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DELAWARE, Ohio – The keynote speaker at Ohio Wesleyan University's 2025 Melvin Van Peebles Symposium is an accomplished actress, trailblazing activist, entrepreneur, creator, producer, director, and one of the country's boldest, most daring, and powerful voices on race, gender equity, and leadership.
Erika Alexander – known for roles including Maxine Shaw on TV's "Living Single," Detective Latoya on "Get Out," and Cousin Pam on "The Cosby Show" – will speak during a moderated discussion March 29 at the university's second biennial Van Peebles Symposium, named in memory of the 1953 OWU graduate and groundbreaking Black filmmaker. The symposium will be held March 28-30, 2025, on Ohio Wesleyan's Delaware campus and explore the theme of "Disruption!! Signal Fires, Reckoning, and Jubilee Through Black Art."
In addition to her success in television, Alexander is known for her work in film, including "American Fiction," winner of the 2023 People's Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film tells the story of a novelist who, fed up with the establishment profiting from Black entertainment, uses a pen name to write a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain. The movie earned five Academy Award, Critics' Choice, and Independent Spirit award nominations.
Alexander also is a co-founder of Color Farm Media, which develops and produces scripted and unscripted content for film, television, streaming, and podcast platforms. Through the production company, she is "on a mission to bring greater equity, inclusion, and diverse representation to both media and electoral politics." Color Farm's projects include 2020's "John Lewis: Good Trouble," a documentary film about the legendary congressman and civil rights icon distributed by Magnolia Pictures, Participant Media, and CNN Films.
As part of the symposium, Ohio Wesleyan will host a free public screening of "American Fiction" on March 28 on the OWU campus and simultaneously on the campus of South Carolina-based Claflin University, a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) and Ohio Wesleyan's sister school.
The 2025 Van Peebles Symposium will include ticketed sessions, as well as free events such as the film screening. Tickets are available now at owu.edu/VanPeebles, with early purchase pricing available through Feb. 28, 2025. Ticket prices are:
The deadline to submit proposals to present academic and artistic works at the symposium is Nov. 30, 2024. Learn more, apply to present, or purchase symposium tickets, at owu.edu/VanPeebles.
The event is being planned by representatives of Ohio Wesleyan's Department of Africana, Gender, and Identity Studies; Department of Journalism and Communication; Department of Performing Arts; and Office of the Chief Diversity Officer in collaboration with a committee that includes representatives of Claflin University and the professional arts and education communities.
Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation's premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more than 70 undergraduate majors and competes in 24 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through its signature experience, the OWU Connection, Ohio Wesleyan teaches students to understand issues from multiple academic perspectives, volunteer in service to others, build a diverse and global perspective, and translate classroom knowledge into real-world experience through internships, research, and other hands-on learning. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book "Colleges That Change Lives" and included on the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review "Best Colleges" lists. Connect with OWU expert interview sources at owu.edu/experts or learn more at owu.edu.