Alpha Kappa Alpha Inducts Tony-Nominated Actress and Director LaTanya Richardson Jackson as an Honorary Member

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated has inducted acclaimed actress and director LaTanya Richardson Jackson as an Honorary Member. The induction took place during the sorority’s 72nd Boule in Las Vegas.

LaTanya Jackson is a three-time Tony Award-nominated actress, director, and producer whose decades-spanning career features bravura work across theater, film, and television. Her acclaimed stage performances include classics such as A Raisin in the Sun and the reigning Pulitzer Prize winner Purpose.

With the 2022 production of The Piano Lesson, Jackson made history as the first woman to direct an August Wilson play on Broadway. She is currently directing the Geffen Playhouse’s production of Angry, Raucous, and Shamelessly Gorgeous, by award-winning playwright Pearl Cleage, which opened in June 2026. She will return to the Geffen onstage in Fall 2026 for the Los Angeles premiere of Purpose, reuniting her with the original Broadway cast and director Phylicia Rashad.

A commanding screen presence, Jackson has been directed by legendary filmmakers including Spike Lee, Mike Nichols, and Sidney Lumet, among many others. Her lifelong dedication to civic engagement, philanthropy, and arts education continues around the world and notably at her alma mater, Spelman College, where she recently opened the LaTanya Richardson Jackson and Samuel L. Jackson Performing Arts Center.

In recognition of her career achievements, she was honored with the Audra McDonald Legacy Award at the 4th Annual Black Women on Broadway Awards in 2025 and was named one of ESSENCE magazine’s 2026 Black Women in Hollywood distinguished honorees. Jackson is the proud mother of Emmy winner Zoe Dove Jackson and is married to actor Samuel L. Jackson.

Jackson was inducted as part of Alpha Kappa Alpha’s 2026 Honorary Member Class, alongside Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett-Helaire, Merline Saintil, Salli Richardson Whitfield, Pauletta Washington, and Robin Washington.

The induction came as more than 25,000 members of Alpha Kappa Alpha converged on Las Vegas for the sorority’s 72nd Boule, its international meeting, held July 18 through July 24, 2026, at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Convention Center. Under this year’s theme, “Soaring Together: Celebrating Our Impact on Service & Sisterhood,” the sorority anticipated as many as 27,000 members from around the world for a week of community service, leadership and educational sessions, business meetings, and celebrations of the organization’s history, all under the leadership of International President and CEO Danette Anthony Reed.

We at Watch The Yard would like to congratulate LaTanya Richardson Jackson on her induction as an Honorary Member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.

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