Notable Alumni of Willamette University

Lisa Murkowski 1957–

U.S. Senator from Alaska

Juris Doctor · Class of 1985

Also attended: Georgetown University

Father: Frank Murkowski (Santa Clara University, Seattle University)

Jay Inslee 1951–

Governor of Washington from 2013 to 2025

Juris Doctor · Class of 1976

Also attended: University of Washington-Seattle Campus, Stanford University

John Haglelgam 1949–2024

Second President of the Federated States of Micronesia

Also attended: Harvard University

Mark Hatfield 1922–2011

Former Governor of Oregon and U.S. senator

Attended until 1943

Also attended: George Fox University, Stanford University

Charles L. McNary 1874–1944

U.S. Senator and Senate Minority Leader 1933–1944

Also attended: Stanford University

Sam Farr 1941–

Former U.S. representative from California

Bachelor of Science · Class of 1963

Also attended: Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, Santa Clara University

Bob Packwood 1932–2026

US senator from Oregon, 1969–1995

Attended until 1954

Also attended: New York University

Harry Lane 1855–1917

Oregon politician and physician

Punit Renjen 1961–

Former global CEO of Deloitte

Master's degree · Management

Dale T. Mortensen 1939–2014

Economist and Nobel Memorial Prize winner

Also attended: Carnegie Mellon University

Frederick Schwatka 1849–1892

Army lieutenant and explorer of northern Canada and Alaska

Also attended: New York University, The United States Military Academy at West Point

Gerald Pearson 1905–1987

Bell Labs physicist behind the solar cell invention

Also attended: Stanford University

Amy Austin 1966–

Argentine ecologist and University of Buenos Aires professor

Also attended: Stanford University

Clyde Wiegand 1915–1996

American physicist

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

M. Ella Whipple 1851–1924

Physician

Harry Stone Mosher 1915–2002

Chemist and discoverer of Mosher's acid

Patrick Carman 1966–

Author of the Land of Elyon series

Richard Laymon 1947–2001

Author of suspense and horror fiction

Also attended: Loyola Marymount University

Gabriel Tallent 1987–

Writer

Mother: Elizabeth Tallent (Illinois State University)

Winifred Byrd 1884–1970

Concert pianist and music educator

Ralph Barnes 1899–1940

Journalist and 1930s European foreign correspondent

Also attended: Harvard University

Nick Symmonds 1983–

Retired middle-distance runner specializing in 800 meters

Cedric Coward 2003–

Memphis Grizzlies basketball player in the NBA

Attended until 2022

Also attended: Eastern Washington University, Washington State University

Douglas Coe 1928–2017

Evangelist, associate director of The Fellowship

Bachelor of Science · Class of 1953