University of Illinois | 150 Years & Beyond

Martin Eberhard

Co-founder, former CEO

Tesla Motors

E.J. Corey

Won Nobel in chemistry

UI professor, 1951-59

Mike Small

Illini golf coach

13-time Big Ten Coach of the Year

Britney Robbins

Founder/CEO, Gray Matter Experience

No. 2 on CS Magazine's 2020 Most Influential Chicagoans list

Lynn Price

Social entrepreneur

Alumni Humanitarian Award

Russel Simmons

CTO and co-founder

Yelp

Mary Eggers Tendler

Illini Athletics HOF

Volleyball coach, Elon

Bob Epstein

NBC News executive

Emmy, Peabody winner

Mary McDowell

Polycom CEO

Distinguished Alumni Award

Donald Johanson

Paleoanthropologist

Discovered Lucy skeleton

Russell Dupuis

Chair, Electro-Optics

Georgia Tech

Bruce Blair

Nuclear security expert

Won 1999 'Genius' grant

Parisa Tabriz

'Browser Boss'

Google

Steve Stricker

PGA Tour star

2013 Byron Nelson Award

Tatyana McFadden

Record-breaking Paralympian

17 Summer Games medals

Susan Nagele

Medal of Valor winner

Maryknoll Lay Missioner

Michael Colgrass

Award-winning composer

Pulitzer '78, Emmy ’82

Donald Nally

Award-winning conductor

The Chicago Bach Project

John Kim

Pulitzer-winning photographer

Chicago Tribune

Anthony Leggett

Nobel-winning physicist

On UI faculty since ’83

Larry Doyle

Comedy writer

Thurber Prize for humor

Cory Bradford

UI’s 5th all-time scorer

1,735 points, 1999-2002

Richard Powers

2019 Pulitzer Prize

Won 1989 ‘Genius’ grant

Don Scifres

Laser physics pioneer

UI Engineering HOF