Famous Alumnae

Arts, Entertainment & Broadcast Journalism

Jill Arrington
Beta Tau-Miami
A CBS Sports reporter, she covers college football and contributes to The NFL Today, the Network's NFL pregame studio show, the late night coverage of the U.S. Open Tennis Championship, as well as serving as host for TNN's coverage of the Arena Football League. She has served as afternoon and evening anchor of ReporterTV.com, while also serving as producer/correspondent for Main Floor and Real TV (1994-2000)

Sabrina Bryan
Zeta Iota-Chapman
Sabrina is an actress, singer, dancer and one of the members of the Disney Channel musical group Cheetah Girls. (She plays the character Dorinda.) The group is currently traveling to promote their newest movie Cheetah Girls 2. Sabrina also has her own dance/fitness video for girls titled BYOU.

Cheryl Crawford
Eta-Akron
Broadway producer of hit plays Brigadoon, The Rose Tattoo,
and Paint Your Wagon. Founder of Group Theater and Actor's Studio.

Stacey Deffenbaugh
Gamma Rho-Wittenberg
"Good Morning Southwest Florida" anchor on WZVN-TV (ABC 7) in Naples/Fort Myers, Florida.

Mary Frann (1943-1998)
Sigma-Northwestern
Her television roles include Joanna Loudon in CBS's Newhart (1982-1990) and
Amanda Howard Peters on NBC's Days of Our Lives soap opera (1974-1979). She won the America's Junior Miss title in 1961.

Patricia Heaton
Epsilon-Ohio State
The Emmy Award winning actress currently portrays Debra Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond on CBS. Television credits include thirtysomething, Room for Two (1992), and Someone Like Me (1994). Film credits include Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992)
and Beethoven (1992). She is also the author of Motherhood and Hollywood.

E.D. Tarbox Hill
Beta Eta-Texas
Serves as an anchor for Fox News Channel's live morning show Fox and Friends. Hill was also a contributing reporter for ABC News' Good Morning America since 1995, covering family issues.

Dagney Hultgreen
Beta Eta-Texas
Former channel hostess for E! Entertainment Television.

Christine Lahti
Xi-Michigan
The Emmy Award winning actress portrayed Dr. Kate Austin in the CBS television show Chicago Hope. Her feature film debut was in 1979 with the lead role in And Justice For All. Other film credits include Swing Shift (1984), Just Between Friends (1986), Running on Empty (1988), Gross Anatomy (1989), Funny About Love (1990), and Leaving Normal (1992). She won an Oscar in 1996 for Best Short Live Action Film, Lieberman In Love, in which she starred and directed.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Sigma-Northwestern
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is a 1996 Emmy Award winner for her portrayal of Elaine Benes on NBC's Seinfeld. She has also won the 1993 Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and three American Comedy Awards as Funniest Supporting Female/Television. She was a member of the Saturday Night Live cast from 1982 to 1985. Her film credits include Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), Soul Man (1986), and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989).

Joan Lunden
Delta Eta-California State, Sacramento
Joan Lunden's: "Best known as former co-host of ABC's "Good Morning, America," Joan currently stars in "Behind Closed Doors with Joan Lunden" (A&E), a compelling weekly series that takes viewers on exclusive and explorative journeys, like life with the Cirque du Soleil and on a U-2 spy plane. She is the author of several books, including Joan Lunden's Healthy Living (Crown Publishers, April 1997). She is also the national spokesperson for MADD - Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

Leslie McLaren
Beta Beta-Alberta
Miss Canada 1991.
Kari Michaelson (Kari Kathleen Markussen)
Alpha Sigma-California, Los Angeles
Television actress; played the oldest daughter on the former television series Gimme A Break. She is currently working on In the Spotlight, a local cable talk show in California.

