Parker Whitfield, daughter of actress Salli Richardson-Whitfield and actor Dondre Whitfield, sat next to Bronny James during the Aug. 8 Team USA win over Serbia. 

Whitfield currently attends Spelman College, an HBCU located in Atlanta, Georgia. She started school last fall.

“And just like that our baby is off to college. Wasn’t I just changing her diapers last week. Time has gone by way too fast. I know she’s ready but I’m going to miss my baby. @alldondre we did good my love,” Salli wrote in an Instagram caption last year.

The pair also took in the Aug. 6 game between Team USA and Team Brazil. Team USA went on to win the gold medal after tightly contested games against Serbia and France on Thursday and Saturday. 

Whitfield hails from Los Angeles. Bronny’s father, LeBron James, has played in Los Angeles for over half a decade. The pair’s appearances have fueled rumors of a romance.

The first college offer for Bronny James came from North Carolina Central back in 2020, with one from rival North Carolina A&T to soon follow. James ultimately spent one season in college at USC before entering the 2024 NBA Draft. He was selected in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft by the Lakers.

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Ludacris posted two photos of himself and his daughter along with family members to his Instagram account on Monday with the following caption.

“Make Sure You Add “SUMMA CUM LAUDE” When You Speak About MINES @karma.christine HONORS #prouddaddy“

The photos currently have over 342K likes.

Bridges was a film studies student at Spelman according to her LinkedIn profile. She describes herself as a producer, actress, women’s advocate and entrepreneur. She says she aspires to work as a creative producer to showcase diverse stories and bring new voices to the screen.

Ludacris of course is no stranger to the big screen. A generation has grown up with him playing the role of ‘Tej Parker’ in the Fast & Furious film series ever since 2003. As a rapper he’s put out nine studio albums, including ‘Release Therapy’ which won a Grammy for Best Rap Album in 2007. He’s also won a Grammy for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

He also created the Netflix animated series ‘Karmas World’ which follows the character Karma Grant, who is an aspiring rapper who wants to change the world with her music. The series was inspired by his daughter, the newly minted Spelman alum.

The aspiring actress has appeared in the feature length film ‘Lost Nation’ and the short film ‘Colt 45.’

Ludacris wasn’t the only star in attendance for Sunday’s commencement at Spelman. This year’s address was delivered by actress Angela Bassett.

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ATLANTA  Spelman College announced Thursday that actress, director and executive producer Angela Bassett will be the keynote speaker for the College’s 137^th Commencement Ceremony and will receive a Doctor of Fine Arts honorary degree. The College will also award an honorary degree — Doctor of Laws — to trailblazing Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, as well as a National Community Service Award to highly acclaimed Atlanta journalist Rose Scott during Commencement at3 p.m., Sunday, May 19, at the Georgia International Convention Center (GICC). The renowned social justice minister Reverend Dr. Yvette Flunder will address graduates during the Baccalaureate Ceremony at 10 a.m., Saturday, May 18, also at the GICC.

Bassett, an Honorary Oscar recipient, is known for captivating performances in iconic films, such as Malcolm X, Waiting to Exhale, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Black Panther, Mission Impossible: Fallout and What’s Love Got to Do With It, for which she received an Academy Award nomination. Bassett returned as the beloved Queen Ramonda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and received Golden Globe, Critics Choice, and NAACP Image Entertainer of the Year awards with Academy Award, SAG and BAFTA nominations, as well as the Variety Creative Impact in Acting Award. She is also the star and executive producer of the ABC/Disney hit drama 9-1-1, the recently released Netflix Originals blockbuster feature film Damsel and is narrator of the critically acclaimed NatGeo limited series Queens.

Bassett was named one of the Time 100 and Time Women of the Year in 2023, has earned multiple EMMY nominations and is the recipient of numerous awards, including a SAG Award, 16 NAACP Image Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, the Black Girls Rock! Icon Award and many more.

“Spelman College is honored to have acclaimed actress and director Angela Bassett to bring words of inspiration to our graduating Class of 2024,” said Spelman College President Helene D. Gayle, M.D., MPH.  “Her work has had a tremendous impact both on and off the screen and serves as an example for our students to lead in their own spaces. We are equally honored to have a slate of strong Black women join us for our weekend ceremonies, including Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, Atlanta community icon Rose Scott and the esteemed Reverend Dr. Yvette Flunder. We look forward to them inspiring our graduates, their families and the Spelman community.”

The Class of 2024 includes 504 degree candidates, receiving 325 Bachelor of Arts and 179 Bachelor of Science degrees.

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The donation is from businesswoman and philanthropist Ronda Stryker and her husband, William Johnston, Chairman of Greenleaf Trust.

Stryker has been a Spelman College Trustee since 1997. She has worked for decades to empower women through higher education and advance opportunities for additional marginalized groups.

The $100 million comes as Spelman College marks 100 years since its official naming in 1924. The gift is an important first step on Spelman’s path to becoming need-blind, helping to attract the best and brightest students by eliminating potential barriers to admission.

$75 million of the $100 million will go to endowed scholarships for future students, helping Spelman College continue to attract the best and brightest students, while working to remove any financial barriers that prevent qualified students from enrolling at Spelman. The remaining $25 million will be used to develop an academic focus on public policy and democracy, improve student housing and provide flexible funding to meet critical strategic needs.

“We are invigorated and inspired by this incredible act of generosity,” said Dr. Helene Gayle, president of Spelman College. “This gift is a critical step in our school’s mission to eliminate financial barriers to starting and finishing a Spelman education. We can’t thank Ronda Stryker enough for her selflessness and support as both a trustee and friend. There’s no doubt that Spelman College is better because of her.”

Students are now celebrating the generosity of Stryker and Johnston at a ceremony commemorating the gift.

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