Profile

A scientist, astronaut, and award-winning educator, Kathy Sullivan was the first American woman to walk in space and is the former administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

As chairman of the Lionsgate Television Group, Kevin Beggs places a high premium on creativity, risk, and, in his own words, “going where others won’t.”

Kris Perry never intended to become a civil rights icon. As an undergraduate at UC Santa Cruz, she explored the themes of social justice that would shape her career as an advocate for children.

A prominent ecologist and Emmy-nominated television personality, M. Sanjayan is CEO of the nonprofit Conservation International—the first new CEO of the organization in 30 years.

An award-winning actor with over 50 years of film, television, and stage credits, Adilah Barnes is probably best known to television audiences for her role as Anne Marie on ABC’s Roseanne for six seasons.

Two-time Pulitzer Prize–winning Associated Press reporter and author Martha Mendoza had a life-changing moment early in her UC Santa Cruz career.

Award-winning novelist and memoirist Reyna Grande attended UC Santa Cruz after her junior college English teacher urged her to leave the urban confines of Los Angeles and try living somewhere different.

Susan Wojcicki is CEO of YouTube, the ubiquitous video-sharing website that in 2017 was ranked as the second most popular site in the world—only behind its parent company Google.

Axel Alonso was editor-in-chief at Marvel Comics from 2011–2017, where he built a legacy by making comic book characters and their creators reflect the diversity of our world.

John Laird has watched his political capital rise over the years. In 1983, while serving on the Santa Cruz City Council, he became one of the first openly gay mayors in the United States.