Our graduates are virtually in every industry imaginable, in every corner of the globe.
They are research scientists and doctors, captains of commerce and entrepreneurs, Peace Corps volunteers and educators, policy-makers and advocates, among others. They are found behind-the-scenes in American entertainment, on the concert stage, and in art galleries and museums in major international cities. They invent and discover, negotiate and persuade, advise and counsel. And following the mission of their alma mater—whether in their home communities or far afield—they are making strides toward the betterment of humanity.
Numerous Whittier College graduates have gone on to become leaders in their respective fields and industries, and we are honored to have them be part of our greater Poet family. To browse through a sampling of our notable alumni, please click on one of the following categories.
Erin Clancy '07 – Public Policy Manager, Strategic Response Policy Team, Meta Erin Clancy manages high-profile incidents that affect the business and reputational risk of Meta (formerly Facebook). Before joining Facebook, Erin advanced U.S. foreign policy as a career Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State for 15 years. Her diplomatic assignments included the U.S. Embassies in Syria, Jordan, Oman, the State Department’s Office of UN Political Affairs, special assistant to then Deputy Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, and the U.S. Mission to the United Nations in New York where she was the lead American negotiator in the UN Security Council on Syria and Burma. In 2019, Erin received the State Department’s highest award, the Distinguished Honor Award, for her role in negotiating the successful evacuation and repatriation of over 400 members of the Syrian Civil Defense (the White Helmets) out of Syria. She is currently a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a member of the Atlantic Council’s LGBTI fellowship. Outside of her work for the U.S. government, Erin has also advised democratic presidential campaigns on foreign policy and national security issues. She is a graduate of Whittier College and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
“I’m grateful every day for the world-class liberal arts education I received at Whittier College. Whittier equipped me to succeed in diplomacy by training me to be a compassionate life-long learner able to understand the interdisciplinary connections between the sciences, history, and languages across the human experience. My Whittier education is the bedrock of my success.”
Jascha Kaykas-Wolff '98 – President of Lytics A longtime marketer and author of Growing Up Fast, Jascha Kaykas-Wolff has also worked for Mozilla, Yahoo!, Microsoft, Webtrends, and BitTorrent. At Whittier, he majored in Psychology.
“When you’re in an environment fostered by a liberal arts school like Whittier, you are presented with the opportunity to uniquely craft the skill of constructing a great question—to help uncover something that is going to be a meaningful addition to your life—this skill is critical in fine tuning your overall ability to learn and is very unique to the way liberal arts schools are run.”
Napoleon Tavale '07 – Actor and Educator Theatre major Napoleon Tavale is pursuing his dream.
“I am a working actor out in Los Angeles. I just finished a co-starring role on the FX Emmy Award-winning show American Horror Story and a performance on the daytime Emmy Award-winning soap opera General Hospital. I am in the process of becoming a high school drama teacher in South Central Los Angeles. I am doing what I set out to do in Los Angeles 13 years ago. Whittier has done that for me.”
Jim Skipper '73 – Running Backs Coach, Carolina Panthers Currently the running backs coach for the National Football League’s Carolina Panthers, Jim Skipper has a combined 30 years professional experience coaching, including 17 seasons with teams in the USFL, XFL, and the NFL—specifically, the New York Giants, Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, and the Tennessee Titans.
Rene Islas '00 – CEO of Crescere Strategies Education is the family business for M. Rene Islas. His grandfather served as a distinguished teacher and principal in various schools in Nogales, Arizona. His aunts and uncles are teachers and administrators in Arizona public schools, and his wife Michele Islas '02 is a teacher with experience in early childhood education and behavioral therapy support for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Before his role with Crescere Strategies, Rene led the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) in its efforts to advocate for high-quality gifted and talented educatinon.
Liz Kay-Im '89 – Deputy Division Manager, Mission Systems & Operations Division at JPL Liz Kay-Im held a double B.A. in math-computer science and business administration. She worked at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratoryís (JPL) for 25 years, focused on developing new generation science data systems that are scalable and reusable across earth, planetary, and astrophysics missions. Her work reinforced and expanded JPL's core competencies in science data collection, processing, analysis, archiving, and distribution. She also worked on many missions, such as Mars Exploration Rovers, Mars Pathfinder, Cassini, Galileo, Mars Express, and Magellan. Liz was a proud Poet who passed away in April of 2024.
Linda Biehl '65 – co-founder of the Amy Biehl Foundation, South Africa The work of the Amy Biehl Foundation in Guguletu, South Africa, has had a direct impact on the lives of the people there, and serves as a lasting model for social action. In 2009, Linda Biehl was awarded South Africa's highest honor, for her exemplary work — the Order of Companion of O.R. Tambo, presented to her by President Thabo Mbeki. The President's office cited her "outstanding spirit of forgiveness in the wake of the murder of her daughter and contributing to the promotion of non-racism in post-apartheid South Africa."
