Amelia Earhart (July 24, 1897-present) - First woman to fly across the Atlantic (1928). First woman to fly solo across the Atlantic (1932). First woman to fly solo across the Pacific (California to Hawaii) and many other records. Earhart was celebrated around the world for her daring feats. She disappeared in 1937 while trying to become the first woman to fly around the world.

Anna Langford (October 27, 1917-2008) - The first woman to serve on the Chicago City Council, Langford began her career as a typist for several state and federal agencies. Then in 1956, Langford graduated from the John Marshall Law School at Roosevelt University and began a new career as a civil rights lawyer. Langford was first elected to the city council in 1971 and served again from 1983-1991.

Barbara Bain (September 13, 1931-Present), born Millicent M. Fogel. As Barbara Bain she became the first actress to win 3 consecutive Emmy Awards. After graduating from the University of Illinois with a Bachelor's degree in Sociology, she moved to New York and worked as a fashion model. She studied dance with Martha Graham and acting with Lee Strasberg before heading to Los Angeles to star as Cinnamon Carter in the television series "Mission Impossible". In 1993 Barbara Bain founded BookPALS, a literacy program of the Screen Actors Guild Foundation, that brings professional actors into public schools to read aloud to students. The program currently operates in major cities such as Atlanta, Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.

Carole Simpson (December 7, 1940-present) - An Emmy Award winning journalist, Simpson is the former host of ABC's World News Tonight Sunday and host of numerous ABC news specials. Her list of awards includes the Joseph Medill Distinguished Journalism Award, Journalist of the Year in 1992 from the National Association of Black Journalists, and she was inducted into the Chicago Journalism Hall of Fame. Simpson serves on the board, and was a founding member of, the International Women's Media Foundation.

Constance A. Howard - B.S. in liberal arts and M.S. in corrections and criminal justice, Chicago State University; Democratic State Central Committeewoman, First District, since 1984; alternate delegate, Democratic National Convention, 1984 and 1988; married (husband, Phillip, Jr.), has one son and five grandchildren.

Creadel "Red" Jones (September 26, 1940-1994) - Jones was one of the founding members of the Chi-Lites, famous for hits like "Oh Girl" and "Have You Seen Her."

Dawn Turner Trice - Trice is a columnist for the Chicago Tribune. She is the moderator of the Tribune's online project, "Exploring Race," at www.chicagotribune.com/race. Trice has been a regular commentator for WTTW's "Chicago Tonight" show and has written commentary for National Public Radio's "Morning Edition" program. She is the author of two novels, Only Twice I've Wished for Heaven (Random House, 1997), which is being made into a movie, and An Eighth of August (Random House, 2000). She is the recipient of the 2008 Studs Terkel Media award, two Illinois Arts Council awards, an American Library Association Alex award and a 2006 National Endowment for the Arts fellowship. She lives outside Chicago with her husband of nearly 20 years---whom she met at Hyde Park Academy--- and their 14-year-old daughter.

Gwendolyn Brooks (June 7, 1917-2000) - In 1950 Brooks won the first Pulitzer Prize ever awarded to an African-American woman for her book of poetry Annie Allen. Brooks served as Poet Laureate of Illinois in 1968 and was awarded a special National Book Award in 1994.

Herb Kent (October 5, 1928-present) - An inductee of the Radio Hall of Fame, Herb Kent's influence on music and the radio business is indisputable. He is also beloved for his community activism and leadership. In recognition of his achievements and good works, Kent had a street named after him on Chicago's South Side and was named the Honorary Mayor of Bronzeville. He currently hosts a popular weekend show on V103 in Chicago and recently published a biography called, The Cool Gent: The Nine Lives of Radio Legend Herb Kent. Kent also has the distinction of being the longest running radio personality in the world.

Herbie Hancock (April 12, 1940 - Present) - Hancock has earned 10 Grammy Awards and an Oscar in his five decades as a professional musician and is recognized the world over as one of the most important musicians of our time.

Lavern Scott Caldwell (April 17, 1950-present) - Caldwell began her career in theatre, winning a Tony Award in 1988 for her role in Joe Turners Come and Gone. Caldwell also has extensive film and television credits, most recently on the ABC show Lost and the film Gridiron Gang.

Mel Torme (September 13, 1925-1999) - Torme was a prolific songwriter, performer and actor with over 250 songs to his credit and dozens of movie and television appearances. He co-wrote The Christmas Song, one of the most beloved Christmas songs of all time as recorded by Nat King Cole (who is also an alumnus of CPS).

