English: Actress Jeri Ryan on stage at the 2010 Las Vegas Star Trek Convention in Nevada. Jeri Ryan first gained public prominence by being chosen as the winner of the 1989 Miss Illinois state beauty pageant. She graduated from Northwestern University in 1990 with a BA degree in Theatre. Ryan then pursued employment as an actress in Los Angeles and enjoyed her biggest career break when she was chosen to play the role of Seven of Nine, a de-assimilated Borg drone who had been freed from the Borg's collective consciousness, in 1997 in the science fiction TV series Star Trek: Voyager. In 2001, Ryan won the prestigious Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television in her role on Star Trek Voyager. Since the end of Voyager, she has acted in Boston Public and in several other TV roles. She is today the mother of two children.