Alumni

With his deep understanding of nonviolent protest, the Rev. James M. Lawson (1928–2024) showed us the way forward for fighting injustice and left a legacy of courage and compassion. Read More

An aerial view of FirstBank Stadium in the Frist Athletics Village highlights the Vandy United campaign’s ongoing commitment to reimagining the footprint of Vanderbilt Athletics. Launched in 2021, Vandy United is an ambitious investment in the university’s student-athletes and athletics programs through major facility and operational enhancements. Read More

With Portland, Oregon, as his base, second-generation Vanderbilt alum Jacob Grier, BA'04, consults in the spirits industry and writes books on topics from tobacco policy to mixology. His latest book on cocktails is 'Raising the Bar: A Bottle-by-Bottle Guide to Mixing Up Masterful Cocktails at Home' (Chronicle Books, 2022) cowritten with Brett Adams, bartender and curator of the selection at the Multnomah Whiskey Library. Read More

Elizabeth “Betsy” Sanner Ayala, BA’99, is the executive in charge behind many popular TV shows across the Warner Bros. Discovery portfolio of networks. After joining HGTV in 2016 and advancing her career to head Food Network in 2022, she now oversees the creation, production and release of all Food Network programming and operations. Read More

Whether on a Zoom call with adults regaining their ability to enjoy music through assistive technology like cochlear implants, or working with preschoolers with no music experience at the Neighborhood Music School in Los Angeles, community music facilitator Chrysa Kovach, BMus'13, helps make music accessible for all. Read More

Two-time Olympian and Vanderbilt cross country and track and field alumna Lily Williams and Team USA took home a gold medal in the women’s track cycling team pursuit final at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Read More

James R. Sasser, BA’58, JD’61, was a three-term U.S. senator from Tennessee and ambassador to China. (Ann Rayner/Vanderbilt) James R. Sasser, BA’58, JD’61, a former three-term U.S. senator from Tennessee and ambassador to China, died Sept. 10 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He was a statesman who loved Tennessee… Read More

Nearly 4,200 parents, grandparents, siblings and friends convened on the Vanderbilt campus to celebrate Family Weekend 2024. This year’s event, Sept. 6–8, was one of the most successfully attended in recent memory, recording the highest attendance number in five years. Throughout the weekend, guests were invited to share coffee… Read More

K.C. Potter, JD’64, dean emeritus of residential and judicial affairs, died Aug. 26. Potter had an indelible impact on the life of the university and its students over more than three decades of service; he was 85 years old. Read More

What connects Vanderbilt to a crisp craft ale from one of Nashville’s premiere breweries? The vibrant vision and collaborative spirit of Vanderbilt alumna Bailey Spaulding. Read More

Nobel laureate and economist Muhammad Yunus, PhD’71, was recently chosen by President Mohammed Shahabuddin to lead an interim government in Bangladesh. Yunus returned to his native country on Thursday, Aug. 8, after weeks of student-led protests. Read More

Helen Iola McClellan Manoogian, nursing missionary to the Middle East and founder of a nursing school in Lebanon, died March 16, 2024, in Richmond, Virginia. She was 102. Read More

John Lachs, professor emeritus of philosophy and Centennial Professor Emeritus, died November 14, 2023, in Nashville. He was 89. Read More

The Honorable Richard H. Dinkins, JD'77, who served on the Tennessee Court of Appeals from 2008 until his retirement in 2022, died October 1, 2023, in Nashville. He was 71. Read More

The Vanderbilt Alumni Association is pleased to announce new and returning alumni leaders to its board for terms effective July 1. The Alumni Association’s mission is to engage Vanderbilt alumni in the life of the university, encourage lifelong connections and support the university’s goals. “Vanderbilt alumni are fundamental in shaping… Read More

Vanderbilt track and field graduate student Veronica Fraley and alumna Lily Williams are among the 592 athletes who will represent Team USA this summer at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris. Read More

For NCAA champion and US Olympic team member Veronica Fraley and track and field alumna Beatrice Juskeviciute and Brooke Overholt, competing for country means being part of a community without borders Read More

Tamara Baynham, BE'93, an active, long-standing alumni leader across the university, including leadership roles as president of the Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni, member of Vanderbilt Alumni Association Board and of the Engineering Board of Visitors, was inducted into the School of Engineering’s Academy of Distinguished Alumni in April. Read More

Amanda Headley Piper (Anne Rayner/Vanderbilt University) “If you want to make a difference in the world, meet a need,” Amanda Headley Piper’s grandmother once said, and Piper heeded those words of wisdom. She is the first pediatric audiologist from her twin-island home of Trinidad and Tobago, where… Read More

A college education at a residential campus means more than a degree earned through successful completion of coursework and class projects. Student life beyond the classroom also provides a formative experience, and that is especially true for Sherry Chen, BA’15, who has served as president of the local Vanderbilt Chapter in Phoenix since 2018, connecting the community of Commodore alumni and parents. Read More