Norfolk State University Commencement to Witness Presence of Actress Sheryl Lee Ralph
Spotlight on Sheryl Lee Ralph: Emmy-Winning Actress Set to Grace Norfolk State University's Commencement Stage
Get ready, Norfolk State University! The one and only Sheryl Lee Ralph is heading your way for the Spring Commencement on May 10, 2025, at 9 a.m. Over 600 graduates are in for a real treat as this renowned actress takes center stage.
With a rather impressive 40-year career spanning Broadway, television, and movies, Sheryl Lee Ralph has won countless hearts as Barbra Howard, an esteemed educator on the award-winning show, Abbott Elementary, on ABC. Her exceptional performance earned her an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, one of three Emmys the series scooped during its debut season. Ralph continued her winning streak by bagging a Critics' Choice Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series as well.
Fans might remember Ralph's breakthrough role as Deena Jones in the original cast of Broadway's Dreamgirls, a performance that earned her nominations for a Drama Desk Award and a Tony. Fast forward to 2023, she made history on Broadway as Madame Morrible in Wicked, becoming the first African-American actress to take on that role. As a theater enthusiast, Ralph also produced the Broadway play, Thoughts of Colored Man.
Not just Hollywood royalty, Ralph is also a generous philanthropist. A fervent health advocate and AIDS activist, she founded the DIVA (Divinely Inspired, Victoriously Anointed) Foundation in memory of friends lost to HIV/AIDS. Previously scheduled to speak at Norfolk State's Fall Commencement in 2023, she had to withdraw due to a last-minute scheduling conflict, with comedienne and actress Loni Love taking her place instead.
Interestingly, she has collaborated with big-name celebrities such as Danny Glover, Eddie Murphy, Denzel Washington, and Robert De Niro. Ralph's film credits also include starring opposite Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act II. In 1990, she won the Independent Spirit Awards' Best Supporting Actress prize for her role in To Sleep with Anger.
While there's no official news about her making upcoming appearances at HBCUs in 2025, keep your eyes peeled for updates on her social media channels and official HBCU event calendars. In the meantime, catch her at the ESSENCE Festival of Culture, New Orleans, from June 30 to July 2, 2025, where she's scheduled for daytime programming. And, during the Atlanta Film Festival, April 29–May 4, 2025, Ralph appears in supporting roles for films featuring Morehouse and Howard alumni, although her presence doesn't involve a direct HBCU campus appearance.
- College football fans might be pleasantly surprised to find that renowned actress Sheryl Lee Ralph, best known for her role on Abbott Elementary, could make an appearance at HBCUs in 2025, as there's no official news but keeping eyes peeled is advised.
- Equally exciting, Sheryl Lee Ralph, the Emmy-winning actress, is set to grace the stage of Norfolk State University's Spring Commencement in 2025, where she plans to deliver a keynote focused on education-and-self-development and entertainment, a combination that her 40-year career and impressive list of awards and accolades have perfectly embodied.
- In the world of entertainment, Sheryl Lee Ralph is no stranger to collaborating with big-name celebrities, having worked with household names such as Danny Glover, Eddie Murphy, Denzel Washington, Robert De Niro, and even sharing the screen with Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act II.
- Beyond her successes in Hollywood, Sheryl Lee Ralph is also an advocate for health and a philanthropist, having founded the DIVA (Divinely Inspired, Victoriously Anointed) Foundation in memory of friends lost to HIV/AIDS—a testament to her multifaceted personality and why she is aptly referred to as a diva in every sense of the word.
