100 Notable alumni of
College of William and Mary
Updated:
The College of William and Mary is 245th in the world, 107th in North America, and 102nd in the United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 100 notable alumni from the College of William and Mary sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff.
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Thomas Jefferson
- Occupations
- cryptographerpoliticianinventorarchitectlawyer
- Biography
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Thomas Jefferson was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence. Following the American Revolutionary War and prior to becoming president in 1801, Jefferson was the nation's first U.S. secretary of state under George Washington and then the nation's second vice president under John Adams.
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Glenn Close
- Occupations
- voice actoractorfilm directorstage actortelevision actor
- Biography
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Glenda Veronica "Glenn" Close is an American actress and singer. In a career spanning over six decades, she has garnered numerous accolades, including three Tony Awards, three Emmy Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards. She has been nominated eight times for an Academy Award, sharing the record for most nominations in acting categories without a win with Peter O'Toole. In 2016, she was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame, and in 2019, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
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Patton Oswalt
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 1991 graduated with Bachelor of Arts in English studies
- Occupations
- voice actorwritertelevision produceractortelevision actor
- Biography
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Patton Oswalt is an American stand-up comedian and actor. His acting roles include Spence Olchin in the sitcom The King of Queens (1998–2007) and narrating the sitcom The Goldbergs (2013–2023) as adult Adam F. Goldberg. After making his acting debut in the Seinfeld episode "The Couch", he has appeared in a variety of television series, such as Parks and Recreation, Community, Two and a Half Men, Drunk History, Reno 911!, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Archer, Veep, Justified, Kim Possible, Modern Family, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. He portrayed Principal Ralph Durbin in A.P. Bio (2018–2021) and Matthew the Raven in the TV series The Sandman (2022–present).
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James Comey
- Occupations
- lawyerjuristpoliticianuniversity teacher
- Biography
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James Brien Comey Jr. is an American lawyer who was the seventh director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 2013 until his termination in May 2017. Comey was a registered Republican for most of his adult life; however, in 2016, he described himself as unaffiliated.
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Jon Stewart
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- Studied in 1984
- Occupations
- screenwriterwriterfilm producercomedianjournalist
- Biography
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Jon Stewart is an American comedian, writer, producer, director, political commentator, actor, and television host. He was the host of The Daily Show, a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015, and returned as host of the show on Mondays in 2024. He hosted The Problem with Jon Stewart (2021–2023) on Apple TV+. Stewart has received numerous accolades including 22 Primetime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and five Peabody Awards. He was honored with the Bronze Medallion in 2019, and the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2022.
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Matt Gaetz
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
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Matthew Louis Gaetz II is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the U.S. representative for Florida's 1st congressional district since 2017. The district includes all of Escambia, Okaloosa, and Santa Rosa counties, and portions of Walton County. A member of the Republican Party, he is widely regarded as a staunch proponent of far-right politics as well as an ally of former president Donald Trump.
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John Tyler
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- Studied in 1807
- Occupations
- statespersonpoliticianlawyer
- Biography
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John Tyler was an American politician who served as the tenth president of the United States from 1841 to 1845, after briefly holding office as the tenth vice president in 1841. He was elected vice president on the 1840 Whig ticket with President William Henry Harrison, succeeding to the presidency following Harrison's death 31 days after assuming office. Tyler was a stalwart supporter and advocate of states' rights, including regarding slavery, and he adopted nationalistic policies as president only when they did not infringe on the states' powers. His unexpected rise to the presidency posed a threat to the presidential ambitions of Henry Clay and other Whig politicians and left Tyler estranged from both of the nation's major political parties at the time.
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Jen Psaki
- Occupations
- politiciantelevision presenter
- Biography
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Jennifer Rene Psaki is an American television political analyst and former government official. A political advisor who served under both the Obama and Biden administrations, she served the Biden administration as the 34th White House press secretary until May 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the Obama administration as the White House deputy press secretary (2009); the White House deputy communications director (2009–2011); the spokesperson for the United States Department of State (2013–2015); and the White House communications director (2015–2017). Psaki was a political contributor for CNN from 2017 to 2020. As of March 2023, she hosts the talk-show Inside with Jen Psaki on MSNBC.
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James Monroe
- Occupations
- writerlawyerfarmerdiplomatpolitician
- Biography
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James Monroe was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825, a member of the Democratic-Republican Party. He was the last Founding Father to serve as president as well as the last president of the Virginia dynasty and the Republican Generation. His presidency coincided with the Era of Good Feelings, concluding the First Party System era of American politics. He issued the Monroe Doctrine, a policy of limiting European colonialism in the Americas. Monroe previously served as governor of Virginia, a member of the United States Senate, U.S. ambassador to France and Britain, the seventh secretary of state, and the eighth secretary of war.
