It’s back-to-school season, and college students will soon be filing into downtown as San Jose State University kicks off its fall semester next week.

As inspiration for a great school year, we’ll be sharing the stories of notable Spartans who once graced the halls of our beloved university.

🎓 Mary Blair, Class of 1931

Known for her animation work in Disney's "Cinderella," "Alice in Wonderland," and "Peter Pan," Mary attended San Jose State College as a fine arts student. Her work made strides in the local community — earning praise in the San Jose Mercury Herald + a scholarship to the Chouinard School of Art in LA.

🎓 Dian Fossey, Class of 1954

This famed primatologist was once a sorority member of Kappa Alpha Theta at SJSU + graduated with an occupational therapy degree. In 1966, she left her hospital work behind to embark on an extensive study of mountain gorillas until her death in 1985.

🎓 Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Class of 1957

Before he became the first Native American US Senator in 1993, he studied physical education + fine arts at SJSU. While at school, he trained under Olympic coach Yoshihiro Uchida, and was captain of the first US Olympic judo team in 1964.

🎓 Dick Vermeil, Class of 1958

Before becoming the second Spartan to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Dick joined the SJSU football team in 1956 + later graduated with both a bachelor's and master's degree in physical education. He has coached in two Super Bowls, and won Super Bowl XXXIV with the Rams.

🎓 Jerome "Jerry" Juhl, Class of 1961

While studying for his theater arts degree at SJSU, Jerry worked on a few children's television shows before being hired by Jim Henson upon graduating. Because puppeteering was not his primary focus, Jerry went on to become the head writer for "The Muppet Show," as well as a co-writer for several Muppet movies.

🎓 Robert Janoff, Class of 1970

After graduating with an industrial design degree, this artist worked at an advertising agency in Palo Alto where he was tasked to design a logo for a little-known company called Apple Computer. His logo is now one of the most iconic pieces of branding in the world.

🎓 Amy Tan, Class of 1973

Though her mother wanted her to become a doctor, Amy Tan switched from pre-med to English + linguistics at SJSU. She went on to write the critically-acclaimed novel “The Joy Luck Club” — a staple in high school and university courses to this day.

🎓 Lloyd “Bud” Winter

Though not a graduate of SJSU, this Hall of Famer spent 39 years coaching Spartans in track and field 1941-1970. There, he produced 102 All-Americans, 27 of whom went on to become Olympians — including Tommie Smith and John Carlos.

🎓 Jan Koum

While taking classes at SJSU, the WhatsApp co-founder + CEO began working for Yahoo! where met his soon-to-be business partner, Brian Acton. Though Jan didn't graduate from SJSU, he went on with Brian to create the world's largest mobile messaging app in 2009 — now worth nearly $100 billion.

There are so many notable Spartans who deserve recognition — give them a shoutout.