Donna Mills
Iota-Illinois
Donna Mills' role as Abby Cunningham on CBS's Knots Landing lasted for nine seasons. She has recently worked on Fox's Melrose Place as Sherri Larson. Film credits include Play Misty for Me (1971), Fire! (TV, 1977), Runaway Father (TV, 1991), False Arrest (TV, 1991), and Remember (TV, 1993).

Terry Murphy
Epsilon-Ohio State
Emmy Award-winning journalist; Former Co-Anchor of Hard Copy.
Helen O'Gorman
Beta-Washington
Sculptor, painter, and botanist.

Kyra Phillips
Alpha Nu-Southern California
Is a news anchor and correspondent for CNN/U.S. Based in the network's world headquarters in Atlanta, Phillips anchors the weekday newscast Live From along with CNN's Miles O'Brien. Currently, Kyra is reporting from the USS Abraham Lincoln.

Eva Marie Saint
Beta M-Bowling Green
Her film debut was in "On the Waterfront" (1954) for which she won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her other film credits include Alfred Hitchcock's "North By Northwest" (1959), and "Grand Prix" (1966). Television credits include "Moonlighting" (1985) and "Titanic" (1996 mini-series).

Holly Shand
Phi-Colorado
Former MTV's Road Rules constestant.
Jennifer Smith, Gamma Xi-Texas Tech, is Producer for CNN's Crossfire.

Susan Spencer
Beta Xi-Michigan State
Susan Spencer has been a staff correspondent for "48 Hours", a weekly single-topic news show on CBS, since 1993. Her career at CBS News began in 1977 as a reporter in its Washington bureau. She became a correspondent in 1978, then was named CBS News'
medical correspondent in 1986. She substituted as anchor of the CBS SUNDAY NIGHT NEWS beginning October 1987 and anchored the Sunday Edition of the CBS EVENING NEWS (1988-1989). She became CBS News' national correspondent in May 1989. Previous to joining "48 Hours", she became White House correspondent and the primary correspondent for "Eye on America."

Julia Sweeney
Beta-Washington
Cast member of "Saturday Night Live" from 1990 to 1994, and made famous by the character, "Pat." Film credits include "It's Pat!" (1994), "Pulp Fiction" (1994), and "National Lampoon's Vegas Vacation" (1997). Julia also wrote and starred in the one-woman movie God Said Ha! (1999).

Anita Vogel
Alpha Nu-Southern California
Joined FOX News Channel (FNC) as Los Angeles based correspondent in October 2001. Before joining FNC, Vogel worked as a reporter/fill-in anchor at KCRA-TV (NBC) in Sacramento, CA, where she covered the California State Legislature and the Governor's Office. Prior to that, Vogel served as a reporter for WTLV-TV (NBC) in Jacksonville, FL where she was part of a team that earned an Edward R. Murrow and Regional Emmy award for Best Newscast. Also, she worked as a reporter for WJET-TV (ABC) in Erie, PA, where she was honored with a Pennsylvania Association of Broadcaster's award for Best Documentary. Vogel began her journalism career at ABC News in Washington, DC as a desk assistant for This Week with David Brinkley.

Liz Winstead
Lambda-Minnesota
Creator of Comedy Central's The Daily Show.

Authors and Publishing

Marilyn Barrett
Beta Kappa-Kansas
Author of The Ten Biggest Legal Mistakes Women Can Avoid, she has also written multiple essays on tax law.

Phyllis Battelle
Alpha Rho-Ohio Wesleyan
Nationally syndicated columnist and author of a book on Karen Ann Quinlan.

Christine Clifford
Beta Chi-Denver
Author and motivational speaker, specializing in chronic illness, number therapy and recovery.

Brenda Wang Clough
Beta Nu-Carnegie Mellon
Brenda is a successful author who writes science fiction, fantasy, and occasionally non-fiction.

Kate Coscarelli
Alpha Epsilon-Washington University, St. Louis
Best-selling author of Fame & Fortune and other romantic novels.

