9 Notable alumni of Tougaloo College
Updated: June 13, 2026 EliteDegrees
Tougaloo College is ranked #3,634 in the world and #956 in United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 9 notable alumni from Tougaloo College sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with Tougaloo College won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. Dorie Ladner
1942-2024 (aged 82)
social worker
activist
Dorie Ann Ladner was an American civil rights activist and social worker. Along with her sister Joyce, she was a leading community organizer in Mississippi for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) during the 1960s. She was a key organizer of the Freedom Summer Project, which promoted voter registration for...
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2. Joyce Ladner
1944-. (aged 82)
sociologist
Joyce Ann Ladner is an American civil rights activist, author, civil servant, and sociologist.
3. Derrick Johnson
business executive
Derrick Johnson is an American lawyer who is the current president and CEO of the NAACP. He previously served as president of the NAACP's Mississippi state chapter, and vice chairman of its board of directors. Johnson is the founder of the Mississippi nonprofit group One Voice Inc., which aims to improve quality of life for African Americans through public engagement.
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4. Hakeem Oluseyi
1967-. (aged 59)
astrophysicist
Hakeem Muata Oluseyi is an American astrophysicist, cosmologist, inventor, educator, science communicator, author, actor, veteran, and humanitarian.
5. Bennie Thompson
1948-. (aged 78)
teacher
politician
Bennie Gordon Thompson is an American politician and educator serving as the U.S. representative for Mississippi's 2nd congressional district since 1993. A member of the Democratic Party, Thompson served as the chair of the Committee on Homeland Security from 2007 to 2011 and from 2019 to 2023. He was both the first Democrat and the first African American to chair...
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6. Joan Trumpauer Mulholland
1941-. (aged 85)
activist
Joan Trumpauer Mulholland is an American civil rights activist who was active in the 1960s. She was one of the Freedom Riders who was arrested in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1961, and was confined for two months in the Maximum Security Unit of the Mississippi State Penitentiary (known as "Parchman Farm"). The following year she was the first white student to...
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7. Karen Weaver
psychologist
politician
Karen Weaver is an American psychologist and politician who was the mayor of Flint, Michigan, from 2015 to 2019. She was the first female mayor of the city and the fifth African-American to hold the office.
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8. W. H. Lanier
1855-1929 (aged 74)
William Henry Lanier, commonly known as W. H. Lanier, was an American academic administrator, and prominent educator in Mississippi during the late 19th century and early 20th century. He served as the 6th president of Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Alcorn State University) a historically black public university in Lorman, Mississippi.
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9. Mamie Locke
1954-. (aged 72)
university teacher
politician
Mamie Evelyn Locke is an American politician and educator. A Democrat, she was a member of the Hampton, Virginia city council 1996–2004, and mayor 2000–2004. Since 2004, she has been a member of the Senate of Virginia from the 2nd district. She currently represents parts of the cities of Hampton, Newport News and Portsmouth, plus part of York County. She...
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