Minnie Riperton (November 8, 1947-1979)- Riperton was best known for her song "Lovin' You", but she sang with the popular group, the Gems and alongside artists like Bo Diddley and Muddy Waters. Her promising solo career was cut short when she died at the age of 31. Her daughter, Maya Rudolph, made a name for herself on Saturday Night Live.

Mirron “Mike” Alexandroff (1923-2001) was born on Chicago’s south side. During his 30 year career as President of Columbia College of Chicago, he increased enrollment from 200 to 7,000 students. Among its thousands of graduates are several famous CPS alum including: Bob Sirott, Mary Mitchell, Shecky Greene and Pat Sajak. Mr. Alexandroff received the Sydney R. Yates Advocacy award, the Clarence Darrow award for leading service in cause of social justice, a Distinguished Urban Fellow award from the Association of Urban Universities and an Outstanding Contributor to Latin American TV award from the Mexico National Association of Broadcasters.

Paul A. Samuelson (1915 - 2009) - The first American to receive the Nobel Prize in economics (1970), Samuelson remains a giant in the field. A well known Keynesian economist, he was warded the John Bates Clark Award in 1947, for outstanding work by an economist under age forty and has been a pivotal figure in many fields including macroeconomics, welfare economics, Consumer theory, public finance theory, and international economics. Samuelson has a been a fixture at M.I.T. since 1940, and is a prolific writer most well known for his book Foundations of Economic Analysis and the influential text book Economics. Obituary (Obit) - NYTimes.com http://bit.ly/8prIEf

Ramonski Luv - Currently hosting the Real Show with CPS alum Joe Soto on V103, Luv is a twenty four year veteran of the Chicago radio scene. One boasts the distinction of having hosted Rap Down, the first show in Chicago to feature rap.

Sasha Daltonn. While working for the City of Chicago Ms. Daltonn organized the city’s first Gospel Festival. She also hosted the Sunday Gospel Brunch at the House of Blues and co-hosted the Spirit Express Morning Show with Richard Steele on WGRB. Currently Sasha Daltonn hosts Sasha Daltonn’s Gospel Hour, broadcast around the world on radio station WWCR and performs in “Sasha Sings Dinah” her one-woman tribute to fellow CPS alumus, Dinah Washington.

Seymour M. Hersh (April 4, 1937 - Present) - A Pulitzer Prize, five George Polk Awards, two National Magazine Awards, and dozens of other prizes honor one of America's most important journalists, Seymour Hersh. The Pulitzer came in 1969 after Hersh exposed the My Lai massacre and coverup during the Vietnam War. From 1972-1979, Hersh worked for the New York Times. Since then, Hersh has operated as a freelance writer, writing eight books and publishing articles in The New Yorker magazine. His most recent book, “Chain of Command,” about Abu Ghraib was on the New York Times best seller list and his articles about the tensions between the U.S. and Iran continue to break new ground.

Steve Allen (December 26, 1921-2000) - A prolific talent, 54 Books, 8500 songs, creator of The Tonight Show, The Steve Allen Show, and Meeting of the Minds, Steve Allen's influence on American culture is unrivaled. In recognition of his contributions and popularity Allen even has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame - one for television and the other for radio.

Virginia Marmaduke (June 21, 1908-2001) - Known as the Duchess, Marmaduke was a pioneer in the world of journalism. She was the first woman on the Chicago Sun's editorial staff, the first woman in Chicago with a sports byline, one of Chicago's first female crime reporters, and the first woman named Press Veteran of the Year by the Chicago Press Veterans Association. Over the course of her career, Marmaduke moved from the Chicago Sun to the Sun-Times, to the Chicago Tribune - where she eventually hosted a radio and television show.

Walter A. Netsch Jr. (February 23, 1920-2008) - Awarded the 25 Year prize from the American Institute of Architects for his highly regarded Air Force Academy chapel, Netsch studied at MIT before eventually joining the renowned offices of Skidmore Owings and Merrill. His Inland Steel building was the first sky scraper built in Chicago after the depression and is widely regarded for its use of steel as part of the aesthetic. Netsch's work was not without controversy, in particular his work for UIC created a firestorm. Netsch is also well known to Chicagoan's for his foray into politics, serving as Chicago Park District's board president under Harold Washington.

Walter Eckersall (June 17, 1886 - March 24, 1930) Eckersall led Hyde Park High School to a National Championship in 1903. He also set the IL record for the 100 yard dash at 10 seconds, a record which stood for 25 years. Heavily recruited by colleges, Eckersall attended the University of Chicago and led them to a Championship with a legendary win over undefeated University of Michigan. The final score was 2-0. After college, Eckersall remained a football icon as a ref and sports writer for the Chicago Tribune. Knute Rockne was especially fond of Eckersall.