It’s nearing graduation season and Clark Atlanta University is tapping into the Hillman legacy as Debbie Allen prepares to deliver the university’s commencement speech this year.
The multi-time Emmy Award winner and a doctorate recipient (Howard University, Yale University and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts) will address graduating students on May 18. In a post shared on the school’s official Instagram account, CAU championed Allen’s work as a high example of “discipline, creativity, and unapologetic excellence.”
The commencement speech for CAU is not the first time Allen has been asked to address graduates. She was the commencement speaker for NCSA in 1992, Emerson College in 2013, and Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business in 2022, to name a few.
The ceremonies at Clark Atlanta won’t be the only commencement for Allen and her family. Her older sister, Phylicia Rashad, is set to deliver the commencement speech at Oakwood University‘s graduation ceremonies on May 8 in Alabama.
For Allen, her time in Atlanta has been fruitful. Last month, Netflix announced that the sequel series to beloved sitcom “A Different World” had began filming in Atlanta. The dancer and entertainer served as a producer and director on the original series after its first season, transforming it into one of the greatest cultural landmarks of HBCU life. This time around, she’s directing three episodes of the new series, including the pilot.
“There couldn’t be a better time than now to reboot ‘A Different World,’” Allen told Tudum, Netflix’s media magazine dedicated to all things on the platform. “Our show changed lives, tripled the enrollment of historically black colleges and gave a strong voice and platform for Young Black America. The incredible fresh young talent we have discovered paired with the lovable audience favorite OGs makes this much-anticipated return a must-see on Netflix.”
Now set to impart wisdom on CAU students with her commencement speech, the “Fame” and “Grey’s Anatomy” star is killing two birds with one stone, all in one of the meccas for HBCU culture.
