On Friday, the legendary actress Angela Bassett received an honorary doctorate from Old Dominion University in Virginia, People reports.
Bassett shared her excitement about the honor on her Instagram.
“Hey Everybody you good?” her post read. “I’m so happy and humbled to receive an honorary doctorate from @olddominionu today! Education is truly the KEY!” #stillmakingmymommaproud
In her speech to the 2022 graduating class, Bassett spoke about how being a part of Black Panther taught her about the power of royalty.
“Throughout your time at ODU, many of you have proudly looked at the monarch—a royal crown on a lion’s head—as a salute to your school’s rich history, strength, pride, fearlessness, royalty,” she said.
“And thanks to a little film called Black Panther, I think I know a little bit about royalty … well, fictional royalty at least," she said while the crowd laughed.
In addition to her most recent honorary doctorate, she was awarded an honorary doctorate from Morehouse College for her leadership as a Black artist in the entertainment industry.
Also, she received an honorary doctorate from her alma mater, Yale University, in 2018; and in 2020, she received the Yale Undergraduate Lifetime Achievement Award (YULAA) making her the first Black person to receive the prestigious honor.
Angela Bassett graduated from Yale University with a Bachelor of Arts in African American Studies in 1980; she graduated from Yale’s School of Drama in 1983 with a Master of Fine Arts.
Currently, Bassett is starring in the hit Fox drama 9-1-1.
