Robin Roberts to Headline Simmons University’s Gwen Ifill Forum

Boston, Mass. (November 1, 2021) – Simmons University announced today that the Gwen Ifill College of Media, Arts, and Humanities will host the Annual Ifill Forum on Saturday, November 6, 2021. The virtual event, which takes place from 3 to 4:30 p.m., is free and open to the public. Registration is required.

The annual Ifill Forum carries on the legacy of trailblazing journalist and Simmons Alumna Gwen Ifill by bringing together important national voices for a public conversation on key issues of the day.

This year’s theme is “Truth, Resilience, and Democracy,” and the panel discussion features Robin Roberts, the versatile co-anchor of the nation’s top-rated morning news program Good Morning America. Also serving on the panel is Kevin Merida, Executive Editor of the Los Angeles Times and a member of the 2020-2021 Dean's Advisory Council of the Ifill College. Simmons University student Kate Farrell will also participate on the panel, while Simmons University Associate Professor Traci Griffith, a former correspondent and national editor for the Associated Press, will serve as moderator.

“The Ifill Forum pays tribute to Gwen Ifill by asking difficult questions and engaging in national conversations around justice and democracy,” said Brian Norman, Dean of the Simmons University Gwen Ifill College of Media, Arts, and Humanities. “Her legacy continues to inspire us to educate the next generation of leaders, storytellers, and trailblazers, and we look forward to this important discussion.”

During the Forum, Michele Norris, contributing columnist for The Washington Post opinion page, will present the 2021 Gwen Ifill Next Generation Award to Roberts. The award recognizes the work of a leader who embodies Gwen Ifill’s legacy by making an impact in their field through professional excellence and mentoring. With more than 30 years of experience as a producer, reporter, and radio and television anchor, Roberts’ career exemplifies the spirit of the Next Generation award. Her many accolades include the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism and induction into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame, Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame, and Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.

About the Gwen Ifill College of Media, Arts, and Humanities

As a pioneering Black woman journalist, Gwen Ifill '77 '93HD broke through barriers of prejudice and stands as a model of professional excellence and a purposeful life. The Ifill College aims to carry on that legacy for the next generations, and it is one of only three colleges in the nation named after a Black woman – joining Florida’s Bethune Cookman (established in 1904) and the University of Georgia’s Mary Frances College (established in 2020).

About Simmons University

Located in the heart of Boston, Simmons is a respected private university offering more than 50 majors and programs for undergraduate women and graduate programs open to all on campus, in blended formats, or entirely online in nursing and health sciences, liberal arts, business, communications, social work, public health, and library and information science. Founded in 1899, Simmons has established a model of higher education that other colleges and universities are only recently beginning to adapt: the combination of education for leadership in high-demand professional fields with the intellectual foundation of the liberal arts. The result is a Simmons graduate prepared not only to work, but to lead in professional, civic, and personal life — a vision of empowerment that Simmons calls preparation for life’s work. Follow Simmons on Twitter at @SimmonsUniv, and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/school/simmons-university/.

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