Skip to Main Content

First Gen

Did you know these famous people were First Generation College Students?

Walt Disney

Walter Elias Disney was an American entrepreneur, animator, writer, voice actor, and film producer. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons

He attended Saturday courses at the Kansas City Art Institute and also took a correspondence course in cartooning. After moving to Chicago he continued his studies, taking night classes at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. 

Oprah Winfrey

January | 2018 | Tennessee State University Newsroom | Page 2

Oprah Gail Winfrey is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist.

At age 17, Oprah Winfrey won the Miss Black Tennessee beauty pageant and was offered an on-air job at WVOL, a radio station serving the African American community in Nashville. She also won a full scholarship to Tennessee State University, where she majored in speech communications and performing arts.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Ruth Bader Ginsburg - Wikipedia

Joan Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in September 2020.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg earned a Bachelor's of Art from Cornell University before becoming one of the few women in her class at Harvard Law. She later taught at Columbia Law School and is best known for becoming the second female Supreme Court justice she was also the first Jewish person to lie in state after her death in 2020. 

Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein 1879-1955 timeline | Timetoast timelines

Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory of relativity, but he also made important contributions to the development of the theory of quantum mechanics

In 1895, at the age of 16, Einstein took the entrance examinations for the Swiss Federal polytechnic school in Zürich.He failed to reach the required standard in the general part of the examination, but obtained exceptional grades in physics and mathematics. At 17, he enrolled in the four-year mathematics and physics teaching diploma program at the Federal polytechnic school. 

 

Who Am I?

Viola Davis is an American actress and producer. The recipient of an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Tony Awards, she is the youngest actor and the first African-American to achieve the "Triple Crown of Acting"

After graduating from high school, Davis studied at Rhode Island College, majoring in theater and participating in the National Student Exchange before graduating in 1988. Next, she attended the Juilliard School for four years, and was a member of the school's Drama Division "Group 22" (1989–93).