Colman Domingo will deliver Temple University’s commencement speech next May
The West Philly born actor, who studied journalism at Temple before dropping out to pursue acting, will also receive an honorary degree.
Emmy Award-winning actor and self-confessed dandy Colman Domingo will deliver the commencement address at Temple University this spring, the university announced Thursday.
Domingo, a native of West Philadelphia, will also receive an honorary degree during the ceremony that will be held at the school’s Liacouras Center on May 6, 2026. Domingo went to Overbrook High School before coming to Temple University in the late 1980s to study journalism.
It was at Temple that Domingo developed a love for theater after a teacher told him he had a special gift. In 1991, with only 50 credits to go, he dropped out and moved to California to pursue a career in acting.
Domingo said returning to Temple for the university’s commencement ceremony will be a full circle moment for him.
“I am beyond grateful and humbled to receive an honorary doctorate from Temple University,” he said in a statement. “As a journalism student who struggled with the balance of working two jobs … this degree is very meaningful to me.”
Domingo stars in the action movie The Running Man, in theaters now. He received consecutive nominations for the Academy Award for best actor in 2023 and 2024 and this year he was one of the co-chairs for the Met Gala, celebrating the opening of The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s groundbreaking fashion exhibit, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style."
Domingo was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in 2024.
Past commencement address speakers and honorary award recipients at Temple include fellow West Philadelphian Quinta Brunson, Bishop Desmond Tutu, and North Philly native basketball coach Dawn Staley, among others.