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Scott Glenn
- Occupations
- stunt performeractormilitary personnelstage actortelevision actor
- Biography
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Theodore Scott Glenn is an American actor. His roles have included Pfc Glenn Kelly in Nashville (1975), Wes Hightower in Urban Cowboy (1980), astronaut Alan Shepard in The Right Stuff (1983), Emmett in Silverado (1985), Captain Bart Mancuso in The Hunt for Red October (1990), Jack Crawford in The Silence of the Lambs (1991), John Adcox in Backdraft (1991), Bill Burton in Absolute Power (1997), Roger in Training Day (2001), Ezra Kramer in The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), Chris Chenery in Secretariat (movie) (2010), Kevin Garvey Sr. in the HBO series The Leftovers (2014–2017), and as Stick in the Netflix series Daredevil (2015–2016) and The Defenders (2017).
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Mike Tomlin
- Occupations
- American football coachhead coach
- Biography
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Michael Pettaway Tomlin is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). Since joining the Steelers in 2007, he has led the team to eleven playoff runs, seven division titles, three AFC Championship Games, two Super Bowl appearances, and a title in Super Bowl XLIII. At age 36, Tomlin became the youngest head coach to win the Super Bowl, a record which was later broken by Sean McVay in Super Bowl LVI. Tomlin holds the record for most consecutive non-losing seasons to begin a coaching career with 17 and has never had a losing season. Only Tom Landry (21) and Bill Belichick (19) have had longer such streaks at any point in their coaching careers. Upon Belichick's departure from the New England Patriots following the 2023 season, Tomlin is the NFL's longest-tenured active head coach.
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Michelle Wolf
- Occupations
- actorcomedian
- Biography
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Michelle Wolf is an American comedian, writer, producer, and television host. She worked as a contributor and writer for Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. She spoke as the featured performer at the 2018 White House Correspondents' Dinner. She hosted the Netflix comedy talk show series The Break with Michelle Wolf and performed in the 2019 stand-up comedy special Joke Show.
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Yuri Lowenthal
- Occupations
- television actorscreenwriterfilm actoractorvoice actor
- Biography
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Yuri Lowenthal is an American voice actor, producer, and screenwriter known for his work in cartoons, anime, and video games. Some of his prominent roles in animations and anime include Sasuke Uchiha in Naruto, teenage Ben Tennyson in Ben 10, Jinnosuke in Afro Samurai, Simon in Gurren Lagann and Suzaku Kururugi in Code Geass. In video games, he voices Lorath Nahr in Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo III, The Prince in Ubisoft's Prince of Persia, Hayate/Ein in Dead or Alive, Matt Miller in Saints Row: The Third and Saints Row IV, and Peter Parker / Spider-Man in various video games associated with the character, notably the incarnation featured in the Marvel's Spider-Man series by Insomniac Games.
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Henry Clay
- Occupations
- lawyerwriterpoliticiandiplomat
- Biography
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Henry Clay Sr. was an American lawyer and statesman who represented Kentucky in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. He was the seventh House speaker as well as the ninth secretary of state. He unsuccessfully ran for president in the 1824, 1832, and 1844 elections. He helped found both the National Republican Party and the Whig Party. For his role in defusing sectional crises, he earned the appellation of the "Great Compromiser" and was part of the "Great Triumvirate" of Congressmen, alongside fellow Whig Daniel Webster and Democrat John C. Calhoun.
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Dylan Baker
- Occupations
- television actorfilm directorstage actorfilm actoractor
- Biography
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Dylan Baker is an American actor. He gained recognition for his roles in films such as Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987), Happiness (1998), Thirteen Days (2000), Road to Perdition (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man 3 (2007), Trick 'r Treat (2007), Revolutionary Road (2008), Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013), and Selma (2014). On television he has had prominent roles in series such as Murder One (1995–1996), The Good Wife (2010–2015), Damages (2011), The Americans (2016), and Homeland (2018). For The Good Wife he earned three Primetime Emmy Award nominations.
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Linda Lavin
- Occupations
- film actortelevision actorsingerfilm producerfilm director
- Biography
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Linda Lavin is an American actress and singer. She is known for playing the title character in the sitcom Alice and for her stage performances, both on and off-Broadway.
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Todd Boehly
- Occupations
- philanthropistbusiness executivebusinesspersoninvestorinternational forum participant
- Biography
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Todd Boehly is an American businessman and investor. He is the co-founder, chairman, chief executive officer and controlling member of Eldridge Industries, a holding company headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut. He is also the interim CEO of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and co-controlling owner and chairman of Premier League football club Chelsea, and Ligue 1 football club RC Strasbourg under BlueCo. As of 2024, Forbes estimates his net worth at US$6.1 billion.
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Robert Gates
- Occupations
- politicianair force officer
- Biography
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Robert Michael Gates is an American intelligence analyst and university president who served as the 22nd United States secretary of defense from 2006 to 2011. He was appointed by President George W. Bush and was retained by President Barack Obama. Gates began his career serving as an officer in the United States Air Force but was quickly recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Gates served for twenty-six years in the CIA and at the National Security Council, and was director of central intelligence under President George H. W. Bush from 1991 to 1993. After leaving the CIA, Gates became president of Texas A&M University and was a member of several corporate boards. Gates served as a member of the Iraq Study Group, the bipartisan commission co-chaired by James A. Baker III and Lee H. Hamilton that studied the lessons of the Iraq War.
