Featured Alumni

Art Education Alum and Faculty Member Named 2025 Museum Educator of the Year

November 7, 2024

Meghan Collins, an MSU alum with a BFA in Art Education who is now the Museum Educator for K-12 and Family Programs at the MSU Broad Art Museum and an Assistant Professor of Art Education in MSU's Department of Art, Art History, and Design, has been selected by the Michigan Art Education Association (MAEA) as the 2025 Museum Educator of…

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From Government to Google to Microsoft: MSU Alum Shares Her Spartan Success Story

July 23, 2024

Since graduating from Michigan State University in 2006 with a B.A. in Spanish, Lauyren Haight has earned a Juris Doctor degree and has led federal and global corporate investigations at the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI, and Google. Much of her work has focused on civil rights and sexual harassment investigations. Currently, she works for Microsoft in Washington, D.C., as a Corporate Counsel and Employee Relations Investigator.

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Michigan Art Educator of the Year Began Career at MSU

June 27, 2024

Nathan Kukla, who graduated from Michigan State University with a BFA in Art Education and an M.A. in Teaching and Curriculum, recently was recognized at the national convention for the National Art Education Association as the Michigan Art Educator of the Year, an honor bestowed upon him by the Michigan Art Education Association in recognition of his outstanding 26-year career,…

A picture of a man in a black vest and blue shirt sitting in front of a computer.

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Theatre Alum and 20-Year Artist for ‘The Simpsons’ Chosen as Commencement Speaker for the College

April 24, 2024

Few television shows have left as indelible a mark on popular culture as The Simpsons, which is the longest running animated series, longest running sitcom, and longest scripted primetime series in the history of American television.Behind the scenes of this critically acclaimed series is a team of talented writers, artists, and animators who bring Springfield's vibrant characters to life. Among…

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Theatre Alum Continues to Create Sensory-Friendly Productions as Artist-in-Residence in Georgia

March 13, 2024

Since early childhood, Evan Hill Phillips has always enjoyed the spotlight as he craved an outlet to create, entertain, and perform. At Michigan State University, the BFA in Theatre graduate discovered a whole new and innovative theatrical approach, one that is designed for audiences that are neurodiverse.With an older brother who is neurodiverse and a first-hand knowledge of the industry’s…

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Black Art Library at MSU Union Art Gallery Through March 8

February 16, 2024

The Black Art Library, founded by Michigan State University BFA in Art Education graduate Asmaa Walton, is now on display and can be experienced at the MSU Union Art Gallery through Friday, March 8.A collection of books and other art history ephemera on Black visual art, Walton, who is an arts educator, created the Black Art Library to serve as…

Alumni / Featured Alumni / Michigan Impact / U.S. Impact

Graphic Design Graduate Competes for Miss America

January 9, 2024

Maya Schuhknecht, a Spring 2023 Michigan State University graduate with a BFA in Graphic Design and the reigning Miss Michigan, is competing this week for the title of Miss America 2024. The 2024 Miss America Competition is taking place Jan. 6-14 in Orlando, Florida, where 51 contestants are vying for the title of Miss America 2024 along with more than…

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Legacy Gift Creates Two Scholarships to Support College of Arts & Letters Students

December 8, 2023

Alaine Weiss credits her time as an undergraduate at Michigan State University as one of the most impactful experiences in her life and her years in East Lansing among her most treasured memories. But the road to becoming a Spartan was difficult, having lost both her parents due to extended illnesses when she was just 11 years old. Were it…

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College of Arts & Letters Graduate Receives Distinguished Alumni Award

December 4, 2023

Randolph (Randy) Cowen, a graduate of Michigan State University’s College of Arts & Letters, College of Social Science, and Honors College, is a 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, which is among the highest awards the university bestows on its alumni.Each year, the MSU Alumni Office recognizes Spartans who positively reflect and enhance the prestige of Michigan State University with its…

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MSU Graduate Co-Founds Multimillion-Dollar Company Fueled by Goat Milk and Kindness

June 13, 2023

Michigan State University graduate Josh Kilmer-Purcell is a New York Times bestselling author who, together with husband, Dr. Brent Ridge, founded a multimillion-dollar skin care company, starred in their own reality TV show, and won season 21 of The Amazing Race — and those are just a few of the couple’s many accomplishments in what can be described as an…