morrison – singer/songwriter
* Tahj Mowry – television actor, the WB's Smart Guy and ABC Family's Baby Daddy
* Tamera Mowry – television actress, ABC and The WB Sister, Sister, Lifetime Television's Strong Medicine, and co-host and producer of The Real
* Tia Mowry – television actress, ABC and WB sitcom Sister, Sister, BET's The Game and Netflix's Family Reunion
* Brandy Norwood – Grammy Award-winning R&B artist, television, movie and Broadway actress, UPN sitcom Moesha , BET's The Game and Kennedy Center's Chicago
* Eric Christian Olsen – actor
* Mike Richards – executive producer, The Price Is Right, Let's Make a Deal, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy!
* Elena Rossini – filmmaker, documentary film The Illusionists
* Meredith Salenger – actress
* George Schlatter – Emmy-winning television producer and director, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
* Francesca Marie Smith – voice actress, Helga Pataki on Hey Arnold!
* Matt "Money" Smith – southern California sports radio personality
* Clayton Snyder – actor, sitcom Lizzie McGuire
* Michael Waldron – screenwriter, Rick and Morty, Loki, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
* David N. Weiss – screenwriter, The Rugrats Movie, Shrek 2, The Smurfs

### Literature and the arts

* Pierce Brown – author of the sci-fi dystopian Red Rising series
* Sharon M. Draper – realistic fiction and Young-adult fiction novelist
* Jamie J. Quatro – literary fiction writer
* Rebecca Zanetti – romance novelist

### Fine arts

* Kevin A. Short – painter and printmaker

### Media

* Michelle Fields (B.A., 2011) – political reporter
* Stefan Holt (B.A., 2009) – news anchor for WNBC-TV, New York
* Adam Housley (B.A. 1994) – national correspondent for Fox News Channel, Los Angeles correspondent, former Milwaukee Brewers and Detroit Tigers baseball player; Emmy winner
* Anna Song (B.A., 1999) – KATU investigative reporter, weekend anchor (1999–present), 2007 Emmy for Human Interest News Series, 2007 Regional Edward R. Murrow award for investigative reporting
* Bill Weir – co-anchor of ABC News Nightline
* Joel Widzer (B.S., 1986) – author and correspondent, MSNBC
* Zafar Sobhan, Editor of the Dhaka Tribune

### Politics and government

* André Birotte Jr. (J.D., 1991) – Judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California, 2014–present
* Rod Blagojevich (J.D., 1983) – Governor of Illinois, 2003–2009
* Jeffrey Boyd (J.D., 1991) – Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, 2012–present; former editor-in-chief of the Pepperdine Law Review
* Mike Cernovich (J.D., 2004) – political commentator, social media personality, and conspiracy theorist.
* Talis Colberg (J.D., 1983) – Attorney General of Alaska, 2006–2009
* Chris DeRose (J.D., 2005) – Clerk of the Superior Court of Maricopa County, Arizona, 2018–2019
* Jennifer Dorsey (J.D., 1997) – Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, 2013–present
* Paris Dennard (B.A., 2005) – Republican Party political strategist
* Colleen Graffy (B.A., 1979) – U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy, 2005–2009
* Ivan Doly Gultom (1991) – member of the People's Representative Council of Indonesia, 2017–present
* James Hahn (B.A., 1972; J.D., 1975) – Mayor of Los Angeles, 2001–2005; Judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court, 2008–present
* Janice Hahn – U.S. Representative, 2011–2016, California's 36th Congressional District and California's 44th Congressional District; Supervisor of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, 2016–present
* Brian Jack (B.A., 2010) – White House Political Director, 2019–2021
* Ted Kanavas – State Senator, Wisconsin State Senate, 2001–2011
* Michelle King – superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District, 2016-2018
* Joel Kleefisch (B.A., 1993) – State Representative, Wisconsin State Assembly, 2005–2019
* Jami Miscik (1980) – director of the Office of International Affairs, CIA
* Khalid Abdul Muhammad – African-American black nationalist who came to prominence as a leader in the Nation of Islam and then the New Black Panther Party; after a racially inflammatory 1993 speech at Kean College, was condemned and removed from his position in the Nation of Islam by Louis Farrakhan
* Danielle Outlaw – chief of the Portland Police Bureau
* Bernard C. Parks – Los Angeles City Councilman, 8th District, former Los Angeles police chief
* Todd Russell Platts (J.D., 1991) – U.S. Congressman from Pennsylvania, 2001–2013
* Amb. Pierre-Richard Prosper (J.D., 1989) – United States Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues
* Robin Sax (J.D., 1997) – author, legal analyst, victim advocate, former prosecutor for Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
* Diana Shaw – acting Inspector General of the Department of State
* Arthur K. Snyder – Los Angeles City Council member, 1967–1985
* Michelle Steel (B.S., 1997) – U.S. Representative, 2021–present, CA-48
* Kinga Tshering (MBA) – Bhutanese politician and businessman
* Brandon Williams (politician) (B.A., 1990) – U.S. Representative, 2023–present, NY-22
* Kimberly Yee – Arizona State Treasurer, 2019–present
* Widiyanti Putri Wardhana – Minister of Tourism of Indonesia, 2024–present

### Religion

* Paul Egertson (B.A., 1955) – Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

