Rashad will deliver the baccalaureate address on May 28. The other honorees will also speak on campus Commencement weekend.
Environmental artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude topped headlines earlier this year for "The Gates" project in New York's Central Park.
Frank, a member of the Class of 1942 who left Brown before graduating, has become a campus celebrity for his $100 million donation for financial aid and $20 million gift for a new building, though he has not made a public appearance on campus since the donations were announced.
Well-known for her role as Clair Huxtable on "The Cosby Show," Rashad is also a talented stage actress - her performance in "A Raisin in the Sun" made her the first black woman to win a Tony for a dramatic leading role.
Eggers authored the 2001 Pultizer Prize finalist "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius," a memoir about raising his younger brother after their parents died of cancer within weeks of each other.
Huntress, the director of the Geophysical Laboratory at the Carnegie Institute of Washington, leads interdisciplinary research in geobiology and astrochemistry. He is a leading advocate for the scientific exploration of space.
King, a professor of medicine and genomic sciences at the University of Washington, is well-respected for discovering the first gene responsible for hereditary breast cancer. She continues to research the genetics of breast and ovarian cancer, hereditary deafness and autoimmune diseases.
Rhodes is the senior vice chairman of Citigroup and the chairman of Citicorp and Citibank. His expertise is in international business - he is responsible for fostering Citigroup's relationships with clients and governments throughout the world. He is also a trustee emeritus of the University and a member of the Board of Overseers of the Watson Institute for International Studies.
As chair of the Independent Afghanistan Human Rights Commission, Samar oversees the country's human rights and women's rights education programs and investigates human rights abuses. Previously she served as deputy prime minister and minister of women's affairs for Afghanistan's interim government - one of only two women to serve in the transitional cabinet.
Under the leadership of outgoing president Smith, Providence College has improved its academic reputation and increased enrollment in its liberal arts honors program. He has also overseen dramatic physical improvements at the school. Smith is retiring from his role June 30.