Heloise Cruse
Zeta Eta-Southwest Texas State
Best known for her Hints from Heloise column (syndicated in more than 500 newspapers in 20 countries), Heloise is the author of eight books and an undisputed expert on household advice.

Ann Coulter, Chi-Cornell
Ann Coulter is the author of five New York Times best sellers, Godless: The Church of Liberalism, How to Talk to a Liberal (If you Must), Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism, Slander: Liberal Lies About the American Right and High Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Case Against Bill Clinton. Coulter also writes a popular syndicated column for the Universal Press Syndicate and is a frequent legal and political guest on television talk shows.

Carolyn Englefield
Beta Mu-Bowling Green
Former Senior decorating editor for House Beautiful magazine and currently a freelance Producer for House & Garden, Elle Decor, Veranda, Vanity and House Beautiful Magazines stationed in Paris, France.

Suzanne Farrow
Gamma Phi-Arizona State
Nationally syndicated cartoonist.

Ellen Bromfield Geld
Chi-Cornell
Author.

Donna Handly
Beta Pi-Willamette
Editor of Ms. magazine.

Jackie Martin
Rho-Syracuse
Became the first woman photo and art editor of the Washington Herald in 1931, and later served as a war correspondent and director of photo operations of the Marshall Plan.
Lauren Purcell, Beta Theta-Duke, is Deputy Editor of Self magazine and recently wrote, Cocktail Parties, Straight Up! - Easy Hors D'oeuvres, Delicious Drinks, and Inspired Ideas for Entertaining with Style (with her sister Anne Purcell Grissinger). The book will be available October 2005. She has also written about food, entertaining and celebrities for Mademoiselle, American Health and Harper's Bazaar, and she has had numerous television appearances.

Terry Tempest Williams
Beta Gamma-Utah
Nationally recognized environmental author of Red: Passion and Patience in the Desert (2001).

Business and Government

Edith Abbott
Kappa-Nebraska
First woman to become dean of a graduate school at an American university, the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration, which developed under her leadership as the nation's first school of social work.

Grace Abbott (1878-1939)
Kappa-Nebraska
The highest ranking woman in the United States government for over a decade as the head of the United States Children's Bureau from 1921-1934. She was the first woman to be nominated for a Presidential cabinet position - Secretary of Labor in the Herbert Hoover administration, and the first American sent to the League of Nations to represent the United States. Her work paved the way for programs such as the Federal Emergency Relief effort during the Depression, the Social Security Act, and UNICEF.

Kelly Ayotte
Alpha Chi-Penn State
New Hampshire Attorney General

Carol Bellamy
Beta Lambda-Gettysburg
President and CEO of World Learning, an organization that focuses on enlightening U.S. youth about the world's many and varied cultures. She was the former Executive Director of UNICEF (1995-2005), former Director of the U.S. Peace Corps (appointed by President Clinton) and former president of the New York City Council.

Molly Hering Bordonaro, Phi - Colorado, appointed by President Bush as US Ambassador to Malta (2005).

Patricia Lemay Burr
Beta Psi-University of Alabama
Administrator, Small Business Administration, appointed by President Carter.

Ada Louise Comstock
Lambda-Minnesota
First full-time president of Radcliffe College, 1923-1943.

Rita Colwell
Beta Iota-Purdue
Chairman of Canon US Life Sciences, Inc. and Distinguished Professor both at the University of Maryland at College Park and at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. She is a 2005 Purdue University Distinguished Alumni honoree.
Dr. Colwell was the first female to be named Director of the National Science Foundation (1998-2004).

Deborah Cook
Eta-Akron
Federal Judge for the Court of Appeals for the Sixth District.

Jo Ann Herman Emerson
Alpha Rho-Ohio Wesleyan
U.S. Congressman, Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

Susan Shannon Engeleiter
Omega-Wisconsin
First woman to head the
Small Business Administration.