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Bill Lawrence
- Occupations
- television directorscreenwriterfilm producershowrunnerfilm director
- Biography
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William Van Duzer Lawrence IV is an American television producer, screenwriter, and director. He is the creator of the series Scrubs and co-creator of shows including the live-action Cougar Town, Spin City, Ground Floor, Ted Lasso, and Shrinking, and the animated series Clone High, in which he also voiced the leader of the shadowy figures. He has written for many other shows, including The Nanny and Boy Meets World.
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John Marshall
- Occupations
- writerlawyerjuristdiplomatpolitician
- Biography
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John Marshall was an American statesman, lawyer, and Founding Father who served as the fourth chief justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longest serving justice in the history of the U.S. Supreme Court, and is widely regarded as one of the most influential justices ever to serve. Prior to joining the court, Marshall briefly served as both the U.S. secretary of state under President John Adams, and a representative, in the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia, thereby making him one of the few Americans to serve on all three branches of the United States federal government.
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Charles Esten
- Occupations
- television actorimprovisersingerfilm actorcomedian
- Biography
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Charles Esten Puskar III, also known professionally as Charles Esten, and (when appearing as himself on improvisation shows or hosting) as Chip Esten, is an American actor, musician, singer-songwriter, and comedian.
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Ben Domenech
- Occupations
- journalistpolitical punditblogger
- Biography
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Benjamin Domenech is an American writer, blogger, editor, publisher, and television commentator. He is the co-founder and publisher of The Federalist and host of The Federalist Radio Hour, and writes The Transom, a daily subscription newsletter for political insiders. He also co-founded the RedState group blog. He joined Fox News as a commentator in 2021.
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Michele Bachmann
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 1988 graduated with Master of Laws
- Occupations
- autobiographerpoliticianlawyer
- Biography
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Michele Marie Bachmann is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for Minnesota's 6th congressional district from 2007 until 2015. A member of the Republican Party, she was a candidate for president of the United States in the 2012 election, but lost the Republican nomination to Mitt Romney.
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Winfield Scott
- Occupations
- military officerpolitician
- Biography
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Winfield Scott was an American military commander and political candidate. He served as Commanding General of the United States Army from 1841 to 1861, having taken part in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, the early stages of the American Civil War and conflicts with Native Americans earlier in his career. Scott was the Whig Party's presidential nominee in the 1852 election, but was defeated by Democrat Franklin Pierce. He was known as Old Fuss and Feathers for his insistence on proper military etiquette, as well as the Grand Old Man of the Army for his many years of service.
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Stephanie Szostak
- Occupations
- actorfilm actormodel
- Biography
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Stéphanie Szostak is a French actress who started her career in the early 2000s. Szostak is best known for having appeared in the films The Devil Wears Prada, Dinner for Schmucks, Iron Man 3, and R.I.P.D. Szostak starred in the USA Network original drama series Satisfaction and the ABC series A Million Little Things.
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Todd Howard
- Occupations
- computer scientistvideo game producervideo game designerpresentervideo game director
- Biography
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Todd Andrew Howard is an American video game designer, director, and producer. He serves as director and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios, where he has led the development of the Fallout and The Elder Scrolls series.
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Jacob Frey
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 2004 graduated with bachelor's degree in government
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Jacob Lawrence Frey is an American politician and attorney who has served as the mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota since 2018. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, he served on the Minneapolis City Council from 2014 to 2018.
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Kyle Soller
- Occupations
- stage actorvoice actortelevision actoractor
- Biography
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Kyle William Soller is an American film, stage, and television actor. His accolades include three Evening Standard Theatre Awards, and the 2019 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Inheritance, staged at the Young Vic Theatre in 2018.
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Gary Wright
- Occupations
- songwritersingerrock singerrock musicianrecording artist
- Biography
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Gary Malcolm Wright was an American musician and composer best known for his 1976 hit songs "Dream Weaver" and "Love Is Alive". Wright's breakthrough album, The Dream Weaver (1975), came after he had spent seven years in London as, alternately, a member of the British blues rock band Spooky Tooth and a solo artist on A&M Records. While in England, he played keyboards on former Beatle George Harrison's triple album All Things Must Pass (1970), so beginning a friendship that inspired the Indian religious themes and spirituality inherent in Wright's subsequent songwriting. His work from the late 1980s onwards embraced world music and the new age genre, although none of his post-1976 releases matched the same level of popularity as The Dream Weaver.
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Eric Cantor
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 1988 graduated with Juris Doctor
- Occupations
- lawyerinternational forum participantpoliticianbusinessperson
- Biography
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Eric Ivan Cantor is an American lawyer and former politician who represented Virginia's 7th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2014. A Republican, Cantor served as House Minority Whip from 2009 to 2011, and as House Majority Leader from 2011 to 2014.
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Jill Ellis
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- Studied in 1984-1988
- Occupations
- association football managerassociation football player
- Biography
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Jillian Anne Ellis is an English-American football manager and executive who is currently the president of San Diego Wave FC. Ellis coached the United States women's national team from 2014 to 2019 and won two FIFA Women's World Cups in 2015 and 2019, making her the second coach to win consecutive World Cups. She stepped down as the team's head coach in October 2019 and currently serves as an ambassador for the United States Soccer Federation, with her focus being on working with the federation to help raise the number of women in coaching. She has also served as head coach for various college and United States national youth teams over her career.
