Award-winning actress Tracee Ellis Ross is set to receive an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Spelman College during HBCU’s commencement ceremony.
“I’m excited to join the Spelman sisterhood,” Ross posted on her Instagram. “What a wonderful honor.”
Ross’s impressive career has spanned over three decades as she has made quite the name for herself outside of being the daughter of legendary singer Diana Ross.
She is known for her lead role on the comedy television series ABC’s “Black-ish” and UPN’s “Girlfriends.” Ross has earned a Golden Globe Award and nine NAACP Image Awards for her work on “Black-ish.”
In addition to her credentials as an actress, Ross is also the CEO and Founder of Pattern Beauty, which focuses on healthy hair and “encourages each hair texture to take up as much space as it desires,” as the brand is designed to support people with curlier hair textures
Ross also served as the executive producer and narrator of “Hair Tales,” a docuseries that explores the relationship between Black women’s identities and their hair.
Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones will join Ross at the commencement to deliver the keynote address and will also receive a Doctor of Humane Letters. Hannah-Jones is the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project and a staff writer at the New York Times Magazine.
Spelman’s commencement ceremony will take place on Sunday, May 21 at 3 p.m. at the Georgia International Center in College Park.
