Taraji P. Henson to Share HBCU Experience with Students, Community March 24

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Academy Award-nominated actress Taraji P. Henson will visit the Tennessee State University campus, Tuesday, March 24 to speak to students, faculty, staff and the community about the HBCU experience and how the HBCU journey shaped her life and prepared her for her future acting career.

Henson showed her love for the performing arts while still at a young age and tried unsuccessfully to apply to a performing arts high school. Instead she attended Oxon High School, graduating in 1988.

She spent her first year in college studying electrical engineering at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University. After failing pre-calculus, Henson transferred to Howard University, where she studied theater. At the same time, Henson was working two jobs—one as a secretary at the Pentagon and another as a cruise-ship entertainer. At Howard, she honed her singing, dancing and acting skills, proudly earning herself a “Triple Threat Scholarship.”

Henson is one of many celebrities who attended an HBCU who are now discussing the importance of Historically Black Universities and Colleges. Celebrities who have attended HBCUs include filmmaker Will Packer, who attended Florida A&M University, R&B singer Erykah Badu, who attended Grambling University, Hip-Hop performer Common, who attended Florida A&M, and Oprah Winfrey, who graduated from Tennessee State University.

Henson will address the student body and community in Kean Hall beginning at 1 p.m. followed by a master-level class in the Forum beginning at 2 p.m.