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Stephanie Murphy
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 2000 graduated with Bachelor of Arts in economics
- Occupations
- politicianfaculty memberemployeebusinesspersonconsultant
- Biography
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Stephanie Murphy is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Florida's 7th congressional district from 2017 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, she defeated incumbent Republican John Mica in 2016. Her district included much of downtown and northern Orlando, as well as all of Winter Park, Maitland, Sanford, and Altamonte Springs.
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Steven Pruitt
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 2006 studied art history
- Occupations
- Wikimedian
- Biography
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Steven Pruitt is an American Wikipedia editor and administrator with the largest number of edits made to English Wikipedia, at over 5 million, having made at least one edit to one-third of all English Wikipedia articles. Pruitt first began editing Wikipedia in 2004. He has also created more than 33,000 Wikipedia articles. Pruitt was named as one of the 25 most important influencers on the Internet by Time magazine in 2017.
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David M. Brown
- Occupations
- circus performerastronautphysicianmilitary officer
- Biography
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David McDowell Brown was a United States Navy captain and NASA astronaut. He died on his first spaceflight, when the Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-107) disintegrated during orbital reentry into the Earth's atmosphere. Brown became an astronaut in 1996 but had not served on a space mission prior to the Columbia disaster. He was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
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Joe McCain
- Occupations
- actorjournalist
- Biography
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Joseph Pinckney McCain II is an American stage actor, newspaper reporter, and the brother of the late U.S. Senator and two-time presidential candidate John McCain.
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Alexandra Bracken
- Occupations
- science fiction writernovelistwriter
- Biography
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Alexandra Bracken is a #1 New York Times bestselling American author known for The Darkest Minds series and Passenger series.
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Benjamin Harrison V
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Benjamin Harrison V was an American planter, merchant, and politician who served as a legislator in colonial Virginia, following his namesakes' tradition of public service. He was a signer of the Continental Association, as well as the United States Declaration of Independence, and was one of the nation's Founding Fathers. He served as Virginia's governor from 1781 to 1784.
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Peyton Randolph
- Occupations
- farmerpoliticianlawyer
- Biography
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Peyton Randolph was an American politician and planter who was a Founding Father of the United States. Born into Virginia's wealthiest and most powerful family, Randolph served as speaker of Virginia's House of Burgesses, president of the first two Virginia Conventions, and president of the First Continental Congress. He also served briefly as president of the Second Continental Congress.
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Edmund Randolph
- Occupations
- diplomatpoliticianlawyer
- Biography
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Edmund Jennings Randolph was a Founding Father of the United States, attorney, and the 7th Governor of Virginia. As a delegate from Virginia, he attended the Constitutional Convention and helped to create the national constitution while serving on its Committee of Detail. He was appointed the first United States Attorney General by George Washington and subsequently served as the second Secretary of State during the Washington administration.
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Rick Gates
- Occupations
- lobbyistpolitical adviser
- Biography
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Richard William Gates III is an American former political consultant and lobbyist who pleaded guilty to conspiracy against the United States for making false statements in the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. He is a longtime business associate of Paul Manafort and served as deputy to Manafort when the latter was campaign manager of the Donald Trump presidential campaign in 2016, and after under Kellyanne Conway.
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Michael Powell
- Occupations
- international forum participantlawyer
- Biography
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Michael Kevin Powell is an American attorney and lobbyist who served as the 24th chairman of the Federal Communications Commission from 2001 to 2005. Since leaving office, Powell has since worked as the president of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), a broadband industry trade association.
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Lisa Desjardins
- Occupations
- journalist
- Biography
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Lisa Desjardins is an American political journalist. She is a correspondent at PBS NewsHour and has previously worked for the Associated Press and CNN Radio. As of 2018, she has reported on five U.S. presidential elections.
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Dina Titus
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 1970 graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- university teacherpoliticianpolitical scientist
- Biography
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Alice Constandina "Dina" Titus is an American political scientist and politician who has been the United States representative for Nevada's 1st congressional district since 2013. She served as the U.S. representative for Nevada's 3rd congressional district from 2009 to 2011, when she was defeated by Joe Heck. Titus is a member of the Democratic Party. She served in the Nevada Senate and was its minority leader from 1993 to 2009. Before her election to Congress, Titus was a professor of political science at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), where she taught American and Nevada government for 30 years. She was the Democratic nominee for governor of Nevada in 2006.
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Mary Jo White
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- Graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
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Mary Jo White is an American attorney who served as the 31st chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from 2013 to 2017. She was the first woman to be the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, serving from 1993 to 2002. On January 24, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated White to replace Elisse B. Walter as Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. She was confirmed by the Senate on April 8, 2013, and was sworn into office on April 10, 2013. In 2014, she was listed as the 73rd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.
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Michael Burns
- Occupations
- actorhistoriantelevision actor
- Biography
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Michael Thornton Burns is an American professor emeritus of history at Mount Holyoke College, and a published author and former television and film teen actor, most known for the television series Wagon Train.
