2020 Commencement Speaker
Sandra Evers-ManlyVice President, Global Corporate Responsibility
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Sandra Evers-Manly was a junior in college when she took a summer internship position
with Northrop Grumman more than two decades ago. She rose through the ranks to become
the company’s Vice President of Ethics and Diversity, and then advanced to her current
position as Vice President, Global Corporate Responsibility. Evers-Manly is also president
of the Northrop Grumman Foundation, which she was instrumental in founding. The Foundation
is committed to promoting STEM-related initiatives. A strong advocate for STEM education,
she has received the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Gene Washington Champion
Award for promoting diversity in STEM as well as the prestigious Chairman’s Award
from Hispanic Engineers National Achievement Awards Conference (HENAAC).
Evers-Manly comes from a civil rights family and is a cousin of slain civil-rights
activist Medgar Evers and is a longtime advocate of diversity and inclusion in education,
the workplace, and everyday life. Evers-Manly is a past president of the Beverly Hills/Hollywood
chapter of the NAACP and a member of the Defense Industry Initiative on Business Ethics
and Conduct Working Group.
In 1991, she founded the Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center (BHERC), a
nonprofit dedicated to advocating, educating, researching, developing, and preserving
the history and future of black images in film and TV, while also supporting the early
work of student filmmakers who have gone on to become blockbuster directors. The organization
has helped to supply more than $4 million in film equipment and scholarships to date.
Evers-Manly has been executive producer of several films, including Last Breeze of
Summer, nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short. She has also been
honored for her
leadership by organizations, including the March of Dimes, the Anti-Defamation League,
the City of Los Angeles, and the Los Angeles Brotherhood Crusade to name a few. In
October 2018, she
released her first children’s book, Raised Up by Mrs. Manly and Her L’s, from which
all proceeds go to charitable organizations.
Evers-Manly is a graduate of the University of Southern California with a bachelor’s
degree in public administration and, in 2019, received the USC Alumni Association’s
Outstanding Alumni
Merit Award.
Past Speakers
View Past Commencement Speakers to read about past speakers at SMC's commencement ceremonies.