Taraji P. Henson (B.F.A.’95) is being honored for her work in the field of entertainment. Henson's career began with appearances on “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “ER.” She was later cast in major supporting roles in the movies “Baby Boy” in 2001 and “Hustle & Flow” in 2004. Henson later moved to major roles in the movies “Smokin' Aces” and “Talk to Me.”

Henson was nominated in 2009 for Best Supporting Actress by the Screen Actors Guild and the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for her role in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” Henson recently played the mother of the lead character in the blockbuster remake of “Karate Kid.” She received a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Howard.

Weldon H. Latham (B.A.’68) is being honored for his work in the field of law. He is a senior partner in the Washington, D.C., regional office of Jackson Lewis LLP and the chair of the firm’s Corporate Diversity Counseling Group. He represents Fortune 200 companies, government agencies and other organizations in a variety of legal matters, including corporate diversity counseling, employment law and government relations.

He is an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center. Latham holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Howard University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Mark A. L. Mason (B.A.’91) is being honored for his work in the field of business. Mason is the chief operating officer for Citi Holdings, which comprises Citi’s Brokerage and Asset Management, Global Consumer Finance and Special Assets Portfolios. Since Mason joined Citi in 2001, he has served as the chief financial officer for Citi Holdings, chief financial officer and head of strategy and mergers and acquisitions for Citigroup’s Global Wealth Management Division, chief of staff to Citigroup’s chairman and chief executive officer, chief financial officer and chief operating officer for Citigroup Real Estate Investments and vice president of Corporate Development at Citigroup.

He received a bachelor’s of Business and Administration in finance from Howard University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School in 1995.

JoAnn H. Price (B.A.’71) is being honored also for her work in the field of business. Price is a co-founder and a managing partner at Fairview Capital Partners, Inc., one of the nation’s largest African-American private equity firms. Prior to co-founding Fairview, Price served as president of the National Association of Investment Companies in Washington, D.C.

She serves on a number of national advisory committees and private equity advisory boards, including the Howard University Board of Visitors and the YMCA of Greater Hartford Board of Directors in Hartford, Conn. She is also the vice chair of the Apollo Theater Foundation in New York City and the chairperson of the Amistad Center for Art & Culture in Hartford, Conn.

Dr. Lydia W. Thomas (B.S.’65) is being honored for her work in the fields of science and engineering. Thomas is former president and chief executive officer of Noblis, nonprofit science, technology and strategy organization.  She is currently a member of the Noblis Board of Trustees and vice chair of the Board of Trustees and chair of the Committee on Academic Affairs for The George Washington University. At Noblis, she was responsible for general management and direction of the company’s overall technical, financial and administrative activities.  

She was selected by her peers in 2003 as the “Black Engineer of the Year.” She is a member of American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the American Society of Toxicology, the National Defense Industrial Association, the Teratology Society and the International Women’s Forum.  Thomas holds a Ph.D. in Cytology and a bachelor’s of science degree in Zoology from Howard and a master’s of science degree in Microbiology from American University.

Dr. A. Eugene Washington (B.S.’72) is being honored for his work in the field of medical education. Washington, an internationally-renowned clinical investigator and health policy scholar whose research has been instrumental in shaping national health policy and practice guidelines, is vice chancellor of UCLA Health Sciences and dean of the David Geffen School of Medicine.

A 1976 graduate of the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine, Washington completed graduate studies at the University of California Berkeley and Harvard Schools of Public Health and residency training at Stanford University and received a bachelor’s of science degree from Howard. He worked for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before joining the faculty at UCSF, where he co-founded the Medical Effectiveness Research Center for Diverse Populations. He also co-founded the UCSF-Stanford Evidence-based Practice Center and from 1996 to 2004, chaired the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences.

Washington has been awarded the Outstanding Service Medal from the U.S. Public Health Service and elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, where he serves on the governing council.