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Steve Chabot
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- In 1975 graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- politicianlawyerteacher
- Biography
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Steven Joseph Chabot is an American politician and lawyer who represented Ohio's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 2009 and again from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he lost his 2022 reelection bid to Democrat Greg Landsman. Until his election loss, he was the dean of Ohio's GOP delegation to the House of Representatives, after the retirement of former Speaker John Boehner.
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John J. Crittenden
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
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John Jordan Crittenden was an American statesman and politician from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He represented the state in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and twice served as United States Attorney General in the administrations of William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, and Millard Fillmore. He was also the 17th governor of Kentucky and served in the state legislature. Although frequently mentioned as a potential candidate for the U.S. presidency, he never consented to run for the office.
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Thomas A. Shannon, Jr
- Occupations
- diplomat
- Biography
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Thomas Alfred Shannon Jr. is an American diplomat who served as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs from 2016 to 2018. In early 2017, Shannon served as acting United States Secretary of State until President Donald Trump's nominee, Rex Tillerson, was confirmed. He was also acting Deputy Secretary of State of the United States until the Senate confirmed President Trump's nominee, John J. Sullivan.
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Bushrod Washington
- Occupations
- judge
- Biography
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Bushrod Washington was an American attorney and politician who served as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1798 to 1829. On the Supreme Court, he was a staunch ally of Chief Justice John Marshall.
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Jerry Coyne
- Occupations
- writerbiologistuniversity teacherecologistgeneticist
- Biography
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Jerry Allen Coyne is an American biologist and skeptic known for his work on speciation and his commentary on intelligent design. A professor emeritus at the University of Chicago in the Department of Ecology and Evolution, he has published numerous papers on the theory of evolution. His concentration is speciation and ecological and evolutionary genetics, particularly as they involve the fruit fly, Drosophila. In 2023 he became a fellow with the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry.
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Pinball Clemons
- Occupations
- motivational speakerassociation football playerplayer of American footballCanadian football player
- Biography
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Michael Lutrell "Pinball" Clemons OOnt is an American-Canadian sports executive and former running back and return specialist who serves as general manager for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He is considered by many to be one of the greatest and most famous Argos players of all time, as well as one of the most popular professional athletes in the history of Toronto.
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Marcus Thornton
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Marcus Alexander Thornton is an American professional basketball player for Lavrio of the Greek Basket League. He was drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 45th overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft. Thornton completed his collegiate career at the College of William & Mary (W&M) in 2015 and was named the 2014–15 Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year. Thornton spent 10 days on the NBA roster of the Cleveland Cavaliers, but never played.
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Sarah Brady
- Occupations
- activist
- Biography
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Sarah Jane Brady was a prominent advocate for gun control in the United States. Her husband, James Brady, was press secretary to U.S. president Ronald Reagan and was left permanently disabled as a result of an assassination attempt on Reagan.
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George Wythe
- Occupations
- lawyerjuristuniversity teacherjudge
- Biography
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George Wythe was an American academic, scholar and judge who was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. The first of the seven signatories of the United States Declaration of Independence from Virginia, Wythe served as one of Virginia's representatives to the Continental Congress and the Philadelphia Convention and served on a committee that established the convention's rules and procedures. He left the convention before signing the United States Constitution to tend to his dying wife. He was elected to the Virginia Ratifying Convention and helped ensure that his home state ratified the Constitution. Wythe taught and was a mentor to Thomas Jefferson, John Marshall, Henry Clay and other men who became American leaders.
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William C. C. Claiborne
- Occupations
- politicianjudgelawyer
- Biography
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William Charles Cole Claiborne was an American politician, best known as the first non-colonial governor of Louisiana. He also has the distinction of possibly being the youngest member of the United States Congress in U.S. history, although reliable sources differ about his age.
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Christina Romer
- Occupations
- economistuniversity teacher
- Biography
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Christina Duckworth Romer is the Class of 1957 Garff B. Wilson Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley and a former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Obama administration. She resigned from her role on the Council of Economic Advisers on September 3, 2010.
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James Branch Cabell
- Occupations
- writershort story writerfantasy authorhumoristscience fiction writer
- Biography
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James Branch Cabell was an American author of fantasy fiction and belles-lettres. Cabell was well-regarded by his contemporaries, including H. L. Mencken, Edmund Wilson, and Sinclair Lewis. His works were considered escapist and fit well in the culture of the 1920s, when they were most popular. For Cabell, veracity was "the one unpardonable sin, not merely against art, but against human welfare."
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Roh Soh-yeong
- Biography
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Roh Soh-yeong is a South Korean art museum director. She is the founder and director of Art Center Nabi.
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David D. McKiernan
- Occupations
- military personnel
- Biography
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David D. McKiernan is a retired United States Army four-star general who served in Afghanistan as Commander, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). He served concurrently as Commander, United States Forces – Afghanistan (USFOR-A) from October 6, 2008, to June 15, 2009.
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Joseph Ellis
- Occupations
- writerhistorian
- Biography
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Joseph John-Michael Ellis III is an American historian whose work focuses on the lives and times of the Founding Fathers of the United States. His book American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson won a National Book Award in 1997 and Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for History. Both these books were bestsellers.
