This is the second entry in the Class of 2024 series.
Robin Givens said she didn’t get enough sleep the night before the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff’s 169th commencement Saturday, fighting off nervousness through the morning when her mother called her and told her “I’m proud of you.”
The longtime actress shared the same sentiments with the spring class of 2024 inside the Pine Bluff Convention Center arena, where 261 received degrees.
“This really is such a beginning for you,” Givens, 59, said. “My name is Robin Givens, and I am an actor. People always say, it is who you are and what you do that defines you, but in this pivotal moment of success in your lives, college graduates, I want tell you something that I’ve heard, that it’s within the evolution of who you become — who you will become — that will define you.”
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Givens has been recognizable name on the big and little screens, from her days playing Darlene Merriman in the 1986-91 sitcom “Head of the Class” to a role opposite Eddie Murphy in the 1992 film “Boomerang” and behind the camera as a director and advocate for women’s rights. In recent years, she’s made recurring appearances on the CW’s “Riverdale” and took on the lead in OWN’s “Ambitions.”
But on the day before Mother’s Day, Givens played the role of keynote speaker, reminding graduates so much has happened for Black women in a short period of time.
“My own grandmother has such an ever-enduring place in my heart,” she said. “She had the courage to leave a very small town and get on a train with two young girls, not knowing what the future will hold. But she always believed that education would be the great equalizing factor in America.”
Givens, who graduated from New York state’s Sarah Lawrence College at age 19, recalled her mother believing she wouldn’t see a Black president in her lifetime. Not only has Barack Obama served two terms in the White House, but current Vice President Kamala Harris, a graduate of Howard University, offered a video message of congratulations to the UAPB grads.
Among those who crossed the stage were band and vocal musicians, student-athletes, newly commissioned second lieutenants and even a mother of three — two who have graduated college — earning her master’s degree in computer science and technology.
“It was one of those things where I needed a little more for my job,” Trammell Howell said. “With things changing in my field, we were afforded an opportunity to take those classes. I’m not looking to go anywhere but to be better prepared for what’s coming down the pipe in our technology field.”
Howell, an information technology manager at UAPB, said the university is going to a new system called Workday, and she and like employees needed to become better prepared with its programming languages. She took advantage of a grant she said was written by professor and graduate coordinator Karl Walker to pursue the master’s degree.
“With everything going to the cloud, we were able to do cloud-based studies,” Howell said. “We could see changes coming, and we see the university needed to make more changes. This was a great opportunity to jump in, work on my master’s and pursue different projects to help our university move to the forefront.”
Five graduates, Kaylin Akbar, Christopher Blunt Jr., Jaleiha Byrd, Antoinette Cunning and Tawyne King were commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army and honored in a pinning ceremony during commencement.
The highest-ranking students in each division of UAPB received a Chancellor’s Medallion: Jordan Robinson in the School of Agriculture, Fisheries and Human Sciences; J’Mya Smith in the School of Arts and Sciences; Niesha Sims in the School of Business and Management; Layla Stouder in the School of Education and LaKeisha Franks in the University College. Student Government Association President Trent Wills and Senior Class President Zaria Moore, both of whom offered student reflections, also received medallions.
Givens reminded the graduates of the sacrifices it took for them to get to graduation, adding a generation that gives meaning to sacrifice was being celebrated.
“Determination, bravery, resilience, that’s all in our DNA, surely,” she said. “We would not be here if we did not have these character traits. … God has given us a powerful faith in free will. With God’s grace, we must make bold but careful decisions. I know it’s taken a lot of work to get here today, so please, going forward, please make decisions with the same amount of respect and vigilance it took you to become graduates.”
The Pine Bluff Convention Center arena is filled for UAPB’s spring graduation Saturday, May 11, 2024. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
Actress Robin Givens explains shaking off nervousness before her keynote address. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
The highest-ranking students in each division and leaders of the UAPB Student Government Association receive Chancellor’s Medallions. From left: Jordan Robinson, School of Agriculture, Fisheries and Human Sciences; J’Mya Smith, School of Arts and Sciences; Niesha Sims, School of Business and Management; Layla Stouder, School of Education; Chancellor Laurence B. Alexander; LaKeisha Franks, University College; Student Government Association President Trent Wills; Senior Class President Zaria Moore; and Registrar Aretha Lacefield. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
The spring 2024 graduating class at UAPB numbered 261. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
A graduate sports a traditional Hawaiian lei and another lei made of cash. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
Tawyne King, overcome with emotion, receives a kiss from a family member before being commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
According to her mortar board, “Barbz” is “like 2,024%” done with her college studies. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
The UAPB concert band gets the crowd into the graduation mood. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
Christopher Blunt Jr. is pinned by a family member before being commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
A student notifies the public he, indeed, has graduated from UAPB. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
The message on this graduate’s mortar board is from Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
This UAPB graduates honors a higher power with a rosy disposition. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
A graduate acknowledges the crowd during the procession. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
The Rev. Danita Waller-Paige, pastor of St. James United Methodist Church, delivers the invocation. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)
Some graduates took a moment to record their procession into the arena floor. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)