### Sports

* Alex Acker (2005) – professional basketball player (2005–06; 2008–09 Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Clippers)
* Brandon Armstrong (2001) – former professional basketball player (2001–04; New Jersey Nets)
* Sarah Attar – Olympic 800 meter runner
* Dain Blanton (1994) – 2000 Olympic gold medalist in beach volleyball
* Ricardo Brown (1980) – basketball player drafted in 1979 by Houston Rockets; Southern California Player of the Year in 1979; played professional basketball in the Philippine Basketball Association (1983–90); member of PBA Hall of Fame (2009) and Pepperdine University Hall of Fame (1995)
* Richard Cho – former General Manager of Portland Trail Blazers
* Doug Christie (1992) – retired professional basketball player (1992–2007; Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors, Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers)
* Bob Ctvrtlik (1985) – 1988 Olympic gold medal volleyball team member, member of International Olympic Committee
* Yakhouba Diawara (2005) – power forward for the Miami Heat
* Craig Edwards – former professional tennis player, semi-finalist in doubles at 1980 Australian Open.
* Eddie Edwards – former professional tennis player, 42 ATP singles, 40 ATP doubles
* Barry Enright (2007) – pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks
* Jim Everett – former NFL QB, received his MBA from Pepperdine
* Mike Fetters – former professional baseball player (1989–2004; California Angels, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, Arizona Diamondbacks and Minnesota Twins)
* Greg Genske – sports agent
* Brad Gilbert (1982) – former world # 4 tennis player; prominent coach of Andre Agassi, Andy Murray
* Jason Gore (2000) – professional golfer
* Dan Haren – professional baseball player; 2007 A.L. All Star Starting Pitcher (Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim)
* Ginger Helgeson-Nielsen – former professional tennis player who holds the all-time match winning percentage at Pepperdine
* Kim Hill (2013) – USA Volleyball National Team
* Adam Housley (1994) – former professional minor league baseball player, drafted by the Montreal Expos
* Katherine Hull (2003) – professional golfer
* Daniel Johnson (2008) – professional basketball player (Adelaide 36ers, Australasian NBL)
* Dennis Johnson (1976) – Basketball Hall of Famer, former professional basketball player (1977–90; Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns and Boston Celtics)
* Danielle Kang – 6-time LPGA Tour winner, including 2017 Women's PGA Championship
* Chad Kreuter – former professional baseball player (1988–2003; Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers, Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, Anaheim Angels, Kansas City Royals and Los Angeles Dodgers)
* Jennifer Lacy – professional basketball player, Phoenix Mercury and Atlanta Dream
* Robert Lansdorp – professional tennis coach who coached several players to #1 in the world
* Martin Laurendeau – former professional tour tennis player
* Mike Leach – head football coach at Texas Tech 2000–2009, Washington State 2012–2019 and Mississippi State 2020–2022
* Noah Lowry – professional baseball player (San Francisco Giants)
* Stacy Margolin (born 1959) – tennis player
* Boaz Merenstein (born 1970) – Israeli tennis player
* Glenn Michibata – former professional tour tennis player
* Tim Montez (1984) – college baseball coach of Jacksonville
* Jon Moscot – American-Israeli major league baseball pitcher (Cincinnati Reds)
* Merrill Moses (2000) – water polo goalie for USA national team (2008 Olympic silver medalist)
* David Newhan – professional baseball player (Houston Astros)
* Will Ohman – professional baseball player (Los Angeles Dodgers)
* Leo Palin – former professional tennis player, 92 singles ATP, 111 doubles ATP
* Rob Picciolo – former professional baseball player (1977–85; Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers and California Angels)
* Steve Rodriguez, major league infielder for the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers; player and head coach for the Waves baseball team
* Sean Rooney (2004) – USA men's national volleyball team, 2008 gold medalist
* Dane Sardinha – professional baseball player (Detroit Tigers)
* Mike Scott – former professional baseball player (1979–91; New York Mets and Houston Astros) and winner of the 1986 NL Cy Young Award
* Jesse Smith – USA men's water polo Olympic team 2000, 2004, 2008 (2008 Olympic silver medalist)
* João Soares – former professional tennis player. 74 ATP singles. 49 ATP doubles.
* Andy Stankiewicz – former professional baseball player (1992–98; New York Yankees, Houston Astros, Montreal Expos and Arizona Diamondbacks)
* Jackson Stormo (born 1999) – basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
* Andrew Sznajder – former professional tour tennis player
* Eric Thames – professional baseball player for the Milwaukee Brewers
* Sahith Theegala – 1-time PGA Tour winner. Current defending Fortinet Champion
* Malcolm Thomas – professional basketball player for Utah Jazz
* Derek Wallace – former professional baseball player (1996–99; New York Mets and Kansas City Royals)
* Robbie Weiss – former professional tennis player
* Lynn Williams (soccer) – professional soccer player, member of USWNT
* Randy Wolf – professional baseball player
* Danny Worth – professional baseball player (Detroit Tigers)

## Notable faculty

* Geraldine Decker – opera singer with the Metropolitan Opera
* Craig Detweiler – director of Center for Entertainment, Media, and Culture
* Joel S. Fetzer – distinguished professor of political science
* Allen Fox (born 1939) – tennis player (ranked as high as # 4) and coach
* Bruce Herschensohn (born 1932) – senior fellow School of Public Policy
* Linda Livingstone – dean of the Graziadio School of Business and Management (2002–2014)
* Merrill Moses (born 1977) – associate head coach in water polo, three-time Olympian and silver medalist
* Christopher Parkening – distinguished professor of music
* L. Timothy Perrin – former law school vice dean (2007–2012), former president of sister school Lubbock Christian University (2012–2019)
* Kenneth Starr – former law school dean
* Ben Stein – law professor (1990–97)
* Eliot Teltscher (born 1959) – professional tennis player
* Cornel West (born 1953) – philosopher, political activist, social critic, actor, and public intellectual