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David Atlee Phillips
- Occupations
- spyjournalist
- Biography
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David Atlee Phillips was a Central Intelligence Agency officer of 25 years and a recipient of the Career Intelligence Medal. Phillips rose to become the CIA's chief of operations for the Western hemisphere. In 1975, he founded the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), an alumni association comprising intelligence officers from all services.
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Michael J. Garcia
- Occupations
- prosecutorjudgelawyer
- Biography
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Michael John Garcia is an American lawyer, judge and former Republican government official. Since February 2016, he has served as an Associate Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, that state's highest court. He is a former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (2005–2008). Between his service as United States Attorney and his appointment to the Court of Appeals, Garcia was a partner at the law firm Kirkland & Ellis. He has also served as chairman of El Museo del Barrio.
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Edmund Ruffin
- Occupations
- agronomistwritersoldier
- Biography
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Edmund Ruffin III was a wealthy Virginia planter who served in the Virginia Senate from 1823 to 1827. In the last three decades before the American Civil War, his pro-slavery writings received more attention than his agricultural work. Ruffin, a slaveholder, staunchly advocated states' rights and slavery, arguing for secession years before the Civil War, and became a political activist with the so-called Fire-Eaters. Ruffin is given credit for "firing the first shot of the war" at the Battle of Fort Sumter in April 1861 and fought as a Confederate soldier despite his advanced age. When the war ended in Southern defeat in 1865, he committed suicide rather than submit to "Yankee rule."
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Sara Schaefer
- Occupations
- stand-up comedianwriterpodcaster
- Biography
-
Sara Schaefer is an American stand-up comedian, writer, and author.
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Weijia Jiang
- Occupations
- reporter
- Biography
-
Weijia Jiang is an American television journalist and reporter. She is based in Washington, D.C., and has served as the Senior White House Correspondent for CBS News since July 2018. Jiang's question to President Donald Trump about the COVID-19 testing program in the United States during a White House press briefing received global attention and coverage.
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Thomas Lee
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
-
Colonel Thomas Lee was a planter and politician in colonial Virginia, and a member of the Lee family, a political dynasty. Lee became involved in politics in 1710, serving in both houses of the Virginia General Assembly, and also held important positions as Naval Officer for the Northern Potomac Region and agent for the Northern Neck Proprietary. After his father died, Lee inherited thousands of acres of land as well as enslaved people in then-vast Northumberland and Stafford Counties in Virginia as well as across the Potomac River in Charles County, Maryland. These properties were developed as tobacco plantations. Northumberland County was later subdivided, so some of Lee's properties were in modern Fairfax, Fauquier, Prince William and Loudoun Counties as well as the counties in the modern Northern Neck of Virginia.
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Chuck Horner
- Occupations
- military officer
- Biography
-
Charles Albert Horner is a retired United States Air Force four-star general. He was born in Davenport, Iowa and attended the University of Iowa, as part of the Air Force Reserve Officers' Training Corps program. On June 13, 1958, Horner was commissioned into the Air Force Reserve. During the Vietnam War, he flew in combat as a Wild Weasel pilot and received the Silver Star. During Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm, he commanded the American Air Force, as well as those of the American allies. During the Desert Shield phase of the conflict, Horner briefly served as Commander-in-Chief — Forward of United States Central Command; while General Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr. was still in the United States. He currently serves on the board of directors for the United States Institute of Peace.
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Ashley Miller
- Occupations
- film producerscreenwritertelevision producer
- Biography
-
Ashley Edward Miller is an American screenwriter and producer best known for his work on the television series Andromeda, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, and Fringe. He also worked on the films Thor and X-Men: First Class.
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Beth Comstock
- Occupations
- international forum participantbusinessperson
- Biography
-
Elizabeth "Beth" Comstock is an American business executive. She is a former vice chair of General Electric. She operated GE Business Innovations, which developed new businesses, markets and service models; drives brand value and partners to enhance GE's inventive culture. This unit includes GE Lighting, Current, GE Ventures & Licensing and GE sales, marketing and communications.
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Kelly Choi
- Occupations
- television presenterjournalistmodel
- Biography
-
Kelly Choi is a Korean-American television personality on NYC Media, the official broadcast service of the City of New York. A former host of Bravo TV's Top Chef spin-off, Top Chef Masters, she has also been presenter of the documentary series Secrets of New York.
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Thomas Mann Randolph
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
-
Thomas Mann Randolph Jr. was an American planter, soldier, and politician from Virginia. He served as a member of both houses of the Virginia General Assembly, a representative in the United States Congress, and as the 21st governor of Virginia, from 1819 to 1822. He married Martha Jefferson, the oldest daughter of Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States. They had eleven children who survived childhood. As an adult, Randolph developed alcoholism, and he and his wife separated for some time before his death.
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William Barton Rogers
- Occupations
- physicistuniversity teachergeologistorganizational founder
- Biography
-
William Barton Rogers was an American geologist, physicist, and educator at the College of William & Mary from 1828 to 1835 and at the University of Virginia from 1835 to 1853. In 1861, Rogers founded the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The university opened in 1865 after the American Civil War. Because of his affiliation with Virginia, Mount Rogers, the highest peak in the state, is named after him.
