Sheryl Lee Ralph

Henry Louis Gates Jr. is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University. Emmy and Peabody Award-winning filmmaker, literary scholar, journalist, cultural critic, and institution builder, Professor Gates has published numerous books and produced and hosted an array of documentary films. The Black Church (PBS) and Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches (HBO), which he executive produced, have each received Emmy nominations. His latest history series for PBS is Making Black America: Through the Grapevine. Finding Your Roots, Gates’s groundbreaking genealogy and genetics series, is now in its ninth season on PBS.

Gates is a recipient of a number of honorary degrees, including his alma mater, the University of Cambridge. Gates was a member of the first class awarded “genius grants” by the MacArthur Foundation in 1981, and in 1998 he became the first African-American scholar to be awarded the National Humanities Medal.

A native of Piedmont, West Virginia, Gates earned his B.A. in History, summa cum laude, from Yale University in 1973, and his M.A. and Ph.D. in English Literature from Clare College at Cambridge in 1979, where he is also an Honorary Fellow.  He is the co-founder of The Root.com.  A former chair of the Pulitzer Prize board, he is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and serves on a wide array of boards, including the New York Public Library, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the Aspen Institute, the Whitney Museum of American Art, Library of America, and The Studio Museum of Harlem. In 2011, his portrait, by Yuqi Wang, was hung in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. He is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society.

Sheryl Lee Ralph has become a staple in the entertainment industry and for her acclaimed career spanning more than four decades, she recently received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ralph can currently be seen starring in the hit ABC/Warner Bros. Television comedy series Abbott Elementary, which will return for its fifth season in October. For her portrayal of “Barbara Howard,” Abbott’s veteran teacher on the series, she won the 2022 Emmy Award for Outstanding Actress in a Comey Series, as well as the Critics’ Choice Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. In 2023, 2024 and 2025 Ralph received her second, third and fourth Emmy nominations for this role.

At 20-years old, Sheryl Lee Ralph made her feature film debut opposite Academy Award winner Sidney Poitier in Warner Bros.  A Piece of the Action, which Poitier also directed. Following this breakout performance, she went on to work with more of Hollywood’s other top leading and award-winning men in films including: The Mighty Quinn opposite Denzel Washington, Mistress with Robert de Niro, To Sleep with Anger with Danny Glover, and The Distinguished Gentlemen" with Eddie Murphy. Ralph won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in To Sleep with Anger. She also appeared opposite Whoopi Goldberg and Lauryn Hill in Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. Up next, she will be seen in the independent feature Ricky, from filmmaker Rashad Frett, which is premiering at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.

Ralph first made a name for herself on television starring alongside Grammy Award winner Brandy in over 100 episodes of UPN’s Moesha. She received five NAACP Image Award nominations for her work on the series. Ralph also had a lead role opposite Tia Mowry in three seasons of Nickelodeon’s hit series “Instant Mom.” Her other television credits include recurring roles on Showtime’s “Ray Donovan” opposite Jon Voight, Freeform’s “Motherland: Fort Salem” as the President of the United States “President Kelly Wade,” “Claws,” “Barbershop” “One Mississippi” created by Diablo Cody and Tig Notaro, CBS’ Emmy nominated “Designing Women,” “New Attitude,” and “It’s a Living.”

On stage, Ralph is well known for her award-winning work and creating the role of “Deena Jones” in the legendary Broadway musical “Dreamgirls,” which earned her Best Actress nods for Tony and Drama Desk Awards. In 2002, She originated the role of Muzzy Van Hossmer in “Thoroughly Modern Millie” alongside Sutton Foster. The show won six Tony Awards and five Drama Desk Awards, including the winning for Best Musical at both. Ralph most recently appeared as Madame Morrible in “Wicked,” becoming the first African American actress to take on the classic role.

TICKETS AND SEATING

Tickets are not required. Seats will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

DIRECTIONS

Driving directions to LMU are available. Please use the main LMU entrance at Lincoln and LMU Drive. PDF Campus Map | Interactive Campus Map 

PARKING

Please enter campus via Lincoln Boulevard. Parking will be available in Drollinger Parking Plaza and Lot-A, Hannon Parking Lot. We recommend arriving at least 30 minutes before the start of the presentation to allow time for parking and locating the event. 

Please note that LMU charges visitors to park. Pay kiosks are located in each lot. You will need your license plate number to register your vehicle at the kiosk. Parking and rate information is available.