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Fox Broadcasting Company (Fox) and Paramount Television announced that film, television and stage actress and singer Keke Palmer (True Jackson, VP, Masters of Sex) will be joining the cast of Grease: Live as the sassy Pink Lady "Marty Maraschino." Palmer will star alongside Julianne Hough (as "Sandy") and Vanessa Hudgens (as "Rizzo"). In addition, Broadway writers Robert Cary (Anything But Love, Ira & Abby) and Jonathan Tolins (Buyer & Cellar, The Last Sunday in June) will write the LIVE television adaptation airing on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016 from 7:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed on Fox. Palmer began her career with a breakout role in the film Akeelah and The Bee. She later went on to star as the title character in the hit cable sitcom True Jackson, VP, for which she received four NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Program. Palmer most recently made Broadway history as the first African-American and youngest actress to star in Rodgers and Hammerstein's iconic 1957 musical, Cinderella. Other film credits include box office mega-hit Ice Age: Continental Drift, Joyful Noise, Brotherly Love and Imperial Dreams. Her television credits include A Trip to Bountiful, for which she earned an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special; cable miniseries Full Circle; made-for-TV movie CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story; and a six-episode arc on the second season of Masters of Sex. Palmer is set to star as "Zayday Williams" in FOX's comedy-horror series Scream Queens this fall.

In the first-ever university scholarship at UCLA created by and named for a television series, The Big Bang Theory and the Chuck Lorre Family Foundation have established The Big Bang Theory Scholarship Endowment, to support undergraduate students in need of financial aid who are pursuing their higher education in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at UCLA. With an initial donation from the Chuck Lorre Family Foundation combined with gifts from nearly 50 individuals associated with The Big Bang Theory - including series stars Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar, Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch; executive producers Bill Prady, Steven Molaro; and crew - plus partners such as Warner Bros. Television and CBS, as well as contributions from other industry leaders, The Big Bang Theory Scholarship and Endowment has raised more than $4 million to date.

Twenty (20) Big Bang Theory scholars will be selected for the 2015-16 academic year to receive financial assistance, with an additional five scholars to be added in each future academic year - in perpetuity. The Big Bang Theory Scholarships will be awarded based on financial need to low-income students who have earned admission to UCLA based on academic merit but need additional support to bridge the gap between typical levels of financial aid and the cost of attendance. The inaugural group of scholars will be announced in fall 2015 on the set of The Big Bang Theory. Joining the scholars will be the show's stars, producers, representatives from UCLA and select benefactors. In addition to centering many of its episodes in the worlds of science and technology, The Big Bang Theory enjoys a healthy appreciation and support from the scientific community at large. And the show's connection to UCLA extends beyond the scholarship fund: Series star Mayim Bialik earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA, while professor of physics and astronomy David Saltzberg, Ph.D., serves as the show's science consultant.