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John C. Wright
- Occupations
- lawyernovelistscience fiction writerwriter
- Biography
-
John C. Wright is an American writer of science fiction and fantasy novels. He was a Nebula Award finalist for his fantasy novel Orphans of Chaos. Publishers Weekly said he "may be this fledgling century's most important new SF talent" when reviewing his debut novel, The Golden Age.
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Albee Benitez
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
-
Alfredo Abelardo "Albee" Bantug Benitez is a Filipino businessman and politician serving as the mayor of Bacolod since 2022. He served three consecutive terms as the representative of Negros Occidental's 3rd district from 2010 to 2019. He was one of the richest congressmen in the Philippines.
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William Short
- Occupations
- diplomat
- Biography
-
William Short was an American diplomat during the early years of the United States. He served as Thomas Jefferson's private secretary when the latter was a peace commissioner in France, and remained in Europe to take on several other diplomatic posts. Jefferson, later the third President of the United States, was a lifelong mentor and friend. In a 1789 letter, Jefferson referred to Short as his "adoptive son."
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Nell Zink
- Occupations
- writer
- Biography
-
Helen "Nell" Louise Zink is an American writer living in Germany. After being a long term penpal of Avner Shats, she came to prominence in her fifties with the help of Jonathan Franzen and her novel, Mislaid, was longlisted for the National Book Award. Her debut The Wallcreeper was released in the United States by the independent press Dorothy and named one of 100 notable books of 2014 by The New York Times, as was Mislaid. Zink then released Nicotine, Private Novelist and Doxology through Ecco Press. In 2022 she published Avalon, again a New York Times notable book, with Alfred A. Knopf.
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George Tucker
- Occupations
- writerbiographerhistorianuniversity teacherscience fiction writer
- Biography
-
George Tucker was an American attorney, politician, historian, author, and educator in Virginia. His literary works include The Valley of Shenandoah (1824), the first fiction of colonial life in Virginia, and Voyage to the Moon (1827), which is among the nation's earliest science fiction novels. He also published the first comprehensive biography of Thomas Jefferson in 1837, as well as his History of the United States (1856). Tucker's authorship, and his work as a teacher, served to redeem an earlier life of unprincipled habits which had brought him some disrepute.
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Nathan Knight
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
-
Nathan Solomon Kapahukula Knight is an American professional basketball player for the Motor City Cruise of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the William & Mary Tribe.
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Richard J. Sullivan
- Occupations
- judgelawyer
- Biography
-
Richard Joseph Sullivan is an American lawyer who serves as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He was formerly a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York from 2007 to 2018.
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Curtis Pride
- Occupations
- association football playerbaseball player
- Biography
-
Curtis John Pride is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who is deaf. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. In 2015, Pride was named MLB's Ambassador For Inclusion. Since 2009 Pride has served as the head baseball coach at Gallaudet University.
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Carter Braxton
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
-
Carter Braxton was a Founding Father of the United States, signer of the Declaration of Independence, merchant, and Virginia planter. A grandson of Robert "King" Carter, one of the wealthiest and most powerful landowners and slaveholders in Virginia, Braxton was active in Virginia's legislature for more than 25 years, generally allied with Landon Carter, Benjamin Harrison V, Edmund Pendleton and other conservative planters.
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Robert Carter III
- Years
- 1728-1804 (aged 76)
- Occupations
- plantation ownerpolitician
- Biography
-
Robert Carter III was an American planter and politician from the Northern Neck of Virginia. During the colonial period, he sat on the Virginia Governor's Council for roughly two decades. After the American Revolutionary War saw the Thirteen Colonies gain independence from the British Empire as the United States, Carter, influenced by his belief in Baptism, began the largest manumission in the history of the United States prior to the American Civil War.
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John Breckinridge
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
-
John Breckinridge was an American lawyer, slave-owning planter, soldier, and politician in Virginia and Kentucky. He served several terms each in both state's legislatures before legislators elected him to the U.S. Senate. He also served as United States Attorney General during the second term of President Thomas Jefferson. He is the progenitor of Kentucky's Breckinridge political family and the namesake of Breckinridge County, Kentucky.
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Jill Holtzman Vogel
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
-
Jill Kendrick Holtzman Vogel is an American attorney and politician who served as the Virginia State Senator from the 27th district from 2008 to 2024. A Republican, her district was located in exurban and rural parts of Northern Virginia, and it included all of Clarke, Fauquier, and Frederick counties, Winchester city, as well as pieces of Culpeper, Loudoun, and Stafford counties.
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Ivan Fears
- Occupations
- player of American footballAmerican football coach
- Biography
-
Ivan Fears is a former American football coach. He was the running backs coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL) from 2002 to 2021.
