Chris Larsen
Alumnus of the Year 2004

Chris Larsen, co-founder and CEO of the online lender E-LOAN, graduated from SFSU with a degree in International Business and Accounting in 1984. After such pursuits in Indonesia, Ecuador and Brazil as a financial auditor, Larson went on to co-establish E-LOAN in 1997, a rare successful Internet company that has sold $18.9 billion in consumer loans and remained profitable for the past eight quarters. Larsen is also an advocate of legislation to protect financial data. In 2001, Larson co-founded and funded with $1 million of his own money, Californians for Privacy Now, a coalition dedicated to protecting consumer privacy.

Christopher Boyes

When you are able to hear Leonardo DiCaprio shout "I'm king of the world!" over the sound of soaring violins, you have sound editor and engineer Christopher Boyes (B.A., Cinema, '85) to thank. He has worked on more than 40 major motion pictures and earned three Oscars during his nearly 20-year career. Boyes lives in Inverness in Marin County, where he often works with Lucas Films' Skywalker Sound.

Heather Fong

San Francisco native Heather Fong is the first female police chief in the city's history and the first Asian American woman in the country to preside over a large urban department. In 1988, after 11 years on the force and five years investigating child abuse for the juvenile division, Fong entered the master's of social work program at SFSU. Her degree changed the way she looked at abuse and family interventions, enabling her to see not just the police work but the "healing part" as well. Fong was named chief in April by Mayor Gavin Newsom after a national search.

Known as the first lady of children's music, Ella Jenkins' career spans more than four decades. With her devotion to cross-cultural understanding and respect, and her signature call and response style, Jenkins is as much an educator as she is an entertainer. Her most well known song, "You'll Sing a Song, And I'll Sing a Song," is the best-selling record in the history of her record label Smithsonian Folkways. She earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from SF State in 1951.

During his 50-year career, broadcaster Carter B. Smith has been on almost every radio and television station in the Bay Area. He started in broadcasting in 1954 at KBLF in Red Bluff, Calif. He can currently be heard from 3 to 7 p.m. weekdays on oldies station KABL (960AM). After earning his bachelor's degree in radio and television broadcasting at State in 1959, he went on to a career that included disc jockeying, news reporting and television hosting. He lives in Tiburon with his wife, Barbara.