List of New Mexico State University people

This is a list of notable people affiliated with New Mexico State University.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by expanding it with reliably sourced entries.

Alumni

Science, medicine, and technology

• John A. D. Cooper - physician and educator
• Alan Hale - astronomer famous for discovering the Hale-Bopp Comet
• Bill Inmon - computer scientist, recognized as the father of data warehouse
• Paul W. Klipsch, audio pioneer; founder of Klipsch and Associates; namesake of the Klipsch School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NMSU^[1]
• Jaron Lanier - writer, computer scientist, composer, famous in the field of virtual reality
• Rose Marie Pangborn - scientist, pioneer in the sensory analysis of food
• Harold Reitsema - astronomer, part of the teams that discovered Larissa and Telesto
• Mark W. Spong - roboticist; Dean of Erik Jonsson School of Engineering & Computer Science at the University of Texas at Dallas
• Paul Carpenter Standley - botanist
• Sarah Stewart - discovered the Polyomavirus in 1953

Law, politics, military and government

• Nasser al-Aulaqi - Yemeni Agriculture Minister; president of Sanaa University; father of Anwar al-Awlaki^[2]
• Dr. Dan E. Arvizu - Director and Chief Executive Officer of the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory
• Norma Bixby - member of the Montana House of Representatives
• Donald Bratton - politician
• William Burt - Republican member of the New Mexico Senate
• Michael L. Connor - United States Deputy Secretary of the Interior
• David Coss - US politician and current mayor of Santa Fe, New Mexico
• Lee Cotter - Republican member of the New Mexico Senate
• Candy Ezzell - Republican member of the New Mexico House of Representatives
• Edgar Franklin Foreman, Jr. - motivational speaker in Dallas who served one term in the United States House of Representatives
• Gregory J. Fouratt - former United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico
• Chuck Franco - game warden, police officer, undersheriff, current First Gentleman of New Mexico
• Jeffrey A. Gabbert - Army Brigadier General; Commanding General of the Mission and Installation Contracting Command, Fort Sam Houston, Texas
• Mary Helen Garcia - Democratic member of the New Mexico House of Representatives
• Mary Jane Garcia - former member of the New Mexico Senate
• Ron Griggs - politician
• David Campos Guaderrama - United States District Judge for the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas
• Gary King - Attorney General of New Mexico
• Lester Lyles - former Air Force general, currently Chairman of the Board for USAA
• Patrick H. Lyons - politician from New Mexico
• John McEneny - politician
• Ken Miyagishima - mayor of Las Cruces, New Mexico
• Howie Morales - Democratic member of the New Mexico Senate
• Steven Neville - Republican member of the New Mexico Senate
• Steve Pearce - US Representative for New Mexico
• Renee Schulte - Iowa State Representative
• William Sharer - Republican member of the New Mexico Senate
• Roosevelt Skerrit - Prime Minister of Dominica
• William Soules - Democratic member of the New Mexico Senate
• James Edward Wharton - United States Army Brigadier General, killed in action during World War II^[3]
• Pat Woods - Republican member of the New Mexico Senate
• Bob Wooley - Republican member of the New Mexico House of Representatives

Business

• Benjamin Davenport - Rotary International Technical Liaison, Central Australia
• Kevin Johnson - CEO of Juniper Networks
• Dave Lopez - telecommunications executive

Academia, arts, and literature

• Lee K. Abbott - writer; professor emeritus of English at Ohio State University
• Subhankar Banerjee - photographer, author and activist
• Denise Chavez - author, playwright and stage director
• Leroy Quintana - poet, Vietnam veteran
• Willard Hughes Rollings - author and scholar of Native American history and of the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand
• Larry Torres - linguist and lecturer on Southwestern culture
• Martin Guevara Urbina - writer, professor, and researcher; as a sociologist and criminologist, works on Latina and Latino issues in the United States