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Pete Snyder
- Years
- 1972-.. (age 52)
- Occupations
- entrepreneur
- Biography
-
Pete Snyder is an American entrepreneur and marketing executive who is best known as the founder and former chief executive officer of New Media Strategies (NMS), a social media marketing agency that he started in 1999. Snyder stepped down as CEO of NMS in 2011 and founded the angel investment firm Disruptor Capital in 2012. Snyder unsuccessfully ran in the Republican primary for lieutenant governor of Virginia in 2013. Snyder declined to run for the Republican nomination for governor in 2017, instead chairing the campaign of Ed Gillespie. In 2021, he sought the Republican nomination for governor of Virginia. He finished in second place, behind eventual general election winner Glenn Youngkin.
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John Blair Jr
- Occupations
- judgelawyer
- Biography
-
John Blair Jr. was an American Founding Father, who signed the United States Constitution as a delegate from Virginia and was appointed an Associate Justice on the first U.S. Supreme Court by George Washington.
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William B. Taliaferro
- Occupations
- politicianjudgelawyer
- Biography
-
William Booth Taliaferro, was a United States Army officer, a lawyer, legislator, Confederate general in the American Civil War, and Grand Master of Masons in Virginia.
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John J. Flanagan
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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John J. Flanagan is an American politician from Long Island, New York. A Republican, Flanagan represented New York's 2nd State Senate district from 2003 to 2020. He also served as senate majority leader from 2015 to 2019, and as senate minority leader from 2019 to 2020. Prior to his senate tenure, Flanagan served in the New York State Assembly from 1987 to 2002.
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John Tyler
- Occupations
- politicianjudgelawyer
- Biography
-
John Tyler Sr. was an American lawyer, planter, politician and judge who served in the Virginia House of Delegates and became 15th Governor of Virginia and later United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Virginia. He was the father of U.S. President John Tyler.
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Joe J. Plumeri
- Occupations
- baseball playerbusinessperson
- Biography
-
Joseph J. Plumeri II is vice chairman of the First Data Board of Directors. He was the chairman and CEO of Willis Group Holdings (Willis), a New York Stock Exchange-listed insurance broker, until July 2013. The company has 17,000 employees in 400 offices, located in 120 countries. As of June 2010, Willis had the third-highest insurance brokerage revenues in the world.
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Mills E. Godwin
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
-
Mills Edwin Godwin Jr. was an American politician who was the 60th and 62nd governor of Virginia for two non-consecutive terms, from 1966 to 1970 and from 1974 to 1978.
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Aaron Zebley
- Occupations
- lawyer
- Biography
-
Aaron Mortimer Zebley is an American attorney and former FBI special agent who was the deputy special counsel of the Special Counsel investigation headed by Robert Mueller. He was the former chief of staff to Mueller at the FBI. Zebley followed Mueller from the Federal Bureau of Investigation to the law firm WilmerHale and also subsequently left when Mueller resigned to become the special counsel, along with James L. Quarles.
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Richard Bland
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
-
Richard Bland, sometimes referred to as Richard Bland II or Richard Bland of Jordan's Point, was an American Founding Father, planter, lawyer and politician from Virginia. A cousin and early mentor of Thomas Jefferson, Bland served 34 years in the Virginia General Assembly, and with John Robinson and this man's cousin Peyton Randolph as one of the most influential and productive burgesses during the last quarter century of the colonial period.
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Ellen R. Stofan
- Occupations
- astronomerearth scientistinternational forum participantgeologist
- Biography
-
Ellen Renee Stofan is Under Secretary for Science and Research at The Smithsonian and was previously the Director of the National Air and Space Museum.
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Cece Bell
- Occupations
- graphic artistcaricaturistchildren's writerdesignerwriter
- Biography
-
Cecelia Carolina Bell is an American author, cartoonist, and illustrator. Most well known for her graphic novel El Deafo, Bell's work has appeared in The Atlantic, Vegetarian Times, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, Working Woman, Esquire and many other publications.
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David N. Kelley
- Years
- 1959-.. (age 65)
- Enrolled in the College of William and Mary
- Graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- lawyer
- Biography
-
David N. Kelley is an American attorney and a former interim United States Attorney and Deputy U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY). He was also a co-chair of the United States Justice Department’s nationwide investigation into the September 11 attacks.
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Yancey Strickler
- Biography
-
Yancey Strickler is an American author, entrepreneur, and former music critic. He co-founded Kickstarter, a funding platform for creative projects and wrote This Could Be Our Future, a 2019 Penguin Random House book about building a society that looks beyond profit as its core organizing principle. The book also describes a decision-making framework that Yancey invented called Bentoism.
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Daniel Wesener
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
-
Daniel Wesener is a German politician of the Alliance 90/The Greens who served as State Minister (Senator) for Finance in the government of Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey of Berlin from December 2021 to April 2023. He was previously state chairman of the Greens from 2011 to 2017, and a member of the State Parliament of Berlin from 2016 to 2022.
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Andrew Stevenson
- Occupations
- politiciandiplomat
- Biography
-
Andrew Stevenson was an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. He represented Richmond, Virginia in the Virginia House of Delegates and eventually became its speaker before being elected to the United States House of Representatives; its members subsequently elected him their Speaker. Stevenson also served in the Jackson administration for four years as the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom before retiring to his slave plantation in Albemarle County. He also served on the board of visitors of the University of Virginia and briefly as its rector before his death.
