By Emmanuel Freeman
Hollywood superstar and multiple-award winning actress Nia Long will be the featured guest at this year’s Tennessee State University Women of Legend and Merit Awards on Tuesday, April 11. The annual awards ceremony recognizes the outstanding accomplishments of women in the community.
This year’s honorees, in various categories, are Dr. Cherae M. Farmer-Dixon, Dean of School of Dentistry at Meharry Medical College – Medicine; Dr. LaDonna Boyd, President/CEO R.H. Boyd – Media; Dr. Laquita Stribling, Vice President, Tennessee Manufacturing and logistics – Business; Patricia Malone Smith, Director of Corporate Relations, Urban League of Middle Tennessee – Community Service; Janet Rachel, President, National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc., Metropolitan Nashville Chapter – Leadership; Laura Fitzgerald Cooper, Attorney and Freelance Writer – Education; and Jennifer Bell, Associate Athletic Director, Tennessee State University – Athletics.
Long will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of her body of work.
A single mother of two sons, who is noted for many movie and television roles, Long has lit up the big screen in numerous films, including The Best Man Holiday, Friday, Made in America, Momma’s House, and Boyz n the Hood. She also stared in Third Watch, for which she won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series. An earlier notable role includes Long’s portrayal of Will Smith’s girlfriend and fiancée Beulah “Lisa” Wilkes on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. In 2022, Long starred in the Peacock miniseries The Best Man: Final Chapter, reprising her role from the previous film.