Athletics

• Willie Adams - former NFL defensive end
• Pervis Atkins - NFL running back, played for the Los Angeles Rams, Washington Redskins and Oakland Raiders
• Leo Barker - NFL linebacker, played for the Cincinnati Bengals
• Greg Bearman - CFL] defensive back
• Rich Beem - professional golfer with a three PGA Tour wins including 2002 PGA Championship
• Jim Bostic - NBA forward
• Randy Brown - NBA guard
• Bart Bryant - professional golfer with three PGA Tour wins
• Tom Byrum - professional golfer with one PGA Tour win
• Joe Campbell - NFL defensive end, played for the New Orleans Saints, Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• Steve Colter - NBA guard
• Charlie Criss - NBA guard
• Andy Dorris - NFL defensive end, played for the St. Louis Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, Seattle Seahawks and Houston Oilers
• Andre Francis - former FL defensive back
• Bob Gaiters - NFL running back, played for the NY Giants, San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos
• Roy Gerela - NFL placekicker, played for the Houston Oilers, Pittsburgh Steelers and San Diego Chargers
• Jim Germany - CFL running back, played for the Edmonton Eskimos, was an All-Star and part of 5 Grey Cup championship teams
• Jonte Green - NFL cornerback for the Detroit Lions
• Duriel Harris - NFL wide receiver, played for the Miami Dolphins
• Steve Haskins - professional golfer with two Web.com Tour wins
• Lou Henson - former coach of New Mexico State and University of Illinois men's basketball
• Davon House - NFL defensive back for the Green Bay Packers
• Bobby Humphrey - NFL wide receiver, played for the NY Jets and Denver Broncos
• Martin Iti - basketball player
• Bob Jackson - former NFL running back
• Charley Johnson - NFL quarterback, played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Oilers and Denver Broncos ; full professor of Chemical Engineering at NMSU; member of the Denver Broncos Ring of Honor
• Walter Johnson, NFL defensive lineman, played for the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals; three-time Pro Bowl (1967, 1968, 1969); member of the College Football Hall of Fame
• LaTraia Jones - football coach; former player at University of Wyoming
• Reggie Jordan - NBA guard
• Sam Lacey - NBA center
• Billy Ray Locklin - former CFL defensive lineman
• Kerry Locklin - college football coach
• Denvis Manns - football running back, famous for rushing for 1,000 yards in four consecutive seasons in college
• Anita Maxwell, former WNBA forward for the Cleveland Rockers, only basketball player (male or female) in school history to have her uniform number (40) retired^[4]
• Kyle Nelson - NFL long snapper
• Michael New - former basketball player and coach of the Milton Keynes Lions
• Jerry Nuzum - NFL running back, played for the Pittsburgh Steelers
• Cliff Olander - gridiron football quarterback
• J. R. Patton - stock car racing driver
• Buck Pierce - CFLquarterback, played for the BC Lions and Winnipeg Blue Bombers
• Joe Pisarcik - NFL quarterback, played for the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles; best remembered for his role in a 1978 play that has since been referred to as "The Fumble" by NY Giants fans and "The Miracle at the Meadowlands" by Philadelphia Eagles fans
• Ron Porterfield - Major League Baseball athletic trainer
• Chito Reyes - basketball player, Olympian^[5]
• Joe Schmiesing - former NFL defensive lineman
• Siddeeq Shabazz - Canadian Football League linebacker
• Alena Sharp - professional golfer on the LPGA Tour
• Joe Schmiesing - NFL defensive lineman, played for the St. Louis Cardinals
• Danny Villanueva - NFL placekicker, played for the Los Angeles Rams and Dallas Cowboys. Media entertainment entrepreneur
• Gary Ward - former baseball coach for Oklahoma State University and New Mexico State University
• Walt Williams - NFL cornerback, played for the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears
• John Williamson - NBA guard
• Tony Wragge - former NFL offensive lineman for various teams
• Fredd Young - NFL linebacker, played for the Seattle Seahawks and Indianapolis Colts. He was a 4-time Pro Bowler (1984, 1985, 1986, 1987) a 2-time All-Pro (1984, 1987) and a member of the Seattle Seahawks 35th Anniversary Team
• Jahmar Young - NBA guard

Entertainment, film, news and television

• Scott Bailey - actor
• David James Baker - filmmaker
• Baxter Black - cowboy poet; radio and television commentator
• Kira Davis - film producer
• William Frankfather - actor
• Barbara Funkhouser - journalist, first woman to serve as editor of the El Paso Times (1980–1986)^[6]
• Alvy Ray Smith - co-founder of Pixar
• Brittany Toll - Miss New Mexico 2011

Other

• Jorge A. Rojas - general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)
• Clara Belle Williams (1885–1994) - first African-American graduate of the university (English, 1937)

Faculty and staff

• Richard N. Armstrong - author, scholar, and college professor of the rhetoric of prominent televangelists and other religious leaders
• Reta Beebe - professor emeritus in the Astronomy Department
• David Boje - author; current NMSU endowed Bank of America professor of management^[7]
• Garrey Carruthers - current NMSU President; former governor of New Mexico
• James Cuffey - astronomer
• Frank Harary - mathematician, specialized in graph theory
• Delano Lewis - founding director of New Mexico State University's International Relations Institute
• Mark Medoff - playwright, screenwriter, film and theatre director, actor, and professor
• Antonya Nelson - English professor at NMSU; author
• Burl Noggle - professor, American historian
• Cyrus Nowrasteh - screenwriter and director
• Gerald W. Thomas - NMSU President Emeritus, 1970-1984
• Edward O. Thorp - mathematician best known for writing the book Beat the Dealer^[8] and co-inventing the first wearable computer; Associate Professor of Mathematics 1961–65^[9]
• Clyde Tombaugh - astronomer best known for his discovery of Pluto; former professor of astronomy^[10]

References

1. "Founder Biography". Klipsch.com. May 5, 2002. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
2. UPI staff reporter (November 11, 2009). "Imam in Fort Hood case born in New Mexico". United Press International. Retrieved November 13, 2009.
3. John Greenwood, editor, Normandy to Victory: The War Diary of General Courtney H. Hodges, 2008, page 429
4. "Former Aggies to be inducted into intercollegiate athletic hall of fame". The Round Up. January 10, 2002. Archived from the original on September 12, 2004.
5. UCLA-New Mexico State resurrects memories for Chito Reyes, Los Angeles Times, December 15, 2009
6. Hinojosa, Alex (2014-08-16). "Barbara Funkhouser, former El Paso Times editor, dies at 84". El Paso Times. Retrieved 2014-09-21.
7. david boje. "David Boje | New Mexico State University - Academia.edu". Nmsu.academia.edu. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
8. "Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One (9780394703107): Edward O. Thorp: Books". Amazon.com. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
9. "About Edward O. Thorp". Retrieved October 12, 2010.
10. Melissa Gottwald and Maura Kenny. "Clyde W. Tombaugh Biographical Outline". Archives.nmsu.edu. Retrieved October 12, 2010.

External links

• New Mexico State University official website
• NMSU Alumni Association official website