Acclaimed actress and Howard alum Phylicia Rashad will retire from her position as Dean of the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts at Howard after the 2023-2024 school year, Andscape reports.
According to the outlet, Howard president Wayne A. Frederick delivered the news via email on Monday.
“We deeply appreciate Dean Rashad’s selfless contributions and commitment to our alma mater during her leadership of the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts and the many contributions she has made to Howard University’s students, graduates, and global community,” Frederick reportedly said in the email.
Among those contributions, Frederick noted that “Dean Rashad has also bolstered our esteemed faculty with the appointment of nationally and internationally recognized scholars, artists, and creatives to serve as department chairs, mentors, teachers, and role models for our students.”
During her tenure, she was also the inaugural Toni Morrison Endowed Chair in Arts and Humanities.
Beyond her iconic role as Clair Huxtable on The Cosby Show, Rashad is a veteran stage actress and director, winning a Tony Award for Best Actress in a play for her potrayal of Lena Younger in the Broadway revival of “A Raisin In The Sun.”
Rashad, who notably celebrated her mother’s 100th birthday alongside her sister Debbie Allen, served in the position since 2021.