Sheryl Lee Ralph, the Jamaican-American Emmy-winning actress known for her role as Barbara Howard on the hit sitcom Abbott Elementary, is set to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The ceremony will take place on Wednesday, January 29, celebrating Ralph’s decades-long career in entertainment.
“I am deeply grateful to announce the honor of receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,” Ralph, 68, wrote Sunday on X. “What a celebration of love, perseverance, and the unwavering support of family, friends and fans. Thank you! This star shines for us all!”
Born in Waterbury, Connecticut, Ralph is the daughter of Jamaican fashion designer Ivy Ralph, creator of the iconic kariba suit, and college professor Stanley Ralph.
Raised between Mandeville, Jamaica, and Long Island, Ralph began her career in the 1970s, appearing in Sidney Poitier’s A Piece of the Action and popular TV shows like Good Times and The Jeffersons.
Ralph then landed a role in the Broadway production Reggae (1980), before portraying Deena Jones in the original Broadway musical Dreamgirls (1981). For her performance in Dreamgirls, Ralph was nominated in 1982 for a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
She had a string of roles in films and TV series, including playing Florence Watson, the mother of Rita Louise Watson (Lauryn Hill) in the 1993 film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. Her role as Dee Mitchell on Moesha (1996–2001) earned her five nominations for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
In 2021, Ralph joined the new hit sitcom Abbott Elementary, portraying veteran elementary school teacher Barbara Howard. For her role, Ralph won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2022, becoming the second Black actress to win in the category after Jackée Harry, who won in 1987 for 227, and the Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2023.
In October 2022, Ralph was presented with the Order of Jamaica by the governor-general for her contribution to the national film industry.
Ralph was married to French businessman Eric Maurice from 1990 to 2001, and they have two children, a son born in 1991 and a daughter in 1994. She has been married to Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Hughes since 2005.
Ralph maintains connection to Jamaica
Ralph has maintained her connection to Jamaica, visiting the island often with her children Etienne and Ivy-Victoria (aka Coco), posting about the island regularly on social media, and mentioning her connection to the island in interviews.
In 2021, Ralph made a donation of tablets to children in Manchester. She donated 15 tablets to the Chantilly Primary School in the parish through her charity, the DIVA Foundation, and WALKGOODLA – a movement founded by her son, Etienne.
Ralph said that her commitment to improving the well-being of the children in Manchester is fueled by her late mother, Ivy Ralph, who was a native of Chantilly.
Sheryl Lee Ralph has said that her mother’s dying wish was for her children to never forget where they came from, in rural Jamaica.
Her son’s wedding in 2024 took place in Jamaica.