Dorothy Felton
Alpha Omega-Arkansas
Former Atlanta State House of Representatives

Mary Gladwin
Eta-Akron
Red Cross nurse who served in three wars from 1898 to 1919. For her work she was decorated by the United States, Russian, Japanese and Serbian governments.

Jan Hart
Alpha Iota-Oklahoma
Former Dallas City Manager.

Melissa Hart
Epsilon Delta-Washington & Jefferson College
U.S. Congresswoman, Pennsylvania

Sarah Tilghman Hughes (1896-1985)
Psi II-Goucher
Judge Sarah Tilghman Hughes was the first female federal judge, and the first woman to swear in a U.S. President (Lyndon B. Johnson, on the day of the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963). In 1961 she was appointed to the federal bench by President Kennedy, and in the 1930s she served two terms in the Texas House of Representatives.

Merry Hull
Alpha Rho-Ohio Wesleyan
Her redesign of the basic construction of the glove in 1939 became the industry standard and is the design we wear today.

Mary Landrieu
Gamma Zeta-Louisiana State
U.S. senator, state of Louisiana, and immediate past Louisiana State Treasurer.

Francess Lucas-Taucher
Delta Lambda-Mississippi State
President of Millsaps College.

Patti McGill Peterson
Alpha Chi-Penn State
Currently the Executive Director of the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) and Vice President of the Institute of International Education (IIE). CIES, which administers the Fulbright Scholar Program and other high education programs, is part of IIE, which has developed partnerships between the public and private sectors to sponsor programs in education, science and technology, business, the environment and the arts.

Gretchen P. Purcell, MD, Ph.D.
Upsilon-Stanford
The first woman to graduate with MD and PhD degrees in medical informatics, a multi-disciplinary field that addresses problems in information management in biology and medicine. She is completing a pediatric surgery fellowship at Pittsburgh Children's Hospital and in August 2006; she will begin as an Assistant Professor of Surgery and Biomedical Informatics at Vanderbilt.

Cylda Stokes Rent
Gamma Mu-Florida State
President Emerita of Mississippi University of Women.

Ruth Bryan (Owen) Rohde (1885-1954)
Kappa-Nebraska
The daughter of William Jennings Bryan, Ruth Bryan Owen became a member of the Seventy-first Congress in 1929 (as Florida's first woman elected to Congress),
and was re-elected to the Seventy-second Congress in 1931; during this time her proposals included designating the Florida Everglades as a national park and establishing a cabinet-level department to oversee the health and welfare of families and children. In 1933 President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed her Minister to Denmark; she was the first woman to represent the United States in so high a diplomatic post.

Kathleen "Kathy" Higdon Wilson, Mu-Missouri
(1951-2005)
Chairwoman of the National Women's Political Caucus from 1981-1985. Lobbied on behalf of women's issues including the proposed equal rights amendment to the right to an abortion.

Sports

Judy Bell
Alpha Pi-Arizona
First female president of USGA (United States Golf Association).

Emilee Klein
Gamma Phi-Arizona State
Professional golfer, victories include: 1996 Ping Welch's Championship, 1996 Weetabix Women's British open Championship, 2001 Michelob Light Classic. Top 90 from 2001 money list through Asahi Ryokukun International Championship.

Bonnie Lauer
Beta Xi-Michigan State
Professional golfer; named Rookie of the Year in 1977.

Susan Nattrass
Beta Beta-Alberta
Became the first woman trap shooter in the Olympic Games in 1976 as a member of the Canadian Olympic team. She was named Canada's best athlete, male or female, amateur or professional, in 1981.

Jill Savery
Gamma-California, Berkeley
Member of the U.S. synchronized swimming team that won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.

Carin Cone Vanderbush, Gamma Sigma-Houston
A 1956 Olympic silver medalist (100m Back) and six-time world record swimmer. Vanderbush was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an Honor Swimmer in 1984.

Anne White
Alpha Nu-Southern California
Nationally-ranked tennis player in 1980.