Guiding Light - NEWS ROOM

Guiding Light fans will recognize her best as Kat Speakes, but Nia Long is getting a different kind of recognition this month. The actress is being honored at the 2009 Salute to Hollywood & the Arts. The Caribbean Heritage Organization (CHO) and the Institute of Caribbean Studies will be paying tribute to her on June 21 as part of National Caribbean-American Heritage Month.

Long is the daughter of immigrants from Trinidad and Tobago and has made a name for herself with her versatile work in films and television. She first caught the attention of audiences with her performance as Kat Speakes from 1991-1994 before going on to play Will Smith's girlfriend Lisa Wilkes on "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air." Since then, she has also appeared in movies like "Boyz N the Hood," "Friday," and "Big Momma's House."

This isn't the actress' first award either. She also picked up an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series in 2004 for her work on "Third Watch." She is currently cast in a new series called, "The Cleveland Show," a spin-off of the hit animated series, "Family Guy."

Soaps.com sends Nia our congratulations and wish her all the best.