The University of Maryland Eastern Shore will host Stacey Abrams as the keynote speaker for its annual Presidential Lecture Series on April 8 at 6:30 p.m., according to a March 11 announcement. The event will take place in the Student Services Center theater and is open to the public.
Abrams, known as an author, entrepreneur, and activist, has a long history of political engagement that began during her time as a high school student and continued through her years at Spelman College. Her early efforts included voter registration drives that encouraged classmates to participate in elections—a practice that later played a role in Georgia’s narrow win for Joe Biden in the 2020–2021 presidential election.
“Stacey Abrams has been working to ensure representation and voter rights since her days as an HBCU student,” said UMES President Heidi M. Anderson. “She has shown the power of people coming together to make a difference politically, and we look forward to the captivating discussion that she will bring to the UMES campus community.”
Abrams served for eleven years in the Georgia House of Representatives, including seven years as minority leader. She was also the first Black woman nominated by a major party for governor in U.S. history when she ran in Georgia in both 2018 and 2022. In addition, she held roles such as Ronald W. Walters Endowed Chair for Race and Black Politics at Howard University and senior counsel to Rewiring America, a nonprofit focused on climate change solutions. Abrams has co-founded several companies across different industries.
The Presidential Lecture Series was launched by Dr. Anderson in February 2025 with Dr. Michael Eric Dyson as its inaugural speaker, aiming to foster conversations about social justice and Black culture among students, faculty, and the broader community.
