Star of CBS's "CSI: NY" and New York Times' bestselling author Hill Harper will speak at 7:30 p.m. today in UD's RecPlex as part of the Diversity Lecture Series.

Harper's speech will be based on three main themes: fear, courage and the idea that each individual designs the course and outcome of his or her own life.

"My soul mission with whatever I do is to uplift, inspire, empower and entertain," Harper said. "The hope is that everyone will get something different out of what I speak about, and whoever attends, something will resonate personally within them."

Much of Harper's inspiration comes from his own personal struggles.

"Acting is an interesting journey because an actor experiences a great deal of rejection, and people see them in one role on screen, but people don't see all the rejection they've gone through before that," Harper said.

Harper currently plays the character Dr. Sheldon Hawkes on "CSI: NY." He has also done work on the Fox TV show series "Married with Children."

In addition to acting, Harper has written advice books for teens titled "Letters to a Young Brother: MANifest Your Destiny" and "Letters to a Young Sister: DeFINE Your Destiny," which are both New York Times bestsellers. He recently published "The Conversation: How Black Men and Women can Build Loving, Trusting Relationships."

"I travel and speak to a lot of students across the country, and many ask questions that start to fit certain themes, and I wanted to write books that answered those questions," Harper said.

Harper has found other ways to send his message and assistance to young people as well. He is founder of MANifest Your Destiny, a foundation geared to empowering, encouraging and inspiring underserved males and females to succeed.

"There's many individuals out there that have goals and dreams but don't necessarily have the resources," Harper said. "We give scholarship money, as well as put on a summer empowerment academy for people entering the ninth grade whose parents didn't necessarily go to college ... they get one college credit for attending."

Lynnette Heard, executive director of the president's office, said she hopes that Harper will instill his drive and incentive for success in his audience.

"His journey as an African-American man is one filled with success," Heard said. "We look to him to provide motivation, encouragement and inspiration to all who will fill the RecPlex on Friday evening."

UD's Diversity Lecture Series is part of the university's plan to increase campus diversity and educate the UD community in order to aid its success in 21st century society.

"His [Harper's] youthful and energetic presence along with his ability to effectively communicate with young professionals and teens made him the ideal choice for our series," Heard said.