Howard University Notable Alumni

Discover the notable alumni of Howard University. The list includes people like Taraji P. Henson, Sean Combs, Chadwick Boseman, Thurgood Marshall & Phylicia Rashad. This list of notable alumni is loosely sorted by popularity and has people from different domains of life, such as writers, singers, musicians, intellectuals & academics and film & theater personalities etc.
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 1 
Thurgood Marshall
(Former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1967 - 1991))
Thurgood Marshall
31
Listed In: Lawyers & Judges
Birthdate: July 2, 1908
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Died: January 24, 1993
 2 
Chadwick Boseman
85
Birthdate: November 29, 1976
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Anderson, South Carolina, United States
Died: August 28, 2020
Height: 6'0" (183 cm)
 3 
Kamala Harris
(The First Female Vice President of the United States)
Kamala Harris
342
Listed In: Lawyers & Judges
Birthdate: October 20, 1964
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Oakland, California, United States
Height: 5'2" (157 cm)
 4 
Sean Combs
(Rapper and Record Producer Known for His Albums: ‘No Way Out’ , ‘Forever’ and ‘Press Play’)
Sean Combs
34
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: November 4, 1969
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Harlem, New York, United States
Height: 5'10" (178 cm)
 5 
Thomas Sowell
(Economist)
Thomas Sowell
26
Birthdate: June 30, 1930
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Gastonia, North Carolina
 6 
Toni Morrison
(Novelist)
Toni Morrison
42
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: February 18, 1931
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Lorain, Ohio
Died: August 5, 2019
 7 
Taraji P. Henson
67
Birthdate: September 11, 1970
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Washington, D.C., United States
Height: 5'5" (165 cm)
 8 
Nick Cannon
(TV Host, Actor and Rapper)
Nick Cannon
68
Birthdate: October 8, 1980
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: San Diego, California, United States
Height: 6'0" (183 cm)
 9 
Zora Neale Hurston
(Folklorist, Anthropologist)
Zora Neale Hurston
19
Birthdate: January 7, 1891
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Notasulga
Died: January 28, 1960
 10 
Phylicia Rashad
(Actress, Singer and Director Known for Her Role as ‘Clair Huxtable’ in the TV Sitcom ‘The Cosby Show’)
Phylicia Rashad
29
Birthdate: June 19, 1948
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Houston, Texas, United States
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
 11 
Ta-Nehisi Coates
(Author and Journalist Known for His Non-Fiction Books: ‘The Beautiful Struggle’ and ‘Between the World and Me’)
Ta-Nehisi Coates
8
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: September 30, 1975
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
 12 
Donny Hathaway
(Singer, Singer-songwriter, Conductor, Musician, Pianist, Record producer)
Donny Hathaway
14
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: October 1, 1945
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Chicago
Died: January 13, 1979
 13 
Debbie Allen
(Actress Best Known for Her Work in the Musical-Drama Television Series 'Fame')
Debbie Allen
16
Listed In: Dancers
Birthdate: January 16, 1950
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Houston, Texas, United States
Height: 5'2" (157 cm)
 14 
Isaiah Washington
(Actor & TV Personality Known for His Role as ‘Dr. Preston Burke’ in the TV Series ‘Grey's Anatomy’)
Isaiah Washington
21
Birthdate: August 3, 1963
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Houston, Texas, United States
Height: 6'1" (185 cm)
 15 
Roxie Roker
(Best Known for Her Role as ‘Helen Willis’ in the TV Series ‘The Jeffersons’)
Roxie Roker
15
Birthdate: August 28, 1929
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Miami, Florida, United States
Died: December 2, 1995
 16 
Roberta Flack
9
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: February 10, 1939
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Black Mountain, North Carolina, United States
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
 17 
Stokely Carmichael
(Key Leader of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States)
Stokely Carmichael
11
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: January 29, 1941
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
Died: November 15, 1998
 18 
La La Anthony
(Television personality)
La La Anthony
14
Birthdate: June 25, 1979
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York, USA
Height: 5'5" (165 cm)
 19 
Laz Alonso
(Best Known for His Role as ‘Tsu'tey’ in the Film ‘Avatar’)
Laz Alonso
4
Birthdate: March 25, 1974
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Washington, D.C., United States
Height: 6'0" (183 cm)
 20 
Vernon Jordan
(Lawyer)
Vernon Jordan
5
Listed In: Business People
Birthdate: August 15, 1935
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
 21 
Jessye Norman
(Legendary American Opera Singer and 5-Time Grammy Winner)
Jessye Norman
3
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: September 15, 1945
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Augusta, Georgia, United States
Died: September 30, 2019
Height: 6'1" (185 cm)
 22 
Lynn Whitfield
(Actress)
Lynn Whitfield
9
Birthdate: May 6, 1953
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
Height: 5'5" (165 cm)
 23 
Susan Kelechi Watson
(Actress)
Susan Kelechi Watson
3
Birthdate: November 11, 1981
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York (state) New York, United States U.S.
