Lionel Richie announced several plans to donate services and materials to his alma mater, Tuskegee University, during the school’s 125th Annual Commencement Exercises held last Sunday (May 9).
The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter, who graduated from Tuskegee in 1974 with a bachelor’s degree in business, addressed the more than 500 graduates, plus thousands of their families and other spectators via a live interactive satellite broadcast on a massive high-definition TV screen that served as the backdrop for the ceremony. The presentation showcased the university’s new capabilities, made possible by Richie and other supporters.
“I want to bring this technology to Tuskegee in an expanded form, making it a virtual learning facility as well as an expanded brick and mortar reality,” he told students. “Students everywhere can learn first-hand from instructors here and from around the world. We need to bring more of this exciting University—Tuskegee— to the world and more of the world to Tuskegee.”
Richie also announced plans to make Tuskegee’s Lionel Richie Museum the “final destination” for all of his memorabilia and artifacts. The school is also building the Lionel Richie Center for Communications and the Performing Arts to be built on campus.
