18 Notable alumni of Texas Woman’s University
Updated: June 12, 2026 EliteDegrees
Texas Woman’s University is ranked #1,602 in the world and #392 in United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 18 notable alumni from Texas Woman’s University sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with Texas Woman’s University won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. Elma González
1942-. (aged 84)
biologist
Elma L. González is a Mexican-born American plant cell biologist. She is Professor Emerita of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of California, Los Angeles. In 1974, she was appointed professor of cell and molecular biology at the University of California, Los Angeles. At the time, she was the only Mexican American woman scientist in the University of California...
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2. Alma Dawson
1943-2025 (aged 82)
teacher
librarian
Alma Dawson was an American scholar of librarianship. She retired as Russell B. Long Professor at the School of Library & Information Science, Louisiana State University in 2014 and was awarded Emeritus status in 2015. In 2019 Dr. Dawson was honored with the Essae Martha Culver Distinguished Service Award from the Louisiana Library Association which honors a librarian whose professional...
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3. Beth Darnall
scientist
Beth Darnall is American scientist, pain psychologist, author, and Associate Professor of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine where she directs the Stanford Pain Relief Innovations Lab. From 2005 to 2012, Darnall was an assistant professor and associate professor at Oregon Health & Science University.
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4. Jean Apgar
1936-. (aged 90)
biochemist
chemist
Barbara Jean Francis Apgar is an American biochemist. She worked on important research on ribonucleic acids (RNA), and on zinc deficiency as a risk factor in reproduction. She won the Federal Woman's Award in 1970, and the Arthur S. Flemming Award in 1973.
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5. Vonette Zachary Bright
1926-2015 (aged 89)
Vonette Zachary Bright was an American author, speaker, and the co-founder of Cru.
6. Elizabeth Ann Nalley
1942-. (aged 84)
chemist
Elizabeth Ann Nalley is an American chemist and professor of chemistry at Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma.
7. Juan L. Maldonado
1948-2018 (aged 70)
academic
Juan Leandro Maldonado was a higher education administrator who served as the sixth president of Laredo Community College (since named Laredo College) in Laredo in Webb County in South Texas, US. In August 2007, upon the sudden retirement of Ramón H. Dovalina, Maldonado assumed the LCC presidency. Maldonado retired from LCC effective August 1, 2016.
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8. Mary Saunders
1947-. (aged 79)
military personnel
Mary L. Saunders is a retired Major General from the United States Air Force. She was named to the Texas Women's Hall of Fame in 2012.
9. Norma Crane
1928-1973 (aged 45)
television actor
stage actor
actor
film actor
Norma Crane was an American actress of stage, film, and television best known for her role as Golde in the 1971 film adaptation of Fiddler on the Roof. She also starred in They Call Me Mister Tibbs! and Penelope. Crane was born in New York City, but raised in El Paso, Texas.
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10. Shirley Cothran
1952-. (aged 74)
motivational speaker
beauty pageant contestant
model
Shirley Cothran Barret is an American beauty pageant titleholder from Texas, winning Miss America 1975.
11. Donna Campbell
1954-. (aged 72)
ophthalmologist
physician
politician
Donna Sue Campbell is an American politician and physician who is the 25th District member of the Texas Senate. On July 31, 2012, she became the first person in Texas history to defeat an incumbent Republican senator, Jeff Wentworth of San Antonio, in a primary election.
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12. Anne Rice
1941-2021 (aged 80)
novelist
screenwriter
writer
Anne Rice was an American author of Gothic fiction, erotic literature, and Bible fiction. She is best known for writing The Vampire Chronicles. She later adapted the first volume in the series into a commercially successful eponymous film, Interview with the Vampire (1994).
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13. Lupe Ontiveros
1942-2012 (aged 70)
actor
television actor
film actor
stage actor
voice actor
Guadalupe Ontiveros was an American actress best known for portraying Rosalita in The Goonies, and Yolanda Saldívar in the film Selena. She acted in numerous films and television shows. Ontiveros was nominated for an Emmy Award for her work on Desperate Housewives and received critical acclaim for her role in Chuck & Buck, for which Ontiveros won the National Board...
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14. Jill Marie Jones
1975-. (aged 51)
television actor
film actor
Jill Marie Jones is an American actress. Jones is best known for her role as Antoinette "Toni" Childs-Garrett on the UPN comedy series, Girlfriends. Jones has appeared in a number of films, and had the recurring role as Cynthia Irving on the Fox supernatural series, Sleepy Hollow (2013–15). From 2015 to 2016, she starred as Amanda Fisher in the Starz...
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15. Carly Patterson
1988-. (aged 38)
artistic gymnast
singer
musician
Carly Rae Patterson is an American singer, songwriter and former artistic gymnast. She was the all-around champion at the 2004 Olympics, the first all-around champion for the United States at a non-boycotted Olympics, and is a member of the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame. Patterson frequently joins radio segments on 1310 AM and 96.7 FM The Ticket in Dallas Fort-Worth.
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16. Dee Ann McWilliams
military officer
Dee Ann McWilliams is a retired United States Army major general. McWilliams is past President of the Women in Service for America Memorial Foundation. She took her commission in 1974 in the Women's Army Corps and was assigned to the Adjutant General Corps. In over 29 years with the army, she held a variety of Human Relations positions, commanding four...
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17. Sylvia Garcia
1950-. (aged 76)
politician
Sylvia Rodriguez Garcia is an American lawyer and politician who has been serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 29th congressional district since 2019. Her district covers much of eastern Houston. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously represented the 6th district in the Texas Senate.
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18. Millie Hughes-Fulford
1945-2021 (aged 76)
astronaut
chemist
Millie Elizabeth Hughes-Fulford was an American medical investigator, molecular biologist, and payload specialist who flew aboard the NASA Space Shuttle Columbia in June 1991.
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