 24 
Tracie Thoms
(Actress)
Tracie Thoms
10
Birthdate: August 19, 1975
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Height: 5'5" (165 cm)
 25 
Tami Roman
(Television Personality)
Tami Roman
6
Listed In: Fashion
Birthdate: April 17, 1970
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Mount Vernon, New York
Height: 5'9" (175 cm)
 26 
Elijah Cummings
(Member of the U.S. House of Representatives From Maryland's 7th District)
Elijah Cummings
16
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: January 18, 1951
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Died: October 17, 2017
 27 
Omarosa Manigault
(Writers)
Omarosa Manigault
15
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: February 15, 1974
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Youngstown, Ohio, United States
Height: 5'10" (178 cm)
 28 
Carla Hall
(Chef who appeared in the fifth and eighth seasons of Top Chef, Bravo's cooking competition show)
Carla Hall
9
Listed In: Food Experts
Birthdate: May 12, 1964
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Height: 5'11" (180 cm)
 29 
Rachel Dolezal
(Controversial Activist Known for Presenting Herself as a Black Woman Despite Having Been Born to White Parents)
Rachel Dolezal
33
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: November 12, 1977
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Lincoln County, Montana, United States
 30 
Benjamin Nnamdi Azikiwe
(First President of Nigeria)
Benjamin Nnamdi Azikiwe
7
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: November 16, 1904
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Zungeru, Nigeria
Died: May 11, 1996
 31 
Amiri Baraka
(Writer)
Amiri Baraka
4
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: October 7, 1934
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Newark
Died: January 9, 2014
 32 
Isabel Wilkerson
(Journalist)
Isabel Wilkerson
2
Birthdate: 1961 AD
Birthplace: Washington, D.C., United States
 33 
Paula Jai Parker
(Actress)
Paula Jai Parker
6
Birthdate: August 19, 1969
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Height: 5'2" (157 cm)
 34 
Wendy Raquel Robinson
(Actress)
Wendy Raquel Robinson
4
Birthdate: July 25, 1967
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
 35 
Karen Malina White
(Actress)
Karen Malina White
6
Birthdate: July 7, 1965
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Height: 5'3" (160 cm)
 36 
Andrew Young Jr.
(55th Mayor of Atlanta (1982 - 1990))
Andrew Young Jr.
6
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: March 12, 1932
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
 37 
Meshell Ndegeocello
(German-born American Rapper, Singer-Songwriter, and Bassist)
Meshell Ndegeocello
5
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: August 29, 1968
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Berlin, Germany
 38 
George Washington Williams
(Soldier, Historian, Diplomat, Writer, Minister, Politician, Journalist)
George Washington Williams
2
Birthdate: October 16, 1849
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Bedford
Died: August 2, 1891
 39 
Crystal Waters
(Singer)
Crystal Waters
1
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: October 10, 1964
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Camden, New Jersey Camden, New Jersey, U.S.
 40 
Fredricka Whitfield
(Journalist)
Fredricka Whitfield
1
Birthdate: May 31, 1965
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Nairobi, Kenya
Height: 5'11" (180 cm)
 41 
Makur Maker
(South Sudanese-Australian Basketball Player Who Plays in the Center)
Makur Maker
0
Listed In: Sportspersons
Birthdate: November 4, 2000
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Nairobi, Kenya
Height: 6'11" (211 cm)
 42 
Ralph Bunche
(Political Scientist)
Ralph Bunche
2
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: August 7, 1904
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Detroit, Michigan, United States
Died: December 9, 1971
 43 
Edward Brooke
(Politician)
Edward Brooke
0
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: October 26, 1919
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Washington, D.C., United States U.S.
Died: January 3, 2015
 44 
Pep Hamilton
(Coach, American football player)
Pep Hamilton
1
Listed In: Sportspersons
Birthdate: September 19, 1974
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Charlotte, North Carolina, United States
 45 
Michael Hyatt
(She has played Brianna Barksdale on The Wire, Dr. Noelle Akopian on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend)
Michael Hyatt
1
Birthdate: February 17, 1970
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Birmingham, England
 46 
Kasim Reed
(59th Mayor of Atlanta)
Kasim Reed
0
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: June 10, 1969
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Plainfield, New Jersey, United States
 47 
Billy Eckstine
(Musician)
Billy Eckstine
2
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: July 8, 1914
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
Died: March 8, 1993
 48 
Ayesha Rascoe
(American Journalist)
Ayesha Rascoe
16
Birthdate: June 20, 1986
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Durham, North Carolina
 49 
Jeremiah Wright
(Theologian)
Jeremiah Wright
6
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: September 22, 1941
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Philadelphia
 50 
Rhadi Ferguson
(American Mixed Martial Artist)
Rhadi Ferguson
0
Listed In: Sportspersons
Birthdate: April 3, 1975
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Portland, Oregon, United States
Popularly known as HU or Howard, Howard University is essentially classified as a federally chartered, private research university and is home to various historical landmarks in Washington, D.C. With over 70 diverse undergraduate programs, Howard is ranked as a Tier 1 University. As per the 2015 Bloomberg Businessweek college rankings, HU is the only HBCU ranked in the top 75. With an enrollment of over 10,000 students, Howard covers over 120 fields of education that enrich the learning experience of every student. The University has academic programs in various verticals of education such as Engineering, Architecture, Health Sciences, Communication and Law, to name a few. What makes the university stand apart is its diversity in students, due to its nonsectarian approach to education. Howard University has produced four Rhodes Scholars, one Marshall Scholar, two Truman Scholars and twenty-two Fulbright scholars between 1986 and 2017. It has also been ranked as the top producer of African-American undergraduates (who later earn science and engineering doctoral degrees) by the National Science Foundation. Debbie Allen and Nnamdi Azikiwe are some of the notable alumni’s of HU, who have soared to great heights from different walks of life. The university is currently on the road to position itself as one of the top research universities in the United States of America. Here is a list of some of the distinguished achievers born out of Howard University.