Alabama State University announced this week that Orlando Jones, known for his dynamic presence across television, film and digital media, is the keynote speaker for ASU\u2019s 2026 Founders\u2019 Day Ceremony, a celebration honoring the University\u2019s rich history and vision.<\/p>\n
Founders\u2019 Day activities begin at 9 a.m. on February 6 with a bell-ringing ceremony in front of the Levi Watkins Learning Center. The Founders\u2019 Day program will follow at 10 a.m. in the Dunn-Oliver Acadome.<\/p>\n
ASU released the following statement recognizing Jones as the keynote speaker:<\/p>\n
With more than 30 years of groundbreaking work behind him, Jones has helped to shape entertainment in ways few others have. From his unforgettable role as the African god Anansi in Starz\u2019s \u201cAmerican Gods\u201d\u00a0to memorable performances in shows like \u201cAbbott Elementary\u201d\u00a0and \u201cSwagger,\u201d his talent shines in diverse arenas. Beyond acting, Jones helped redefine comedy as a founding cast member of \u201cMAD TV\u201d\u00a0and grew into a creative force with voice roles in animation and gaming, including \u201cKing of the Hill\u201d\u00a0and \u201cHalo 2.\u201d His behind-the-scenes influence as a writer and producer has helped craft some of television\u2019s most enduring stories.<\/p>\n
Jones\u2019s journey \u2014 from pioneering cable programming with the FX Network to leading digital productions like the 88th Academy Awards broadcast \u2014 reflects the spirit of determination and change celebrated by Alabama State University\u2019s founders.<\/p>\n
Alabama State University was founded on July 18, 1867, in Marion, Alabama. Founders\u2019 Day commemorates the founders and original trustees of the institution, which includes: Alexander H. Curtis, James Childs, Nicholas Dale, John Freeman, David Harris, Thomas Lee, Nathan Levert, Joey \u00a0P. Pinch and Thomas Speed, also known as the Marion Nine, a group of formerly enslaved men.<\/p>\n
Founders\u2019 Day is traditionally held on or near former ASU President William Burns Paterson\u2019s birthday in honor of his being recognized as the \u201carchitect\u201d of the modern Alabama State University and because he was instrumental in the institution\u2019s move from Marion to Montgomery in 1887.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Alabama State University announced this week that Orlando Jones, known for his dynamic presence across television, film and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":142380,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[68494,68496,139,141,62944,140],"class_list":["post-142379","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-alabama-state-university","tag-founders-day","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-jones","tag-orlando-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142379","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142379"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142379\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142379"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142379"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142379"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}