Tulane University has announced that Emmy Award-winning actress Sheryl Lee Ralph will serve as the keynote speaker for the undergraduate commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at 6 p.m. at Caesars Superdome. Ralph has been an actress and entertainment icon for more than 40 years. She curr ently portrays a teacher on the hit ABC series, “Abbott Elementary.” The Tulane University commencement ceremony returns to the Caesars Superdome for the first time since 2019, before the COVID pandemic. The commencement is known for being one of the nation’s most festive and unique graduation exercises, featuring all the academic pageantry of a traditional university graduation paired with New Orleans flavor and flair, including live jazz, herald trumpets, confetti cannons, a second-line procession, and more. And now add an Emmy award-winning actress to this year’s lineup. Sheryl Lee Ralph “Sheryl Lee Ralph epitomizes the spirit of Tulane as a standout student committed to excellence throughout her multi-disciplined career, as well as in her tireless service to others,” said Tulane University President Michael A. Fitts. “From Broadway to film to television, Sheryl has done it all, creating characters that transcend the cultural moment to offer deeper insights into the human experience.” A Waterbury, Connecticut native, Ralph was one of the first women admitted to Rutgers College, and at the age of 19, she became the youngest woman to graduate from Rutgers University. The daughter of a college professor and Jamaican fashion designer, Ralph was raised between Jamaica and Long Island. Ralph broke into acting in 1977, starring alongside Sidney Poitier in the film, A Piece of the Action. Following that role, Ralph appeared in films and TV with the likes of Denzel Washington, Robert De Niro, Danny Glover, Eddie Murphy, and Whoopi Goldberg. Her first major award came in 1990 when Ralph won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actress in To Sleep with Anger. Continuing in the film industry, most recently in 2024, Ralph starred in The Fabulous Four alongside Susan Sarandon, Bette Midler, and Megan Mullaly. Currently, Ralph is well known for her portrayal of veteran teacher Barbara Howard on “Abbott Elementary.” In 2022, she won the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, along with Critics’ Choice and Independent Spirit awards. She received second and third Emmy nominations in 2023 and 2024 for the same role, and the TV show has garnered numerous other accolades, including AFI Awards, Critics’ Choice Awards, Golden Globes, NAACP Image Awards, SAG Awards, and a Peabody Award. Ralph also received five NAACP Image Award nominations for UPN’s “Moesha,” starring in more than 100 episodes. In 1990, Ralph founded The DIVA Foundation as a memorial and life-long pledge to the many friends that she had lost to HIV/AIDS. The organization’s signature fundraising event, Divas Simply Singing! Raising Health Awareness is the longest consecutively running HIV/AIDS and Health Awareness benefit concert in the U.S. For this advocacy, Ralph was appointed as an AIDS Ambassador for Jamacia’s Ministry of Health and recently received the prestigious Honorary Order of Jamaica for her contribution as an actress and cultural ambassador of Jamaica. ...read more read less